Having the iconic American high school experience can be tough if no high school feels like it’s your home turf. That’s the situation for Julian, but it’s not a huge deal. Regardless of where he goes to school, it only matters that he gets his work done and enjoys the people around him.

During his short time at Eustace High, Julian has made a few close friends, stayed on the good side of his teachers, and found a club that he’s passionate about. He’s done well in his classes and he has not been bullied by any of the football players, though he was definitely worried the buff guys in the small conservative town would have some problems with him. His biggest problems these days are based around what he will wear each day, what homework he has to do, and whether or not Mrs. Reba found someone to be their lead for the spring play.

“Mrs. Rebaaa! I’m finally here!” Julian shouts into the classroom as he enters with gusto. Mrs. Reba smiles wearily at Julian as he pulls a chair out from one of the front desks and sets it in front of her desk.

“Julian, I don’t think I heard you come in,” Mrs. Reba says sarcastically as she straightens a few stacks of assignments and files them away in her desk.

“Well, I gotta keep you awake, don’t I? You’re working almost twelve hours a day,” Julian says while grabbing a stress ball off her desk to play with.

“Thank you for the thought, but coffee does a fine job,” Mrs. Reba responds while closing some tabs on her computer, “is there something you need?”

“I was just wondering if you found a guy to be Rowan in the play?” Julian asks innocently.

“As a matter of fact, I did,” Mrs. Reba says while retrieving her lunch from her desk, “his name is Theo McKraken. He just left when you walked in, maybe you saw him? Tall, pale, dark hair?”

“Hmm… I think I may have spotted him,” Julian says, standing with Mrs. Reba as she prepares to leave for lunch. Julian decides to leave out the detail that even though he’s been at this school for less than a year, he knows that everybody knows of Jessica’s on again, off again boyfriend.

“I offered him the role as extra credit, since he’s currently failing my class. He can apply himself when he wants to, and I think that he’ll really enjoy being in the show,” Mrs. Reba says.

“Wait, you had to give him an incentive? He didn’t volunteer?” Julian says, his tone changing from playful to concerned.

“He just needs a chance to break out of his shell,” Mrs. Reba says, “and I think that this show is the perfect opportunity.”

Julian purses his lips but decides not to argue. He knows that once Mrs. Reba has an idea she thinks is good, it’s hard to convince her otherwise. Instead, he rolls his eyes as he follows her out of the room.

“I can tell you aren’t fond of this idea, Julian. But I need you to trust my judgement. Just because you’re assistant director doesn’t mean you make all the decisions, dear,” Mrs. Reba says before patting him on the shoulder and heading to the teacher’s lounge.

Julian scoffs before heading to the cafeteria himself. Does she really think that Theo McKraken is the best option for the male lead? Has he ever been in a show? He wishes he wasn’t so invested, since he’s already a senior. If the show goes wrong, what’s the worst that could happen? He won’t even be onstage! His name will just be a quick blip in the program, so why is he always so passionate about things like this?

After waiting in line for a slice of pizza that tastes more like cardboard and a juice box that’s missing its straw, Julian finds a seat at a semi-empty table to eat by himself. Elena, his best friend, has lunch in the period after him and he doesn’t really want to talk to anyone else in the meantime.

He dabs grease off his pizza with a few thin napkins. Before he can take a bite, Julian notices a certain tall, pale, dark-haired boy he had just discussed earlier sitting a few tables away from him with his very popular girlfriend.

Even while sitting down, Julian can tell that Theo is definitely upwards of six feet tall. His hair reminds him of Chewbacca, especially since it looks like it wasn’t brushed this morning, but his dark eyes and pale skin are what make him look like a vampire. He looks painfully plain from what Julian can see, and his girlfriend looks like she couldn’t care less about what he’s doing. They aren’t even talking to each other.

What catches Julian’s attention, however, is the small purple script that Theo looks thoroughly engrossed in. The boy’s expression changes every few minutes in a somewhat exaggerated way, likely to mirror the emotions of the characters he is reading about. The corners of Julian’s mouth twitch up into a brief smile, since he knows he does the same thing when he enjoys what he’s reading.

Julian tries his hardest not to stare, but can’t help but think about how that expressive face would look onstage. Would his face tell the story that needs to be told? Would he have stage fright? Would his movements be as natural as they look right now? Would the audience be feeling the emotions of his character right along with him?

Just then, Theo’s eyes flicker up and lock on Julian’s. He must have felt Julian looking at him with that sixth sense that people seem to have. Julian looks away quickly, focusing on his half-eaten slice of pizza and hoping that Theo has stopped looking at him. When he chances a look back in Theo’s direction, he sees that Theo has put the script away and started conversing with his girlfriend, who has started playing with his hair in that flirty way that high school girls do.

Julian lets out a puff of air, maybe in disappointment, and finishes his pizza slice. He stands up to throw away his trash and head towards Elena’s classroom. They walk together after his lunch daily; it’s part of their routine. She heads to lunch and he heads to math, but they have around five minutes to catch each other up on their daily shenanigans.

After the bell rings, Elena is one of the first people out of the classroom. They link arms and start their journey down the hall.

“What’s the latest, mister?” Elena inquires with a playful nudge to Julian’s ribs.

“Nothing much… other than the fact that Mrs. Reba offered the role of Rowan to Theo McKraken, of all people,” Julian says.

“Woah, what?” Elena says, giving Julian an incredulous stare, “does that guy even like to act? What a weird choice.”

“That’s what I said! Reba told me to stay in my lane. She said it’s her decision and I have to just trust her judgement,” Julian says with a sour expression.

“I mean, I don’t know the guy, so I don’t have any room to talk, but…” Elena leans in close to Julian, like she’s going to tell him a secret. “I heard from one of his friends that he’s a big softie. He definitely doesn’t look the part, but maybe Mrs. Reba is onto something?”

“I don’t know about all that,” Julian retorts, “but I did see him reading the script during lunch. She only gave him a script in the period before.”

“Hey! That’s a good sign, right? That he’s already intrigued?” Elena asks as they reach the cafeteria again.

“Maybe. I suppose we’ll see next week if he shows up for rehearsal,” Julian shrugs. “Enjoy your lunch, babe. FaceTime you later?”

“You know it!” Elena says as she blows Julian a kiss and walks into the crowd of students.

Julian turns on his heel and down the hall to his math class, but during the lecture he can’t bring himself to focus on the material. He can’t help but think how surprised he was to see Theo reading the script right away, and hoping that the tall, pale, dark-haired boy will end up surprising him again when rehearsals start.