Chapter Text
Another day, another audition. Amber buried herself in her blanket as soon as she hit the bed. She just got home, yet she was desperate for any news. This time she would get it. This time, because it had to be this time.
The script didn’t include any names for the characters, only titles of what they were meant to contribute. The writer mentioned how he wanted the characters to be played by any gender, so established names were a secondary thought.
It wasn’t just any audition for a vague play. Eula Lawrence sat beside her in the waiting room. Eula had a guaranteed spot in the cast. She was Eula. She, who Amber hadn’t spoken to since being rejected by her in high school.
“…Eula?” was her reaction as soon as her gaze went up from her resume to a quick swish of blue hair.
Those familiar cold eyes stared into Amber’s soul. “Amber,” she said, “it’s been a while, huh?” The grip on her own resume tightened for a moment.
Amber let out a sigh of relief at the fact that Eula could still greet her informally, but that didn’t stop the reddening of her face at a rapid speed. “Yeah! It’s good to see you’re still in the theatre scene after all these years. I was worried something happened. I, uh, missed you, y’know!”
“My bad for not keeping in touch,” Eula replied blankly. “No need to worry anymore. I’ve been doing just fine. My grandmother left behind a large amount of money for me so I’ve been able to successfully sever ties with my parents. I’m no longer needed under my father’s company.”
“That’s why you returned to acting?”
“Precisely.”
There was always a particular way Eula spoke that made her unlikeable to most of her high school peers, but as an adult, her speech suited her mature look. Amber wanted to reach inside her own chest and force her heart to stop beating so quickly. She scared Eula off with her feelings the first time around. She wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.
They silently agreed to stop talking and focus on their audition pieces since Amber was getting quite close to the door.
And when she opened it—
“Amber!”
Kaeya Alberich greeted her with a huge grin. Next to him sat Albedo, Rosaria, and Jean. Amber was familiar with Kaeya and Jean from high school, but she only knew Albedo and Rosaria as Kaeya’s current and former significant others. She was always jealous of how comfortable they still were around one another.
No matter who was auditioning, the three aside from Kaeya kept poker faces like any other judge. However, Jean couldn’t help but crack a smile at Amber’s cheery energy.
The audition went well, especially since the company producing Kaeya’s show was run by her friends.
An audition Amber didn’t want to rip her hair out after was a rare one. She just yearned for results—yearned to find out if she could perform with Eula again for the first time in years.
Frostbiting Embrace, the play was called.
She heard through Kaeya’s many mentions of Albedo that they fell in love because of the play. She had to be drunk whenever Kaeya went on such rambles. That time, lucky enough, they were at a bar celebrating a high school reunion.
After recalling that memory, she realized she never got Eula’s new number.
A long, low groan hit the pillow.
Well, what would she use it for anyway? They could go right back to being friends like before, right? Eula liked to drink but hated the atmosphere of crowded taverns of sweaty drunks. She liked pools but couldn’t step foot into one if the temperature was even slightly too warm for her taste. She hated most things.
They went on morning runs every summer their entire high school lives. They went shopping too. It was usually for fabric and buttons which Eula later stashed in her sewing room. If a piece of clothing wasn’t for herself or a family member, Amber was her mannequin.
Amber shook her head free of those memories.
That evening, her call to order takeout was rudely interrupted by another incoming call.
It was Jean.
She pouted and hung up on Jean, profusely apologizing in her head. But cooking was out of the question. It didn’t matter how long Amber was out of college—her cooking skills never aged with her.
As soon as she placed her order, she called Jean back.
“Sorry! I was getting food. What’s up?”
Jean laughed a little on the other end. “I figured because of how quickly you hung up. Anyway, I called to let you know you’re getting a callback for both the lead and the love interest.”
“Huh?” Amber leaned back against a coffee table. “I mean, yay! But why give out the announcement for callbacks so soon on the last audition day? I thought Kaeya’s whole thing was making actors wait a week because it’s funny to watch us suffer.”
“You also wouldn’t get this information from the stage manager, but here I am. Kaeya made his decisions fast. As soon as Eula came in after you, he had this look. The rest of us felt it too. I’m telling you this because he knows you’re dying to find out if you can perform with her.”
Amber turned sheepish all of a sudden. “Is it weird for you to see her again?”
“No, don’t worry about that. We’re not kids anymore. The rivalry we had back then doesn’t affect her capabilities as an actress. She’s receiving a callback as well, for the love interest.”
At first, Amber wanted to question why Eula wasn’t given the chance to take the lead. But thinking of the lead’s clumsy and constantly flustered lines, she found the idea of Eula saying them more awkward (yet cute) than believable.
If they both passed and played lovers on stage…
Amber’s heart sang at the thought. She couldn’t get her hopes up, but she did anyway.
She prayed on Kaeya’s lack of mercy toward actors.
Out of everyone in their high school theatre program for Eula to run into at a professional audition, it had to be Amber?
It was foolish to believe she would never see her again. It just caught her off guard. She played it off pretty well in the waiting room, but if the topic of feelings ever came up again—
Eula sighed and sat cross legged on the floor as soon as she got home. “Get over here.”
A brown rabbit ran into her open arms.