by Blythe Stone
“Your assistant?” Olivia teased.
“Oh, yea,” Nat laughed. “At my beck and call.”
“What the hell? Why?” Olivia grumbled.
Nat shrugged.
“It's in my contract, baby.”
Olivia stared up at her and shook her head.
“Hey, if I knew there was a job opening I might’ve applied,” Olivia teased.
“Shut up,” Nat laughed and shook her friend's much smaller frame with her hands. Olivia was the kind of girl guys liked. So easy to physically control. “Come on, you must be tired. I'll make you some coffee.”
Olivia had flown up on an exceptionally early flight. The only flight that made any sense. The flight that would afford them the most time.
They had less than two days to fit in a short visit.
A rush of excitement always accompanied them. The time they spent together was purely and genuinely a form of magic on Earth.
“How's Avery?”
“She's great,” Olivia said. When they were alone, most of their conversations centered on Avery. The Avery topic was safer than any other topic and they both liked to feel safe when they were together like this. Safe together equated to being happy and being soft.
The two walked off, past the large potted palms, the little waterfall, and the adorable rock garden. Perhaps later they would swim. The first thing Nat had done when she got up to the roof for the first time was swim in the pool and send Olivia a short video of how pretty it was, or more, how pretty she was.
Chapter 3
A Lonely Arrival
The hotel the studio had rented for her was nice but Iris might look into something a little different. Privacy was everything and it made her feel cramped to think of all of the people in the rooms around her. All of those humans, thinking endless thoughts, and all within yards of her. Perhaps, the energy of it troubled her. It was overwhelming, but then again it could be mental. She always questioned her sanity when she thought too hard about it.
When she got up in the morning it wasn’t so troubling. She had work to focus on. Leaving the hotel was a relief. Today was a little nerve-racking. It was the first day she was filming with her co-star, the one she hadn’t met. It was unusual. Their schedules never worked out and they’d both been hired on without a chemistry read. It was a risk and Iris was nervous that it wouldn’t work out.
She walked through the lobby and passed by the person working the desk. They didn’t look up from whatever they were doing and she was thankful. It was too early for small talk. The car was waiting outside and she hopped in, putting on her sunglasses and pulling out her phone. She had her earbuds in and after a brief exchange with the driver she turned on some music.
She didn’t pay attention to the drive so it felt short. That was the nerves. Everything sped up when she was anxious about something, which was far too often. It was less than it used to be though. Five years of experience in the business, growing their reach, had gotten her used to some parts of this. Being an introvert in a job that demanded extroversion was draining at times.
The set was bustling with people getting ready to film on the new schedule. Jenny was already in gear, getting everything ready for her, and setting up Iris’s trailer. She tried to tell her it wasn’t necessary. She didn’t need much of anything but Jenny insisted. It was a chance for Iris to chill out and listen to music, something she knew would help. That was the only upside.
Iris got out of the car and walked through the production assistants and crew getting everything set up for filming. They barely spared her a glance and she passed through them like she was swimming a sea. She saw Jenny jogging toward her and she shook her head. The girl needed to calm down.
“Iris! I’m so glad you’re here. I got everything ready and you should totally come check it out. We can drop off your bag. Then I’ve been instructed to get you over to hair and makeup ASAP.”
It all came out in a rush and Iris took it in while hoping Jenny would breathe before she passed out.
“Okay, that’s great,” Iris said.
Jenny led her over to the trailer, which was set apart from the main set a little. There were several sitting in one part of the lot but they had enough space between them to afford some sense of separation. Iris glanced up and down, taking in the silver and blue structure that would be her home away from home for the next few weeks.
Jenny opened the door and held it for her as she went inside. It was nice, just like other small trailers, but there were some nice touches like stainless mini appliances, ample seating and a high-end feel with quartz counters.
Iris nodded in approval and put her bag down on the counter.
“It’s really nice, more than I expected even,” Iris commented.
“Right? I was excited to show you,” Jenny replied.
Iris sighed and looked back toward the table and benches. It looked like a horseshoe but wider, with a sizeable island table in the middle. She could see cuddling up and reading on the part that looked a bit like a chaise lounge.
Yes, this would do nicely, Iris thought.
“Okay, we have to get moving. They’re trying to get through the morning shoots. The weather is supposed to get bad later,” Jenny urged.
Iris exited the trailer with regret. She could imagine curling up with a book there and ignoring the world for a day. It just wasn’t possible. Maybe between scenes later she could manage to sneak back.
Jenny took Iris to the hair and makeup trailer across the set. They bustled inside, finding the place a little more cramped with supplies and people than her own personal trailer. There were a few people working and one dark haired girl in the chair. Iris couldn’t see her face so she wasn’t sure who she was. That was, until Jenny walked up and started the introduction.
“Natalie, this is Iris and Iris this is Natalie,” Jenny said.
The chair spun ‘round to reveal her new co-star. It was like a shock to the system. Iris had seen photos but, in person, Natalie was perfection. It was scary how beautiful she was. There was no one to compare her to. Iris wanted to pinch herself and just stare but she snapped out of her brain melt.
“It’s nice to meet you,” she said, extending a hand.
Natalie's lips stretched into a very genuine looking smile. “Hi,” Nat said, carefully reaching both of her hands out to hold Iris’s. “It's so great to finally meet you. I was starting to wonder if there was a problem they wouldn't tell me about. Like you wouldn't actually be a girl,” she laughed. “That's happened to me before,” she confided. “Showed up once. All dudes. My agent had a fit,” she laughed.
“Wow, that’s kind of bizarre,” Iris said.
Iris glanced down at their joined hands. Natalie hadn’t let go and Iris was starting to panic a little. She didn’t know if she should release or wait.
“No, I'm definitely a girl, last time I checked,” Iris continued.
Her hand went limp in Natalie’s and Iris attempted a small smile that only half-way succeeded.
“And I can very much see that,” Natalie flirted. She leaned back in her chair and let go of Iris's hand. “You okay?”
“Ah, yeah,” Iris said. She sat down in the chair next to Natalie. “I was supposed to have a week for a vacation before filming but here I am.”
Iris glanced over a few times to watch Natalie fooling with her hair and checking out the makeup job in progress.
“Ug. That's the worst,” Natalie said. “Trying to control your own schedule is impossible in this line of business. I kind of gave up.”
“Yeah, it’s almost better when we’re on tour,” Iris replied. “We have a pretty set schedule and I do well with that. Time off seems like a thing of the past, to be honest. I shouldn’t have expected it to work out.”
A woman walked toward Iris. She was late twenties and attractive and Iris turned toward her, still feeling Natalie beside her.
“Hello dear, I’m Elena and I’m going to be doing your hair this morning. Molly there is make
-up and she’s going to torture you after I’m done.”
“What? I heard you say my name,” Molly said.
Molly walked from the other end of the trailer and gave Elena a soft smile. Her voice was softer and more feminine. It also lacked the clear Australian accent that Elena spoke with.
“I was just making introductions, sweetie,” Elena said.
She put an arm around Molly when she got close enough and Iris watched them interact. When their eyes met it was obvious to Iris that there was something between them.
“It’s nice to meet you,” Iris mumbled.
“Let’s get to it,” Elena said. She started to assess Iris’s hair while Molly walked around her and continued her work on Natalie. Iris looked at herself in the mirror and saw a tired, sad face looking back at her. Definitely not as attractive as Natalie. She wished she could put on her sunglasses. It was natural to hide.
Iris pulled out her phone and checked her messages. There were a few texts and Instagram notifications. She still checked her own social media and sometimes replied to fans or put up her own pictures. Other people also logged in and managed it but she took pride in doing most of it herself. It could get overwhelming but she was determined. Even when Stan insisted she give it up, she couldn’t make herself do it.
“Have you filmed anything yet?” She asked Nat.
The nerves had returned.
“For this project?” Nat asked. Beside her, Nat was a little distracted, texting with someone on her phone. Once she was done with her latest text, Nat was all attention on Iris again.
“Yeah, for this one,” Iris said. “I’m not sure about anyone’s schedule anymore after the switch-ups.”
“I did a little yesterday but that doesn't really count because it wasn’t any fun.” In the mirror, Nat smiled at Iris, a sly sexy smile.
Iris looked away from Natalie and focused on the reflection in the mirror. “Why wasn’t it fun?”
All the while, Elena was puttering around and getting ready to make Iris’s hair into something more than it was.
This scene shouldn’t take much. Iris was supposed to be a futuristic government agent in the field.
“It was just exposition stuff. No one to act off of,” Natalie said. “They had me walk down a sidewalk three times, watching some non-existent deal in my head and then I changed and they had me do a scene alone in a shower. And then they had me sit in a very comfortable apartment made to look rundown but, you know, still sexy,” she beamed and rolled her eyes. “I pretended to read confidential files in the dark with dim lighting surrounding me.” For emphasis, Nat flared her eyes.
“Oh, sounds interesting,” Iris said. She moved her head when Elena gently directed her to do so. On the schedule Natalie and Iris were about to do a scene together. Later, Iris had to film with Michael. She was glad Natalie was first. Natalie was intimidating in beauty but her personality was welcoming. Iris was still nervous and stiff but Natalie’s energy made her warm some.
“This is going to be my first film. Well, besides music videos. So, I’m sure I’ll screw up a lot,” Iris said.
“Aww. We all screw up. Don't worry about that,” Nat encouraged. “Sometimes it actually helps to screw up. Makes the next take a lot better. Besides, you're absolutely gorgeous. People will only like you better if you show you’re human too.”
“Thank you,” Iris said. She softened a bit and tried not to blush. People told her she was attractive or hot but Natalie had a way about her. It was impossible to deny the thrill it gave Iris. Compliments like that usually made her feel self-conscious or flat. Natalie was charming. It was dangerous in Iris’s mind.
“I know the lines at least,” Iris said. “I read the script so many times, I can recite the whole thing from memory. My brain catches things like that, words and notes. It’s the reason I love music. I hear it in my mind just by remembering the notes.”
Revealing herself was not usual. Iris cleared her throat and concentrated on the rather straightforward bun that Elena was giving her.
“Uh-oh, I'm gonna have to be careful around you,” Natalie laughed. It was an inside joke, maybe?
“Why’s that? I’m not that threatening, am I?” Iris joked.
Nat pinched her lips together, made a face and squinted her eyes. “Uh, no. No. It’s nothing,” she laughed, closing her eyes and letting go of her resistance. “You're just ticking a lot of my boxes.”
“So, not professionally threatening then? More on a personal level,” Iris said.
“My ex,” Natalie said while staring into Iris’s eyes in the mirror. “She's like this musical genius. I can't even think when she's around,” her gaze dropped. “I just think she’s a god.”
“Is she in the business?” Iris asked.
The chances of Iris at least knowing who this ex was were good, if this person worked in music.
“No,” Nat said, rolling her eyes in a bit of frustration. She reached out for her coffee cup and drank some.
“Ah, well I’m guessing you’re still friends though,” Iris noted.
“Yeah,” Natalie nodded, making eye contact again. She smiled softly. “She just flew out and went home. Before she even left I missed her.”
“Do you see each other often?” Iris continued. It felt safer to ask questions than to answer them so Iris would keep that up as long as she could.
“We’re drifting,” Natalie said. “She had to move for school and I'm always in some new place. We try to connect but everything's hard, given the circumstances.”
“What school? I hate that people fall away and life moves on. I don’t talk to many friends from back home,” Iris babbled.
“That's sad,” Natalie said. “And, um, she's at Stanford.”
“So she’s smart,” Iris commented. She smiled and watched Molly put lipstick on Natalie.
“You’re all ready for makeup,” Elena said, then she stepped back from Iris.
Iris turned back to her reflection and turned her head to admire Elena’s work. It was a perfect bun, not a hair out of place.
“Lovely, thank you,” Iris muttered.
Molly finished with Natalie’s lips and turned a critical eye to the over-all makeup effect.
“And you’re done as well,” Molly informed Natalie. She was equally as beautiful as before but there was a definite change in Natalie’s look. She had a more posh vibe and Iris could only imagine after they made it through costuming, that Natalie would look the part of an international high stakes con woman.
Molly came to Iris and spun her chair away from the mirror so she couldn’t see herself anymore. Iris’s attention refocused on the makeup artist and she felt Natalie looking at her now.
“Let’s get you done up so Ken doesn’t kill us for being late,” Molly said. She started on Iris’s face, applying a primer on her bare skin before switching to a foundation. Someone appeared at the trailer door but Iris couldn’t look since Molly was applying makeup to her face.
“Nat, you better get to costuming. We’re about ready for you,” a male voice said.
“Uh. Okay,” Nat sighed, getting up. “See you there,” she smiled to Iris. “If you need me to screw up a little to make you look good, just let me know.”
“I have a feeling you really would do that but no thanks. Let’s not give anyone an aneurysm today,” Iris replied.
Natalie left the trailer but not before giving Iris the sexiest smile she’d ever seen. It was so sexy Iris could never have imagined it existed. It blew her away, how much she was drawn in. It was good for the movie. She was supposed to be into Natalie’s character, Winter, but Iris had to draw a line on a personal level.
She sat still for the rest of the time Molly was working on her so they got done pretty quick. Iris didn’t want to run into Natalie again quite yet so she hung back after she left the trailer, going back to her own and finding Jenny hard at work on her laptop.
“Oh hey, how did it go? Wait, aren’t you supposed to be getting all geared up for the
scene?” Jenny asked.
“Yeah, but I, uh, wanted to see if I left my phone in my purse,” Iris said.
The little lie was stupid but she didn't want Jenny to say anything to Stan about her not wanting to run into Natalie.
“Oh, I can take care of it if you want. I had all your calls forwarded to my phone. You should totally do some Instagram or Snapchat shots for promo though. They asked Stan about that. Just nothing that would give away parts of the film of course,” Jenny finished.
“Okay, I’ll do that. So… I guess I’ll see you after the scene,” Iris said. She pulled her phone out of her bag and stuck it in her pocket.
“I forgot to ask if you knew where craft service was set up. I know how much you love your coffee,” Jenny mentioned.
“I saw it on my way over,” Iris said.
“Cool, just text if you need me. Otherwise, I’ll be here. I’ve got a bunch of stuff to send back to the office and some emails to answer,” Jenny said.
“Right, okay, well see ya,” Iris said. She and Jenny had met several times but they’d never spent time alone without Stan. She liked Jenny, it was just always awkward for her when she wasn’t quite comfortable. This was yet another aspect Iris was determined to get better about.
Iris took her sunglasses and put them on, heading out and over to the costuming department. Thankfully, Natalie had moved on and Iris was only facing the designer and her team. They fitted her up in a sharp looking suit with all of these touches that made it look like something you’d see if you traveled to the future. The non-existent lapels and boots instead of nice shoes made Iris like the costume more.
“Iris?” The same voice that she had heard earlier interrupt them in the makeup trailer called to her. “We’re ready for you on set.”
Iris swallowed and smiled before following the young assistant director back out into the sunlight. This was it, things were starting and there was absolutely no hiding from it now.
Chapter 4
Visions of Olivia
