Peggy nodded and said, “Start reading your lines when you hear me sigh.” She found her place in the script and took a deep breath. The tiny darkened shop with its strange shapes and musty odor was very quiet and, in an odd way, relaxing. With street noises mute and far away, the room seemed somehow warm and cozy, and Peggy approached the scene ahead with anticipation and confidence. Quietly, she made her way through the imaginary door, walked over to the imaginary window, and looked out. She sighed softly.
From the other side of the room, she could hear Tom Agate turn slowly in his chair. “‘Why did you come in so quietly?’” he read. His voice was rich and warm. “‘You’re as furtive as a lady burglar tonight.’” Here Tom added a note of gentle humor. “‘What’s wrong?’” The last phrase was said perfectly, with just the right amount of concern, but not too inquisitive.
“‘Oh,’” Peggy heard herself saying, “‘I didn’t know anybody was here.’” That was the way! That was the way she had wanted to say it at the audition!
“‘I’ll go if you like.’”
Suddenly the play had real meaning for Peggy. It became important for her “grandfather” to stay. “‘Oh no!’” she cried in a voice of alarm. Then more quietly. “‘Please don’t. There’s—there’s something I want to talk to you about.’”
The scene continued and this time there was no one to stop them. The end came when Peggy, as the young granddaughter, threw herself down on the floor beside her grandfather and began to cry. To her surprise, real tears came to her eyes.
“‘I’m sorry,’” she gulped. “‘I didn’t mean to cry.’”
Above her, Tom Agate, still in the role of the grandfather, reached down and touched her hair. “‘There, there,’” he read. “‘A person should always have somebody to cry with. It does the heart good. I may not be that perfect person, but maybe I’ll do for tonight.’” Tom Agate put his hand gently on her shoulder. “‘There, there,’” he repeated.
And that was the end of the scene.
In the breathless hush that followed, Peggy couldn’t trust herself to speak. Even Peter, who never seemed at a loss for words, was silent. But eventually, he put into words what they all knew.