Who: Norah and NPC Devon [Narrative] When: Tuesday evening Where: Norah's work What: Hanging out, things getting a little weird
It never failed that Norah tended to get her hopes up when it came to the men she dated. Nearly every time she ended up physically or emotionally hurt, or both. Once she had been put in hospital because one of them had been 'too rough' and she had lost a baby. She may have only been a few weeks into it, but Norah was still not over that devastating loss. For all she knew, she never would be. She didn't know what it was about her that attracted the jackasses, but she had come to terms with the fact that she wasn't meant for a happy ending.
And then she would meet someone new. Someone who seemed wonderful and gentle. But then the inevitable would happen: He would become increasingly clingy, call her at all hours of the night 'to check on her', drop by unannounced, etc etc etc. It was a terribly tiring cycle, one Norah never seemed to see coming.
After the directors short speech after rehearsal, Norah went to retrieve her bag, taking a seat on the floor to remove her shoes. She hadn't noticed how Devon had slipped into the room during the last run-through. Or how he had stared at her the entire time. Or how he clenched his jaw when her partner touched her. They had barely been dating for three weeks. Things were still new and exciting.
It wasn't until Devon walked over and offered a charming smile that she even noticed him. She tucked her ballet shoes into her bag and slipped on her tennis shoes, "Oi! What a nice surprise. When'd you get here?" She wasn't expecting him.
"Been here about twenty minutes. You were a little preoccupied," he offered her a hand to help her up.
Norah smiled and stood up, planting a kiss on his cheek. "What'd you think? It's still a little rough but we've got a few more weeks before we start performing."
"You were great," said Devon with a smile, glancing at the guy she had been partnered with. "You have to dance with him much?"
Norah looked a little bewildered as she turned to look at her partner. "Who, Adam?" She shrugged and looked back to Devon, "Just for this production. It's a different partner most of the time, unless you're the leads."
"Oh, okay," he said with a nod. "Wanna get dinner? There's a place not too far from here I'd like to try."
"Sure, sounds great," said Norah with a smile as she took Devon's outstretched arm.
Norah didn't notice how Devon gave Adam a death stare as they left, but Adam had and it was only a matter of time before he would ask Norah why her boyfriend was staring at him like that.