"It's okay, Cole. My name is Dr. Mal Crowe." Mal interrupted my muttering of a Latin phrase while I remained crouched on a church bench, pying with toy soldiers. I gave him a sidelong g remained quiet.

  "I was supposed to meet today. Sorry, I missed our appoi." With that Mal slowly sat in the seat in front of me. I kept pying with the soldiers, fully in character, and pced a few on the edge of the bench.

  "Your eye frames." Mal pointed out, "They don't seem to have any lenses in them?"

  "They're my dad's. The lenses hurt my eyes." I answered softly, looking up a little from my p the desk.

  "I khere was a valid reason." Mal gri me.

  "CUT!" A loud sound echoed iherwise silent church.

  "Cole, you're doing great, but if you could add a little more vulnerability to your character it would be great. Mal, you o tone down your expression. You ile at Cole too much. You have to e across as a serious but g guy." Night pointed out to me and Bruce.

  I heaved a sigh of relief. When the director shouted Cut, I was almost sure I would be rebuked. Thankfully, it is just a minor issue.

  "Got it," Bruodded with a thumbs up to Night. I nodded along.

  "Let's do it again," Night announced, "Start with, 'I khere was a valid reason.' Everything before that is good…. And…. A!"

  "I khere was a valid reason," Mal said in a more ral tohis time with a slight smile on his face.

  I looked down at my p in ption, adding more of the 'vulnerability' factor. I uand from Cole's POV because he has realized that the man in front of him is a ghost. So a little fear is also acceptable.

  "What were you talking about with your soldiers when I came in? Day…" Mal trailed off but I interrupted him at the same time.

  "De profundis cmo ad te domi's called Latin. It's a nguage." I said while ying my soldiers down on the bench. The camera zoomed in on my forearm which became visible as my sleeve slid up. It is sp several small bruises and scars.

  Mal notices it but doesn't say anything about it but tinues his inal line of questioning, "Do all your soldiers speak Latin?"

  "No, just one."

  After a few moments of silence, I asked ily, "Are you a good doctor?"

  Mal smiled and said, "Well… I used to be. I won an award once from the mayor. It had an expensive frame."

  That st part wasn't in the script and was improvised by Bruce. I decided to ig for the moment and tih the dialogue. If it is too unrealistic, either the director will say 'Cut' or edit it out in the post-produ.

  "That's good." I stood up and collected my soldiers in my pockets. I started walking away but stopped mid-sentence, and asked, "I'm gonna see you again, right?"

  "If that's okay with you," Mal answered.

  Without saying anything else, I walked towards the entrance where many little Holy statues were kept. Before moving out, I snatched oatue of Jesus discreetly, stowed it in my messenger bag, and then stepped out of the church.

  "CUT!" I heard a faint sound from within the churd I came baside to check the progress of the se.

  "Well done Cole!" Night beamed at me, "You did wonderfully. Mal, you did great as well. Now we just need some close-up shots from different angles. We'll tell you which lio repeat."

  I nodded as I uood his iions. It rarely happens that when two people are speaking with each other in a se that they exge dialogues in tinuity. Many times, one person speaks all their lines in succession, and then es the time for the other person. This happens to avoid ging camera angles again and again and save time as well.

  Then there was the shootihod used in big-budget produ films where they either set up two different cameras or shoot the se from one perspective first, rec all the lines from both perspectives and then shooting other small ses showing other characters' microexpressions ter.

  Shyaman was going for the tter approach for this se.

  Uanding that, I went back to sit at my designated spot on the bend waited for my instrus.

  (Break)

  When all that was done, I finally had to go and have a study session with my tutor in my trailer. It was more troublesome than I had hoped for. I regret not passing high school early.

  I plopped down on the living room couch dramatically, "That was so tiresome."

  "You love doing that don't you?" Mum who stood beside me asked

  "Doing what?" I asked in fusion.

  She poiowards the couch I was occupying, "Sitting down on the couch as if you've just run a marathon. Especially after a day of shooting, and then saying, 'That was tiresome' or something like that."

  I hadn't noticed that. Still, I didn't find any problem with that, so I shrugged, "And?"

  Mum rolled her eyes, "Oh e on. Sometimes you act as if you're decades older than you are."

  "Mum," I decided to ge the topic away from my behavioral habits. " I do an accelerated study program or something? Schoolwork is tedious. I'm taking private csses anyway and even my tutrees that I know more than I should for my age. He is going to reend higher-level material in the css." I gave her the best puppy-dog eyes I could manage.

  She bent down a little, looked me straight in the eyes, making me a little unfortable, and said, "I know the level of your EQ, so those eyes won't work on me."

  Dammit! I winced internally at that statement.

  "That said," Kathy tinued, "You raise valid points. Your father and I have already discussed the issue. I knew you would ask for it sooner or ter when we heard that you would be getting a personal tutor. As long as you keep yrades up, we allow you to finish up to two grades in one year."

  I would take what I get. While I would have loved to finish High school in a year or two at most, with two grades a year, I be doh it by the time I'm 14. That's much better than finishing school at 18-19 as most people do.

  "Thank you!" I beamed at Mum who returned my smile. fortable silensued between us as we silently sat on the couch. I pced my head on her p as she started bing my thick locks with her fingers.

  Ah. This is paradise. I wish I could stay in this moment forever, just lying on my mother's p, slowly being lulled into the peace of oblivion.

  Unfortunately, the serene moment was broken by the loud piano sound that began reverberating through the house. I opened my eyes in a little frustration and asked Mum, "What's that noise?"

  "That must be Toni," She shrugged her shoulders, "Remember we don't live alone here, Troy."

  "Ugh, and I was having such a good time here," I groaned audibly.

  Mum pushed me away from her p, "You'll get zy if you rex too much. Go and do something productive like your homework."

  I sat up and asked, "And what will you do?"

  "I'll call your dad. Maybe he is free right now." She answered, standing up and moving towards the phone.

  I felt a little guilty as I had iently parted them for two whole months because of my work. Mum and Dad mostly did writing work from home so they didn't have to travel for work much. Unfortunately, being an actor, I am very likely to go to different locatioher for shooting ses or for promoting the movie. As long as I am a minor, it is likely that either of my parents would apany me along to all these pces.

  I shook those thoughts from my head and decided to do something 'productive' as Kathy had pointed out. Not being oo do needless homework, I decided to iigate the strange sounds ing from the dire of the backyard.

  When I reached there, I was mesmerized by the view in front of me. My on-s mother was dang elegantly to the music pying on the vinyl record oio.

  Each step was measured. Each lift, jump, and twirl erfectly nuanced. It was like witnessing a master dispy their art and crushing every hope of anyone ever getting closer to them in any form or shape.

  I don't da least not in this life. But even if I start today, I don't think I ever move with the grace she was just casually dispying in front of me.

  "Hey!" A shout broke me out of my trand I saw that Toni had stopped dang and was now standing in front of me with a grin after turning down the music, "You know it's rude to stare at someohout announg your presence."

  I gulped as I saw her figure iight ballet dress with her little frock doing hardly anything to hide her curvaceous body. Thank the fug God I am not going through puberty right now or it would make the wo months more than unfortable.

  I turned my head away from her slightly and said in a low tone, "Like it is impolite to py loud music when you're not alone in the house?"

  Yeah, I know it was rather soothing music (It was ballet music, that too piano, f out loud) but it ruined my perfeent with Mum. You know when you are all grown up and don't remember most of your childhood memories but there is that one se that you vividly remember and want to go back to to relive the moment.

  It was that kind of moment that she ruined. So of course I was a little miffed with her.

  She huffed a little at my insinuation, "Oh so did I disturb Milord? I am so sorry for your lordship. I didn't realize that ballet music could be disturbing your peace."

  She did a mock curtsy right in front of me.

  "You don't have to be such a bi- mean about it," I quickly amended myself. If Mum heard it, that would be the end of all my gaming privileges that she had relutly allowed.

  Her grin widened if that was even possible, "Did you almost swear at me? Called me the bad term for a female dog?"

  I facepalmed myself in my head. Being a kid is such a drag sometimes.

  "No, I didn't. I called you mean. It is no swear word or bad word at all. And you were being mean." I pouted at her.

  She ughed out loud at my rea, "Wow, that was so good. Oh my God. Your rea."

  "Hey!" I shouted at her indignantly, "Why does everyoeasing me?"

  She bent down at her waist and pulled my cheeks, "Because you're so cute."

  I pushed away her hands in frustration, "Wish I could say the same thing about you. You're the total opposite of cute." That increased her ughter.

  "And your ballet sucks. A one-legged dog do it better than that." I crossed my hands over my chest as I annouhat.

  Was I beiy? In hindsight, yes. But she was getting on my nerves.

  "Oh really?" Toni asked in a deceptively calm voice.

  "Yes! Absolutely. Anyone learn to spin like you do easily." I knew I was lying through my teeth but I just wao get her mad.

  "Then you won't have a problem learning pirouette in, say, two weeks?" Toni challenged with an upturn of her lips.

  Uh-oh. What the fuck is even a pirouette? Knowing her grin, it must be something difficult.

  "Of course I ," I said with uainty.

  "Just to crify, this is a pirouette," saying that To up ooes of her left leg while bending her right leg at a perfect right angle and again did one of the best ballet spins I had witnessed in person.

  Suddenly it clicked in my head. Like most times, I received a memory in my head where I am seeing the intricacies of different dans, specifically ballet in this case. Now I feel stupid not knowing what a pirouette is.

  "I don't have shoes to practi," I stalled. While I do seem to vely recall a memory from my past life, that doesn't mean I am eager to prove her wrong.

  "Don't worry about small things like that," She rubbed my hair with a shit-eating grin evident on her face, "You borrow my extra pair. It's free size so it should fit you. Wait here, I'll bring them for you."

  Why the fuck did I have to be a kid about this whole debacle? I was supposed to be the mature one, wasn't I? But I ot back out of this challehout losing face.

  In hindsight, I totally could. Being a kid, it could be seen as throwing a tantrum or something along the lines and Toni would likely fet about it in a few days at most had I just apologized. Unfortunately, the sin of pride came in the way of a quick resolution to the little dispute.

  Toni came back a few mier and handed me her spare shoes.

  "Two weeks." She reiterates.

  "Two weeks," I affirmed with a determined nod. Now that I have accepted the challenge, I will win it. I'm not oo back down from one. No matter how difficult it might be.

  "Do you want some pointers?" Toni asked with that ever-present grin oupid mug.

  "As if," I scoffed, "Like I said, anyone learn it. I will learn it without your help."

  I felt like pung myself hard in the face at that moment. The best person to guide me was standing right before me and her help but my pride was bigger than Mt. Everest.

  "Have it your way then," Toni said, pointing towards the area she ractig in.

  I knew better than to make my first attempt (or any attempt for that matter) in front of her. So I clutched the ballet shoes tightly as I stormed ihe house towards my room. I ighe amused ughter ing from the backyard.

  Dropping the shoes in a er, I y down on my bed, pting my choices right nret filled my being with my as. I know that being a newbie actor, and a kid at that, I was bound to face a little hazing from the crew but my rea to that was uable. I always think of myself as an uber-mature person, but tely, I am hardly ag as one.

  It's like, the kid in me wants to be a kid for real and the mature part of me is being curbed.

  Now was not the time to mope, but to win a bet.

  I got up from the bed with determination filling me up and quickly put on the shoes I had been graciously given by Toni and did some quick stretches. From what I remember, the most important part of ballet is standing on your toes. The initial csses all focus on you eventually being able to stand on your toes without support for aended period. And if I ot stand on my toes then fet about doing a pirouette.

  To begin with, I went up on my toes and tried to bance my body while keeping my legs bent slightly at the knees. I quickly lost my band went down on my heel.

  I sighed dejectedly. Despite some surprisingly tal memories from my past life about ballet, it will take loo get profit in it than I had expected.

  _________________________

  AN: A new free poll on my Pat reon for future films of Troy.

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