Brilliant: Book One of the StarCruiser Brilliant Series

by Rick Lakin

  “Do they have a chance?” David asked.

  “Tayla has won six valley Salsa competitions,” Jennifer said.

  “Riley's considered the best dancer at Tovar.”

  “They have an excellent chance.”

  The tempo picked up as the competition thinned out to five couples.

  “We need to pick it up. Cuban?” Tayla said.

  “Cuban,” Riley responded, and the two dancers shifted to a more difficult Salsa Cubana style. One of the four remaining couples was tapped out, and there were only three pairs of dancers on the floor. Riley and Tayla were entirely in sync now. The two entered the zone, and the crowd sensed it clapping to the ever-increasing beat.

  One couple was tapped out, and a moment later the other couple stepped aside and bowed to Riley and Tayla leaving them alone on the floor.

  “I think they were virtual,” Riley said.

  “We won?” Tayla said. Riley nodded. “Then let’s dance our asses off and earn this,” Tayla said.

  The band continued for another minute at a dizzying tempo, and then the music changed ever so slightly. “Finale?” Tayla said. Riley nodded, and the two winners executed a perfect competition move and ended at precisely the same moment as the band.

  Jennifer and David jumped to their feet along with most other guests as Riley and Tayla took a stylistic bow to a generous ovation.

  “Our winners,” shouted the emcee. They jumped to the stage, and the virtual Fred Astaire presented them medals. “I was greatly impressed,” Mr. Astaire said.

  Tayla and Riley walked hand-in-hand back to the table. The band started to play a slower tune, and the guests began populating the dance floor.

  “Shall we dance?” David offered his hand.

  Jennifer rose and smiled as she and David took the floor and followed the other couples around.

  “You aren’t a bad dancer after all,” David said.

  “Tayla's an outstanding coach. You aren’t so bad yourself,” Jennifer said. “If I forget to tell you, I had a really good time tonight.”

  “Me too.”

  The musical tempo got faster. Jennifer and David got into the feeling of dancing. They were on the same wavelength. David said, “Ready to twirl away?”

  Jennifer was in the zone and said, “Twirl away.”

  Somehow, though, Jennifer’s right foot switched places without permission and there she was, firmly implanted on her butt in the middle of Hollywood’s most beautiful people. Jennifer looked at David, and he was on his knees covering his mouth. His blue eyes indicated that he thought it was hilarious.

  Jennifer glared at her partner. David looked past her. She saw a hand reach out. Finally, someone will help. She stood up and found herself looking up at The Quiet Man. “May I have this dance, Miss O’Hara,” the virtual John Wayne said. Jennifer almost forgot for a moment that she was dressed as Maureen O’Hara.

  “Of course, Mr. Wayne.”

  He was as tall as she imagined. She could feel the star power. Other dancers cleared a circle around the two and stared. They wondered if both dancers were virtual.

  “I'll let you get back to your dance partner.”

  “Thank you so much,” Jennifer said.

  He turned away then looked back. “I'd have been honored to have you as a leading lady, Jennifer.” Her heart melted.

  David came back to Jennifer's side. She then looked into the eyes of her real dance partner. And she slapped him. Jennifer tried to get away. David took her arm and twirled her back in just like John Wayne did with Maureen O’Hara. At that moment, Jennifer realized that David, too, was bigger than life.

  “You know, John Wayne is okay but….” Jennifer said.

  David wrapped her into a close embrace and delivered a well-rehearsed Hollywood screen kiss.

  They broke. “My boyfriend's a movie star,” Jennifer said.

  “Don’t you forget it,” David said.

  The couple danced through the next song and were joined by Tayla and Riley. They traded partners and then the dancing stopped as Old Blue Eyes came to the stage to sing a song.

  “Frank Sinatra is such an amazing singer,” David said. “My mom used to play his records for me.”

  By the time he finished, the guests surrounded the stage, the ladies at the front and their abandoned partners at the periphery.

  They returned to their seats as a series of comedians each did sets introduced by Ed Sullivan. Bob Newhart, Milton Berle, Bob Hope, Redd Foxx, and finally Groucho Marx all graced the stage for a few minutes each.

  The final dance interlude began again, and the four were getting ready to return to the floor when the Maître d’ approached their table.

  “Miss Mendoza,” he said.

  “Yes.”

  “Mr. Kelly is dancing the final number of the evening. Miss Charisse is under the weather tonight. Gene saw you dance earlier and would like for you to join him.”

  “Me? But…what dance? …Omigod…”

  “It's the nightclub scene from Singin’ in the Rain. We heard you performed it recently at the Burbank Rep,” the Maître d’ said.

  “But… I'm not dressed….”

  “We have the gown and assistants for you in the dressing room.”

  “Jen?”

  “Go for it, Tay. This is your moment,” Jennifer said.

  “Okay, where do I go?” Tayla said.

  “Follow me,” the Maître d’ said

  Tayla looked at Riley.

  “Go for it, partner. You got this,” Riley said.

  The three watched some more dancing and performances. At a few minutes before midnight, the emcee took the stage. “Mr. Gene Kelly will perform our final dance of the night from the MGM Classic Singin’ in the Rain. His partner tonight will be the very real and very talented Miss Tayla Mendoza. For authenticity, the performance will be presented in stunning Technicolor. Ladies and Gentlemen, Tayla Mendoza and the immortal Gene Kelly.” The house faded to black.

  The orchestra began, and the lights came up to a yellow-vested Gene Kelly touring the floor in his smooth, athletic soft-shoe dance style. He circled and then slid on his knees until, with a surprised look, he faced Tayla’s emerald green heels holding up a straw hat on her extended right leg. Gene’s eyes traveled up past the cigarette holder in Tayla’s right hand to the emerald gown to the black bangs and the smoke emanating from her nose.

  She extended her leg to the vertical and Gene stood and took the hat. Their dance began as the gangster held back his cronies and started flipping a silver dollar. Tayla danced around Gene as he pulled out his black-rimmed glasses to inspect.

  The dance continued. Tayla took his glasses and then made a move that knocked Gene’s hat off. She inserted the cigarette holder between his lips.

  Tayla continued her sensual dance until the virtual Gene Kelly threw down the cigarette, grabbed her hand and Tayla flew into the air and into Kelly’s arms. What followed was a memorable ballet as the virtual Gene, and the young Tayla continued to stun the audience. The two hoofers made the crowd believe that they had been dance partners for a century.

  That is until the gangster returned with an offering of a jewel-encrusted trinket for Tayla in his left hand and flipping the silver dollar in his right hand and stole her back to his table. Gene tried to follow, but he was stopped by the two cronies. As they walked away flipping their silver dollars, the lights faded to black.

  The dance was over, the lights came up in black and white, and the audience erupted in a standing ovation. The pair returned to the floor hand-in-hand and took a bow together. Gene offered Tayla a solo bow, and the noise became even greater. Tayla returned the gesture to the virtual Gene Kelly, and again the audience reacted. One more bow together and then the pair exited. The ovation continued, and the couple returned. They shared the curtain call with the orchestra and the other performers present and then finally exited the floor leaving the guests with great moments they would remember forever.

  Still standing an
d still astonished, David, Jennifer, and Riley were proud of their friend as the people around them started to depart. Virtual stars and stars from present-day stopped and asked them to pass along their congratulations.

  “I'd love to play opposite her in a movie,” David said.

  “You may just get your chance,” Jennifer winked.

  “Seriously, though, Jen, have you considered acting, too? I haven't yet seen anything you can’t do,” David said.

  Riley was still processing, “Tayla is an amazing dancer.” He had the look of a person who had fallen off a cliff.

  They waited a few minutes more. Tayla exited the dressing room carrying a bag and made her way back to the table stopping for congratulations along the way.

  “That was just amazing. I got three cards from agents. Wasn’t Mr. Kelly amazing? Do you know that was the actual dress that Cyd Charisse wore in the movie? They even let me keep the shoes.” Tayla held up the bag.

  “You were amazing, too, girlfriend, and don’t lose those cards,” Jennifer said.

  Tayla sent a puzzled look toward her best friend then said, “David and Riley, thanks for the best evening of my life. I'm exhausted.”

  “Let’s get out of here before our Rolls turns into a pumpkin. I know an excellent ice cream shop on Wilshire that's open late."

  Jennifer and David started to walk out but turned to see Tayla and Riley in a very serious embrace. Jennifer and David did the same.

  It was a moment that dreams are made of.

  They got to the Rolls and checked their messages on the way to the ice cream shop. “From the AD, our call times are at eleven,” Riley said.

  “Me too,” Jennifer said. Her message was from Navvy. It also said, “Congratulations on successfully representing the studio.”

  Jennifer got home at one-thirty. The media center was showing late-nite. The volume was low, and her mother was asleep on the couch. Jennifer sat with her and gently awakened her. “You didn’t have to wait up.”

  “Of course I did. You're sixteen. You're my famous daughter. Albeit, soon to be a member of the Screen Writer’s Guild. How was it?”

  “It was magical. Clarke Gable remembered great-grandpa Sean. I danced with John Wayne. David and I kissed. Twice.” Her mother’s eyes perked up. “Tayla danced with Gene Kelly….”

  “That, I saw.”

  “Mom?”

  “You four are all over social media. Tayla and Riley Salsa dancing. You on your butt and John Wayne, you and David re-enacting the memorable move from The Quiet Man and Tayla’s dance with Gene Kelly is a multi-camera 3D. By the time I got done watching it, the clip passed 250,000 views. She was viral by a quarter after midnight.”

  “Omigod. Tayla needs an agent.”

  “That may be a bit premature.”

  “No, Tay needs an agent because Tovar wants her to play Ayiiia. Should I recommend Sara?”

  “That won’t work because she'll be sitting across the table from the Executive Producer who happens to be you and you two cannot have the same agent.”

  “Who, then?”

  “Have her call me in the morning. I can give her some names. You need sleep.”

  “My call time is eleven.”

  “Yeah, I can see you aren’t going to be sleeping soon. But I do need sleep. Today is a new day.”

  “Yesterday was the best day of my life. I don’t know if I can top it.”

  “Remember what your grandpa says, ’The best thing you did is the last thing you did.’”

  “Mom, you're the greatest.” They hugged, and Sheila headed to bed.

  Jennifer went to her room. Pugs was curled up on his pillow on the floor, but the nocturnal Dandy Lion jumped into Jennifer’s arms as soon as she entered.

  “Well, Dandy, we've had a lot of big days recently. I wonder what comes next?”

  Dandy gave Jennifer the look again. Be careful.

  “I’ll be careful, Dandy.”

  Tayla popped up, “Hey, girlfriend, we are famous.”

  “That’s what I hear, and you are seriously viral.”

  “The 3D is over 700,000 at two in the morning. One of the tabs calls me an unknown starlet. Another one says I would make a great Ayiiia in Galaxy Warrior. Where did they ever get that idea? I know you told me you wrote the character around me but….”

  “Tay, get an agent.”

  “Why?”

  “During my lunch, I agreed to write the screenplay and be the EP for the Logan Jones movies.”

  “And you proposed me for the part?”

  “Navvy brought your name up.”

  There was a pause. “So, you’re serious. Can I use your agent, Sara?”

  “No, we're going to be negotiating against each other. You need a different agent. Call my mom tomorrow, and she'll recommend someone.”

  “Jen, you are the best friend ever.”

  “This is all you, Tay. Get ready for the big time.”

  “Riley and I kissed.”

  “I know. David and I kissed. Twice.”

  “When? I saw you two in a clutch on the floor, but.…”

  “When we saw you and Riley, it happened again. You were a bit busy.”

  “You need to watch the dance in 3D in steveLearn. Gene was amazing. We were amazing.”

  “You were amazing, Tay. When you wake up, you need to start being a movie star. Get your beauty sleep.”

  “Thanks for everything, Jen. I wouldn’t be here without my best friend.”

  “Tay, I remember the bleeding toes after ballet, the sprained ankles after tennis, and the failed theater auditions. You earned this.”

  “It'll be a fun ride with you along, Jen.”

  “Yes, it will. Good night.”

  “Night.”

  Jennifer went over to steveLearn. Dandy snuggled by her side. She watched Tayla dance. The 3D was as amazing and as magical as as she remembered the experience. She watched her dance with John Wayne. And, she watched the kiss with David. Just like the kiss in The Quiet Man. Just like she dreamed. Jennifer watched it seven more times until it went from magic to reality.

  She checked out the Hollywood tabloids. The headlines were about her and Tayla:

  UNKNOWN STARLET STEALS THE VC OPEN

  Tayla Mendoza came to the opening night of The Virtual Copa as an unknown with some local stage credits and left as the conqueror. She glowed on the arm of Brilliant Co-Star Riley McMaster, costumed as West Side Story’s Rita Moreno. The newcomer joined McMaster in the Salsa Contest, and the pair danced all the way to the stage to receive the winners’ medals from the virtual Fred Astaire. Finally, she joined the Virtual Gene Kelly to dance in the role of the immortal Cyd Charisse and left the Hollywood notables hoping for a remake of the MGM Golden Age Classic Singin’ in the Rain….

  WILL DANCER TAYLA MENDOZA BE AYIIIA?

  The local reviews of Tayla Mendoza, dancer and local tennis champ, at the Burbank Rep last month were consistently glowing. But, after viewing her live dance with the virtual Gene Kelly on the floor of opening night at The Virtual Copa before the Hollywood glitterati, this reporter calls them a gross underestimation of the immense talent of an emerging star. But, can she act? Rumors emanating from the powers that be at Tovar Studios say that the answer is 'yes' and that Mendoza will be cast as Ayiiia opposite David Masing’s Logan Jones in the upcoming Galaxy Warriors Saga. Mendoza entered the club on the arm of Brilliant Co-Star Riley McMaster.…

  IS DAVID MASING’S GIRLFRIEND SECRETLY AN AUTHOR?

  Young Jennifer Gallagher, last night, came to the opening night at The Virtual Copa with her squeeze David Masing, star of the upcoming Tovar Space Opera, Attack of the Hoclarth Alliance. With a writer’s gift, she turned her most embarrassing moment of the night into a memory only Hollywood can produce.

  There is a rumor that sixteen-year-old Gallagher is the actual identity behind the nom de plume Jenna Seldon, author of the best-selling Galaxy Warrior series. Officials from Tovar Studios wouldn't confirm the rumors that Gallagher
would pen the screenplay and take over the production as the youngest EP in Hollywood history.…

  Each short article ended with a promise of more to come. Jennifer thought to herself that this was way too scripted. Was Navvy behind this?

  Her eyelids were drooping, so Jennifer went to bed. Her last thought before she dropped off to sleep was 'More to come.'

  Thirteen

  Sixteen Going on Seventeen

  Jennifer awakened at nine o’clock snuggled by Pugs on one side and Dandy on the other. A floating icon above her HoloPad indicated that she had eighty-six messages. Jumping out of bed fully awake, she headed for the shower. As the remnants of makeup and hair product washed down, the memories of last night returned, and she entered an enjoyable calm for enough time to relive the high points. Jennifer sat down in the breakfast nook with her double-shot caramel Frappuccino and her HoloPad and said, “Good Morning, Sami. Are there any important messages?”

  “Good morning, Jennifer. Your mom texted, 'Good morning, my famous daughter. Off to work, home at normal time. Steven's settling in at GGG and screening recruits.' Reply?”

  “Yes, 'Thanks, Mom. Screen and recommend salaries. I'll approve hires as you send them. Tell GGG thanks for the help. Do we need a part-time PR and social media person?’ Sami?”

  “Looks good.”

  “Send it. Next.”

  “Kathy sent you a text, 'Navvy would like to schedule a preliminary negotiation session on Tuesday at eight with you and your agent over breakfast. It sounds like you had a wonderful night.' Reply?”

  “'Kathy, I'll send you a confirmation later today after I talk with my agent. Upon confirmation, could you contact her and finalize the agenda? Thanks, and tell Navvy thanks for the invite, the car, and the dresses.' Send it and call Sara.”

  “Sent and Sara is on.”

  “Hi, Sara.”

  “Hi Jennifer, I see that you had a magical evening. You are all over the tabs and social media this morning. So is your best friend, Tayla. I think she needs an agent and I'd love to represent her.”