Wei-Wei
I'm standing at the windowsill, poking the soil of the sad (very dead) plant and whispering, "Come on, just one green leaf. For me?" when my phone starts vibrating; Pim's name flashes across the screen.
I answer on the second ring.
"Xiao Wei! Perfect timing!" she says, already halfway through another conversation in the background. Her voice is bright and breathless. It's clear that she's doing at least three things at once. "You need to come to the set, like right now. It'll be fun, I promise. Just come watch. The light is amazing today, so you can sketch. I'm at the old studio complex near Thong Lor – you know the one with the big green gate? Wear something cute, okay? Love you, bye!"
She hangs up before I can ask for more details. No building number. No floor. Just "the old studio complex near Thong Lor" and "wear something cute."
I stare at the phone.
"She said 'the set,'" I mutter to the dead plant. "As if there is only one set in all of Bangkok. I am supposed to magically know which one?"
The plant offers no helpful suggestions. I guess no one can if you're dead, and let's be honest, Wei-Wei, the plant is dead. D-E-A-D, as in, no amount of misting is ever going to revive it. Sigh. May you rest in peace, little plant.
I sigh, walk to the closet, and pull on my soft baby-pink oversized shirt with the little cartoon kitten on the front. Underneath the kitten, it says in tiny English letters: All kitten aside, these puns are claw-some. I love animal puns. I pair it with shorts and sneakers because it's too hot for anything else. I look… cute. I think? What qualifies as cute? Whatever.
Big Rock and Slightly Smaller Rock fall into step behind me as I head downstairs. They don't ask questions; I think they're just glad to go somewhere that isn't the university or my apartment.
The address is somewhere in the Thong Lor area. I follow the map on my phone, weaving through the afternoon crowd, the smell of street food and exhaust wrapping around me.
When I arrive at the building with the big green gate, it looks professional. It has glass doors, a security guard, and people with clipboards moving with hurried purpose. I step inside, and immediately someone in a black polo shirt with a headset spots me.
"You're here for the audition?" she asks in rapid Thai.
"I'm here to watch my cousin work," I say politely. "Pimchanok from Lu Corp. She told me the old studio complex near Thong Lor."
She checks her tablet, frowns, then brightens. "Lu Xiao Wei? You're on the list. Third floor, room 305. They're just about to start. Hurry!"
Before I can explain that there has clearly been a mistake, she's already steering me toward the elevator with gentle but unstoppable efficiency.
The elevator doors open on the third floor, and I'm gently herded into a waiting area full of nervous-looking actors holding scripts. Someone presses what I'm assuming is supposed to be a script into my hands.
"Page four, the second scene," the assistant says. "You're reading for Tawan. Good luck!"
I open my mouth. "I think there's been--"
"Next!" someone calls from inside the room.
And suddenly I'm being ushered through the door.
The audition space is bright with cameras set up. A few people are sitting behind a long table, and across from the mark on the floor stands Prinya Jaturapattarapong. I know it's him because Bas made me watch one of his dramas just last night. Apparently, this is part of being a "cultured" person. Whatever that means.
He is ridiculously tall (I know, I know, everyone seems tall compared to my height. But I'm serious, he has to be at least 183cm tall). He is standing completely still, almost like a statue – is this something they teach you in acting school? He has a strong jaw and a quiet, domineering presence. Oh, and did I mention he is handsome? Like HANDSOME!!!!! Hello, Mr. Darcy (but better ;0 ).
P'Prinya looks up, and his dark eyes meet mine. Eeeeep!
Send help! RIP me. Wei-Wei's brain has officially lost contact. I repeat, Wei-Wei's brain has officially lost contact.
He just keeps on staring. Do I have something on my face? Do I look like some kind of sudoku puzzle he needs to solve? What is up with all this staring?!
My stomach does something complicated. It feels like butterflies are doing somersaults inside my tummy.
Finally, the director, a petite woman with glasses, glances between us. "Alright, let's run the street performance scene. It's Tawan and Sirawit's first real meeting. Whenever you're ready."
Oh, cream and crackers!
I think I say something like "I'm not actually--" but the words never quite make it out because P'Prinya is still looking at me with that look and my brain has short-circuited.
"Action."
I deliver the lines. Err, I think I delivered the lines? My mouth moves, and sounds come out, but I'm mostly thinking about the way P'Prinya is watching me, and it's making my pulse do this crazy fast running thing. Since when do I do anything fast? So, heart, if you're listening, stop this nonsense at once! At once, I tell you!
He delivers his lines back, completely calm and controlled, but there's something underneath it – a tiny crack in the polish, like maybe he felt the same spark I did.
The room is very quiet once we finish.
The director leans forward. "Well… that was something."
I stand there, my heart hammering at 622 beats per minute, clutching the script as if it might save me. Newsflash, it did not – save me.
Forty minutes later, the door bursts open, and Pim rushes in, still on another call, hair slightly wild.
She stops dead when she sees me standing next to P'Prinya while the director is giving notes.
Her eyes go wide. She looks at us for approximately forty-seven seconds. Then she smiles in a way that can only be described as villainous. Oh no. No, no, no, no, no, no!
Then she pulls out her phone, dials, and says brightly into the receiver, "Jingwei? Hi, it's Pim. So, funny story, technically I was on three calls at once, and I told Wei-Wei to come to 'the set,' and maybe I didn't exactly specify which set, and the blue green might have been confusing, but in my defense, the chemistry is completely undeniable and--"
I close my eyes. Maybe if I pretend I can't see it, then this isn't happening. Right. Right?