The group on stage had just finished their performance and they were taking their final bow. Out of courtesy, everyone in the room clapped, which honestly only appeared more hollow as the intermittent claps by the handful of people bounced against the auditorium walls.

After the claps died out, Mr. Sam began his criticism, “Alright, Group G, a job well done. But I have a few pointers for you to improve the expressiveness and vibrancy of your presence on stage. First, as the main character, you have to be mindful of your environment and that includes your cast mates…”

Mr. Sam proceeded to give his critiques as he went down the line. Jun Yang intended to have a chat with Feng Qi about his strange demeanor and his body was already half-way up from his seat. However, since Mr. Sam was in the middle of giving his criticism, Jun Yang doubted he would appreciate any interruption so the young man quietly sat back down. He would talk to Feng Qi after the show was over, he could wait for a little while longer, right?

It didn’t take long for Mr. Sam to finish his critique. “Thank you for your wonderful performance today. Everyone, let’s give Group G another round of applause!” That was the cue that Group G’s work for the day was over. They quickly shuffled off stage, put the props back where they found it and swiftly escaped from the auditorium. They were not going to stay back to watch Jun Yang’s group performance, after all, none of their other classmates did, so why should they?

“Alright, it’s now Group H’s turn, please get on stage and assume your position. It’s getting late so I hope we can wrap this up soon.” Mr. Sam leaned back in his seat to stretch. He had been judging his students’ performance since morning and it had started to take its toll.

Hearing the order, Group H or Jun Yang’s group moved to oblige. Pei Ling walked ahead, followed by Feng Qi, with Cindy and Jun Yang taking up the rear. Perhaps he had imagined it but Jun Yang could have sworn he saw Pei Ling slow down to block Feng Qi’s way, causing the latter to walk around her. There had always been tension between the two but for some reason, that day, the air between them seemed to be charged with hostility.

‘Could that have anything to do with how Feng Qi has been acting?’ Jun Yang thought to himself.

Jun Yang thought about asking Feng Qi before they got on stage but even that plan was cut short because Cindy suddenly engaged him in conversation. “Jun Yang, I’m so nervous! How about you?” She asked while going over the lines one last time.

Jun Yang gave the polite answer, “It’ll be fine. The play is very short, less than 10 minutes I suppose. It’ll be over before you know it.” That was what the young man said but internally he was as nervous as Cindy was. However, he was not going to show that to the girl, perhaps that was the male ego acting up.

Cindy took a deep breath and put the script away before they stepped on the stage. “You’re right. As they say in the industry, let’s break a leg!”

Once they assumed the position, even though Jun Yang was practically standing right next to Feng Qi since the first scene was between the two guys, it was impossible for them to have a conversation. It was neither the time nor the place. Furthermore, Feng Qi did not look like he was in the mood for conversation. There were hard lines going down his face but Jun Yang was unclear whether that reflected his real feeling or he was merely settling down into his character. Regardless, it was show time!

…

Before the story moved on, it seemed appropriate to discuss the plot of the play Jun Yang’s group was going to put on. As one would see, it was pertinent to the story at large.

As mentioned earlier, the play written by Pei Ling was a typical high-school romance with Pei Ling and Jun Yang as the main characters. They were in love and them ending up together was the supposed happy ending. Naturally, there had to be conflicts like any other love story. This was a plot device for the audience to root for the main couple. Think of classical love story like Romeo and Juliet, there had to be a gap to drive them apart. This was so that the audience could cheer for them. A love story without its highs and lows isn’t going to sell; a happily-ever-after that comes too easily isn’t relatable and is not going to garner supporters.

The conflict in their little story was none other than Feng Qi. It should come as no surprise that Pei Ling would assign such a role to the young man.

In the story, Feng Qi and Jun Yang were best friends since they were children but their relationship started to fall apart when Jun Yang found himself a girlfriend. Feng Qi was highly protective and possessive of his “brother”, and felt like he was losing him to Pei Ling. The plot portrayed him as someone incredibly insecure and depended on Jun Yang to help ground him in life.

At the conclusion of the play, Feng Qi finally saw the error of his way and realized how much pressure his friendship had placed Jun Yang under. As if to rub salt into the wound, according to the script, it was Pei Ling who finally made him see the proverbial light.

As you must have noticed by now, the script was not exactly original nor was it good for that matter.

Well… no one said Pei Ling was a talented playwright. In any case, it was deemed good enough for a school assignment and that was all that mattered. [If you like my work, I would really appreciate a cup of joe as donation. Thank you. Donate here: ko-fi.com/lonelytree]