by Sequaia
“Okay, you’re done. I’ll walk you over to Annabelle, who will do your hair.”
She smiled finally, more so at the job she’d just done on my face than at me. Hell, I smiled too because she had really done well. She didn’t cake the makeup on my face, which still gave me a natural look, and I didn’t look as if I had aged two years within minutes.
Once I was in the chair for my hair, things changed. Annabelle was a talker and a bit heavy-handed. My hair had come out cute, and she had my baby hairs laid to perfection. Half up, half down was the style she gave me, and it was dope.
“Okay, girlfriend, you look good. Tell Tina she better be careful not to mess up your hair when she has you changing clothes. No, I’ll tell her myself. Anyway, you’re going to look amazing in front of the camera. The director, Abe, he’s a little over the top, but he means well. Follow his directions, and everything will go smooth.”
“Thank you.”
Annabelle took my hand, practically dragging me to the other side of the room, where clothes were lined up against the wall. I thought Nijah had a lot of clothes. This room looked like its own boutique.
“Hi, I’m Tina. We’re going to pick out four outfits for you, and you’ll be shooting in all four. We’ll start with the more casual look, then go from there. Each change will be fast, so do not get used to the pace we’re about to go now. It’s not at all what you’re going to experience when it’s time to switch things up. Got it?”
“Yes.” The information she’d given me wasn’t hard to understand. She painted the perfect picture that had my ass nervous all over again.
“Okay, let’s get you dressed for your first shot.” Tina walked over to the rack of dresses, pulling off a navy-blue, thin-strapped maxi dress.
“Do you need a bra? What size do you wear?”
“I’m a 36D. I’ve been able to go without, so I guess it’ll be what you think is best,” I shrugged.
“Well, try without first. I’d rather use tape than a bra anyway because of the neckline of this dress. Step behind that curtain over there and put this on.” She extended the dress to me before nodding in the direction of the curtain I was to go behind. I removed the romper I had on and my bra, balling them up before throwing them into my tote and slid the dress on. The dress fit snug from my belly button up and hung loosely at the bottom. It was comfortable, and though I had yet to see what it looked like on, I felt good in it.
“Cute! And your boobs still have some perk to them, so no tape is needed. However, when moving around the camera, be mindful of a possible nip slip.” she tugged on the straps before giving me one final once-over.
“All right, honey, it’s showtime.”
“Is this my girl?” A short, white-haired man who looked more like an English professor than a TV director approached, pulling me by the arm, not waiting for a reply.
“Yes, Abe, that’s her,” Tina yelled, shaking her head as I was whisked away and practically thrown on the set.
“Have fun. I want to see if you’re a natural behind the camera. Show me what you got, and I’ll see how much direction you need. You got three minutes to impress me.” He stepped back and lifted the camera, giving me only seconds to digest what he said.
I shut my eyes, took a deep breath, and got to work, smiling, posing, dancing, acting like I was the only one in the room. The silence made me feel that way. No one said anything . . . not a good job, no little cheer—nothing. I had no idea if I was doing good or not, but I kept going until he told me to stop.
“Not bad. Go change.”
Once again, before I could reply, someone whisked me away. Tina took me back into the dressing room, giving me a pants set to put on that I changed into in record time. Once I was back in front of the camera, Abe gave me eight lines to say. “You too can look good on a budget.” I recited those lines at least fifty times in each outfit change. When I finished, everyone applauded me, and even Abe said I did a fantastic job. When I made it to the front desk, even Katherine, who I had no idea could see what I was doing in the studio, told me I was a natural behind the camera as she handed me a check for $1,500. It took everything in me to contain myself until I got into the car with Nijah.
“How’d it go?” Her smile was large, like she knew I had done a fantastic job.
“Great! They all clapped for me when it was over.”
“I told you. I knew you were going to kick ass.”
“Guess how much I got paid?”
“You know I hate guessing.”
“You can be a party pooper sometimes, you know that? Anyway, $1,500.” My joy had me bouncing in the seat, waving the envelope in the air with my check.
“Oh, look at you, little Ms. Hollywood. That’s what I’m talking about. They knew better than to give you chump change because, honey, you’re a star.”
“Nahji, I had so much fun. I can’t wait to do it again.”
“You will. But I know what you won’t do, and that’s work for Ms. Jackie if we don’t hurry up. We have less than twenty minutes to get you to the other side of town. You’re going to be late but not that late.”
“Shit, I almost forgot about starting my job today. This is the one time you won’t hear me complaining about how fast you drive,” I promised as I crawled into the backseat. Nijah pulled off as I used her backseat to change my clothes. Though she made it to the other side of town in record time, especially for L.A. traffic, my ass was still late.
“I’m sorry I’m late, Ms. Jackie. We left early, and traffic still caught up to us.” Nijah was hungry, so she came inside with me. I hoped having her with me made Ms. Jackie go a little easy on me, but I should have known better.
“Looks like you spent time in the mirror that you could have spent on the road. Don’t let it happen again, Aúrea.” She gave me a look that let me know she was not playing with me.
“I won’t.”
“Chanelle is going to train you. I need you to catch on quickly because you can’t follow her around all day.”
“Okay.”
“I’m proud of you. We celebrate tonight.” Nijah gave me a quick hug before I rushed off to find Chanelle. I didn’t lose my job and had the time of my life acting in my first commercial. Today was a good day.
8
Aúrea
“I feel like I hardly see you anymore,” Nijah complained as I packed my uniform into my bag and gave myself one last once-over in the mirror. I had to work today, and I had an audition, so I was pressed for time.
“We still see each other.”
“Not like we used to. You’ve been busy with work and auditioning or sleeping. And I miss you.” she poked her lip out while making her way toward me, wrapping her arms around my waist and resting her chin on my shoulder.
She was right. I had been busting my ass at the café and going on more auditions. After landing the commercial over a year ago, I thought that the jobs would be pouring in or that agents would be knocking down my door to work with me, but that was far from my reality. Getting an agent and getting into acting school cost way more than I was making, even with Nijah telling me I didn’t have to help with the bills. What I was bringing in still wouldn’t be enough. She was fine with that. I wasn’t. I couldn’t be okay with making money and not helping.
“I’m off this weekend, and I don’t have any auditions lined up, so how about we go out and have some fun?”
“You sure you won’t be too tired?” She gave me this look that told me she felt like I had unintentionally become the old lady of the house, and maybe I had.
“I could use the extra sleep.”
“Like hell, you will. We’re going out.”
“That’s what I thought.”
“How are you getting to the audition?”
“Uber.”
“I’ll drop you off. You can Uber to work.”
“Thank you. I’ll be ready in five minutes.”
“Cool.” She left my bedroom, and I made sure to gather everything I needed.
“Ready?” Nijah asked, sticking her head in the door.
“Yup.” I grabbed my things and followed her out of the house.
I took her phone and added the address, then sat back with my eyes closed as she drove. Due to the lack of success I’d been having on these auditions, the thrill of the audition was barely there anymore. I tried to remain positive and optimistic, despite my efforts, but it was hard. I had gotten back to the “We’ll call you” before I left every door only to, of course, receive no phone call. The laughter and pep talks that Nijah and I used to have on my way to casting calls had diminished at my request. Now, I preferred to sit in silence, talk to God, and talk myself into continuing to try.
“We’re here.”
Instinctively, I looked at Nijah instead of out of the window because her tone was full of uncertainty.
“What’s wrong?”
“Are you sure this is the right place?” she pointed, directing me to look out of the window. At that moment, I saw her concern. There were scantily dressed women hanging around. Some guy had at least three women on his arms, and the building looked nothing like any of the other studios I’d been in. In fact, this was a warehouse of some sort.
“I mean, there are women out who I’m sure are here for the casting,” I shrugged.
“I don’t feel right leaving you here. If you want to do it, I’ll wait, but I also think you may want to let this one go, Aúrea.”
“It’ll be fine, Nahji. And you don’t have to wait for me.”
“At least make sure you’re in the right place. If this is the place you’re supposed to be at, I’ll leave you here. If not, I’m dropping your ass off at work.”
“Fine. Give me a second.”
As I exited the car, the confidence I was portraying on the outside was nothing compared to what I felt on the inside. I was scared shitless, and my gut told me that maybe Nijah was right, and I should take my ass on. But being my stubborn self, I ignored my feelings because getting this part meant more to me than some ill feelings.
“Hey, are you here for movie casting?” I walked up to one of the women who had on more clothing. She was the most dressed out there, and I had more than likely missed her in the slew of women who looked like prostitutes. Though her attire was different, she was too small to stand out.
“Yes. I was nervous that I wasn’t in the right place, but the woman inside assured me that I was.”
“Thank you.” I turned on my heels to head back to the car when she stopped me.
“Are you leaving?”
“No, I’m only grabbing my purse and telling my big sister that she doesn’t have to wait for me.”
“Okay, good. It was getting boring not having anyone to talk to while I wait.”
Offering a look that told her I understood, I made my way back to the car, opening the door to grab my purse.
“This is the right place. I’ll be fine. You can go.” Her facial expression told me she was not convinced but was going to respect my wishes.
“Call me if you need me. The minute anything doesn’t feel right, you get your ass away from here.”
“I hear you, Mother.”
“When you talk like that, I have no problem leaving your ass.”
“Yeah, right. I’ll call you when I get in my Uber.” I shut the door, then made my way back to wait in line.
“Are they all ahead of you?”
“No, they are waiting for one more girl to come out. When she comes out, I’m next, then you.” Right as she said that, the door opened, and out walked a girl whose dress would barely stay above her ass. It was evident as she held it down while she walked. My eyes unintentionally followed her toward the crowd of women as she stopped in front of the guy. From Nijah’s car, I couldn’t really see what he looked like, but now . . . Damn, was he fine. He had bad boy and stay the fuck away written all over him at the same time. He was very easy on the eyes. When our eyes met, he smiled at me, and every nerve in my body awakened. I hadn’t been with a man, well, boy, since Prentice. No dates, no texting, no male connection whatsoever, even though guys had hit on me a lot. Especially at the café. Someone always asked for my number or offered to take me out. For one, I didn’t really have time to date, and for two, I didn’t feel anything with any of the guys who approached me. I needed to feel some sort of spark to render someone worth the little time I had.
“Are you the only two left?” A lady who looked to be in her midthirties asked, poking her head out of the window.
“Yes,” the girl whose name I had yet to learn and I replied at the same time.
“Come on then.” She instructed both of us inside, and we followed. There was a desk at the entrance and a door right behind it, which she told us to go through. There was the usual white curtain and lights I’d become accustomed to when out on castings.
“You two can wait over there, and Mike will be right with you,” the lady advised, leaving us.
We inched our way over to the lit area of the room and waited. Within moments, a huge, dark-skinned man with long dreadlocks came into view. He was dressed in a plaid shirt and blue jeans and loosely held the camera in his left hand. He approached us, looking us both over before he spoke.
“Thanks for coming, but you don’t fit the description listed in the casting flyer,” he spoke to the girl I’d been waiting with. Though he wasn’t talking to me, her confused expression matched mine because there was no description request if I remembered correctly.
“I didn’t see one. If you give me a chance, you won’t regret it,” she practically pleaded.
“We’ll have another in a week. Come back then. You’ll be perfect for that role.” That seemed to make her feel better. Her entire body language shifted, and her shoulders were no longer slouched.
“Okay, thank you. Good luck, girl.” She smiled at me, then waved as she walked out of the building.
“What’s your name?”
“Aúrea.”
“Aúrea, I’m Mike. Let’s step over here. I’d like to take a few photos of you if that’s okay.”
“Sure.” I set my bag on the counter before standing in front of the curtain, putting together a couple of mediocre poses while he took my photos.
“I don’t think you took a bad photo,” he complimented me, putting his camera down and walking closer to me.
“Thank you.”
“Aúrea, I’m not sure if you know the kind of pull I have in this industry. I’ve worked with some of the best. I also know a star when I see one. You showed up to this casting with hopes of becoming an extra, but if you’re willing to really put in some work, I can get you a supporting role.”
“Of course, I’m willing to work. I don’t expect anything to be given to me, I assure you.”
“That’s exactly what I wanted to hear.” Slowly his hand made its way to my shoulder, and I froze. He started massaging my right shoulder, and as uncomfortable as I was, I could not move.
“Can I kiss you?” His question awakened every sense that had shut down on me, jolting me back.
“What? No.” My tone wasn’t the only thing to show my disdain. My facial expression did as well as I felt how deeply the frown on my face was.
“You just said you were willing to put in the work.” He approached me again, backing me into the counter, closing me in with both of his massive arms. Well, massive was putting
a lot on his build, but he was still bigger than me, and I felt threatened.
“I didn’t think you were talking about anything like this. I’d like to leave now, please.” I tried moving his arm, but it wouldn’t budge.
“Nah, you knew exactly what I meant. You don’t get to play these kinds of games with me. Now, do me this favor, and I’ll make you a star.” He leaned into my face taking his tongue, gliding it from the bottom of my cheek to the corner of my eye, and I lost it.
“Stop. Get off me.” I flailed my arms, screamed, and it only seemed to excite him more. He even had the nerve to pick me up and sit me on the counter.
“Stop, please.” Tears were streaming down my face as he tried prying my legs open. Thank God I didn’t wear a dress.
“Be quiet. Don’t fight it, and I’ll make you a star.”
“No, let me go.” My entire body shook, and my vision was blurred, but I didn’t stop trying to get out of his grasp.
“The fuck going on in here?”
Mike froze, backing away from me as I fell to the ground, shamelessly crying my eyes out.
“Nothing. I’m not seeing any niggas for casting today, so you can get up out of here.”
“Aye, did he hurt you?” My head was still down, and when I felt a hand on my shoulder, I jumped to my feet, coming face-to-face with the fine-ass man from outside.
With all the reservations I had about him when I obviously prejudged him by only looking at him earlier, right now, I felt safe enough to answer him honestly.
“He tried to.”
