Off Script (Ch. 8)

A big decision and an almost-kiss

Oct 01, 2025

Welcome to a fictional series I’ve poured my heart into these past few months. Follow me into the world of high school theatre, where friendships, rivalries, and backstage crushes collide—and one girl fights for her dream as love and loyalty tug her in opposite directions.

I hope you enjoy reading as much as I loved writing this!

Chapter 8

Text within this block will maintain its original spacing when published

“Okay kids!” Singing out her words, Mrs. Green beamed at the cast members standing before her. “Usually this is when I’d suggest improvements from last night, but all I have to say this time is encore!”

The high schoolers gathered in a circle around her, still aglow from the victory of opening night despite the lack of sleep. They were teenagers, they were young—they could handle it. And as Indigo followed along in a vocal warm up and some “shakey-shakes”—Mrs. Green’s term for her pre-show nerve-calming routine—she felt the familiar anticipation bubble up inside her chest.

She couldn’t wait to be on the stage again.

After warm-up, the students separated to put on costumes and makeup as Mrs. Green put on ABBA in the background. Pulling Indigo and Nic aside before they headed for the dressing rooms, the drama teacher smiled proudly upon them.

“I just wanted to say you two were wonderful last night,” she gushed. “Even better than I expected. You bring out the best in each other on that stage—keep doing what you’re doing, okay? And if you ever need a reference letter, I promise I’ll absolutely sing your praises.” Mrs. Green smiled again and then shooed them off to go change.

As they turned away, Indigo nudged Nic’s arm. “Hey, d’ya hear that? She thinks you’re good too.”

“Guess so.” Nic kept his eyes down. “I gotta go change now.”

Darting off, Nic left Indigo as she paused in her steps. What was that all about? He hadn’t even looked at her. She felt someone’s eyes on her and looked up—Mercy stood in a dark corner, gazing at her with an eyebrow raised. She tilted her head and the corner of her mouth turned up into a sneer.

Returning the look with a cold stare, Indigo lifted her chin and made her way towards the dressing rooms. Nic was just tired. That’s all it was. Once they were on the stage, it would be normal again; they could be Sophie and Sky, without a care in the world. Well, besides wondering which of the three men was her father. And how her mother would react when she found them. And if she still wanted to marry Sky or not.

But at least she knew how that story would end.

The play started off strong. Sophie welcomed her best friends to the little blossoming Greek taverna, then her mother’s friends. Tension and mystery filled the air when her three potential fathers entered—she greeted them like a nervous little puppy, forgetting to fetch their keys and then tripping over her own feet when she left. Next was a scene with Donna and her friends, and then finally, the beach.

It was Sky and Sophie’s scene.

It began as always: finding him on the beach preparing a tackle box, Sophie approached with a question.

“Where are you going?” she asked.

“Oh, hi!” Sky seemed surprised to see her—as always. “There’s gonna be festivities at the bar, mud wrestling—and Pepper brought his handcuffs!”

Overwhelmed by her fathers and the heightened emotions of the day, Sophie begged him not to leave.

“What, and miss out on my last night of freedom?” Sky responded.

She started to reply, then stopped when she realized what he just said.

“Is that how you really see it?” Sophie asked, incredulous. She turned to leave.

Sky reached for her hand to stop her. He stumbled over his words in an attempt to climb out of the hole he just dug for himself.

Indigo’s heart began to flutter as their first kiss approached. But when he pulled her close, his lips brushed her cheek instead. Indigo blinked, thrown off by the deviation from the script.

He’d skipped their first scripted kiss.

Sky launched into song, and Indigo pulled herself together just in time to remember she was supposed to fold her arms and walk away. She was Sophie, not Indigo. But try as she might to recover from the confusion, the scene had lost its usual spark.

Indigo wished intermission was next. She knew that something was off—and she needed to confront Nic about it.

But the following scene was Sophie’s bachelorette; the dancing and chaos required her full concentration. Soon enough, the final verse to “Voulez-Vouz” was wrapping up. The song ended, the stage plunged into darkness, and the curtains closed to the sound of applause from the audience.

As the lights came back on, Indigo looked around for Nic, but he was missing from his usual place right behind her. Hurrying into the black box, she ran straight into Mrs. Green.

One look at the drama teacher’s face told Indigo she was not pleased.

“Where is Nic?” She demanded, looking down at Indigo.

“I-I don’t know. I was looking for him.”

“Well, he’s not back here and I don’t have time for this—I have a costume emergency to deal with right now. So you can pass this along: whatever’s happened between you two doesn’t get to come on the stage. Leave it in the wing. I expect a better performance next time.”

Mrs. Green pivoted and marched away, leaving Indigo speechless. She had no clue what was going on, no idea what had happened to Nic. And she’d never been scolded by Mrs. Green before.

Tears began to well in her eyes as her search turned more frantic. Five minutes till intermission ended, and she needed to change into her pajamas. Indigo hurried back to the dressing room, still seeing no sign of Nic.

The opening scene for the second act began with Sophie’s nightmare, the night before her wedding day. She’d channel her current emotions onto the stage then—it was a frenzied scene, rife with confusion, fear, and uncertainty about what was happening.

She could act that well enough.

The remainder of the play went better, but Indigo found herself unable to completely erase the seed of worry that had planted itself in her mind. Though Nic didn’t dodge their second scripted kiss, the feather-light peck he gave her could hardly pass for one. Indigo caught Mrs. Green staring at them from the wing, arms folded tightly across her chest.

She stumbled through a line, then reeled herself back in. Indigo couldn’t wait for the show to be over.

It was a stark contrast from the night before; where the last play had flown by, this time, it seemed to last twice as long. But, finally, the curtain was falling, and the minute it touched the stage, Indigo snatched Nic’s wrist before he could dart away.

“What is going on?” She demanded.

“Nothing.” Nic didn’t meet her eyes.

Realizing that she was creating a scene, Indigo dragged Nic after her through the wing and out into the hallway that housed the large stage props and half-built sets.

She turned to face him, putting her hands on her hips.

“For real!” Indigo furrowed her eyebrows; he was finally meeting her gaze. Something like sadness was etched into his face. “What happened out there? That was nothing like last night.”

“I—” Nic began, then looked away. “It’s nothing you did.”

“Okay, then, what’s the problem?” She bent down, tipping her face sideways into his line of sight.

Nic inhaled, then mumbled something incoherent.

“What?” Indigo asked.

“Your boyfriend!” He repeated, the words tumbling out of him. “He told me to keep my hands off you—that he’s the only one that can kiss you… plus some other stuff.”

Indigo opened her mouth, but the words froze in her throat. Scoffing, she shook her head, then paused.

“Wait—what’s the other stuff?”

“Just, don’t worry about it.” Nic shoved his hands into his pockets.

“Nic, what did he say?” Stepping forward, Indigo stared at him until he looked up at her. “I need to know.”

“He said… said he’d break my nose. Make me so ugly nobody will let me step foot on a stage ever again.” Nic laughed humorlessly.

Indigo’s jaw fell open. She knew the kiss scene had bothered Hudson, but she couldn’t believe he would actually do something like this. Anger swelled up inside her as she turned away and gnawed on her cheek.

The reality of her relationship was dawning on her, like a bucket of water being tipped on top of her. The way he looked past her, paid no attention to her… and now, apparently, had interfered with the play she’d worked so hard for. A strangled, choked sound escaped her lips before she could stop herself.

“Indie?”

Nic was suddenly at her side, much closer than he had been before. She looked up to see him watching her, his blue eyes as striking as always—and filled with concern.

Indigo took a deep breath, turning to face him. “I’m so sorry, Nic. I can’t believe he said that to you.”

“It’s okay.” Nic smiled weakly. “I don’t blame him. He’s just… being protective.”

“Sure, if you call lying to me and going behind my back ‘protective’.” It was Indigo’s turn to give a dry laugh. “Trust me, Nic, I’m not gonna let him do anything. I’ll talk to him.”

“Okay, but, maybe don’t tell him I said anything. Make it sound like someone overheard us, orrr you came to the conclusion on your own.” The drachma had appeared and was now nervously rolling around his fingers as the words streamed from him. “Or my understudy can just take the part. I’ll pretend to be sick or something.”

Indigo stepped nearer and grabbed Nic’s hand with both of hers, pausing him from fidgeting. Determination washed over her.

She was making a decision.

“Nic, it’s okay. I’m done with him.”

He inhaled sharply and met her gaze, his hand tightening underneath hers. “You’re what?”

“I’m breaking up with him.” Indigo stepped away, needing room to pace. She couldn’t believe she’d just said those words, and yet… they brought relief. “He’s controlling. And doesn’t care about what I’m interested in, and everything has to be for him, not us. If he can’t truly support my dreams, then I can’t do it anymore!”

“I…” Nic put the coin back in his pocket. “Indie, are you sure? I wasn’t trying to cause any problems between you two.”

“You’re not causing anything; the problems were already there.” She turned and rushed back to Nic. “Don’t worry about Hudson. We can do the show like normal, be Sophie and Sky again!”

“If you say so…” Nic reached up and tugged a strand of her hair, a charming grin spreading across his face. “Sophie.”

Overcome with relief, Indigo abruptly threw herself into him, wrapping her arms around his neck in a hug. Nic paused for the briefest moment, then returned the embrace gently, as if still afraid to touch her.

Pulling away, his hands stayed on the small of her back.

“What was that for?” Nic spoke quietly, almost in a whisper.

Indigo suddenly really, very, desperately wanted to kiss him—for real. His lips parted slightly, as if in anticipation of what he saw in her eyes. She could feel the warmth of his breath; it was so very close.

But no—she couldn’t. She needed to talk to Hudson first.

Breathing out a shuddery, small sigh, Indigo stepped back and dropped her arms to her sides.

“Sorry, I just… feel really bad. And, um, I’m glad we’re okay.”

“Nothing to apologize for.” All traces of discomfort had vanished from Nic’s face. Instead, he looked at her, his gaze both soft and intense. “Me too.”

A blush crept up her neck as Indigo looked away, flustered.

“We should get back out there, to say hi to everybody,” she said. “And everything.”

“Right.” Nic walked to the door and held it open for her, gesturing into the hallway. “After you.”

Indigo nodded and ducked past him, doing her best to not react at the way he guided her through with his hand on her back.

What had just happened?

Read Chapter 9 here

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