five.

"THE SANDBAG FELL by accident, I swear." The Director's eerie chuckle, paired with the sound of his nearing footsteps, could have dislodged Nathan's heart. "I wouldn't lie to you, my villain. I'm not like you."

For a second, Nathan thought he'd been hallucinating when he'd heard the Director say, "Dammit, I missed," the moment the sandbag fell. But then he remembered he wasn't the only one capable of lying—surely a psychopath could do it as well.

"Congrats on finishing Act One, my actors," the Director said as he stood in his place right in front of Nathan and Adelaide. "Let's talk about your performance, shall we? I'll start with my heroine."

The Director tilted his stance so that he was mostly facing Adelaide, then took one step forward. His harsh expression softened progressively like iron melting. "My heroine, darling, you were nervous while performing, weren't you?"

Nathan stared at the two; the Director's hand hovered hesitantly closer to Adelaide, as if longing to hold her hand, but she remained unresponsive.

Say yes, Nathan mouthed to her. Maybe if they'd show him submission or honesty, he'd go easy on them. Lying straight to a psycho's face—about something specifically obvious—wouldn't go well.

Adelaide must've caught Nathan's advice through her peripheral because she finally mumbled, "Yeah," but failed to hold eye-contact. Nathan couldn't blame her. If he hadn't rehearsed cajoling people (into not kicking his ass) throughout his life, he wouldn't have been able to do it either.

"Why, my heroine, why?" A high pitch of surprise marred the Director's voice as he questioningly held his palms out. He stared at her, as if anticipating an explanation, then relaxed again. "I told you I'll shoot my villain if you mess up. You don't have to worry. Nothing's going to happen to you. Only to him."

This had Nathan recoiling in his place: at the reenforced threat or at the part logic behind it. So the Director made it clear he'd shoot him, not her; wouldn't that make Adelaide feel selfishly but understandably relieved?

"Your facial expressions weren't precise, my heroine. I couldn't see the enchantment. That's the name of the act. It was important," the Director continued, one hand absently adjusting the weapon's curved handle shoved in his waistband. "And when you said goodbye to him, it should've sounded sadder. That's written in the script. You should follow the script."

Silence. The type meant to make the listeners feel ashamed, make them sense the weight of consequences. Nathan was too used to this. Except the consequences hadn't been a bullet.

The Director sighed. "I want better performance next time. Understand, my heroine? I want you to be the character, remember." Suddenly, he turned, extending his arm out, hand pointing at Nathan. Nathan stiffened. "Like my villain, for example. He did a great job, which isn't surprising, is it?"

Holding his breath, Nathan tentatively watched the Director approach him. Praise? This shocked Nathan more than the fact that they hadn't messed up during the act.

The Director stood between Adelaide and Nathan this time and patted Nathan's back far too hard, inducing a tiny pained ow. "The way he smiled and the way he acted is exactly like Dolion. That's what I want. That's what's right." He looked at Nathan. "The best actors are the best liars. The better you can lie, the better you can act. Don't you agree?"

For the second time, Nathan felt partially attacked. Best liars. Was this intentional? But he agreed to some extent; he'd thought of this concept before. Actors equated good liars. People capable of fooling others. So was he one because he liked acting? Or—?

"I agree," Nathan finally said.

"You should." The Director nodded. "If you keep up with the good performance, my villain, there's gonna be a surprise for you. In the end. A very nice surprise." Eye narrowed, his chapped lips curled at one end into a sinister smirk. "You'll love it. I know you will."

Surprise. Nathan swallowed down the fear and stood his ground. He didn't find a word in him to speak. When he glanced at the Director through his lashes, he noticed that he was staring at his left cheek.

The Director's expression abruptly turned sour. Malicious. He held Nathan's jaw with a thumb and index and angled his face aside, other hand tracing the dimple. "Your dimple annoys me."

Nathan calmly moved his chin the other way, giving the Director his right cheek. He'd never appreciated that he only had a dimple on one side until now. "It can't annoy you if you can't see it."

For some divine reason, this made the Director chuckle. "Don't hide it, my villain, don't hide it." He patted the edge of Nathan's jaw, almost softly. "It annoys me but Luna loves it, doesn't she? It's your smile that made her live and die."

Letting go of Nathan with a sigh, the Director turned to Adelaide. "Go back to your room, my heroine," he finally commanded. Then he held a palm to Nathan's chest, keeping him in his place. "And you, I have a task for you."

Adelaide slowly stepped away, giving Nathan a look over her shoulder. Nathan remained in his place as the Director trudged over to the side of the stage opposite to their room, only to come back with a broom—of all things—in his hands.

Smiling, he shoved it in Nathan's chest. "Clean the stage. I want it neat and tidy for Act Two. And I"—the Director reversed until he leant his back against the iron chords behind him, or maybe just stood close to them, and pulled the shotgun out—"I'll be watching you."

Nathan stared at the barrel for a second. Void and taunting. A bullet could shoot out. Could tear his flesh. Could lodge in his bone.

"If that's what my Director wants," Nathan coaxed, gripping the broom even as his ego wailed. Under his breath, safely unheard: "Then I'll clean the stage until it fucking sparkles."

•••

Nathan knew Adelaide would call him a spoiled brat if he'd tell her he'd never held a broom in his life (except that one time he used it to pull a prank that he almost got expelled for). Cleaning had always been the housekeeper's job.

He dropped into his position again, right in his spot, spine along the wall, and said nothing. The Director had let him in again after he'd cleaned.

"Did he do anything to you?" Adelaide asked after a wordless minute.

"No, he just stared at me while I cleaned. It's creepy as hell, the way he looks at me." Nathan absently tugged at the ring he'd had to wear for the act, pulling it off his finger then fitting it back in. "But yeah, thankfully he didn't do anything."

"You make it look so . . . easy."

Nathan glanced at Adelaide, confused like a puppy. "What?"

"Like, the way you answer him." Adelaide pressed her palms to the floor and righted her slouchy sitting position. "The way you just talk to him—you make it look like it's the easiest thing ever. I can't do it like you. I feel like fainting every time I look at him."

Brows dropping into an indignant frown, Nathan tilted his head slightly. What the hell was up with everyone touching on his insecurity? So yeah, he could lie. He knew how to do it well. At least it saved him now.

"You're calling me a liar?" Despite everything, Nathan smiled, trying to pretend it didn't hurt.

Adelaide gasped, as if the realization suddenly hit her. "Gosh, no. No. That's not what I meant," she hastily said, "it's a compliment. I meant that you're good at controlling yourself. I'm just dumb—"

"Don't say that. You're not dumb." Nathan's faux smile turned to a real one. "I wasn't actually offended. Get used to me already. I'm not serious half the time."

Adelaide mirrored his expression, but hers missed a curve in the cheek. Nathan returned to fiddling with his ring. Gold. Pretty. Quite similar to a marriage—

Marriage. Nathan's blond hair flopped as he snapped his head up and stared at Adelaide with urgent apprehension. Holding the hand with the ring up, Nathan said, "Adelaide? Isn't this a marriage ring?"

Adelaide hunched over, leaning her weight mostly on her knees until she could see Nathan's hand closely. Her finger was about to touch his for inspection but she changed her mind mid-movement and only watched instead. "Yeah, I think so."

"So Dolion's married." Nathan didn't know if he was looking too deep into mere characters created by a (probably heartbroken) psycho. "And he's kinda cheating on his wife with Luna. Unless the ring doesn't actually mean anything and I'm just overthinking."

"No, you're right. I . . . I didn't think of that." Adelaide pursed her lips, half impressed and half self-degrading. "You notice important stuff and I just sit here as useless as ever."

"Don't inflate my ego, Adelaide. Trust me, you don't wanna do that."

Adelaide let out a short laugh.

Familiar chains grated against each other. Familiar process. As per old (or newfound) habit, Adelaide and Nathan froze. The door inched in just enough for the Director to slip in a tray with a glass of water and a small bagel on top.

The door closed again, leaving the tray inside and making Nathan and Adelaide glance at each other. One glass. One bagel—either meant for one of them or meant to be shared.

"I don't think we should touch that," Adelaide said. "I feel like it's a test? What if the Director punishes us if we eat—"

"Oh, I forgot to tell you," the Director's voice spoke through the earpiece. "The food and water's for my heroine. My villain, you performed better but oh well. Eat then sleep. Both of you. You need to rest before Act Two. My heroine sleeps on the bed. My villain on the floor. Understand?"

Of all injustice in this, Act Two caught Nathan's attention. Already? They'd just finished the first one.

"And, my heroine, I know you're too humble but eat. You have to."

Adelaide glanced at Nathan, and he knew what that piteous look meant. "Just eat," he said. "It's fine."

Tense silence, during which Nathan stared at his lap. If he looked at the food longer, he'd get hungrier. Bagel. The shit he particularly liked. And water—his throat was weeping for it.

Don't nag, Nathan reminded himself. The equation flashed in his head. Now wasn't the time to crave food. Be grateful.

The crunch of bread between teeth broke the silence. Then the sip of water. Then the scratch of the tray being pushed further away. When Nathan glanced in Adelaide's direction, a little beside her, the food had barely been touched. He raised a brow.

"I'm not even hungry," Adelaide explained. "I ate some just for him."

"If I was you, I would've swallowed that shit in two seconds."

Again with the piteous look on Adelaide's part. Mumbling, "I'm sorry," she pushed herself up to her feet then quickly settled down on the bed beside her. She looked at him on the floor.

"Stop looking at me like that," Nathan snapped. He felt like she could pinpoint it—the weakness in him. The want for luxury. "I told you it's fine. Just sleep."

"It's fine? I feel like a bitch. I got the food. And now I get to sleep on the bed."

"Bitch?" Nathan repeated, sliding down until he sprawled on the floor with a halfhearted smile, head resting against his arm. "I didn't know you had it in you."

"Let's say you're bad influence."

Nathan laughed quietly. He lifted his head off his arm and extended a hand out to Adelaide. "Can you hand me my jacket, please?"

"Sure." Adelaide patted around her until she found the jacket he'd taken off before she'd even come and thrown on the bed, then dangled it down to him. "Here. You're cold?"

"Nah." Nathan took it, folding it over before placing it beneath his head. "Just something to support my head."

Adelaide relaxed against the mattress and Nathan against the floor. Ironic, really, that all people had envied him for before was the money. The luxury. Where was it now, though? How could it help him now?

Nathan suppressed a snort. He shifted to his side, pushing the side of his head into the jacket. Slowly, he closed his eyes, but the lightbulb's yellow beams still blazed in small golden swirls behind his lids.

Back to silence. But not for too long, because the Director suddenly spoke through the earpiece, breaking the feeble moment of peace:

"You can pretend to be the good guy, Dolion. But you'll always be a villain. You'll always be my villain."

__________

a/n: Hope you enjoyed the chapter, thoughts/theories are always appreciated <3

(also, do you guys like the chapters lengths? I used to write wayyy longer chapters but now i'm going for this average length.)

thank you for reading/voting/commenting!