I shifted slightly in the uncomfortable wooden theater seat in the back of the room at the open mic. Surprisingly, the room was filled with people. Not only were all the seats taken, but some people sat on the short stairs that lead down into the room from the door. A handful of people lingered at the back of the room behind me. I was glad that it wasn’t me who was to go up on stage, but I did feel a bit anxious for Lisa’s performance. I knew she was coming up soon and I hoped that she would get the laughs she wanted.

Up on stage were two boys, both with guitars, playing a song that they said was a cover of some pop indie rock band. They played with gusto, only one of them singing, and I was pleasantly surprised at how good they were up there together. I enjoyed the music and the two of them obviously enjoyed playing it. Lisa was hanging off to the side of the stage, ready for her slot in the show. She didn’t really look nervous or anything. Rather, she looked quite happy.

After the two boys finished their song, a round of applause rang out through the small theater. A couple people behind me hooted and whistled, most likely friends of the two musical performers. As the musicians made their way off stage, another boy trotted up and walked to the microphone. He sort of looked familiar to me, like I had seen him around Leopold Hall. I wasn’t certain, but he could definitely be in the ALOHA program. We had a lot of these artistic types around.

“Thanks guys,” said the boy up on stage. I knew he had announced his name in the beginning but I struggled to remember it. I was always bad with names. “Next up, we’ve got a friend of mine who will be performing some stand up comedy for you all.”

So he was friends with Lisa. That made sense. Maybe he did live in Leopold. Charlie? Was his name Charlie? Chad?

“Please welcome to the stage,” continued the boy… Charlie. Whatever. “Lisa Manoban!”

The theater rang out with applause as Lisa, grinning from ear to ear, sauntered up on stage, giving Charlie a high five, and moving over toward the microphone. I was getting almost impossibly nervous for her, unsure if she’d succeed or just totally bomb in this environment. This fear, this heart-racing scenario, drew me even deeper into Lisa. Watching her up on stage, I felt positively possessive of her.

“Thanks Charlie,” she said into the microphone, taking it off the stand. I was right. His name was Charlie. “Hi everyone,” sa