His Low Score Made Me Leave Him For Fame

Chapter 3

It was just putting a few hundred props back in place. So be it.

I looked at him and said evenly, "Fine. I was wrong. I'll put the props away."

I agreed so readily that he didn't look pleased at all. He paused for a beat, then turned and walked out of the rehearsal hall.

My colleagues refused to leave.

"Nina, we're so sorry. If we hadn't asked you to help, you wouldn't have gotten this scolding."

They insisted on staying to help me put everything back.

"Safety in numbers. There are so many of us, he can't fire everyone, right?"

"Exactly. We'll finish up and leave first, and you can be the last one out. He can't possibly keep an eye on all of us."

They rolled up their sleeves and got to work, moving props with brisk efficiency.

I didn't argue. I bent down and started putting things back one by one.

As they worked, they grumbled about Rachel.

"It's all Rachel's fault. If it weren't for her, none of this would have happened!"

"She's an adult, she knows how to ask for leave, doesn't she? Rehearsal is important, and she didn't even bother to call."

"The craziest part is, she skipped rehearsal and Gavin didn't even get mad. Talk about double standards."

Then someone lowered her voice, shifting into gossip mode.

"Do you think Gavin is actually with Rachel? At that dinner last time, he had a little cat charm on his phone. I heard his girlfriend gave it to him. He wouldn't let anyone touch it."

"Really? What would someone as cold as him even be like in a relationship?"

"I heard someone saw him once. Apparently he's really into her. He pissed her off and cornered her behind the curtain to kiss her. Too bad no one got a good look at her face."

Was he really that into her?

When they mentioned the cat charm, I suddenly remembered that Gavin had already replaced it. He had swapped it for a little fox plushie.

When I asked him why he changed it, he seemed flustered. He said he won it in a raffle and thought it was cute.

Later, I saw the exact same charm on Rachel's phone.

That was when I started to realize that something had shifted between them.

And when did my own relationship with him start to sour?

They kept chatting, oblivious to the fact that I had drifted off.

The props were almost all put away, just a few more left.

They tried to finish the rest, but I stopped them.

"You guys go ahead. I'll take care of the rest. If he sees you helping me, he'll probably find another excuse to yell at me."

They hesitated for a moment. They didn't want to leave me alone, but they also knew that if Gavin caught them, I'd be the one to suffer for it.

"Go on. It's just a few chairs. I'll be done in no time."

They each gave me a hug. "Sorry, Nina. We'll order takeout and we can all eat together tonight."

I nodded and gently pushed them toward the door.

Once they were gone, the smile I had been holding up finally crumbled.

I couldn't keep up the act anymore. I bit my lip and let the tears fall in silence, alone in the empty rehearsal hall.

This wasn't how I had imagined our one-year anniversary. I had pictured a beautifully decorated restaurant, a nice steak, and Gavin whispering sweet words to me. A perfect evening.

Not this. Not moving props by myself.

Maybe I had gotten it all wrong from the very beginning. Maybe he had agreed to be with me not because he liked me, but because he had grown used to me chasing him for over twenty years.

I put away the last prop. My wrists ached. My back hurt.

I leaned against the wall, turned off the rehearsal hall lights, and locked the door.

There were several missed calls on my phone, all from the restaurant, probably asking when we would arrive.

I checked the time. It was already eleven. The restaurant was most likely closed. There was no point calling back.

The entire theater was empty. I shivered slightly.

In the past, I would have pressed myself against him. He would have laughed at me while pulling me closer.

"You've been in this theater for so long and you're still scared? We've played corpses and ghosts how many times now? You'd think you'd be used to it."

"Alright, alright, don't be scared. If a ghost shows up, I'll let it take me first, okay?"

But tonight, I felt strangely calm.

Dragging my exhausted body forward, I walked step by step through the dark, empty corridor.

When I reached the front entrance, I saw a figure standing there, tall and lean, as if he had been waiting for a long time.