Finding June

by Shannen Crane Camp

  The rest of the day was spent shooting all of the other scenes I had in the precinct, including the very last shot of the episode. In that scene Lukas and I had a long, heartfelt conversation about how nice it was to work together and what a pity it would be to not see each other again. This, of course, would lead into the next week’s episode where they’d have another odd theatre case that they’d ask me to consult on.

  The last scene didn’t take very long to shoot (unfortunately) so by the time I was back home and ready to go to bed, I had obsessively looked at my phone every minute to see if Lukas had texted me. Joseph hadn’t been too happy about that fact while we watched the recorded episode of Forensic Faculty from that night, but I’d make it up to him later. There was just no way I was going to miss a text from Lukas Leighton if it came.

  Just as I was falling asleep with my phone placed on vibrate right by my ear, I felt it buzz. Opening it up, I read my one new message from a number I didn’t recognize.

  You left quite an impression on me today. Want to grab a drink after work tomorrow?

  In the moments before I fell asleep with a blissful smile on my face I somehow managed to reply to him with a simple:

  Yes.

  CHAPTER 15

  I hadn’t told Joseph or Gran about the fact that Lukas Leighton had asked for my number on set. The only person I could really think of who would be excited for me would be Xani, but she and I weren’t exactly friends. We were more like acquaintances who shared a mutual interest . . . that interest being Joseph, of course.

  And so, sitting in the makeup trailer on Friday morning it was no surprise that I couldn’t stop smiling or checking my phone for any possible new texts. Candice watched me closely as she flat ironed my hair into big, loose curls, her intelligent eyes scanning my face every few seconds. I was almost positive she could see through me, but knowing Candice, the last thing in the world she’d want to do was talk about boys, so she didn’t ask me a thing.

  “Yesterday was fun,” Benjamin began carefully, as soon as he and Ryan showed up in the trailer. Even without looking at him, I could tell that his eyes were trained on me to gauge my reaction. “Wasn’t yesterday fun Ryan?” he prodded.

  “Very fun, Benjamin. I quite enjoyed myself,” Ryan responded, looking over at my reflection in the mirror with a wicked grin. I pointedly ignored them, taking my lead from Candice, who always did just that.

  “I particularly enjoyed watching New Girl wait for us to drop the axe,” Benjamin said in a fond voice, as if he were remembering a beloved memory.

  “The way her eyes get big when she’s nervous is just adorable, wouldn’t you say, Candice?” Ryan asked.

  “Don’t talk to me. I’m not awake yet,” Candice answered. Her tone suggested that she had thought of a way to kill them using every makeup tool she possessed.

  “My favorite bit is seeing the way she’s still afraid of us,” Ryan went on, undeterred.

  “Too true, Ryan,” Benjamin agreed supportively.

  “You guys are so funny,” I cut in, worried that this little exchange would go on forever if I didn’t stop it.

  “Well, thank you, New Girl. We do try,” Benjamin said, still using his overly cautious voice.

  “You guys made me feel like a crazy person yesterday! I swear that I almost asked anyone else if they could tell what you were up to . . . but then I realized that would solidify my appearance of craziness,” I confessed.

  “That was the whole point,” Ryan pointed out. “We didn’t even have to do anything. You made most of it up in your head.” He grinned cheekily, making me shake my head at him in disapproval.

  “Thank you for that,” I answered sarcastically.

  “Anything for you, June,” he replied.

  “Hey, I get to put some ash on you today,” Candice suddenly said from behind me, showing more enthusiasm than was normal for her this early in the morning. She held her black binder, looking over the page excitedly. “There’s going to be an explosion!” She set the binder down and clapped her hands like a child who had just been told they could have cookies for breakfast.

  “I forgot about that,” I said, suddenly a little nervous for my first "stunt." I actually had two stunts in this episode. I figured they would normally hire someone to perform these, but since they were relatively small and I was, in fact, a nobody, I’d probably just be doing them myself.

  “It’s about time I get to do some decent makeup. It feels like I’ve been doing nothing but glamour and corrective for weeks,” she complained, turning her attention to spraying my hair into submission. The big glossy curls that now framed my face were actually quite flattering and I secretly wished I could do my hair that well on my own. It was definitely a change from the springy ringlets I normally sported.

  “Will you do anything special on Edward once he’s dead?” I asked, not able to remember the name of the actor playing Edward at the moment. In my defense, I hadn’t met the guy yet, so it wasn’t like I was just turning into one of those people who don’t bother to learn names.

  “I’ll make his face a little redder and put some blisters on his mouth . . . nothing too exciting,” she said dryly, obviously mourning the bloody special effects makeup she normally got to do. She smoothed foundation over my skin as if it were the most tedious task she could ever be assigned to do.

  “Maybe I’ll convince them to axe Ryan’s character,” she thought aloud, causing Ryan to make an indignant noise from the couch.

  “You’d go crazy without me here,” he said matter-of-factly.

  “Whatever you say,” was her charming reply. “All right June, go do your other boring scenes and then come straight back to me so I can get working on something worth my time.”

  “Will do, chief,” I answered with a mock salute. I waved to Ryan and Benjamin, who sat on the couch lazily typing away on their phones. It made me wonder if they had brought the sofa into the trailer themselves just to have a better reason to hang around there all of the time.

  Each of my scenes for the day would be filmed in Edward’s apartment. Will Trofeos and Lukas had already been on that set for a while, filming a scene with the two of them snooping around for clues. Once they finished their scene, Will left the set, leaving Lukas and me as the only actors there. We were going to be doing a scene where I, as Imogen Gentry, take it upon myself to look around Edward’s apartment for clues when Cutter, frustrated by the case, returns to the apartment to see if he and Charles missed something in their previous inspection.

  “June Laurie,” Lukas said with a smile as he walked over to me. “It’s about time you got here. I was wondering when I’d get to see you again.”

  I could understand the words that were coming out of Lukas’s mouth, but for some reason, none of them made any sense. Why would Lukas Leighton be happy to see me? Especially when he was constantly surrounded by famous actresses and supermodels? It just didn’t make any sense.

  “Here I am,” I replied, resting one hand on my stomach to keep myself from throwing up due to pure, unadulterated joy.

  “So, are we still on for drinks after work tonight?” he asked, actually looking hopeful, as if I would ever turn him down. Of course, there was his phrasing that I’d have to clear up, because in my mind, when someone says "drinks," they usually aren’t talking about orange soda. There had to be a smooth way of stating that I didn’t drink—I just couldn’t think of it in the face of such beauty.

  “Definitely,” I replied with a grin. “I may need a ride home though, if that’s okay with you?” For a moment I was worried that he’d see how lame I actually was. He would forget that I had just gotten a part on a huge TV show and realize that I was a 16-year-old girl who didn’t have her own car and needed her grandma to drive her everywhere.

  “Well, I brought my motorcycle, so as long as you’re okay with holding on tight for a while, I’d be happy to take you home,” he answered in a sincere, concerned way.

  “Thank you Lukas, I really appreciate
that,” I said warmly, hoping that my tone conveyed just how grateful I was that he was willing to be seen in public with me. I had to admit though, that if Lukas really was talking about the kind of "drinks" I thought he was, I’d have to Google how to drive a motorcycle. I wasn’t quite sure how I felt about being the designated motorcycle driver.

  “I’m actually not being completely selfless,” he said with a glint in his eye.

  “Oh?” was the only response I could think of with my heart pounding so distractingly in my ears.

  “Taking you home does give me more time to get to know you,” he admitted with a charming grin.

  “I can safely say I’m fine with that,” I answered. I bit my lip to keep myself from grinning like an idiot and tried desperately to think of something clever and witty to say. I was saved from my own horrible rendition of what was "clever and witty" when Bates called for us to get to our first positions for the scene.

  For the rest of the day, the only thing I seemed to be able to focus on was what was coming after work. I tried to wrap my head around just how amazing it was that I’d actually be hanging out with Lukas Leighton outside of work. He had been nice to me on set, of course, but that was expected. If you’re going to be working with someone, you don’t want to cause conflicts, so you’ll treat them well. Asking me to spend time with him after work, though? That was something he definitely wasn’t obligated to do, which got my hopes up way more than it should have.

  I went through the rest of our filming day with a brainless grin plastered to my face. I missed half of what Ryan, Candice, and Benjamin were saying to me in the makeup trailer while Candice painted little lines of "fresh scab" across my face. Hours later, when I came back at the end of the day to have my makeup taken off, I still looked a little dumbfounded that Lukas had asked me out.

  “Now, this fresh scab shouldn’t be too hard to get off, but it may leave a small trace of red on your skin for a while,” Candice was saying as she used an oily liquid to remove my injury makeup. “But I’ve got some foundation that you can use to cover that up once I remove it, if you want.”

  I didn’t answer her offer, partly because I hadn’t really heard what she was saying, and partly because my phone had just buzzed with a text from a number I had now memorized.

  Just finishing my last scene. I’ll meet you outside of the costume trailer.

  I stared at the text for a long time, a monumental smile stuck in place and making my cheeks ache. I closed the phone slowly and let my eyes roam over the makeup trailer, which suddenly seemed very cozy and friendly. The Little Steamer stood near the corner of the mirror, the little round green leaves all angling toward the door where the last slivers of light were streaming in.

  “Would you wipe that stupid smirk off of your face? It’s ridiculous,” Candice remarked in a dull monotone.

  “I can’t help it,” I replied, still beaming from ear to ear.

  “This better not be about that handle Lukas Leighton. He’s so awful,” she said disdainfully.

  “Oh, come on Candice, he’s really not that bad. He’s always been nice to me,” I answered, coming to Lukas’s defense. After all, he had been extremely sweet to me ever since we started filming. I couldn’t help but wonder if maybe Candice and everyone else just thought he was a jerk because they hadn’t taken the time to get to know him. They expected him to be a jerk, so no matter what, that’s how they were going to perceive him.

  “He doesn’t kill puppies or anything, but he’s so . . . empty. It’s like he doesn’t really think about anything, he’s just kind of there.” She said all of this with a perplexed look on her face, as if Lukas Leighton really were some strange creature that she just couldn’t understand.

  “Have you tried to get to know him?” I asked, already knowing the answer to that question.

  “I haven’t had a chance,” she stated dryly, not really looking like she wanted the chance to get to know him. Candice had finished taking my makeup off at this point and sat down on the couch, rolling her head from side to side to relieve some pain in her neck—possibly the pain that Lukas Leighton apparently provided daily. I grabbed a bottle of foundation and began re-doing my makeup in the hopes that I could somehow look like I belonged with Lukas when we were out.

  “If you haven’t even tried to get to know him, how can you make a fair judgment?” I asked, feeling like I had stumped her.

  “He won’t let me do his makeup, remember? That’s why I haven’t gotten to know him. Because he’s too good for me to work on him. So there you go. Fair judgment made.”

  I hated to admit it, but she did have a point there. It was odd to me that someone as down-to-earth as Lukas would do something so brusque. I looked back down at my phone, trying to reconcile the two different opinions I was seeing of Lukas. He was either rude or he was as sweet as he had been to me. Unless, of course, there was more to the story that I just didn’t know—a side where maybe Candice hadn’t been as nice to Lukas as she let on, which I didn’t find too hard to believe just judging by how she acted toward everyone. I knew that being dry and sarcastic was part of Candice’s personality, but if someone like Lukas came up against that, I could understand why he’d be rude right back to her.

  “You don’t have to look so put out. Go out with the guy if you want. I don’t really care,” she said rather unconvincingly. “I was just trying to look out for you.”

  “Which I’m grateful for,” I said with a smile. “It’s nice to have a friend who’s a girl. All of my friends always seem to be boys.”

  “I didn’t say we’re friends,” she replied as she opened up a magazine and held it up so that it covered most of her face. The small smile lines that had formed around her barely visible eyes told me everything I needed to know. I had officially made a friend.

  “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone,” I said as I grabbed my coat and left the makeup trailer. “See you tomorrow, buddy,” I added sarcastically.

  “I’m not your buddy,” she called through the open door at my retreating form.

  CHAPTER 16

  Straddling Lukas Leighton’s motorcycle and holding onto him for dear life was definitely not something I had ever imagined myself doing. But if I’m being honest, it wasn’t such a bad way to be terrified of the trees rushing by my head at sixty miles per hour. In fact, I’d go as far as to say it was the best way I could ever imagine having a near-death experience.

  All right. Maybe "near-death experience" is being a little dramatic. After all, I was wearing a helmet and Lukas was a surprisingly careful driver. I imagine it had something to do with the fact that if he got into an accident and ruined his face, his career would be over. But I liked to think it had something to do with the precious cargo he was carrying. The precious cargo was me, in case you were wondering.

  “So, is there somewhere you’d like to go or should I pick?” Lukas called back while we were stopped at a red light. It was difficult to hear him over the rumbling of his motorcycle and the extensive padding of the helmet I wore.

  “I’m sixteen,” I answered a bit more loudly than I meant to. Lukas glanced at me over his shoulder, a small smile playing on his lips. I suddenly felt that I should explain this random statement. “I can’t go to a bar,” I clarified. Really, I should have just said I didn't drink rather than copping out and blaming my age, but for some reason I didn’t want Lukas to see me as some boring conservative teenager. And so, against my better judgment, I was attempting to act more grown-up and daring than I actually was (in contrast to my giddy text to Gran letting her know I was going out with Lukas). Getting onto the motorcycle in the first place had been my first step in showing my inner daredevil.

  “I didn’t really picture you as a bar-hopping type of girl anyway,” Lukas said loudly as the light turned green and we took off again. “I was thinking maybe we could get some coffee instead.”

  Crap.

  There was no way out of this one, was there? I couldn’t very well blame my age. But may
be I could use the whole not-drinking-coffee thing to make me look unique and freethinking, because everyone drinks coffee, don’t they? So how unique would that make me if I were one of the few people who didn’t? Of course, I could just be honest and say I didn’t drink coffee because of my beliefs . . . but that would require a degree of level-headedness and confidence that I seemed to lack around someone as impressive as Lukas Leighton.

  “Sounds good,” was my delayed reply. Even though I now had another dilemma to deal with, at least I could throw the "designated driver" scenario out the window.

  Now, before you shake your head at how much of a sell-out I was being, you should know I agreed to go to the coffee shop with the intention of ordering a hot chocolate.

  And don’t give me that skeptical look, oh ye of little faith.

  At my response, Lukas picked up the pace a bit, weaving between cars as if, with an actual destination in mind, he had suddenly become more daring. This, of course, made me cling tighter to him. I didn’t mind that one little bit, although I could have done without the fearing for my life part.

  Pulling into the parking lot of a small, rundown coffee shop, Lukas hopped gracefully off his motorcycle. I tried to do the same but it proved difficult in my heels. I wrestled the helmet off my head and gave Candice a silent thank you for using her extra hold hair spray when she curled my hair. It looked surprisingly good for having been confined to the tight helmet just moments ago.

  “I love this place,” Lukas said, lacing his fingers through mine as we walked through the parking lot. I tried not to look stunned at the fact that he was suddenly holding my hand and tried desperately to remind myself that Lukas wasn’t sixteen. Holding hands probably wasn’t that big of a deal to him. It probably wasn’t that big of a deal for most sixteen-year-olds either, but for someone who has only had stage kisses, it was shocking and wonderful all at the same time.