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Authors: K. D. Lovgren
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bit of a puzzler at the time. He just disappeared. Like you kidnapped him."
"It felt more like the other way around."
"Oh, I'm sure he took you off somewhere wonderful. Jealous!" She trumpeted the last word in a high-pitched sing-song.
Jane gave an unplanned snort of laughter. She had begun to see what Ian liked in Evelyn. "You were friends in drama school."
"Yes. Partners in crime. Seems a long time ago, now."
"I think he remembers it fondly."
"Does he?" They walked in silence for a bit. Silence other than the birds, who were chirping as if spring had never come before, and might not again. "It's easier to be nostalgic much later."
"It wasn't all roses."
"No. It wasn't."
"It's funny you both being in the same class and both doing so well."
"We wouldn't have had that success if we hadn't been there to drive each other, I don't think. "
"You were lucky, then."
Evelyn nodded. "Pretty lucky."
That night, Jane and Evelyn sat up after Tam had gone to bed. Jane built a small fire, seeking coziness as the warm day cooled. They pushed the coffee table out of the way and moved the big chairs close, resting their feet on the hearth.
“What was Ian like when you knew him at school?”
The firelight flickered on Evelyn's face, and Jane was watching the Evelyn movie, too.
She smiled. “First year, everybody is kind of figuring stuff out. Finding themselves. And then you’re in classes and you look around and you’re like, who’s here? Of course once they saw him a lot of people had a crush. The Irish accent didn't hurt.” She mimicked lovestruck students, making Jane laugh.
“He was shy, actually. I wasn't. He’d seen a lot of theater and was up on the plays in town, also on, what-do-you-call-it…on all the plays there ever were? I can’t remember the name for it. He’d read a lot. He was more familiar with some of the pieces we were doing than I was, than most of us were. I zeroed in on him like a laser beam, to learn more. I wanted him for a partner in scenes. It was obvious he had it. Luckily, he didn’t mind having me as a partner, so we did lots of scenes together, first year.”
Jane hadn’t seen this more low key, actorly side of Evelyn and found it refreshing. Evelyn had so many expressions and pretended to be so many passing characters as she told a story that it was a show in itself to watch her: the students mooning after Ian, Evelyn herself panting after Ian to help her, Ian serious and a little vulnerable. Jane found her imitation of him touching, somehow. A lost look in her eyes that Jane could recall seeing only fleetingly in him, when he spoke of his childhood.
“Did you keep working together?”
Evelyn pulled a ponytail holder from her pocket and tucked her curls back into a chaotic version of her usual sleek hairstyle.
“People really discovered him second year. I couldn’t keep him to myself. I liked having him as a scene partner, but of course you have to work with different people to grow as an actor. We had a good chemistry, but we weren’t able to be in scenes all the time, that wouldn’t be good.” She twisted a curl around and around on her finger. “Of course, then his Mum died and he left school. For a while.”
“Right.” Jane remembered the chronology of his mother’s passing from pneumonia, unexpected and the biggest grief Ian had experienced. His father had died many years before.
“When he came back, he was different. The whole game changed.” Evelyn paused.
Everything she did was dramatic. Jane felt like she was waiting for the next chapter of a cliffhanger. “Different how?”
“I don’t know.” Evelyn canted her head, twisting the curl tight against her cheek, the tip of her finger going pink, as she stared into the fire. “He was angry. A bolder actor. He had more passion and he was more physical.” She released her hair and leaned into the light of the fire, her chin tilted and propped on her hands.
“He had been more, you
"It felt more like the other way around."
"Oh, I'm sure he took you off somewhere wonderful. Jealous!" She trumpeted the last word in a high-pitched sing-song.
Jane gave an unplanned snort of laughter. She had begun to see what Ian liked in Evelyn. "You were friends in drama school."
"Yes. Partners in crime. Seems a long time ago, now."
"I think he remembers it fondly."
"Does he?" They walked in silence for a bit. Silence other than the birds, who were chirping as if spring had never come before, and might not again. "It's easier to be nostalgic much later."
"It wasn't all roses."
"No. It wasn't."
"It's funny you both being in the same class and both doing so well."
"We wouldn't have had that success if we hadn't been there to drive each other, I don't think. "
"You were lucky, then."
Evelyn nodded. "Pretty lucky."
That night, Jane and Evelyn sat up after Tam had gone to bed. Jane built a small fire, seeking coziness as the warm day cooled. They pushed the coffee table out of the way and moved the big chairs close, resting their feet on the hearth.
“What was Ian like when you knew him at school?”
The firelight flickered on Evelyn's face, and Jane was watching the Evelyn movie, too.
She smiled. “First year, everybody is kind of figuring stuff out. Finding themselves. And then you’re in classes and you look around and you’re like, who’s here? Of course once they saw him a lot of people had a crush. The Irish accent didn't hurt.” She mimicked lovestruck students, making Jane laugh.
“He was shy, actually. I wasn't. He’d seen a lot of theater and was up on the plays in town, also on, what-do-you-call-it…on all the plays there ever were? I can’t remember the name for it. He’d read a lot. He was more familiar with some of the pieces we were doing than I was, than most of us were. I zeroed in on him like a laser beam, to learn more. I wanted him for a partner in scenes. It was obvious he had it. Luckily, he didn’t mind having me as a partner, so we did lots of scenes together, first year.”
Jane hadn’t seen this more low key, actorly side of Evelyn and found it refreshing. Evelyn had so many expressions and pretended to be so many passing characters as she told a story that it was a show in itself to watch her: the students mooning after Ian, Evelyn herself panting after Ian to help her, Ian serious and a little vulnerable. Jane found her imitation of him touching, somehow. A lost look in her eyes that Jane could recall seeing only fleetingly in him, when he spoke of his childhood.
“Did you keep working together?”
Evelyn pulled a ponytail holder from her pocket and tucked her curls back into a chaotic version of her usual sleek hairstyle.
“People really discovered him second year. I couldn’t keep him to myself. I liked having him as a scene partner, but of course you have to work with different people to grow as an actor. We had a good chemistry, but we weren’t able to be in scenes all the time, that wouldn’t be good.” She twisted a curl around and around on her finger. “Of course, then his Mum died and he left school. For a while.”
“Right.” Jane remembered the chronology of his mother’s passing from pneumonia, unexpected and the biggest grief Ian had experienced. His father had died many years before.
“When he came back, he was different. The whole game changed.” Evelyn paused.
Everything she did was dramatic. Jane felt like she was waiting for the next chapter of a cliffhanger. “Different how?”
“I don’t know.” Evelyn canted her head, twisting the curl tight against her cheek, the tip of her finger going pink, as she stared into the fire. “He was angry. A bolder actor. He had more passion and he was more physical.” She released her hair and leaned into the light of the fire, her chin tilted and propped on her hands.
“He had been more, you
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