Theatre Geek - (R.B.) - Chapter 15: Chapter 15

AS THE weeks passed by, slowly but surely, the school play was still in full swing. With the cast and crew meeting up every other school night to practice, and hopefully to perfect the scenes before opening night which was set to take place in a few short months.
For the most part, the theatre was going well, except for the quiet negative energy that was constantly taking place between Julia and Ricky. It wasn't like the two weren't speaking, it was more like they refused to acknowledge each other's existence. Had you asked anyone other than those two, they'd agree that the latter was much more frightening to witness.
So, during one autumn evening, the after-school practice was nearly completed, with only the extras really inside the theatre building left to leave, an idea perked up in Julia's mind. Like many of the other students who took pride in their school life, she too was well aware of the many theatre props that were stored inside of the basement of the school from previous years. She recalled heading down there a couple of times before for her extracurriculars and clubs.
Then, with a clear purpose in mind, she stepped into the school elevator and ultimately reached the lowest floor of the school. A dark and murky room awaited her, with nothing more than a sheer light illuminating the small storage room that Julia had gone into. She knew of the possible implications she'd have to face for entering the room unsupervised, but she also knew that the entire hassle was merely for enhancing the school's play - something she hoped to get credited on, at least.
Ricky was tired. That's all he really felt at that moment, complete and utter exhaustion. To say that the last few weeks were working him only a bit was a huge understatement. At times, he felt that he was the only person who was truly working hard for the play's success, next to Nini of course. But she wasn't relevant right now, the only thing he worried about was his warm and comfortable bed back home.
But nope, the theatre crew would keep him awake for long hours, stressing him out more than he ever felt for an exam he never studied for. And for him, that meant a lot, especially considering the fact that he tended to miss meals and sleep because he chose to procrastinate instead.
He sat on one of the benches, staring down at his script with blank eyes. His tiredness had grown to the point that he could no longer yawn either, they would just come out as stifled sighs if anything. Gina, being the usually good friend she was, took a minute to check up on him just before she prepared to leave the building. He was thankful that she, that someone cared, but it didn't make his situation any better.
"Oh, there you are."
Ricky briefly glanced up from the papers to notice that the voice came from Ms. Jenn. The woman still looked as giddy as ever, even though she had probably been working the hardest during the practices.
She didn't wait for him to greet her and instead took an unsteady seat in the empty space beside him. "I need you to do something for me," she explained. "Head down to the basement and grab the two red coolers in the storage room. We need them for the next scenes."
"Can't someone else do it?" Ricky said, but it came out more like a whine.
"Nope!" Ms. Jenn stood up abruptly from her seat and shot a quick smile his way. "The others are helping me with the backgrounds, so it's your job now."
Ricky closed his eyes momentarily as if to calm himself from an outburst that could strike any moment. He was usually a pretty calm kid, who rarely got angry, and when it did come to that point, his voice wouldn't raise to a considerable volume. "Fine," he groaned in slight annoyance. "But I'm going home after."
Ms. Jenn just nodded in return and once again left to what Ricky assumed was the theatre room.
Shoving all of his scattered belongings into his backpack, he threw it over his back and went over to the stairs so he could retrieve the required items. After his short trip to the storage room, he spotted the coolers relatively quickly and held them in his arms, prepared to head back up.
What caught his hearing was what left him standing for a moment longer. There was a distinct and rummaging sound coming a few feet away from him: with his curiosity getting the best of him, he sneakily sauntered over to investigate the noise. His breath hitched in his throat when he noticed none other than Julia Baker looking through a cardboard box.
"What're you doing down here?" He asked, but saw the way Julia completely flinched at his voice. She was probably not expecting someone, or maybe she was caught doing something she wasn't supposed to.
She turned around to face the voice and took a breath of relief at the sight that it was just Ricky behind her. "For props," is all she answered with, not seeing the necessity for telling him more than needed.
"Really? 'Cuz Ms. Jenn just sent me down here for props too," he said. He wasn't sure where his need for an interrogation came from, but it was the least he could do. Especially considering the fact that Julia had refused to even look at him for the past few weeks. "Surely, she wouldn't send another kid with one already down here..."
"I don't see the need to answer any of your questions." Leaving the boxes and the found supplies on the ground, she strutted off to the direction of the door but was caught a halt when the door refused to budge open.
"What's wrong?" Ricky wondered aloud, furrowing his brows at the anxious look that Julia had on.
Julia took a deep breath before turning and looking at the boy standing a few feet from her. "Why did you close the door?"
He scoffed almost instantly. "I didn't, it was probably that stupid janitor-"
"Custodian," she corrected but rolled her eyes when Ricky didn't seem to catch her words. "He's a custodian, janitor sounds rude."
"Sure, whatever," Ricky said, pushing past Julia to try out the door for himself. After several failed attempts at trying to push - and pull - the door open, he eventually gave up. It would only take one more casualty for Ricky to punch the door from plain annoyance. "Fuckin'---"
"You don't need to swear," Julia remarked, accepting defeat and slumping down onto the floor. She refused to meet his eyes, even when Ricky gave her a sickening glare.
"Wow!" He exclaimed, raising up his hands in false excitement. "I don't remember ever asking."
It was only when he glanced at his wristwatch did Ricky realize just how much trouble he'd be in if he stayed in that room for too long. He rummaged through his pocket and took out his phone, cursing loudly when he saw that it was out of battery. Julia too took out her phone but found it difficult to find any cellular connection so she could call someone for help. Moving the hand that held her phone around the room, she frowned when she had no luck.
"No, no, no..." Ricky began to freak out, resorting to pacing around the small room in stress. If he didn't show up tonight, his parents would be so worried, and because they were actually home today made the situation even worse. He rubbed his face with both of his hands, feeling the tension overwhelm him.
Julia was having her own fit of dilemma. She was struggling to scan through her phone settings for any way she could possibly contact someone for help. The fact that her phone was a flip-phone didn't make things any better. She automatically regretted ever telling her parents off when they suggested to buy her a newer cell phone earlier that year. No, it's okay. I don't want to feel spoiled, and you do so much for me already. And maybe if she listened to them all those months ago, she'd be able to contact at least the cops.
As she mindlessly clicked through her phone, she had accidentally pressed a voicemail message that she received almost an hour earlier - from Aaron.
Hi, Lia, it's Aaron - I just, I thought you forgot that I had your number, but like it's fine if you did...Actually, I uh, I was wondering if you're busy tomorrow during lunch? I wanted to ask you something, so just call me when you're free. See you...
Ricky had heard the entire message, and he couldn't help but sense an odd tightening sensation in his chest. Oh, who was he kidding, he was just freaking out over the circumstances right now. Still, though, his curiosity had yet again taken the best of him. He cleared his throat, "who was that?"
Julia's eyes shot up to stare at him, her gaze looked completely calm. How was she so calm!? Ricky asked himself.
"Someone," she responded.
Ricky narrowed his eyes slightly, frustrated at the amount of two-word answers he was receiving from her. "Okay!?" He exaggerated. "No, I thought it was some random person who--"
"Why are you so interested?" Julia interrupted, her eyes gone dark.
He gulped and shook his head, peering his attention at the door handle that was shaking. Some muffled murmuring was heard in the background before the door opened wide, enough for the two trapped students to see a middle-aged man - the nightly custodian of the school.
Seeming to have assumed something very inappropriate as soon as his gaze landed on the two students, he squinted his eyes in suspension. "Listen, kids, if you wanted to get together, why did you decide to do it at school--"
"No, what?" Julia asked, flabbergasted. She stood up from her crouched position on the floor and moved closer to the custodian. "That was definitely not what we were doing." She looked over to Ricky, who was blushing profusely and at a loss for words.
"It's fine. You should just do these said 'meet-ups' at a less kid-friendly institution," the man said, clearly not taking the hint.
"What now?" Ricky finally grasped the situation, but he still looked frazzled. "You think I'd ever want to do that?" He made a vulgar motion at Julia and scoffed. "You have it wrong, I'd never with her--"
Julia ran out the door in a huff, causing Ricky to earn a look of disapproval from the overly friendly custodian. "Dude, that was just mean."
With a roll of his eyes, Ricky ran out the door after Julia, completely disregarding the coolers that he was assigned to bring upstairs earlier. Much to his surprise, when he did manage to seek out Julia, it confused him to see that she looked completely unaffected by his own admittedly offensive words.
"So, you're - you're not upset?" He dropped into step beside her as they both climbed up the stairs that led to the main floor.
"Why would I be?" She asked, way too calmly than his liking. Julia had a set plan in her mind, she wasn't going to let Ricky bother her anymore; she had to move on.
"I don't know..." he mumbled, awkwardly rubbing his sweaty hands against his blue jeans. "I just---nevermind." And with that, he rushed ahead of her, disappearing soon after.
And all Julia could do was watch.