Faceclaim (ONC 2022, Completed, Shortlisted)

7: Save The Cat

"So the guy doesn't even have to do anything?" Daniel blurted out, once again almost choking on his chips. He really should choose a less choking-prone snack. "Prince Ramon just walks into the castle--which is apparently made out of freaking waterfalls??!!!--and claims it without any conflict?"

Daniel might not be a screenwriter, but he still knew a few things about creating a dramatic narrative. And this wasn't it! Björn the Bearslayer fighting off an army of were-moose to retake his father's castle had been dramatic. It may have been cheesy and over the top, but at least it had stakes.

"And why are there capybaras outside the castle?" he continued, after getting no reply from the author. Perhaps they were getting tired of hearing his critique of their story and had gone for lunch. Because this was not the first plot point Daniel had an objection to.

A static hum, which could be a sigh, was heard from the walkie-talkie. "It will all make sense eventually, Daniel," the author replied, in an exasperated tone. "Just read on:"

"I doubt it..." Daniel mumbled and reached for a jar of peanut butter. He intended to eat it with a spoon directly from the jar. Because he needed some protein to fuel this brain through this trainwreck. "Have you ever heard of Save The Cat?"

"There are no cats in the story, Daniel." The author was definitely sick of him now and probably regretting their choice of lead actor/kidnapping victim. "There are only capybaras."

"Don't get me started on the capybaras..." He groaned. This really was the most ridiculous choice for an animal appearing in a story. And Daniel had played against an arctic fox once. "But Save The Cat is a book on how you outline a story to the best dramatic effect. I read it while in acting school since it was originally based on screenwriting."

Thinking back to acting school made him momentarily forget about the room around him. It had been an intense few years, studying acting techniques like there was no tomorrow and partying the same way. Things had been simpler then. Just sitting on his bed, reading scripts, and eating peanut butter directly from the jar.

Daniel caught himself mid-spoonful of peanut butter. He looked down at his legs that were snuggled up under a fort of pillows and the folded script in his hands. Perhaps things hadn't changed so much after all. Although the scripts had been better then. Shakespeare and all that jazz.

"I don't need your writing tips!" The author certainly sounded mad now. Daniel wondered if the walkie-talkie had a mute button. "You're the actor and I'm the author! Didn't I tell you about-"

"The hundreds of reads on Wattpad?" Daniel yawned. In the heat of the argument, he forgot to be scared and became bored instead. These discussions kept going around in circles. "Yep, I heard."

"You shut up now! You're nothing but a replaceable cog in this wheel, Daniel! There are more pretty actor boys you know, I could cast someone else and let you rot in here."

Daniel swallowed, his throat suddenly dry from fear--and perhaps peanut butter as well. Perhaps the cozy situation in the bed, reminding him of the good old days, had made him too comfortable. And this really wasn't a comfortable situation. This was life or death.

And Daniel wanted to live. He wanted to live. He wanted to shine. He wanted to dazzle.

"Yes, mam," he just said, although he wasn't sure whether the author was a mam or a sir. He bowed his head to focus on the script once again.

"One hour," the author informed him. "You have one hour to learn this chapter. Then it's time to walk out on the stage again."

Daniel nodded. One more hour. He tried to estimate which time of day it was since he had no clock or even daylight peering in to tell him. Assuming he'd waken up sometime in the late morning, as he was prone to do, it was probably early afternoon by now, since he'd already spent a few hours in this madness.

So he probably wouldn't be free in time for his flight to London tomorrow afternoon. But perhaps he could still make it there in time for the contract signing the day after. Because how many of these weird-ass scenes could there be? He just had to churn out a dozen or so of them, and then he could skedaddle out of there, toward his destiny of fame and fortune.

Maybe it wasn't a realistic plan, but it was a plan and it gave Daniel hope. And faced with a hopeless script like this, he really needed hope.

If only his life was as easy as Prince Ramon's, just walking into a waterfalls-and-capybara-filled castle and having power and riches handed to him.

Author's Note: I changed a few details related to the timeline and geography of this story, to make it a bit more realistic in those aspects. So the flight Daniel is meant to take will now leave a day later, and it's going to London instead of Los Angeles. And to not make the flight times an issue, Daniel is now actually in Amsterdam (where he was planning to take part in the nightlife after his audition before he flew back home to London where his agent is located and he also lives himself. His family is still located in Scotland).