*3 hours later*
"Are we done yet?" nooshy groaned.
"Shut up and suck it up, Cindy." Porsha sneered.
"Bite your tail!" She retorted.
"Come on, guys. We're all tired." Meena sighed.
"Alright guys, I think we can stop here tonight." Buster said, seeing the cast's petty argument.
"See ya!" Nooshy ran out the door without even looking back.
"Wait!" Johnny called after her, frustration leaking into his tone. "Uggggggghhhhhhh." he groaned.
"What's wrong? Why do you care?" Ash asked.
He shot her a look that clearly said 'not in the mood' stalking out of the building, he was surprised to come across the lynx hiding in the alley next to the theater with her head between her legs, looking like she was gonna burst into tears at any second.
"What are you doing here?"
he immediately wished he could take it back because the words came out seemingly harsh, making her recoil back into her little bubble.
"Go away." she muttered.
"Sorry, I didn't mean it like that. Are you ok?"
"Just go home. Leave me alone."
"I'm not leaving. I'll stay here all night if I have to."
"Why?" she moaned. "Why did I ever agree to taking that...that stupid role?!"
"What's going on?"
"I don't know. It's just...I've never done this before. The vocal lessons, the acting, the memorization...and the fact that I have the main character. I don't know if I can do that. I lived on the street for 10 years of my life, I should be able to handle this! And yet, I can't."
Watching her friend's face, she said, "it's ok. I'll get through it fine. You can go home now. I'll be along in a few minutes."
Offering a weak smile, she shooed him out of the alley. Reluctantly, Johnny went home. About an hour later, he felt something was off and went to go check on Nooshy's apartment. Finding no one, he sprinted to the alley and saw her asleep on the pavement.
"Oh, noosh..." he sighed.
Gently, he lifted her off the ground. Turning to go home, he bumped into Rosita, who gasped at the sight of the lynx in his arms.
"Is she ok?"
"Physically, yes she's fine. Mentally? It's hard to say. I think the pressure is getting to her. She fell asleep in the alley."
"Poor dear. Imagine, she probably slept in alleys all her life."
"I'd rather not have that image in my head." he grimaced, imagining a little Nooshy asleep on the cement, a backpack the only thing she had as a pillow.
"I should get her home. Good night Rosita."
"See you tomorrow."
Walking into the apartment complex, Johnny passed their landlord, who said, "Good night, Johnny." before doing a double-take and whispering, "What happened?"
He sighed and explained.
After hearing it, the landlord exhaled and said, "Do you need a key for her room?"
"No, remember how she would lock herself out all the time? Well, she gave me an extra just in case it happened again."
" Alright. Have good night then."
He walked up the stairs and shifted his sleeping friend onto his shoulder so he could take out the keys. She gave a little murmur and buried her face in his shoulder. He gave a little smile and opened the door as quietly as possible. He lowered her gently onto her bed and covered her with a blanket.
Kicking off a blanket, Nooshy once again frantically sat up in bed.
'Where am I?'
looking around, she saw Johnny passed out on a chair in her living room.
"Hey! What are you doing here?" she demanded, her loud tone making him jump up.
Yawning, he stretched and said, "You fell asleep in the alley." with an accusing glance, he continued to explain.
"I brought you into the house and stayed here so you A. Didn't panic, and B. Try to escape. Your welcome."
"I wasn't gonna thank you. Now out!" she said, pointing.
"Fine by me." he walked towards the door, but right before he opened it, he said, "But just to let you know, you're late."
she threw a pillow at him, but he was already running down the hall, his laughter bouncing off the walls of the hallway.
"I HATE YOU!" she screeched, nonetheless feeling the giggles bubbling inside her.
When she finally arrived to work, Rosita and Meena were already there.
"Sorry I'm late!" she said cheerfully, entering the room.
Seeing the solemn faces, she asked, "What's wrong?"
"Why didn't you tell us it was too much?" Meena demanded.
"I uh...what are you talking about?"
"You fell asleep in the alley!"
"He told you?!"
"No." Rosita entered the conversation. "I bumped into him when he was going to take you home."
"I'm fine." Nooshy brushed off the concerns. "I was just a little tired last night is all. Let's get on with it."
"Not until you tell us what's going on with you." Porsha came into the room, with the rest of the crew in tow.
Seeing Johnny among them, she scowled and said, "You have something to do with this, I can tell."
"That may be, but it's not healthy to keep it bottled up."
"Tell us what's wrong." Buster urged.
"I'm fine guys, just getting used to the schedule."
"That's not it and you know it!" Ash nearly screamed in frustration.
"We've all been watching you, and this is not getting used to the schedule."
"How would you know?" Nooshy shot back. "It's only been the first day."
"No one hides in an alley on the first day." Porsha told her.
"I DON'T WANNA TALK ABOUT IT!" Nooshy exploded.
They all flinched, and Rosita, being the mom, put a hand on her back and said "Ok. Let's just...put a pin in it. For now."
Meena gave a look that said 'Clear out.'.
They all shuffled out of the room, with a last glance at the nearly hyperventilating lynx, her fists clenched. The minute they were out, Ash said, "She's hiding something."
"Well, no duh." Porsha replied, rolling her eyes.
"Don't pry." Johnny, who up until now has been silent, cut in.
"What?"
"I said, don't pry. It's something painful. It hurts her, whatever it is. She'll tell us when she wants to."
"Or when it eats her up."
"Porsha!" Ash hissed. "What? It's either-or." she shrugged, not noticing the worry she was causing the gorilla.
"I'm gonna go." he muttered, shoving his hands in his pockets.
"What are we going to do?" Ash groaned.
Hiiiiii whats nooshy hiding? thx so much for reading, keep reviewing!