Episode 608: The Entertainer

His wife stood so close that her silky hair tickled his neck. Just having her near him was the most distracting thing on the planet. She made his mind stutter. He imagined she would still have that affect on him in his eighties.

He couldn’t help a small smile at the thought of them growing old together, despite his otherwise humiliated state, the eyes trained on him as if he was a spectacular car crash. He had no idea how she’d dealt with the eyes. He supposed it had something to do with how good she was and how much she loved it.

Adria was so close to him her lips brushed his ear as she whispered, "you’re being purposely awful."

"It’s my natural talent."

"I know what you’re doing," aggravation crept into her whisper, "you’re trying to show me that not everyone’s good at everything. I suck at business and you suck at acting. Point taken, so stop. You’re so red it’s like you’re going to combust."

"Is that difficult to watch?" He whispered back. "Is it tough to stand by while someone you love is making themselves sick over something that shouldn’t even matter?"

"I need a respectable career. You don’t need to act."

Ryley shrugged and forced himself to read the script even though each word out of his mouth put him in an even colder sweat. Again, Adria whispered in his ear, only this time it was a tip on how to tackle the scene.

"I don’t get it," he admitted, as she’d had to admit to him repeatedly while studying. "Show me?" He’d planned this, though he truly was floundering, which probably made it easier for her to fall into the trap and take pity on him.

If he hadn’t looked so pathetic, maybe she wouldn’t have grabbed the script and gotten so into the character that Ryley wanted to see more, and clearly so did his class. When Adria finished the scene, they applauded and whistled. It brought tears to his wife’s eyes. Ryley had never been happier to see her cry.

Episode 609: Mean