“Listen,” I begin, placing a soothing hand on her shoulder. “You deserve this part; do you hear me? You are perfect for this role, and I don’t want you to ever doubt that again. I gave you this part because you earned it. You are incredibly talented, and you were meant for this. Don’t ever make yourself feel small to allow others to shine. You deserve to shine as well.”
A small smile tugs at the corners of her lips as she wipes a tear away. I feel a huge sense of relief when she nods.
“Okay. Thank you, Professor Monroe. You’re really good at this directing thing,” she tells me, and my heart swells at the reassuring compliment. She has no idea what that means to me.
I smile brightly. “Thank you, April. I’ll see you tomorrow. We’ll start fresh, okay?”
April nods with a grin before walking out of the auditorium and leaving me alone with my thoughts. A sense of pride washes over me and I feel like less of a fraud than when I first got here.
The hair on the back of my neck stands as I feel the overwhelming feeling of being watched. I scan the auditorium, looking for any remaining students or lurkers. I don’t see anyone, so I go back to writing notes for tomorrow’s rehearsals.
“That was really great advice,” a familiar male voice says, scaring the living shit out of me. A yelp of surprise leaves my lips as I erupt from my chair, and a chuckle comes from Jamie who is now standing in front of me. His crystal blue eyes rake over me before landing on my face. I feel my entire body heat at his assessing gaze. How long has he been here? Why is he even here?
Jamie shoves his hands into his pockets and takes a step closer effectively crowding my personal bubble. God, he smells good. Like cologne and shampoo. I notice his wet hair and clean outfit. He must have been at practice.
“What are you doing here?” I ask accusingly. For someone who swore he’d keep his distance and leave me alone, he’s doing a shit job at it. Sometimes, I think he only told me that to get me to calm down. His eyes sparkle with mischief. It’s like he knows his presence puts me on edge and he enjoys making me uncomfortable. Asshole.
“Practice ended. I was walking by and heard your little pep talk with the cheerleader. It was good advice, sweetheart. You should take it,” he shrugs.
“Don’t call me that. And she’s not a cheerleader.”
He takes a step closer, and when I take a step back, I run into my desk. He has me trapped, and suddenly I feel claustrophobic.
“Whatever you say, sweetheart,” he winks.
“Seriously, you should really take your own advice. ‘Don’t ever make yourself feel small to allow others to shine.’ It’s… poetic,” he repeats my own words back to me. The grin on his face makes me irrationally annoyed.
“Are you making fun of me?” I ask, offended.
“No, I’m being serious. I think I need to remember that myself.”
A laugh bubbles out of me before I can stop it, and now Jamie looks like I’ve offended him.
“What?”
“You feeling small? You’ve been cocky since the day I met you. Especially when it comes to playing hockey. You’ve always been so sure of yourself and your talent,” I tell him, and immediately regret it as I watch his expression change from playful to disheartened.
“Yeah, well. Not so much anymore.”
“You’ll play again,” I try to reassure him, but I have no idea if that’s even true. From what I’ve heard, his injury is pretty severe and there’s a good chance it won’t heal right, and he’ll never play hockey again. At least, not the way he used to. I can’t imagine how he feels.
Jamie snorts. “My knee is fucked. The chances of me getting back on the ice are slim, and everyone knows it. My coach, my teammates, the fans. They all know it, and no one wants to say it out loud. My career is over, Ellie. So no, I’m not so sure of myself anymore. In fact, I’ve never felt as unsure of myself as I do right now.”
He lets out a defeated breath as I stand and stare at him in awe. Who would have ever thought I’d be standing in front of Jamie Patterson again?
Who would have thought he would be admitting to being imperfect? My heart aches for him and the level of uncertainty he’s facing.
“Jamie…” I begin but trail off as he takes another step closer to me. I realize I have nowhere to go as my butt lands on my desk. He stands so close I can smell the mint on his breath from the gum he’s been chewing.
“You want to know one thing I am sure about?” he whispers. My heart pounds in my chest and my breath hitches at his closeness. I can feel his body heat radiating off of him and it feels warm and inviting.
Stop it, Ellie. Jamie is not warmorinviting. He is heartless. Although now I'm not so sure about that. I haven’t seen him this down since his father died. I’m pretty sure that’s the last time he ever gave a shit about anyone but himself.
“What?” I ask, curious of what he’ll say next.
“I’m sure you’ll forgive me,” he says, all confidence and nerve. And there he is, the arrogant son of a bitch.
“And what makes you so sure of that?” I ask, my voice unsteady, because apparently, I’ve forgotten how to breathe with him standing this close.
