World Keeps Spinning • •

[Dexter Zachary Naismith]

Dexter only had one performance left of the semester. In his classes they were still learning a lot and doing various other scenes that they needed to practice, but the examined performance was what he really had to worry about. And by worry he simply meant focus on. He was a competent actor who could adjust to most of the directions thrown at him, and take the criticisms from past exams and performances to improve himself the next time. He wanted to make a future out of entertaining people and performing for them, more likely in comedy shows or musicals given that was where his best talents seem to lay. Still, he never slacked off when it came to the stage, even if he had the smallest role and was only out there for a scene or two in a whole play. He liked to be as close to perfect as he could be when he was performing and didn’t want to be the guy who brought a whole scene down because he was slouching or simply going through the motions rather than becoming the role he ought to be.

However, there was a slight hiccup. Dexter’s plan for the afternoon was to utilise the empty theatre space. There were no classes on Wednesday afternoon in here. They were either theory workshops or people got lucky and had a free couple of hours, like Dexter did this semester. It came in perfectly handy for rehearsing scenes when he had an exam or was part of a college performance with the am-dram society. His plan today had been to buddy up with another of the girls from his class with whom he had a rather powerful scene with in the exam performance. They had found themselves cast in the roles of lovers who had a sweet romantic scene just before the close of the First Act. They had a few run throughs of it already, but since romance was not Dex’s strong suit he had asked if she wouldn’t mind giving up her time this afternoon to rehearse it some more. Yesterday though she hadn’t been in class and her friend mentioned that she had caught the flu and was just feeling awful with it. Dex hadn’t wanted to nag her, so he left it alone and just went along to the theatre that Wednesday after lunch to see if maybe she did show up.

He had been hopeful, because he needed this. It was the one scene in the play he wasn’t confident with. He knew the lines, but he felt like everything else was wooden. Fellow students had reassured him it was fine, but until Dexter felt comfortable with his performance he wouldn’t be happy with it. He stuck around for an hour before concluding that she must still be sick. He wanted – and needed – to do this though. Pulling his phone from his pocket he scrolled though looking to see if anyone else might be able to help him. He paused over a name. Lottie usually had her Wednesday afternoon free, too, if he recalled correctly. He crossed his fingers and sent a quick text. “Emergency! Need you! Theatre! ASAP!” He knew if he came outright and told her beforehand what he wanted she wouldn’t agree to it at all. However, if he got Lottie here first, then maybe, just maybe, he’d have a chance of talking her into helping him out.

• • •

TAGGED! Charlotte Aaliyah McAllister
WORDS! 576!
OUTFIT! Drama Dork!
LYRICS! Kooky Eyes - - - The Jungle Giants
NOTES!

[Charlotte Aaliyah McAllister]

Lottie was so much closer to graduation than she’d honestly thought she would ever get with this degree. She figured someone, probably Gavin more than Kael would come waltzing in and bitch and moan that she needed to do something better with her life. Of course, in Gavin’s case, it would probably mean going back to Colorado and back to work at the restaurant; or the bar. Her brother would have preferred she stay around home, work at either of those places and keep her head down. Probably the restaurant more than the bar, less chance of any flirtations going on there. Gavin was an odd one, being the overprotective one where Kael let her make the mistakes that she needed to make. He was there if she needed to talk, needed a shoulder or someone to threaten to beat someone up for her, knowing full well, if she wanted that to happen, she could have done it herself. 

But Lottie loved what she was doing, and where she was headed with her degree. She’d been working damn hard for it and had never wanted anything as much as she wanted this. It had already led to so many opportunities and friendships she probably wouldn’t have made if she’d gone into something like accounting, law or business. Not to mention the small fact that those were boring as hell and Lottie would rather fall into a coma than say any of those were her major. Lottie was too vibrant to be shoved into something like that, even if that would have pleased her big brother more. Thank god she had the other one and their father on her side! It was her only afternoon free of classes through the week and she usually spent it finishing up any assignments she’d been putting off. The double major should have been killing her but she was thriving with the workload. Both in fact, felt like she was breezing through them so she habitually pushed assignments and coursework aside until the Wednesday break, or the Sunday afternoon when she could blast the music in the apartment she shared with her brother and zip through it all. 

She was just stepping out of the Java Stop with the biggest iced caramel latte they had when she got a text message from one of those people she’d met thanks to the major she’d chosen. Well, it had been more thanks to the free time she had between classes but whatever worked! Lottie panicked reading the words on her screen and ran right there, lucky her drink had a lid or it would have been everywhere. She was out of breath when she barreled in through the doors. The panic made her run faster than she would have to get across campus normally. “Dex?” She yelled, her words catching. “Dexter what’s wrong?” She continued, really beginning to freak out because she hadn’t seen him when she first walked in.

Tag ||Dexter Zachary Naismith
Words || 493
Clothes || Anxious Artist
Music || Love Me Like You Mean It --Kelsea Ballerini
Notes || <3!

[Dexter Zachary Naismith]

Dexter felt lucky that no one had ever got in the way of his dreams. He had always wanted to act and there had never been a sit down talk from his parents to try to deter him from that. They were both incredible doctors who had people and specialists search them out for their medical opinions, and Dexter’s older brother had followed in their footsteps, currently a resident on the cardiology ward in a Michigan hospital. Dex could never be like that, but they had never looked down on him for it. He had done everything he could to help out the family over the years, taking care of his younger brother and all the difficulties that came with his illness, but his parents in the end had told Dexter to get out and go and chase his own dreams; he had done enough for them. He was a good son, but they had wanted him to have his shot at happiness, too. They flew in when they could to watch him perform in New York, though he knew it wasn’t an easy thing with their jobs and with Joe still at home needing help, too. When they did come he took them out to dinner and made sure there was something set up for them to enjoy, just so he could show them how much it meant to him that they came out to see him and what mattered to him.

He didn’t know if they would be here for this last show. It was always sort of a last minute plan with his parents since it depended on schedules and cover and a lot of other variables that were mostly unpredictable. It came down to how well Joe was, if Brian would be able to come home for a few days and other little things that made the Naismith family function. They were a busy, non-stop type of crowd who never really knew if they were coming or going. Dexter frequently said that was to blame for his own hyperactive ways and need to constantly be doing something. He even fidgeted when he was having his video game marathons. He wasn’t the type who could sit still or remained focused entirely on one thing for a long period of time. His mind was always running off to a million different places, unless he was on the stage. That was why he needed to have this scene perfected. If it wasn’t then he wouldn’t be able to focus well enough to perform it.

Dexter was sitting on a stack of chairs while he waited for Lottie. He was reading his own dog eared copy of the script, mumbling lines under his breath. He heard the door go first and looked up, smiling his standard lopsided smile when he heard her voice. Her arrival meant that she must be free, which he took to mean that she would be able to help him out today, which was what he needed more than anything else. He grabbed a spare copy of the script that he had borrowed from his professor with the promise of returning it by the next class and then stepped up, holding the script out to her. “I need your help.” He told her, letting her work it out for herself what he needed from her. He’d explain the details once she had the basics.

• • •

TAGGED! Charlotte Aaliyah McAllister
WORDS! 570!
OUTFIT! Drama Dork!
LYRICS! Kooky Eyes - - - The Jungle Giants
NOTES!

[Charlotte Aaliyah McAllister]

Lottie liked keeping busy. It was as simple as that. If she wasn't at school herself, she was teaching her Kendo class or she was at her own classes, work or at the shooting range trying to pull a Robin Hood from the cartoon Disney movie and split her arrows. She brought the cheap ones to the range, not wanting to dull the points of her good ones. Those she never minded splitting when she had the aim to do it. Though for the most part, she tended to aim just a little to one side to avoid having to explain why she had to spend more money on yet another set of arrows to Kael. Not that she had to explain anything to her brother but he asked and she was usually so pleased with herself that she proudly told him what she'd done. And when she wasn't doing all of that, which was rare, she was off doing something else, though she never minded helping out her friends when they needed her for anything. She wasn't so great at some things but she made up for it with enthusiasm.

Dex wasn't usually one of the friends who called her up for help. He called her up to make plans to go out gallivanting so when he did send her the message, asking for help, she had feared the absolute worst; which was ridiculous considering it was Dex. Lottie should have known better and yet she'd had a minor panic attack trying to figure out what could have possibly happened. Not once in the time it took her to get the message and head over to him did she think it was something minor. She went from life threatening to outrageous but not a single one of her outlandish ideas had her thinking he needed help running lines. Why would she consider it when she wasn't so great with things like that. She wasn't a actor. A stunt double maybe with all her knowledge and skills but nothing more than that.

Lottie was usually game to try anything once or twice though. Some things she enjoyed so much she took up herself and sometimes it just turned out not to be her thing. Acting hadn't been one of those things she'd tried yet. Then again, at twenty two, there were still plenty of things she had yet to experience. Lottie stopped dead when she saw Dex well and even cheerful waiting for her. Almost instantly, she knew exactly what he was after when he'd asked for help. "Seriously?! I thought something really bad had happened, Dexter!" She exclaimed, crossing her arms over her chest and tapping her foot. Of course she would help him but he didn't have to make it sound like it was life or death! He'd had her scared half to death herself! She huffed out a breath before hopping up the stairs and taking a seat next to her friend.

Tag ||Dexter Zachary Naismith
Words || 495
Clothes || Anxious Artist
Music || Love Me Like You Mean It --Kelsea Ballerini
Notes || <3!

[Dexter Zachary Naismith]

Dexter loved how the theatre challenged him. Each role required something new from him. He liked trying to be better, trying to make a role his own. He didn’t want to repeat what he had seen before, be the same as someone else on the stage. He wouldn’t get anywhere if he just copied another actor who came before him. Dexter enjoyed losing himself in a role, making up a history if one didn’t exist to provide a motivation and reasoning behind everything he was already doing. He liked immersing himself in someone else’s shoes, living their life, even if it was only for a few hours in front of an audience who may never see him again. He could be hated by them for playing the villain, loved for being the hero, or adored for being that comical rogue who simply came along to lighten the heavier moments in the piece. The latter was the easiest thing Dexter could play. Comedy was in his bones, which was why he enjoyed being given a more serious part since he felt that tested his skills more. The joker he could do without too much effort, and could coast through a performance. He didn’t want to necessarily coast through a career or be type-casted as a joker for his life.

Usually, he liked to crack on and power through. His partners were great, his cast mates at college were as enthusiastic as he was. It was just majorly unfortunate that right now the girl he was supposed to be rehearsing with was tucked up in bed with the flu. On one hand, while he was frustrated by the turn of events, he supposed he ought to be glad that she hadn’t come in and made him sick, too. Their moments on stage were intimate, especially the bit Dex hoped to perfect today. Had she shown up for the rehearsal he almost definitely would have walked away germ ridden. Using someone else wasn’t perfect, or ideal, but it might help him get his head in the right place for his character a little more. He knew his lines mostly, it was just getting through the romantic bits that had him fumbling. Where jokes came naturally to him, romantic charm did not. If he forced it, he worried that the audience would see how strained it was, too.

Dex ran his fingers through his thick hair and sighed. He knew he had been a little over the top in his message, but he didn’t know if Lottie would show up if he had just asked her to run lines. She might have said yes, but for later, when he didn’t have the time later. His head was in the space now. Plus, it was soppy, romantic; the very things the pair of them were not. If he explained it then she might just laugh and say no way. Lottie was a good friend, but this was the sort of thing they laughed about or ran away from when they saw couples acting all sappy in front of them. Catching her off guard and letting her see how desperate he was might be his best bet. “It will be really bad if I don’t nail this scene.” He said, shoving his hands deep into his pockets, and looking at her with wide, pleading eyes. “Please, Lottie?”

• • •

TAGGED! Charlotte Aaliyah McAllister
WORDS! 565!
OUTFIT! Drama Dork!
LYRICS! Kooky Eyes - - - The Jungle Giants
NOTES!

[Charlotte Aaliyah McAllister]

Lottie was by no means an actor. She had barely even been able to pass the basic drama course in high school. She couldn't lie, improv was something from one of the circles of hell and Lottie would just prefer to be brutally honest; even if it didn't turn out exactly in her favour. Oddly enough though, she could lie and sarcasm was one of her best weapons against people. She had always used her biting words before she ever physically attacked. Even after all the years of pulling that move, her brother's still refused to admit what was about to happen. They didn't like getting their asses kicked anymore than Lottie did but when she was angry, she fought dirty and at least one of them always felt bad for making her cry. Although, she could produce fake tears so maybe she could act when she really needed to. Either way the stage or being in front of a camera didn't appeal to her. So it was a little odd that one of her best friends in the city was a drama major and loved dramatics, the stage and everything that went along with it all.

It was an odd friendship but then, Dexter had been one of the first people she'd met and they'd bonded over their love of outdoor sports and not so much their majors, though they were close enough to be housed in the same cluster of buildings and they ran into each other so much throughout a handful of hours on campus. Lottie would do what she could for Dexter if he asked her and she was available. And there was no need to make it sound like it was life or death either! Perhaps she should just tell him her schedule from now on so he could just ask her when she had spare time. Even though her spare time was usually spent either at the Dojo or the shooting range getting some practice in. She was nowhere near where she wanted to be for her Kendo. It would take quite a few more years for that so she needed all the practice she could get to meet the next set of requirements.

"I'll be sending you my schedule when I leave here." She told him with a sigh. "So no more life or death messages unless you're bleeding to death on a street somewhere, got it?" She asked. The chances of him actually paying attention to her schedule were probably nil but at least she would know she gave it to him. With another roll of her eyes, Lottie hopped up on the stage and looked around out over the seats. "So what's so life or death you had to call me here?" She asked, looking back at the messy haired actor and returning her hands to her hips. If she had to remind him she wasn't an actor, she would but she honestly hoped he needed some sort of help where she was sitting down in the first row or something. But she also knew how theatre worked and knew that the director did all of that.

Tag ||Dexter Zachary Naismith
Words || 526
Clothes || Anxious Artist
Music || Love Me Like You Mean It --Kelsea Ballerini
Notes || <3!

[Dexter Zachary Naismith]

Dexter didn’t know what he would do if the stage hadn’t called to him. He was an energetic guy with an imagination that never slowed down for even a moment. It had sometimes been too much for his exhausted parents, but axed knew they still supported him. It was just difficult to be enthusiastic all the time when they worked as doctors and had their own chronically ill son to raise as well. That was why Dex tried to do his best to put his bundles of energy to use outside and keep out from under their feet so much. Acting was the best outlet he ever discovered for himself. It granted him the ability to enter a million different worlds and pretend to be a million more different people. It was like he was running around that back garden in Shaldon, overlooking the sea, playing pretend again as though he was five. To think he could spend the rest of his life doing that was crazy, but then Dex was often called worse.

It wasn’t so easy growing up different to other kids. Dex was a drama kid and a gymnast. He didn’t know football, and while he could surf he didn’t surf with the other kids. He was on the fringe of his class. He had buddies at the leisure centre where he went for gymnastics, and they came from all around the small towns and hamlets. They didn’t all go to the same school or live nearby. He had a range of acquaintances from the amateur dramatics group, too. They ranged from old to young and some he preferred more than others. Ultimately they worked exceptionally well together, but most of the time they were there for the performances they could pull off as a cast. They might have some lasting friendships, but often their lives spun in different directions away from the theatre.

Dexter had lost all of that though when the family moved to Michigan. He was a teenager then, young enough to rebuild social circles and alter his plans for the future. He didn’t struggle so much in Michigan, but Dex was still a long trek from popularity. Thankfully, it wasn’t something he aspired to. He had never cared so much about people’s opinion of him unless it was a critical review of his performances. Then it was entirely different. He wanted to hear every word so that he could improve. That was why he was so worried about getting this right now. He felt confident about the rest of his scenes that he didn’t want this single one to bring his whole performance crashing down. “Yeah, sure, sure.” He hadn’t even been listening to what Lottie was saying. Dex just wanted to get to his point and squeeze as much of a rehearsal out of this as he could before he was enveloped in his own panic. “Turn to page thirty-seven. I need you to be Beverly.” He explained, hoping she would turn to the right page and work out for herself exactly what was about to happen.

• • •

TAGGED! Charlotte Aaliyah McAllister
WORDS! 519!
OUTFIT! Drama Dork!
LYRICS! Kooky Eyes - - - The Jungle Giants
NOTES!