In my dreams alone...

Chapter V. Enter ME and AGATHA; Start Scene

[ring]

AGATHA: Hello, who is it?

ME: It's me. I'm just calling to ask how you are, and whether you need help or anything.

AGATHA: Oh, it's fine, it's fine. I am doing well, thank you.

ME: Oh, in that case that is fine. Anyways, how are you holding up these days?

AGATHA: .....

ME: Are you still on the line, or am I cutting up?

AGATHA: Oh, no! It wasn't that. I just didn't know what to say.

ME: Oh, made things awkward, didn't I? Ha ha ha ha.

AGATHA: No, I made it awkward.

ME: This is troubline. How can we get out of this awkwardness? To be honest, I was only calling to check up on you as, well, I was concerned. You have been gone for days, and we haven't heard from you. And I was your seatmate, so it just seemed natural. And now, well, what is all this? You try and start a conversation and try to keep it straight and narrow, and then... without so much as a warning, it leads elsewhere! Like water, like a flowing monster of ideas which cannot be contained, and...

AGATHA: [laughs]

ME: Did I say something funny?

AGATHA: Not exactly, but you can see you've talked for so long that our time is up. Now we must take a bow to our audience...

End scene

-----

I was adamant that we should do a meta sort of ending for, as I told her, to surprise the immersion a little, and in my mind, because I couldn't find of a better ending to it. Had I continued the line of conversation above, then we might have had an entire play centered around phone calls.

Naturally, we got lackluster applause of obligation, and we shuffled to our seats, making way for the next group.

We didn't talk for a while, but the awkwardness of that entire fake call seemed to be getting to me. Part of me wanted to think of the dream again, but the nagging awkwardness was destroying all efforts within me to concentrate on it again.

"You did great."

To this she nodded, and with a silent mutter, said,

"Thanks. I had fun."

She smiled with the innocence of all hope in the world. For once, she smiled with an impact to my very soul. A smile... like that girl.

How I wish to go home and dream again.