Grapefruit
Spiced Rum
Theatre
Whoo! Here's my post for TDOE Day 5- A Christmas Carol.
Alarik belongs to @patricia-von-arundel.
A Christmas Carol
Rating: T (for mentions of alcohol)
"Well done Elsa!"
"Fantastic show!"
Elsa smiled and nodded, thanking each of the cast members as they congratulated her. She'd just finished her first show as the standby for the lead, and it seemed to have gone well.
As Elsa thanked the well-wishers, she kept noticing one person in particular was missing. She kept watching, hoping to see his gangly frame, but he never appeared.
At last, once she'd extracted herself from the crowd, Elsa made her way backstage until she tracked down one of the techs.
"Geatland? He left just after intermission. Looked like he got a call. I think he went towards the prop shop."
Thanking the tech, Elsa headed to the prop shop, to find the door cracked open. She paused at a strange sound- was that crying?
"Alarik?"
She pushed the door open, to find Alarik sitting on the floor, accompanied by a squashed grapefruit and a bottle of spiced rum that was already half-empty. When he looked up, Elsa could see tears streaming down his face.
"Alarik? Did something happen? Are you alright?"
"I'm fine. Don't worry about me." His words were somewhat slurred.
Elsa closed the door behind her, praying that no one else would need to enter the shop. She settled beside Alarik, giving him some space, but remaining close.
"You're not fine, and I am going to worry about you. What happened?"
Alarik looked away, and Elsa wondered if she'd gone too far. But then, in a voice so soft she almost didn't hear him-
"My brother called."
"Oh, Alarik." She knew the two had a strained relationship ever since Alarik left his family's estate to travel.
Alarik's voice took on a sharp tone. "He wanted to let me know he was removing me from the will. And that he won't let me back on the estate. God knows how he managed that, but he's always been good at finding loopholes and shady lawyers."
Alarik took a swig from the bottle, and Elsa could see he was swaying a bit. "Not that I want anything with the money, but that was my home for eighteen years. I wanted to go back at some point. Happy Freaking Holidays to me, I guess."
He looked back at her, and realization dawned on his face. "The show! Your show! And I just left!"
He buried his head in his hands, sobbing. Elsa shushed him, putting an arm around his shoulders and trying to ignore the reek of alcohol.
"Alarik, no. You were dealing with this. Look, let's just get you to your hotel room, alright? Can you walk?"
Alarik hiccuped, and let her help him to his feet. He was still swaying a bit, but was steady enough for her to clean up the grapefruit and rum. He did make a face when she dumped the bottle in the nearest trash can.
"You've had enough."
Alarik grumbled something unintelligible that she ignored, and she helped him walk out into the night. Thankfully their hotel wasn't too far, and within a half hour, she had gotten him into his bed.
Elsa pulled the covers up over him, chuckling when she heard his soft snore.
"Sleep well, Alarik."
……………
Alarik woke to a pounding headache and dry mouth. He groaned, cursing himself for whatever had driven him to a hangover. It took him a moment to remember the events of the previous night. He shot up, yelping when the movement caused his head to throb.
Once the pain subsided to something at least manageable, Alarik looked around and noticed there was a glass on the nightstand. He hadn't remembered putting it there the night before. Next to it were pain relief pills and a note. He picked up the note, which was written in Elsa's neat handwriting.
Alarik,
Stay hydrated! I hope your hangover isn't too bad.
Please don't worry about last night. I understand. But please text or call me when you can. I'd like to know that you're okay.
-Elsa
Alarik swallowed the pills and picked up his phone, which he saw had been plugged in. He started to open his messages, but changed his mind and pressed the phone button instead.
He hesitated a moment, then called.
Elsa picked up on the second ring. "Hi, how are you feeling?" Her voice was soft, and he could hear the note of worry in it.
"I've been better. Thanks for taking care of me last night. You really shouldn't have."
There was a pause, and in an even softer voice, Elsa said, "I've been there before. When our parents died, I… I couldn't leave you by yourself."
It was Alarik's turn to hesitate. "I… thank you. That means a lot to me."
“I am curious, though. Where did the rum come from? And the smashed grapefruit?”
Alarik barked a laugh, then winced when his head protested again. “Well, the grapefruit was a snack. I... may have smashed it when I got the call from my brother. As for the rum... that was actually going to be a gift... for you. I remember you told me you liked drinking that over the holidays, so I bought it before the show. And then I drank it like a fool. I’m so sorry.”
“I know what you were going through, Alarik. It wasn’t the best way to handle it, but I understand.” Another pause, and Alarik could hear Elsa take a deep breath. “We don’t have a show tonight. There’s a little cafe a few blocks from here that I’ve been to before. They Will you join me for dinner there?”
Alarik felt a warm heat suffuse his entire being. “I would love to. Do you want to meet up at five?”
“Five o’ clock,” Elsa said. “I’ll see you then, Alarik. I’m looking forward to it.”
“So am I.”
Alarik hung up, feeling happier than he had been in a long time.