The run of Jade's senior showcase is set to start on a Friday night. They'll do two performances, one on Friday and one on Saturday, at one of the smaller theaters on campus. Flyers have been posted around the arts buildings and in various other locations on campus, it's been added to the weekly line-up in the campus newspaper, things are really feeling real now. Part of Jade is excited, part of her is nervous, and part of her is anxious to get the whole thing over with.
"Everything is going to be absolutely fine, babe." Beck assures her Thursday night as they're having dinner "The script is great, you said rehearsals have gone really well...you need to just trust in the whole process and let it happen. You know in your heart that it's good, don't let your head mess that up for you."
"I'm just so nervous about everything that could go wrong." Jade admits "I mean, it's live theater. S'not like we can just yell 'cut' and start again. There's a whole audience sitting right there."
She has a point, Beck supposes. That's one of the most convenient parts about his job, if he breaks character or messes up a line...he has the chance to go back and try again. He and his cast-mates need that chance rather often, there's a whole reel worth of bloopers from the season so far to prove it.
"You've rehearsed as much as you possibly can." Beck reaches across the table and takes his girlfriend's hand "You've got this."
"Thank you..." She smiles "Shit! I forgot I have to post the flyer on my instagram story!"
She reaches for her phone and navigates to the correct app, uploading the jpg she had saved to her camera roll to her story for all of her followers to see.
"Send it to me." Beck tells her "I'll post it too."
"Uh..." Jade hesitates "I would rather that you didn't..."
"What? Wh-why not?"
He's her boyfriend, he should be supporting her in everything that she does. Posting the information about her play to his story would be the least he can do.
"Don't take this the wrong way, okay?" Jade searches for the words to tell him what she means in the most gentle way possible "I want people showing up for me or because they're interested in the story or the concept, or because they want to support me...not because they want to meet you."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that you're on one of the highest-rated shows on television right now." Jade reminds him "You have a lot of followers. And that's great! But I don't want people coming because they think it'll be a meet and greet. If you post the information...well, you're my boyfriend. Of course people assume you're going to be there. And before long we have to delay the start because there's a huge line of people at your seat asking you for an autograph."
"So...I'm too famous for this?"
"That's not what I meant..." Jade sighs "I want recognition for my work because I deserve it, not just because I'm your girlfriend. I want to make my own name, not just ride on your's forever."
"Alright..." Beck nods "Alright, that makes total sense. I can still come though...right?"
"Oh my god, of course you can come." Jade assures him "You better come, actually."
"I'll be there both nights." Beck grins "Make sure you save me a seat."
"Of course." Jade smiles "I'll make it Cat's job to save it."
She doesn't sleep well that night. Beck had gone back to his own apartment, he has an early call time the next morning and they both know it would be easier for him to stay at his own place. Without him there to hold her and comfort her, Jade spends hours tossing and turning, the endless line of 'what if's running through her mind about everything that could go wrong. She wakes up in the morning feeling more tired than when she had gone to bed, and in desperate need of coffee.
"Happy show day!" Cat exclaims when Jade enters the living room "Are you excited?"
"Nervous..." Jade grunts "I didn't sleep well."
"Oh Jadey..." Cat sighs "It's going to be fine! It's not different than any other play that you've been in."
And Jade has been in plenty since she's met Cat. As a drama major, Jade had a role in at least two plays a year until she started working on her own senior showcase last summer. She did theater in high school too. Cat has never seen her this nervous before, or really with any kind of stage fright at all.
"I wrote this one..." Jade sighs as she begins filling the coffee pot with water "I've spend the past eighteen months trying to figure out if I want to be a writer or an actress, if this weekend doesn't go well...well, I might not be able to do either."
"Alright, tough love time..." Cat sighs, walking over to her roommate and placing a hand on each of her shoulders "Get out of your head. You're Jade West, you're one of the best actresses I know. You're definitely the best writer that I know. Your play is going to go on without any issues, and you're going to blow everyone away."
"Doesn't feel like tough love so much as it does a lot of compliments." Jade smirks
"Okay, so I'm not so good at tough love." Cat admits "But I'm a great cheerleader! And I know that you've got this one in the bag!"
"Thanks, Cat..." Jade manages to smile "I appreciate it."
"Don't mention it." Cat winks "Are you coming back here at all beforehand?"
"No, I'm going to go straight to the theater after my last class to make sure everything is ready to go." Jade tells her "But I'll see you there?"
"Of course you will." Cat assures her "Robbie and I will be there right next to Beck and your dad. Just...don't forget to eat something, okay? We don't need you passing out up there."
"I'll make sure I eat." Jade nods "But that reminds me, my dad said he wants to take us all out after the show tomorrow."
"All of us?"
"You, me, Robbie, Beck..." Jade informs her "He said he'll take us out to a late dinner afterwards."
"Oh, that's so nice of him!" Cat grins "I'll let Robbie know."
"Okay good." Jade nods "Alright...I need to get ready. I can't start today off by being late to class."
"Break a leg, Jadey!" Cat calls after her as Jade takes her coffee into her bedroom "We're all rooting for you!"
"What do you mean the transplant team isn't here yet?" Beck furrows his eyebrows "I have a patient upstairs whose life depends on that liver!"
"Dr. Harmon, there's nothing that we can-"
"Nothing?" Beck snaps "Absolutely nothing we can do? Somehow I doubt that."
"Dr. Harmon." Another man behind him says "It would be wise of you to control your temper."
"My temper?" Beck scoffs "The transplant team is an hour late, and I have a patient waiting on a life-or-death operation. This isn't me losing my temper, this is me giving a damn."
"And cut!" The director yells "Great work everyone, that's a wrap for tonight."
Beck and his co-stars all congratulate each other on a scene well done, and then he practically takes off running to his dressing room. They were only supposed to be filming until 5:30 tonight, and now it's 6:15. He has just over an hour to change, stop for flowers, and get to NYU in time for Jade's play.
"Hey man." His co-star, Jack Chaplin, laughs as Beck rushes down the hallway "Where's the fire?"
"Jade's senior showcase is in like, an hour!" Beck calls back over his shoulder "I've gotta go!"
"I take it you're not going to want to come over to watch the Knicks game then?"
"Nah, man. Sorry." Beck apologizes "Another time."
He enters his dressing room and closes the door behind him. The room itself isn't very big, but for the amount of time he actually spends in there it gets the job done. He has a wardrobe and a desk on one side of the room and a couch on the other. There's a forty-inch TV mounted on the wall that he sometimes has time to watch, but otherwise there isn't much else. He's added a few of his own personal touches. Posters from his favorite movies and personal photographs.
Beck smiles when his eyes land on a picture of him and Jade that he has tacked up on the wall. It's of the two of them on New Year's Eve; they're both smiling and holding flutes of champagne, 'Happy New Year' crowns atop both of their heads. It reminds him of how proud he is of her tonight, and how excited he is to see her perform and to tell her that he loves her.
Within record time, Beck has changed out of his costume scrubs and into the suit that he had brought with him to wear. He makes sure he has his phone and his wallet in his pockets, which he does, grabs his coat, then turns out the lights and leaves the room.
"Look at you!" Lacey Miller exclaims "You clean up well, Mr. Oliver!"
"Thanks!" Beck chuckles as he pulls his coat on "Jade's senior showcase is tonight. Wanted to make sure I looked alright so I didn't embarrass her."
"Wish her luck from all of us." Lacey tells him "I'm sure she'll do great."
"Thanks, I'm sure she will too."
The subway could get him to the NYU campus in about twenty minutes, he's taken it before, but Beck decides not to risk it. There's too much that could go wrong...a delayed train, a group of fans who want to talk to him, or some kind of service outage. He decides it's safer to Uber. Besides, he has to stop for flowers anyway and a car would be much more accommodating to that.
There's a florist about two miles from campus that Beck decides to stop at. It's not the one he usually purchases from, but he doesn't have time to go to the one that he frequents. That one is all the way back by his own apartment and backtracking to it would run the risk of him being late. Instead he has his Uber drop him off at the one closer to campus, then immediately orders another car so it will be waiting for him by the time he's done inside.
"Woah!" The man behind the counter gasps when Beck enters the store "You're the guy from Manhattan Med!"
"That's me..." Beck chuckles, stomping the snow and slush off of his shoes "Look, I'm running late. I was hoping you could help me out?"
"I'll do what I can!" The man assures him "What are you looking for?"
"My girlfriend loves Stargazer Lillies." Beck tells him "I know its February and they're out of season but-"
"We have some!" The man cuts him off "Pink or white?"
"White, please." Beck breathes a sigh of relief "And could you tie a purple ribbon around them?"
"Of course!" The main nods "Give me just a minute!"
He gathers the lilies from one of the refrigerated cases and ties them up with a purple bow, then slides them into a plastic sleeve so Beck can carry them without damaging the stems. He rings Beck up and swipes his credit card just as he gets the notification that his next Uber is ready and waiting for him outside.
"Thank you so much." Beck grins as he takes the flowers "I really appreciate it."
"Don't mention it!" The worker smiles "Uh, I know you said you were running late...but would you mind if we got a selfie real quick?"
Normally in this circumstance, Beck would say no. He's running late. The man had been more than helpful and accommodating to him though, and had done so in a speedy manor...so he feels that a selfie is the least that he can do.
"Thank you so much!" The man pulls his phone out to take the picture "My girlfriend won't believe this!"
"No problem, man." Beck nods "Thanks again for helping me out."
He checks his watch as he rushes out to the waiting car. 7:04. He should make it in plenty of time.
Meanwhile at the theater, Jade is continuously peeking out from behind the curtain to see if Beck has arrived yet or not. Every time she looks she sees her father, Cat, and Robbie sitting in the audience, but the seat next to Robbie is always empty. She tells herself that she doesn't need to text him, that everything is fine. She's been trying her best to stay off of her phone as showtimes draws closer, not wanting to lose her focus or train of thought. However, she can't stop herself from worrying as her stage manager comes to set up her microphone pack and Beck has yet to arrive. If anything, she had hoped that seeing his face would bring her some reassurance, but that won't be possible if he isn't here.
"Thank you so much!" Beck says to his driver as he steps out of the car in front of the theater "Have a good night!"
He runs up the steps taking them two at a time, a risky move given that the pavement is still covered in snow and ice. Retrieving his ticket from his wallet, he presents it at the front door and then rushes inside.
"I knew he'd be here!" Someone behind him says
Beck doesn't pay the comment any mind, he doesn't really pay any mind to everyone that has notices his presence. His main focus is getting inside and finding his seat. Which he does with only six minutes to spare.
"Cutting it a little close, don't you think?" Cat hisses as Beck sits down in the empty seat beside Robbie "Where have you been?"
"The scene ran forty-five minutes over..." Beck explains "I got here as soon as I could."
"You couldn't have texted that?"
"I didn't want anyone to worry!" Beck insists "Hi, Mr. West."
"Hi Beck." John nods "Good to see you."
"You too."
"She's been peeking out here every two minutes looking for you." Cat informs him "You better wave next time she does so she knows that you're here."
"I will."
This is the first time that Beck has ever received any kind of hostility from Cat, the two of them have always gotten along rather well. He knows that it won't last, that she's just looking out for Jade, but it's still quite odd given Cat's usually bubbly demeanor.
Sure enough, Beck sees Jade pull the curtain back just slightly and gaze into the audience about thirty seconds later. They lock eyes on each other and her expression softens a bit. He offers her a wave and she waves back, then disappears behind the curtain again.
Less than three minutes later, the lights dim and the curtains part, revealing the play's set on the other side. Jade and another actress walk out and sit down, earning applause from the audience. Beck watches his girlfriend with an overwhelming pride that he's never felt before until this point in their relationship, she's so talented. Not only is she a gifted writer in terms of the story, but she portrays her part with such emotion it almost brings him to tears. His girlfriend is a super star, and the entertainment industry has no idea what's about to hit it.
The show earns a standing ovation from the audience, and no one who is there to support Jade had expected anything less. They're all relieved that the show went on without any issues, because they know it will bring Jade great peace of mind headed into the next day's performance. They wait in their seats for Jade to come out and see them, and Beck takes a few pictures with fans in the meantime. There are some who recognized him, but there are some who had followed Jade on instagram simply because she's Beck's girlfriend and saw tonight as an opportunity to potentially meet him. Beck wouldn't be surprised if in a short amount of time, the roles are reversed and people are following him places to meet Jade. After the performance she gave tonight, there's no doubt that she's going to be famous sooner rather than later.
"Jadey!" Cat squeals when her friend emerges from the backstage area "You did so good! I told you it was going to be fine!"
"You sure did, Cat." Jade chuckles as she shares a hug with her roommate "Thanks for coming."
"I can't wait to see it again tomorrow!"
"Neither can I." John tells her as he steps in to hug his daughter as well "Wonderful job, sweetheart. I loved it."
"Thanks, Dad."
"These are for you." He says, handing her his own bouquet of flowers "Although I know they don't mean as much coming from me as they do from him..."
"Running a bit late tonight, huh?" Jade smirks as Beck steps towards her "Y'had me worried there for a minute."
"My scene ran over..." Beck explains with a shrug "But that doesn't matter. What matters is that you were fucking amazing up there tonight. I'm so proud of you."
They share a kiss as he hands her the bouquet of lilies, and they get so lost in each other that John has to clear his throat to bring them back to reality.
"Thank you..." Jade tells him quietly "I'm really glad you made it."
"Me too." Beck tells her "Jade, you're so talented. You're going to have so many doors open to you."
"You think?"
"I know."
They make small talk for a few minutes, then John excuses himself to catch his car home. He promises to be back the next night to see the second show, as do Cat and Robbie. Beck offers to buy Jade dinner, as he hasn't eaten himself yet, and she accepts, the two of them walking out of the theater hand-in-hand.
"I told you everything would be fine, did I not?" Beck smirks as they walk "The show was fantastic. You were fantastic."
"So you've told me..." Jade chuckles "Let's not jinx anything yet, okay? There's still one more show tomorrow. There's still time for something to go wrong."
"But it won't."
"It could."
"Alright, alright. Fine." Beck laughs "I won't jinx it."
"Thank you."
"I love you, you know." Beck smiles at her "I haven't told you that yet tonight."
"You don't have to." Jade tells him "I know. I love you too."
"Hey, stop right here." Beck tells her as they pass under a street lamp "The lighting is really good."
"What are you doing?" Jade laughs
"Taking a picture." He informs her "Cradle your flowers and smile at me. Yeah, just like that. Perfect!"
"Why'd you do that?" She asks as he takes her hand again
"So you can always remember tonight." He tells her "And so that I can post this on social media and brag about how talented my girlfriend is."
"Beck..."
"Don't 'Beck' me..." He chuckles "You deserve the credit, Jade. And everything that comes after it."