He singles you out, and while he’s struggling to think of something to say, you fidget and carry on small conversations with anyone else in the room. This way, there’ll be more time for the two of you, and a chance for the director to notice any potential chemistry.

Besides, everyone else here scares you, and you think this serves you right for wanting to try out something new, where you aren’t the loudest voice in the room. Just a plain girl. You finish off yet another introduction, thinking that if this room had the last oxygen supply in the world, it would be finished in fifteen minutes without any amazing things said. Most of the oxygen might be used on sobbing alone, since it is a theatre crowd.

“Is this your first audition?”
He’s finally decided to say something.

“Yeah. You found the audition virgin.” Lame.

“I could tell… I go to auditions all the time and I’ve never seen you before.”

“Do you actually get any roles?”

“Sure.” He continues at length about his most recent character, inspiring you to kick yourself & check if your gaydar has malfunctioned. “But I’m so tired of playing gay men.”

“Oh. Because… you’re not?”

“No. They’re a hit with the crowd though aren’t they. Always gets their attention. But it would be nice to play alongside a girl for a change. But I know the director, he mentioned he’d put me into callbacks to test me out with other guys he has in mind. I guess he’s auditioning me for a gay couple.”

“He called me too. At the first audition he already told me he’s bent on making me play a lesbian.”

“How many couples are there supposed to be in this play anyway?”

“Quite a lot. But the rest are straight ones, I think.”

“Oh.”

You’re both on the table, and you dangle your legs to cut through the silence. He dangles his legs. He doesn’t need to look to know that you’re scoping the rest of the room as well.

“I wonder who I’ll get paired up with.”

“Me too.”

You both give up cutting through the silence. It’s comfortable. He closes his eyes, still hanging onto your last syllable. You don’t want to scope anyone else. You turn the spotlight off.

The director is in the next room.

It has glass walls, but he doesn’t notice the table at all.