Fame

by Susan X Meagher

  “You could if you quit,” Charlie said, her head nodding slowly. “Since they were scrambling to get someone in to replace Sierra, my attorney had room to bargain. He negotiated a personal hairdresser for me. You’d get union wages for that, Pip. With overtime, which you’d get a load of—let’s just say it’d be much more than you’re making now.”

  “So? What good does it do me to earn more for a couple of months? Then I’m out of a job and you’re on to your next movie. I need—”

  “Let me finish,” Charlie said. “I’ll give you ten percent of my salary for the film—off the top. Good managers sometimes get fifteen, but since you don’t know what you’re doing, ten seems fair. We can renegotiate when you see how much you like the job.”

  “I don’t want your money!”

  Calmly and logically, Charlie continued to speak. “If you quit your job you’ll need money, Pip. Ten percent of this film alone is probably close to what you make in a year, and you’ll only have to work for three months to get it. If you like managing me, we’ll keep working together. If you don’t, you’ll have enough money to let you take your time and search for the perfect salon.” She put her hand on Piper’s arm and stroked it gently. “I honestly need you. At least while I’m in Hawaii. I’m not kidding around.”

  “But I like my salon,” she said, feeling like she had to defend her career choices. “And the people I work with. They’re my friends. We’re like a family.”

  “I know,” Charlie said soberly. “And I know how big a sacrifice I’m asking you to make. But I need you. This is like the first day of high school, where I didn’t know the teachers or the subjects or the other kids.” Her gaze dropped to the counter, and her voice grew soft. “I’m in over my head.”

  “No, you’re not,” Piper said. “This is like when you started high school.” She gripped her hand and smiled at the memory. “You were terrified, but you were fine, Charlie. Perfectly fine.”

  “Only because you went inside with me,” Charlie said, turning to look her directly in the eye. Her gaze was so penetrating, Piper wished she could look away. But she couldn’t. Charlie could pull you in and not let you leave until she was finished with you. “You found the principal and introduced us. It helped a lot when you explained that I’d been on a series for a few years and hadn’t been in school.”

  “Anyone would do that—”

  “No, they wouldn’t. You went further, Pip. You marched me right to my homeroom and peeked in through the window until we were all sitting down.” She leaned over and rested her head on Piper’s shoulder. “When I saw you in that window, I knew you’d handle it if I got bullied for being kinda famous. You made me feel safe, Pip, and that’s why I was fine. All because of you.”

  “You really need me?” Piper asked. “You don’t have any other options?”

  Thoughtfully, she gazed at Piper for a moment. “I could rush to hire a stranger. But it would take a while to get him or her up to speed, to learn how I like to do things.” A flash of uncertainty covered her face. “I’m worried this will get away from me if I don’t get help soon. I was really kinda freaked out this afternoon. Like I was just a little piece in a big machine that I couldn’t control.”

  Piper slid her arm across the cool countertop, then rested her head upon it while she thought. “You know I’d do anything for you. If this is the only way, I’m in.” She lifted her head to accept Charlie’s joyous kiss on the cheek. But all she could think about was Haley, and how she’d handle the news. A shiver went through Piper as she pondered that Haley’s one true hot button was that she couldn’t stand being lied to. But how many people would believe this hadn’t been a set-up? Not too damn many, was the obvious, stomach-churning answer.

  ***

  Late that afternoon, Piper waited at a table in a coffee shop near her salon in Woodland Hills, anxious about the meeting she’d scheduled. Rada, her boss, was generally easy to work for, but she could be mercurial, depending on the day.

  The door opened and Rada blew in, looking like she’d just woken up, but it was six thirty in the evening and she’d been at work all day, so that didn’t seem likely. Even though she was a good stylist, and was surrounded by other good ones, Rada often ignored her own grooming, a quirk the other stylists chattered about endlessly.

  “Hi,” Piper said, standing to kiss her cheek.

  “Busy day,” Rada said, taking the chair opposite Piper. “I’ve been running around like crazy. What are you drinking?”

  “Just coffee. Let me get something for you. Mocha?”

  Her gaze darted to the ceiling, then she shook her head. “Sweeter than that. Surprise me.”

  A few minutes later, Piper dropped off a hot drink that could easily have substituted for dinner. Rada was always dieting, although her strict regimen ignored liquids, letting her frequently toss back five hundred extra calories that went uncounted. Everyone had their quirks. Rada’s were just a little more extreme than others.

  “I’m ready. Let’s hear your big news.”

  Nervously, Piper flicked at the seam in her paper cup with a thumbnail. “I can’t tell you the details, but Charlie signed on to do a big movie.” Her excitement started to outpace her nervousness and she found herself going on a little bit. “It’s a tent-pole movie,” she added. “A summer blockbuster. And she’s the lead. Not the female lead. The lead.”

  “Oh. My. God!” Rada jumped to her feet and threw her arms around Piper, nearly knocking her off her chair. “I’m gonna scream!”

  Everyone nearby stared at them, probably assuming Piper was announcing her engagement or pregnancy. “It’s exciting,” she agreed. “On the day they announce her, they’re putting up one of those massive billboards on Sunset with her face right in the middle of it. I think she’s going to be huge, Rada. Really huge.”

  “I knew she’d make it!” She reached over and gripped Piper’s hand so tightly her fingers tingled. “Because of you. You gave that kid every possible chance.”

  “This isn’t about me,” she scoffed. “Charlie’s the one with the talent and the looks.”

  “And she’d be at Valley College, trying to get certified to repair air conditioning or something if you hadn’t taken her all over town all those years.”

  Shrugging off the praise, Piper said, “The pushiest stage mothers can’t propel a kid into the limelight if the kid doesn’t have the talent. My main contribution was sitting in drab offices while she auditioned. And I only had to do that until she could drive.”

  “Well, sitting on your butt paid off.” Rada grabbed her arm, giving it the same rough treatment as she had her hand. “When are you leaving?”

  “Leaving?”

  “Yeah,” she said, nodding. “You don’t have to work anymore, right?”

  “Wrong!” Piper said, staring at her. “I’m just going to work for Charlie. She got the studio to agree to hire me to do her hair.”

  “She’s making you work?”

  “I like to work. And once this movie’s over, I want to come back to my job.” She swallowed, trying to control her nerves. She truly hated having to beg. “If you’ll let me.”

  “You only want to take a leave?”

  That hadn’t even occurred to her, but she found herself nodding enthusiastically. “If it’s possible. Yeah, that’s exactly what I’d like.”

  Scowling, Rada thought for a moment. “I guess I could spread your clients out among the other girls.” Her thumb went into her mouth and she chewed at the nail, a habit that Piper had always found off-putting. “Britney’s got some open slots, and the new shampoo girl…whatever her name is…could take up the slack. Since neither of them are as good as you, your clients wouldn’t want to stick with them.” She reached over and clapped Piper on the shoulder. “You’ve got a deal. Will you come in this week at all? Or should I have the other girls start divvying up your clients tomorrow?”

  “I assumed you’d need notice…”

  “Don’t worry about it. You need to go
take care of that sister of yours.” She gripped Piper by both shoulders, shaking her roughly. The other customers were openly staring now, wondering why the disheveled woman was being so rough with the expectant mom. “You’ve got a million things to do.”

  “I guess I do.” She hadn’t even thought about what to do with her apartment or how to handle her mail or… “Yeah, I do.”

  “Then get to it.” Rada was bubbling with excitement, nearly as gleeful as Charlie had been when Piper had caved. “I want to go to the premiere. Promise!”

  “If I have any power, you’ll be on the list.” Piper leaned over and kissed her on the cheek again, marveling at how understanding Rada was being. When Chelsea was struggling with some very serious health issues, Rada hadn’t cut her a bit of slack, even though Chelsea was one of the best stylists in the salon. But the rules were obviously different when you were connected to a celebrity. Charlie’s influence was already starting to change things, and all Piper had agreed to do was tag along and do her hair.

  ***

  Piper went home, packed two suitcases with all of her best clothes, filled a shopping tote with toiletries, then carefully stowed all of her portable electronics in a backpack. Once she started down this path, she knew there would be no time to run back and forth from the Valley to the Westside. She cleaned out her refrigerator, after draining all of that colorful juice from the bottles and putting them in the recycling bin. She set out her garbage cans, loaded the car, then headed for the post office. There was a spot in front, and she dashed inside to fill out the form for them to hold her mail. She already had all of her bills coming to her electronically, but she didn’t want to impose on any of her neighbors to hold the piles of fliers and coupons she got every day.

  After arriving back at Charlie’s, she wrestled all of her things up to the apartment. It took a while to unpack, but she found that all of her stuff fit perfectly in the built-in cabinets in the bedroom closet. The designer was kind of a pain in the butt, but he knew his stuff. With that squared away, she started making phone calls, reaching all of her buddies from the salon, her close friends, and all of the neighbors who were home. She was drained, having had to repeat her story so many times, but she just couldn’t let her friends find out she was taking off without hearing from her directly. Plus, she had to make sure Morey and Hank would compete to determine who was the better caretaker of her yard. Knowing those two, it would look better than it did when she was home.

  It was nine when she finished, and she hadn’t had dinner. But the thought of a big, greasy cheeseburger didn’t tempt her enough to make her get up from her very comfortable sectional.

  Piper picked up her phone and saw how low the battery was. As soon as she plugged it in, it rang, startling her. But when she saw Haley’s name, she rushed to answer.

  “Hi,” she said, just then realizing that she’d been out-of-sorts ever since she’d dropped her off at the airport early that morning. The high of being together was fantastic, but there were a damn lot of lows you had to put up with to chase them.

  “Hi, yourself. I’ve just got a couple of minutes, but I wanted to let you know I made it back to the ranch safely.”

  “Ranch? Who lives on a ranch?”

  “Um, that was just a throwaway line, Piper. You okay? You don’t sound like yourself.”

  “Tired,” she said, realizing she wasn’t prepared to talk to Haley about her decision. But hiding something that big wasn’t smart—at all.

  “Ooh, you got up too early today, didn’t you? And we were up too late last night.” Haley sounded so caring, so concerned that Piper let herself relax a little.

  “I didn’t mind getting up.” She laughed, thinking of their evening. “And I really didn’t mind staying up late. I’m just starting to get to know your awesome body, and it’s going to take time to get it all mapped. I’m like Magellan.” Pausing, she said, “He had to figure out where things were, right?”

  “Search me,” she said, chuckling. “Literally.” She must have hit mute, since the background noise changed noticeably. “Gotta go,” she said when she spoke again. “My aunt just arrived, bearing a pizza. I’m going to have to go on your juice cleanse when I get back.”

  “Have fun,” Piper said. “Will you be around tomorrow?”

  “We’re going out to see my grandma, so we’ll be in a car for a while, but I won’t have any time alone. I’ll text when I can, okay?”

  “I’ll take what I can get. Just have fun, all right?”

  “Promise. ’Night, Piper. Talk to you soon.”

  Piper hung up, then let her thumb roam over the smooth, slick surface of the screen. She had to find the time to talk to Haley about her decision. But she sure hoped that wouldn’t be before she figured out a way to spin it that didn’t make it sound like she’d been hiding something. That would be the kiss of death, not at all the type of kiss she was eagerly awaiting Haley to once again bestow upon her.

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  HALEY WOKE EARLY ON THURSDAY MORNING, hearing the bustle her parents made in the kitchen. The morning meal was always a production, getting humans and animals properly fed. Even though her dad hadn’t grown up on a farm, he ate enough breakfast to fuel himself to plant forty acres before lunch. But he was still trim for fifty-five, so he had no obvious reason to cut back.

  They’d all turned in pretty early, so Haley resisted the urge to stay in bed. She had her own half-bath in the corner of her room, and she washed her face and brushed her teeth before putting on her discarded clothing from the night before.

  As she made her way through the house, she stopped to see the family birds, who occupied the third bedroom. There were just two now, a cockatiel and a parakeet, both of them getting up there in years. But they were very good pets, and had been part of the family since they were very young.

  “Haley’s tops,” Kiki the cockatiel said, tilting his head. “Haley’s tops.”

  Jumbo the parakeet got in on the act, repeating the phrase. But he’d never learned to enunciate quite as well as Kiki did, always sounding a little drunk.

  “Hello boys,” she said, letting Jumbo out of his cage for a little play time. Even though he was smaller, he was significantly more aggressive, and kind of went bonkers if he didn’t get more attention than Kiki.

  While she played with Jumbo, Kiki just kept repeating his stock phrase, “Haley’s tops.” He could say much more, but he was a little lazy, sticking with the words that usually got him the most praise.

  The birds could have been kept in the same cage, but their vet had recommended they be kept close by, but separate, given there was room to spare. When Jumbo was bored, Haley put him back and gave Kiki a little love. He got loud when you touched him and her ears were ringing when she finally put him back, her name still being shouted as she went down the hall.

  Her parents and the ancient family dogs were outside already, sitting on the back patio, with a striped umbrella keeping the sun from their eyes. “Look who’s up and at ’em,” her dad said, giving her a big smile. “I heard you getting your usual praise from the birds.”

  She stood by his chair and put her hands on his shoulders. “This is when I normally get up, so I thought I’d stick to my regular schedule.”

  “You get up at four thirty?” her dad asked, giving her a suspicious look.

  “Oh, shit,” she said, laughing. “I forgot about the time change.”

  “Go back to sleep for an hour, honey,” her mom said. “I told Grandma we wouldn’t be there until nine, so you don’t have to push yourself.”

  She shrugged. “Let’s get going. We can help her in the garden before it gets too hot.”

  “No ocean breezes in Kansas,” her dad said, popping the last bite of a piece of toast into his mouth. “If you’re not there by seven, you’ll be hot.” He got up and placed a kiss on Haley’s cheek. “Pick some sweet corn for us right before you leave. Not too early,” he insisted, grabbing his lunch pail and giving her mom a goodbye kiss. �
�Have fun, girls.”

  Haley watched him leave, commenting, “What’s wrong with the corn you’re growing?”

  “Oh, he thinks Momma’s is better than mine. He says the farther you get from the city, the better the food tastes.”

  Haley sank to the ground and lavished affection on Liberty and Honor, the seventeen and fifteen year old Golden Retrievers who were both so creaky and stiff they simply lay on their sides and batted their eyes, putting out the minimum effort while trying to entice people to rub their bellies. She sat with them for a few minutes, not stating the obvious: every visit might be the last.

  There was a box of cereal on the table, along with an ounce or two of milk left in a small pitcher. Haley got up and sat in her dad’s chair and started to pour cereal into his bowl.

  “Honey,” her mom said, “let me make you a real breakfast.”

  “This is all I need. As soon as I gulp this down, I’ll be ready to go. Then I can eat whatever Grandma forces on me—guilt free.”

  Rolling her eyes, her mom said, “You don’t have to watch every calorie. You can go back to eating tofu and whatever else you Californians eat when you get back. A few days of normal food won’t kill you.”

  Haley was going to offer up an argument countering the designation of “normal food,” but it was silly to quibble. Her mom would always think nearly everything she did was a little weird, and would always blame every quirk on her living in California. There was no reason to take it personally.

  They were on the road by seven, with the bright sun already warming the side of Haley’s face as they headed straight north. Lindsborg, her mom’s home town, was a good hour from Wichita, even in light traffic.

  Rush hour was fast approaching, and her mom didn’t speak much when she had to concentrate. Haley just observed the city, always surprised by how things still seemed very familiar, even with so much change. Businesses came and went, neighborhoods improved or took a turn for the worse, but there was still a very familiar Wichita flavor to her birthplace, a flavor she loved to experience—occasionally.