Nick was in such a deep sleep, Jack hated to wake him, but if they didn’t get going they would be late. Trixie had written she’d be downstairs in the lobby at nine o’clock to meet them.
“Nick,” Jack whispered, shaking his shoulder gently, “It’s time to wake up.”
He didn’t respond. He just kept snoring loudly. Jack hated to jostle him awake too abruptly. Nick would yell out and scare Jack half to death when he did that. It was just like when Nick would wake up yelling in the middle of the night, plagued by terrible nightmares. He would always tell Jack he couldn’t remember what they were about—another cover-up. They would fall back to sleep, Nick clutching Jack as if he were a life preserver.
“Wake up,” Jack said louder, shaking him a little more.
“What? You okay?”
“Shhh, Nick, I’m fine. It’s just time to get ready to go out with Trixie.”
Nick groaned and covered his eyes with his arm.
“Nick, if you’re too tired to go out, we don’t have to…”
“I’ll be okay, Jack. Just give me a minute. And pour me a glass of water. This heat is gonna kill me yet.”
Jack took Nick’s glass, one of the two they had between them, and went to the bathroom sink to get some water. It was always kind of lukewarm, but it was better than nothing. They waited until they went to the market around the corner before they got anything ice cold. They would take their frosty bottle of cola and rub it all around their faces and necks. It was pure bliss.
“Here you go, Nick.”
Nick grunted as he pushed himself up to a sitting position. It was clear that he was groggy and stiff.
“Geez, Nick, I feel awful bad makin’ you go out tonight. I know you got stuck out in the sun again today.”
“You’re not makin’ me do nothin’, Jacky boy. I just need extra time to wake up, that’s all.”
You never used to.
It seemed as though one of the guys at work was hammering a thick nail through his temples. His throat was dry, and he felt as though he could swallow the entire Los Angeles river. But with the drought still raging on, he doubted there’d even be enough there for him. He pushed himself off the bed, knowing a good cold shower would do the trick. That had become his new method of getting ready for a night of boozing.
If only that rat bastard Wilson hadn’t been punishing him by putting him on outdoor duty. That had been a direct result of Nick refusing to allow Wilson to penetrate him with some strange penis-shaped object. Since Wilson couldn’t do the trick on his own, his only way of taking Nick’s somewhat virginal ass had been to use a fake cock.
“You have a week to think it over. You’ll only be getting forty bucks for your pay in the meantime. If you won’t let me fuck that brown berry of yours next week, then you won’t even be getting that. You and your little friend can find work elsewhere.”
It was going to be tricky when they got paid. Nick always signed for their wages in front of Jack. Nick had worked it out with Bernie that he would handle the full hundred dollars, so Jack wouldn’t suspect that Nick was getting paid more. After they got home, Nick would hand Jack his fifty dollars, and it would seem to him that they were splitting their pay evenly.
Shaking the water out of his hair as he exited the shower stall, Nick felt invigorated. It was just what he’d needed to get himself going for the night ahead.
I gotta cut back on the hooch. Only a few gins tonight—that’s it.
He wondered how Jack felt about everything. On the one hand he seemed happier than Nick had ever seen. But on the other, he would catch Jack staring at him, worry knitting his brow. Nick was terrified he wouldn’t be able to hide the truth from Jack forever. Especially with Wilson’s threat hanging over him. Just the thought of Wilson doing that to him made his throat go dry again. He’d never been fucked like that before. He’d only ever been with Jack. And although he’d penetrated Jack over and over, Jack had never tried to do it to him. He wasn’t sure why, it was just how things had worked out between them.
Unless you counted it when Jack would poke his fingers up Nick’s ass whilst sucking his dick. Nick enjoyed that.
I have a week to figure things out. I just wanna have fun tonight and forget about that old pervert.
Nick threw on his ‘going out’ shirt, and combed his hair. It was more popular to slick it back, but he wasn’t trying to be some fashion type. Jack, on the other hand, had purchased some pomade, and was busy slicking it in the way he did every night they went somewhere on the town.
“Whaddya think, Nick? Do I look as good as a screen god?”
Nick snorted. “I don’t know about a god, but you’re very handsome.” Nick’s eyes misted over a little. “Like a sophisticated gentleman.”
He turned away quickly before Jack caught him getting too emotional. Jack was coming into his own. He was a beautiful man, and there were already several men and women who wanted him. Nick had to deal with it every time they went somewhere. Jack would get shy and polite, and tell them that he ‘had somebody’. Many times his would-be suitors would slip him their number ‘just in case’. Soon, Jack might find someone more appealing than him, and leave to be with that person—someone like a rich movie star. All Nick could offer him was an extra few dollars a week, debasing himself with their boss. He just hoped that if Jack ever did go with another guy, that whoever that was treated him real nice. He’d seen how Trixie got abused by her so-called beaus, and he didn’t want Jack to get into the same mess.
He refused to think about it anymore. Jack was his, and that was all there was to it.
“Come on, Nick, she’s probably waiting!”
He followed Jack as he enthusiastically hopped down the stairs, anxious to find out what Trixie had in store for them that night.
* * * *
As much as he hated to admit it, Trixie had really outdone herself with this one. They were at a huge party being thrown by Global. None of the guys Nick worked with were there. As a matter of fact, none of the mugs they’d ever seen at the lot working behind the scenes were there either. This was one hundred per cent the elite of the elite—stars, directors, producers, screenwriters. Nick was overwhelmed, and Jack looked as though he’d been put in a trance. Nick had to keep reminding him to close his mouth, that he looked like he might be simple with it hanging open like that.
Jack nudged him playfully. “I can’t help it, Nick,” he whispered. “Have you ever seen anythin’ like this? This house is so huge, a hundred families could live here. It’s like bein’ in one of those Spanish villas we saw in that matador movie with Roman.”
“Yes it is, Jacky boy, it’s somethin’ else.”
“Did you see the pool outside with candles floatin’ in it? I want one of those someday. And did you see that gold fountain in the ballroom? There’s champagne comin’ out of it! I ain’t never known such a thing existed.”
“Well, we owe Trixie somethin’ fierce for this. That was some crafty talkin’ she did at the gates with those guards. I thought for sure we’d be given the ol’ bum’s rush.”
“You’re absolutely right, Nick. I’m gonna buy her some of those lilies she likes so much with my next paycheque.”
If you even get another paycheque.
He’d already hit his self-imposed three-drink limit, but he had a strong hankering for another.
I only promised myself I’d stick to three gins. Champagne ain’t the same.
“You wanna show me that champagne fountain, Jack? I ain’t never tried nothin’ like it. We’ll see if their bubbly is as good as that fine stuff we got back at the Garden of Allah.”
“I bet it is. Maybe even better. Come on—I’ll show ya.”
When they’d first arrived, Trixie had dragged them all over and whispered to them about each guest. She’d said who they were, who they were fucking, what drugs they were hooked on or what feud was going on between who. It was better than the scandal sheets. After a bit of that, Nick had begged off and gone to the bar to g
et the first of his gins that night. As he’d sat in a corner waiting for Jack to return, he’d mused on how little a difference there was between a proper studio party and one of the regular ones. It wasn’t a wild orgy as she’d told them some were. The biggest distinction was the extreme opulence of the studio-sanctioned gathering. He figured they’d still get busted if the coppers caught wind of all the booze—at least he assumed they would. The way this town worked though, who could tell anymore?
Eventually Jack had come back over—sans Trixie—to fill Nick in on all he’d missed.
Now Jack would be Nick’s tour guide.
All I really care about is getting to that fountain.
The white marble floor had been polished to a slick surface, but several black scuff marks now defaced it—a testament to the crowd’s enthusiasm. Jack handed Nick a champagne glass, and he could see that Jack hadn’t exaggerated the fountain’s magnificence. It was placed on a large round table covered with a luxurious gold cloth. Like almost everything else in the mansion, the tablecloth shimmered. The fountain towered five feet up, and gave the impression of being a bubbling Christmas tree the way that it was biggest at the bottom, then tiered up to a point. From that uppermost part, the sparkling wine gushed down and rained on the lower levels. Partiers with jewelled fingers and painted nails—including the men—continuously dipped their glasses in the expensive liquid, allowing it to splash over their hands. They never stopped to acknowledge how incredible it was to have such a thing for them to drink from. It was pure decadence.
Time for me to join in.
And Nick lifted his glass to the fountain so that he could drink his fill.
A bit of a woozy feeling enveloped Jack.
I should probably cheese it with the champagne for a bit.
It had been like a game where he and Nick stood by the fountain, giggling like idiots and sticking their glasses in it over and over. But the harsh truth was that Jack couldn’t possibly keep up with Nick. He looked a little bleary-eyed, but Nick didn’t look like he might hit the floor, which was what Jack was concerned he would do if he wasn’t careful. He’d never be able to forgive himself if he embarrassed Trixie like that, especially as she’d gone through so much trouble to get them in.
A sharp finger poked him on the shoulder. He turned around and saw that it was Trixie.
“Darling!” she cried out as if she hadn’t seen him in ages. “I am beside myself with joy that you showed up tonight.” She grasped him in a tight embrace and whispered against his ear. “Just go along with whatever I say, honey.”
She pulled back, and turned to an older, darkly handsome man dressed impeccably.
“Herbert, I want you to meet one of my dearest friends, Jack Stone.” She gestured to Jack, then said, “Jack, this is Herbert Goldstein, head of casting for Global Pictures.”
Jack’s knees instantly became like jelly. He was sure he would collapse at any moment.
Think, Jack, think.
Mr Goldstein held his hand out to him, and Jack was miraculously able to get his body to obey his commands. They shook, and Jack gave him his best Rudolph Valentino smile. Which was barely a smile at all, but he’d been perfecting it in the mirror during Nick’s naps.
“Very nice to meet you, sir.”
“My pleasure, Jack.”
He had a gruff voice, but seemed pleasant enough.
“Trixie here tells me that you’re an actor recently arrived here from Broadway.”
Behind him, Jack heard Nick choke.
Shit. I forgot about Nick.
In the excitement of the moment, he hadn’t even thought to introduce Nick, and Trixie hadn’t said anything either. Jack turned to correct his error, but Nick was already walking away. He was torn. He didn’t want to chase after him in front of all these people, and he certainly didn’t want to walk away from Mr Goldstein.
He turned back to the casting agent and pasted his smile back on.
“Yes, well, just smaller shows. But I really feel my heart is with motion pictures. So I decided to come to Hollywood.”
He hoped he sounded confident the way Nick always did when he was trying to impress someone.
“I see. And why is that?”
Jack was on the spot, and he wasn’t the quick thinker the way Nick was. He wished Trixie had given him some warning. Then again, he probably would have worried himself into a heart attack if he’d known.
“I just love them so much.”
Stupid.
Mr Goldstein’s eyebrows rose.
“There are just endless possibilities with filmin’ and…and I believe it is the future of entertainment.”
“Very cognizant of you. That’s my belief also. As it turns out, I’m doing the casting for a new picture, and I’m featuring Trixie in one of the female parts. I told her that I still need some very attractive men to fill out a crowd scene that takes place as Trixie’s character gets married at a park up in the Glendale Hills. She was correct when she said you fit the bill. I need guys mooning over her as she gets in the car to speed away on her honeymoon. I tell you what, kid. We’ll be filming next week at the park. Trixie will tell you where—maybe you can get a ride over there together. Remember though, the stage isn’t the same as a film set, so you’ll have to unlearn some of your old ways of doing things as an actor.”
Which works out perfectly since I’ve never acted on the stage before.
“Thank you so much, sir. I’m really lookin’ forward to it.”
Mr Goldstein shook Jack’s hand once more.
“Good luck, kid.”
He turned from them and walked towards another well-heeled man, clapping him on the back. They immersed themselves in a conversation, and Trixie grabbed Jack’s arm and pulled him into the hallway next to the ballroom.
“Oh my God, Trixie! What just happened?”
“Isn’t this just the coolest? I could tell he really liked you.”
“He said I was cog…cogni… Oh shit. What did he say?”
“It means you know stuff real good.”
“Really? He said that? But I don’t understand. Why didn’t you tell me you’d gotten a big part in a movin’ picture before?”
“I wanted it to be a surprise!”
“Oh, it’s a surprise all right. I think you should pinch me, cuz’ I must be dreamin’. When did you find out?”
Trixie fidgeted a little.
“Why, it was one a my appointments. The one I went to last night. Anyway, it’s not a big part, but the biggest I’ve ever had in a real motion picture. I’m the girl who marries the wrong guy, and breaks the hearts of all the fellas who are stuck on her—that’s you, Jack—then he leaves her to go have a big affair and such with the girl who’s the real star of the whole thing.”
“Geez, Trixie. That is so keen. Who are the other stars? I mean, besides you.”
Trixie grabbed his face between her hands and smacked him with her lips on the forehead.
“What was that all about?” he said, wiping the sloppy kiss off his face.
“You are just so sweet to me all the time. I want us to be friends forever and ever. Promise?”
“Of course, Trixie. Ever and ever. And thanks a bunch for tellin’ him about me. I don’t know how to pay you back.”
“Oh, honey, you don’t owe me nothin’. Havin’ you around is my reward.” She grabbed him by his upper arms and shook him. “Oh, my God, Jack! We’re gonna be in a picture together!”
Jack laughed, the enormity of it finally hitting him. “We’re on our way, Trixie. Nothin’ can stop us now!”
Trixie pulled him to her for a quick hug.
“You go tell Nick, I gotta get another Mary Pickford cocktail, and see if there’s anyone else here I should strong-arm into givin’ me a part. Especially as I’m really somethin’ now.”
“You’ve always been somethin’, Trixie, but everyone’s about to find out about it.”
She blew him a kiss, winked and sashayed away.
Nic
k sucked the smoke of the Lucky Strike deep into his lungs.
Great. I can afford fancy cigs and lots of booze, but I can’t keep my man’s attention. Things have really turned out the way I’d hoped here in the west.
Nick chuckled bitterly at his own sarcasm. He watched the drunken group below from where he stood on the large balcony overlooking the pool. Someone had pushed a man in a tuxedo into the water, and Nick was sure a brawl would break out, which would’ve been interesting. It would make him feel like he was back in New York at one of the dives he and Jack had gone to before they’d started saving to come to the hellhole they were now in. Instead, the victim had swum to the surface laughing, and grabbed the hem of a fancy gown on the nearest dame, and yanked her in with him. Soon, everyone was jumping into the pool like crazed animals, whooping it up.
Jack.
He was losing him—it was becoming more and more obvious. The glamour of Hollywood would soon outweigh dull and boring regular guy Nick. Even if Jack wasn’t fucking Trixie, he was awful damn close to her. Everything she said or did was so goddamned interesting, and Nick was the nameless thing that followed them around. He hadn’t even been worth an introduction to Mr Studio Guy back there.
“There you are, Nick. I’ve been lookin’ for you everywhere,” Jack said softly.
Nick turned around. Jack was framed by the glow of the inside lights. He stood there like an angel, and Nick had the bizarre urge to turn from him and sail over the railing into the pool below.
“Oh yeah? You been lookin’ for me? What for? You got actor business to attend to now that you’ve arrived in Hollywood from your stellar career on the Broadway stage. Why would you want me interferin’ in that?”
“Don’t be mad at me, Nick. I had no idea any of that was gonna happen. I was as surprised as you.”
“Oh, I doubt that, Jacky boy,” he said, steadying himself on the railing. His vision blurred, and he wasn’t sure if it was from tears or the drink. “I was pretty fuckin’ surprised when you turned into some kinda suave pretty boy, preenin’ and actin’ all sophisticated and shit, then forgettin’ I was even there!”
Hollywood Bound Page 15
