A Woman of Many Faces

The glittery dust on her face was all that remained of the glorious night she had. Now she was resting her head, waiting for another show. The days were often like this, she found. Once in the business, her life had changed. The flashing lights, glittery make up, it was all perfect to her. She loved being in the limelight, and this was her way of doing it. She'd never felt like this before, being a shy girl from a small town, but soon found it to be her passion.

Acting. She was an actress, a theatrical performer if you will, and the stage called to her. Now in the big city, she found it a bit overwhelming. How could she have ended up in this predicament? Well, it started out with an audition. It always starts out with an audition. Then she found she felt more comfortable up there, pretending to be someone else for a while, than being the shy girl she was. If only her friends from home could see her now, all dolled up and bold, they wouldn't believe it.

That night, she'd done an encore with the male lead, playing in Romeo and Juliet. It was her favorite play to do, because that was the very play that got her on the fast track to becoming a star. At the time, she'd thought, "Oh no. I can't do this, there's no way. Not in front of all these people!" But a reasuring state had calmed her nerves. "I will do this. I'm going to do this because this has always been my dream. No matter what people said, I always believed in myself, and it hasn't failed me yet. I want this."

That's all it took, and now, now she was being successful. Sure, she might not have a fancy car or a rich boyfriend, but this was her dream. She couldn't do wrong by her dream. While everyone had told her she couldn't, she'd took it upon herself to apply her full attention and mind, and it'd gotten her far. By now, the stage was her nature, the place she felt most comfortable. It was hard to imagine that only a few months ago she'd been petrified of even standing on the stage, not to mention with so many curious faces watching her.

But that was always what she wanted. It made her happy, being able to entertain others with her acting abilities. So she continued on, making her mark throughout the world. She awoke, later into the day, and got herself ready. The night would soon begin and she'd find herself on the stage once more, being whichever character was needed that night. She'd hoped that she could work on channeling her inner Fantine, but time would only tell.

So far, she'd found the many characters she portraited fit into her life. It's funny, to find someone so different from yourself, and realize there was much more in common between you than you thought. At least, that's how she viewed it. Once ready, she headed over to the theater, instantly bombarded with direction and order. But she didn't mind, she loved the process she went through to put on a good show. As expected, she was playing Fantine that night, so she got into costume, had her hair and makeup done, and was ready for the stage.

As expected, her show came out good, as she poured her heart and soul into I Dreamed A Dream, and she could feel the audience changing direction with her, following her every move. It was intense, and the shy country girl underneath couldn't be seen. Right now, all they saw was Fantine. Just the way she liked it. The night ended in applause, everyone was pleased with her performance. She took her bow right along with the cast, ecstatic with how much the musical had been a success.

But out in the alleyways, as she was leaving, she noticed something strange. A girl, she couldn't be a day over fifteen, was standing around, looking anxious. The girls' face lit up after a moment when she noticed her.

"You! You were in the play, as Fantine!" The younger girl exclaimed, and she nodded brightly.

"Yeah, that was me. Did you like the show?" They'd fallen into step now.

"Of course! It's one of my favorite musical's actually. But that's not what I came out here to discuss," She cut to the chase, her breath visible in the cold air.

"What did you come for then?" The girls' face darkened at that.

"Actually, I came because..well you're an inspiration! I heard that you grew up in a small town and now, well, you're a big success! How did you do it? Wasn't it hard?" The girl let out in a long breath. The older girl had a blank look before letting out a laugh.

"Thank you for that. I did grow up in a small town, and it was very hard. I did it because I applied myself. I thought about how badly I wanted it and I said to myself that I wouldn't slack off and that I would perservere, and eventually, I made it. It took a lot of hard work and twice as much heart, but I did it. I sure as hell did it." The other girl was looking at her in awe.

"That's amazing. I've always wanted to be on stage, but I'm no good in front of others. I get stage fright," she shrugged.

"Don't let that stop you. Believe me, I had the same problem. Just try your hardest, work on public speaking. You never know, once you get on stage, you might feel more comfortable than when you're off of it," The girl thought it over for a moment.

"You know, you're right. Well, I've got to get home before my mom starts to worry. She does that a lot. I'll be looking forward to another show, bye!" They said their goodbyes and walked off in seperate directions.

"That kid's got a lot of heart. She reminds me of someone I know," She thought, and couldn't help but laugh out loud.