Chapter Text
"Who is this person?" Kaveh nods, pointing out the group of people not far away, specifically referring to the tall, grey-haired man he has never met before. "Is he the new guy?"
"No, not exactly," Nilou is sitting near him at the edge of the stage, her legs dangling. "Remember when the director said a week ago that she would invite that really good actor to play a main role in our next piece? That would be him."
"A good actor? With that face?" Kaveh narrows his eyes, a smug smile curving his lips. "I highly doubt it."
"And why is that?" Nilou asks, smiling.
"He has zero emotional capacity!" Kaveh once again points towards the guy, who is currently speaking with their director. "I've been looking at him for half an hour now, and his facial muscles didn't even flinch once! And his monotone voice? I tend to believe people think he's good just because he's handsome."
"Oh, so that's why you've been staring at him this whole time," the girl giggles as she teasingly hits him on the shoulder.
The blonde did not have time to deny her, of course, absolutely ridiculous conclusion, as he heard the voice of the director calling him. "Kaveh, can you please reenact this scene with Alhaitham? I need to know what I'm working with here, exactly."
Kaveh looks at Alhaitham walking towards the stage, staring back at him. Well, let's see how good he actually is.
Other actors clear the stage to give them space, and Kaveh stands in the center, close to the front edge of it. Someone gives him a couple of pages with the dialogue written on them, with their names marked near some of the lines. Kaveh takes a quick look and instantly recognizes it—the confession scene from their next play, interesting. He can do that.
He looks up at Alhaitham. The man glances over the sheet in his hands for a couple of seconds, then gives it away to a random guy nearby while making his way onto the stage, putting his headphones down on his shoulders. Does he already know the script, or did he memorize it just now? In any case, he looks pretty confident about it, and Kaveh gives him a respectful but annoyed look.
Alhaitham stops in front of the blonde, looking down at him with the same dead expression on his face. The people around them whisper; are they that excited about this guy?
"Quiet!" The director claps her hands a couple of times to get their attention. "You can start now."
Wait, why is this guy suddenly standing on one knee? They just need to read, not to act! Also...
Kaveh's jaw drops as he sees Alhaitham's face change in real time, now showing an unimaginable palette of emotions. His lips are slightly parted, their corners lowered, heavy sadness and despair are reflected in the deep shade of turquoise eyes focused on the face in front of him, as if it weren't Kaveh awkwardly standing there, but the love of this man's life. You can't just fake it like that on the spot at the first try, Kaveh thinks, no way.
"My dear," Alhaitham starts, his trembling deep voice on the verge of a whisper, full of pain, sends shivers down the blonde's spine, and Kaveh already feels his heart beating faster from just these two words. "I stand before you, my bleeding heart laid bare. With each word that escapes my lips, with each breath I take, I beg you," he stares intimately into Kaveh's eyes, as if no one else were around them. Kaveh swallows nervously, letting out a trembling breath, unable to look away. "Without you, my world would be but a barren wasteland, devoid of joy and purpose." Alhaitham reaches out to take Kaveh's free hand in his, gently squeezing it between his big and warm palms. Kaveh is so mesmerized by what's happening that he doesn't even question it. "On bended knee, I offer my soul, my love," his voice shakes as if he's about to cry, and he makes a dramatic pause before continuing his speech. "And my unwavering devotion. I beg of you, let not this cruel fate tear us apart. In the depths of my despair, I plead with all my heart, please," he lowers his head for a moment, his silver hair swaying in motion, before looking up again, and Kaveh can swear he sees tears sparkling in the corners of the man's eyes. "Stay."
Almost a whisper, but so powerful and clear that everyone for sure heard it. Kaveh feels his legs going weak. How in the world did he just do what he did? The tears were completely unnecessary — nobody was able to see them anyway except for Kaveh himself! — and that tenderness in his voice, that love in his eyes... It felt so real, Kaveh could only wish for someone to confess to him like that.
"Kaveh!"
He startles, suddenly realizing that he's in the middle of a play and it's his turn to read the part now. Everyone's waiting. He makes an effort to break eye contact with Alhaitham, convulsively trying to read the text on the sheet, but the letters are all blurred together. His mind refuses to focus. Heat rushes to his face when he notices that Alhaitham, the love in his beautiful eyes be damned, keeps staring at him, waiting.
The hand Kaveh was holding the drafts with startles, and several pages fall to the floor, flying in different directions. He finally takes his other probably really awkwardly sweaty hand from Alhaitham's grip and starts collecting the pages back, feeling deeply embarrassed, murmuring apologies.
What is wrong with him?
"Kaveh, what's happening? Is everything okay?" the director's voice sounds genuinely concerned. "Are you nervous because of Alhaitham?"
"No—" he exclaims, feeling his whole face and ears turning red, as he's obviously lying, "It's not that, I just... I think I'm not feeling well."
A sigh comes from the director. "Okay, you all can take a ten-minute break, and you, Kaveh, drink some water."
She stands up and goes to the exit, probably to the dining room.
Alhaitham stands up, and Kaveh finally finds some courage to look at him again, which was really hard to do given the circumstances, only to meet his expressionless face and eyes full of indifference.
"I had high expectations of you."
Just like that, straightforward, looking Kaveh in the eyes. He then turns on his heels and walks away, putting on the headphones and never looking back.
What does that mean, 'high expectations'? He assumed Kaveh was good at acting? Well, he definitely doesn't think that now.
When Alhaitham leaves the hall, Kaveh sits helplessly on the floor, hiding his face behind white papers, hearing light steps approaching him.
"Be honest, did I look stupid?"
"Mm," Nilou hums thoughtfully, "Maybe just a little. But don't worry about it!" She gently pats the blonde's head.
Kaveh whines, "How am I going to recover from this?" burying his face even deeper in the pile of sheets, cheeks still red and heart beating really fast as he replays the confession scene in his head, over and over and over again.
Images of Alhaitham's eyes, his face, the sound of his voice, all flash in Kaveh's mind, making him feel all sorts of things. He definitely wants to see him like that again, even if it's just Alhaitham being in character. What other expressions can he make with his beautiful face? Does he make them outside of acting too? What does his smile look like? How does his laugh sound? Does he look at his loved one the same way?
"Nilou," he finally raises his head, looking at the concerned red-haired girl, "I think I messed up. And I'm not talking about acting."