Page 19 of Mistletoe Misses
“What emotions do you feel when the queen or the witch are on scene.”
“Mad, scared, frustrated,” she answers after thinking on it.
“Exactly. It takes a very talented actor to play two characters and make the audience feel all those emotions.”
“So, the director gave me the hardest part?”
“Yes. A part he would only give to the best actors. Snow White is all fluff.” I smile with her as everything unfolds in her mind.
“Thank you.” She flings herself into my arms, surprising and releasing me before I can react. “I take back what I said. You are sweet.”
Something twists inside me. That fatherly, protector instinct I haven’t felt in years bubbles back to the surface and carves Sadie’s name into my heart, right beside my siblings’.
“I appreciate that, especially coming from you.”
“When you’re done here, want to run some lines with me? Mom and grandpa are always busy, and grandma is terrible at it. Plus, you seem to understand the business.”
Amused with her grown up language, I stifle a grin to match her seriousness. “I’ve had some exposure. I knew someone a long time ago who was an actress and singer.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I used to run lines with her and help her write songs all the time.”
“That’s cool. So, you’ll do it?”
“Let me check a few more things here, then we’ll practice.”
She jumps to her feet and sets the script on the counter. “Since you’re going to help me, I’ll help you with your chores.”
“Great. I could use an assistant as smart as you.”
???
After crawling under cabinets and in dark, dusty crevices for a while, she sits me on the floor in the living room and hands me the script.
“Does this mean you have all your lines memorized?” I ask, and her chin tilts up. “I love your confidence. Alright, let’s see what you’ve got.”
Digging deep into my long-lost childhood, I bring out the amateur actor I’d tucked away. Sadie laughs at my exaggerated accents for each dwarf and especially Snow White.
“You sound like a munchkin from the Wizard of Oz. We don’t talk like that,” she says between giggles, the adorable sound lifting the clouds that seem to hover over my life these days.
“What do you meanwe?”
“Girls, silly.”
“Oh, right.” My palm slaps against my forehead, sending her into another fit of giggles. “I have two little sisters. How did I mess that up?”
“Because you’re a boy.”
“No, I’m not.”
“Since when?”
“Since puberty.” A snicker slips out, but Sadie staring at me as if I’m as dumb as the joke has it evolving into a cough. I tap a fist against my chest to clear the non-existent tickle and continue with her prompts.
On the last run through hours later, she recites every word without a hitch, her joy over the accomplishment bouncing off the walls in the empty apartment.
“Way to go, kid.” I celebrate with her, my arms flailing in the air as she dances about.
