by Angela Blake
Ashlyn smiled. “Okay. I’m just so excited to start that I want to be ready.”
The guy smiled a crooked smile at her as if seeing her for the first time. “I remember being a newbie.” He slapped her arm as one friend would to another. “Enjoy it. Pretty soon, you get bogged down and life, and then sometimes, you forget how much you loved working with a camera in the first place.”
“I don’t think I could ever forget that,” Ashlyn said.
Gary came over a few minutes later and began shouting hurried directions. Ashlyn adjusted her camera and focused on the area she was assigned. Everyone was in place and ready to start the frame.
Ashlyn stood behind her camera and looked through the lens. Her stomach flipped over again as she looked at the dark-skinned extra. She had thought he would just be playing with the others, be there for a day then leave. Instead, he had been chosen to have a little bit of a bigger part. Ashlyn didn’t like the idea of him having a bigger part, but who was she to say anything? She simply focused her camera on her and tried to calm her stomach. She had never felt such instant attraction to someone.
As soon as she started recording, she couldn’t wipe the smile off her face. The man who was stirring her insides was playing a small role named Travis. She decided that would be his name from now on since she didn’t know his real name. She slowly moved her camera forward on the dolly at the correct part, focusing in close on Travis. He looked right at the camera as he delivered one line, and Ashlyn felt like she might throw up. What was her problem?
“Alright, everyone has five minutes,” Gary said. “Five minutes, everyone.” Gary was pulled away to deal with a problem, and Ashlyn began reviewing the shots she had. They were pretty good.
Ashlyn looked up and saw that Travis was headed toward her. Did he find her as attractive as she found him? Ashlyn looked toward the bathroom trailer, desperately searching for an escape. It was too late. Travis laid a hand on her arm.
Chapter Two
“You’re working with the cameras,” he asked as Ashlyn slowly turned back to him and acknowledged that she would have to speak to him.
“Yeah,” she answered. “You’re an extra.” Wow, that was brilliant, Ashlyn. You really know how to draw them in, she thought.
“My name is Javon,” the man said, offering his hand. Ashlyn shook it.
“Ashlyn,” she replied.
“Your eyes really make you stand out,” Javon said. Ashlyn self-consciously looked at the ground. Everyone said the same thing. Her green eyes were one-of-a-kind, beautiful, unique, and memorable. She had heard it all before, but somehow, when Javon said it, it made her feel different, like his opinion mattered.
“Thank you,” she said, searching for something to complement back toward him.
“You should be in front of the camera, not me,” Javon continued. Ashlyn looked up and caught his eyes. When she did, she forgot everything she wanted to say. She felt like she was frozen. A strong urge rose up within her to kiss him, but she batted it away. Why was she so physically attracted to him?
“I guess we all have our place,” Ashlyn finally said. “I love working with cameras, so I much prefer to be with my camera than act.”
Javon shrugged. “It’s the loss of the viewers then.” He smiled directly into her eyes, and Ashlyn felt desperate to busy herself in some way. This man was going to distract her and make her unable to work when he was around. If she couldn’t think when he was looking at her, how would she be able to work?
“I’m going to get some water,” Ashlyn said. “I’ll talk to you later.” She took a step away and felt as though she were freeing herself from a trance, but Javon stepped forward again.
“I’ll get your water. You wait right here.”
Ashlyn didn’t like it, but she waited, watching Javon as he walked away. Her eyes dropped to his ass, and she half-smiled. He was certainly a very attractive man, and she didn’t mind looking at him. It was when she started to talk to him that he was a problem. If she was calling his attention as much as he was calling hers, then they would distract each other. They had to keep Gary, the director, happy or they could both lose their jobs. There was no dating among employees, even extras. If you were dating, you had to keep it a secret.
Ashlyn accept the bottled water right at the moment when they were called to return to their position. Ashlyn thanked Javon for the water hurriedly and turned toward her camera, but Javon grabbed onto her arm.
“I just want to say. . .”
“We need to get back to our positions,” Ashlyn said. “I can’t talk anymore.”
She pulled her arm gently from his grasp, her arm still tingling from where he had touched her. She hurried to her camera and pulled the shot into focus. Ashlyn wanted to take the time to evaluate what she was thinking and feeling, why Javon’s touch affected her so much, but she knew that her job had to come first. It had been hard to get this position, and if Ashlyn lost it, it would be even more difficult to get another. Ashlyn panned the scene below her then closed in on Javon’s face. He gave her a smile just before the scene started. Ashlyn was shaking her head, but she was also smiling. Maybe Javon did like her. It was kind of fun for someone to think her attractive.
Ashlyn threw herself into filming, and even when the actors received a short break, she used the time to review her shots. She wanted them to be perfect. She wanted to pick up her mistakes before someone else did and correct them so that she wouldn’t be at fault for needing extra filming.
The extras were let go at noon, and Ashlyn grabbed one of the half-sandwiches available at the table. She choked one down and returned to reviewing her shots. Javon approached her with a laden plate.
“Don’t you want to actually eat something?” he asked. He held the plate out to her. “I got some extra.”
Ashlyn let her eyes slide to the plate quickly before turning back to her camera. “I already had something to eat, so I’m not hungry. But thanks.”
“What do I do with the plate now?” Javon asked, causing Ashlyn to look up and meet his eyes.
“I guess you’ll have to eat it,” she shrugged. He was a big guy.
Javon shrugged. “I guess I will. So how long have you been filming with Gary?”
“Um, this is my first time,” Ashlyn answered, turning back to her camera.
“I thought so. I’m pretty sure that anyone who works with Gary for a long time already has grey hair.”
Ashlyn laughed, though she looked around to see if anyone else heard. “You’re just trying to make trouble. I am not about to get in trouble because of your jokes.”
“Hey, freedom of speech, right?”
“And Gary has the freedom to fire, so you should probably keep your free speech to a minimum,” Ashlyn recommended, once again burying her face in her camera. If she let herself be distracted by Javon, she knew that she would get hurt. It was better to focus on her first love, filming.
Gary started waving his arms, and people were moving before the words had even left his mouth. “We are working on scene three, folks. Let’s get moving!”
People scurried around, and Ashlyn hurried back to her camera. She was ready. She knew her place and didn’t need further direction. To her surprise, Javon followed her back to her camera.
“Shouldn’t you be going onset?” she asked, wanting to tell him what to do but not knowing his place.
Javon shook his head. “No, I’m not in this scene. I’m done for today.”
“Oh, then I guess I’ll see you later,” Ashlyn absentmindedly answered as she adjusted the lens.
“I thought I’d stay and watch you do your thing,” Javon said. “It’s not as though I have any other pressing appointments for today.”
Ashlyn turned and studied Javon for a minute. “I’d prefer you don’t do that,” she tried to say it as politely as she could.
Javon shrugged and bit his lower lip. “I would prefer to. Go ahead. Work. I won’t say anything.�
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Ashlyn pursed her lips and turned back to her camera, frustration already building up. She didn’t feel comfortable knowing that he was behind her watching her. Ashlyn tried to focus solely on her camera, but her thoughts kept turning back to what Javon was thinking or doing or if he was looking at her.
After half an hour of silence from Javon, he decided he should start a conversation in the middle of filming. Maybe he really didn’t know what he was doing, but it seemed like he was trying to get her fired.
“Have you always been into film?” he asked.
Ashlyn waved her hand at him, trying to tell him to be quiet without saying anything herself. He was quiet for a few minutes. The actors had just started doing the scene again when Javon spoke again.
“Do you have a favorite movie?” Ashlyn turned and gave him a dirty look. He was going to ruin her shot!
Gary walked into the middle of the shot and looked over at the spread of cameras. “Five minutes’ break! Cameras, I hear someone talking during a shot. You better shut up or you’ll be fired. Absolutely no talking.”
Ashlyn turned on Gary. “Are you trying to get me fired? Shut up, will you? I’m not going to have my job ruined because you’re too stupid to know to shut your mouth on set.”
“Hey,” Javon said, standing up and using his tall frame against her. “You need to calm down.” He placed one hand on each of Ashlyn’s arms, but she wrestled herself free.
“No, I don’t! You need to leave! You don’t have a reason to be here anymore. Just go!”
Javon’s face showed that he was not going to put up with her yelling at him. “Ashlyn,” he spoke her name in a way that seemed to take command of the situation. “Don’t speak to me like that. If you don’t want me to talk, you need to say that.”
“Fine, don’t talk. Or better yet, leave! Please! This job is really important to me!” Ashlyn knew she was pleading, but she didn’t know what else to do. This job was the most important thing to her in the world. Her hands were in balls at her side, and she was scared that Javon would refuse.
“Calm down,” Javon said. “I’ll make you a deal. I’ll leave you to work completely alone and quiet if you agree to go to dinner with me.”
Ashlyn’s fury seemed to melt in a moment. What was he trying to do? Did this count as manipulation? Whatever. If it meant that he would leave her alone, it was worth it. She didn’t even care if it would be good food or not, but looking at Javon, he probably always went to restaurants with good food.
“Fine, whatever,” Ashlyn said. “If you promise to always leave me alone. Just let me film.”
“Great, I’ll see you at the Red Lobster as seven o’clock tonight. Deal?”
“Yeah, sure,” Ashlyn said, turning away from Javon. Things were much quieter, and she saw that one of the other cameramen was staring at her. Ashlyn stared him down. He finally looked away sheepishly. Ashlyn turned back and saw that Javon was already halfway toward the parking lot. Good riddance. Now, she could focus on filming.
Chapter Three
Ashlyn finished her filming when the sun started coming in at the wrong side of the set, around four in the afternoon. Ashlyn was exhausted, and she rode with the crew back to their hotel. They had a block of rooms where they were staying for the ten days they were filming here. Ashlyn wanted to shower and fall into her bed. Going to bed at seven o’clock wasn’t too early, was it?
Ashlyn suddenly remembered her date with Javon. She backpedaled. It wasn’t a date. It was just a bribe. She was going to follow through on it, because she didn’t want Javon making trouble for her the next day. They had nine more jam packed days of filming, and she didn’t need to be distracted on any one of those. She would pay up now and receive the benefits of being able to work.
“Can I shower first?” Ashlyn asked her roommate Pamela.
“Go ahead,” Pamela said. “I may just watch TV or something.”
Ashlyn gathered up her clothes and took a super-fast shower, mainly washing her hair. She was glad that the hotel room provided hair dryers, and she went to work in the bathroom. It took forever to dry her hair, but she was finally ready. She was wearing jeans, short heels that barely counted, and a red, skin-tight V-neck. She looked nice but not overly done.
Ashlyn’s stomach grumbled, and she smiled. At least she was going to get some delicious dinner out of it. It had been a long time since she had eaten lobster, and she loved it. A restaurant named the Red Lobster had to have Lobster, right?
“Where are you going?” Pamela asked.
The rule about not dating between contracted employees flashed through her head. She didn’t know if Javon counted and figured it would probably be better to keep it a secret if everyone didn’t already know yet.
“I’m treating myself to dinner. I think I deserve it after surviving my first day on the job.”
“Fine,” Pamela said. “But don’t wake me up when you come in. I am exhausted, and I’ll probably be in bed before eight.”
“Yeah, I’ll be quiet,” Ashlyn said, grabbing her purse and stuffing a few needed items in. She was tired too, and she envied Pamela being able to sleep so early.
Ashlyn didn’t have any sort of vehicle, but their hotel was in the middle of things. Maybe she should have asked Javon for a ride, but she hadn’t been thinking that far ahead when she made the plans. She didn’t even have his phone number to text him and ask him. Oh well, there had to be someone who was willing to at least give her directions.
Ashlyn stopped in a store near their hotel and asked after the restaurant. She was directed to keep going about four blocks. Ashlyn sighed but started her little walk. She was mostly hoping that she wouldn’t get sweaty on her way. That was the last thing she wanted: to show up at a date with her face read and her hair wisps clinging to her face.
Ashlyn saw the restaurant coming up on her left, and she slowed her pace, giving herself a few slow steps to catch her breath. She didn’t think she was out of shape, but walking in heels was not the easiest. Ashlyn walked up to the door cautiously and stepped inside. She felt out of her element as she entered the fancy restaurant’s doors. Javon was waiting just inside, and seeing him immediately calmed Ashlyn. She realized then that she felt comfortable with him.
“Wow,” Javon said. He took an exaggerated moment to look at her, and Ashlyn tried to make her look condescending. It didn’t really work well, because she ended up blushing. “I knew I struck gold when we made that bargain this afternoon.”
“Yes, and I hope you’ll fulfill your end of it,” Ashlyn replied, raising one of her eyebrows.
“I will,” Javon said. “And, I’ll also give you an amazing date.” Javon turned and motioned to the waiter. “Could you lead us to a table for two please?”
“Would you prefer our patio seating or a place inside?”
Javon turned to Ashlyn as though passing the question on to her. “A booth is fine.”
For some reason, she felt as though the patio might be beautiful and romantic. She didn’t want that. She just had to finish this date and keep herself from becoming too distracted with Javon. Then she could get back to her real love: cameras.
“Right this way,” the waiter led them to a table. Javon placed his hand lightly on Ashlyn’s right hip as they walked side by side to the table the waiter had chosen for them. “Your server will be right with you,” he said.
Javon pulled Ashlyn’s chair back and indicated for her to sit. Her heart started beating hard as she dropped her eyes and took the chair. Javon was such a gentleman. She never would have guessed it from his behavior earlier today. Then, Ashlyn’s stomach clenched up. Maybe he was just trying to get inside her pants. The thought made her feel a little sick. Was that the whole reason he had asked her out?
Ashlyn looked up at Javon from under her eyelids, trying to think of what to say. Before she had time to think, their menus were laid before them. She quickly buried herself in the menu’s details, another thought r
unning through her mind.
She was almost flattered that Javon might be interested in sleeping with her. Was she so attractive that she turned him on? Ashlyn slowly licked her lips and set her menu down on the table. She would find out from their conversation his reasoning for making this bargain.
“Do you know what you want?” Javon asked.
Ashlyn shrugged. “Lobster,” she smiled. “Am I supposed to order something else?”
“How much do you want? There’s an all-you-eat claw special, or you can order an amount. Are you hungry?”
“Yeah, I’m pretty hungry,” Ashlyn said, looking back at the menu. She looked up and watched Javon study the menu. When he caught her watching him, he smiled. Ashlyn’s heart started thumping hard, and she nervously licked her lips.
“Great, maybe the all-you-can-eat is a good deal.”
Ashlyn was about to protest, but Javon was already waving the waitress over. He quickly put in two orders of the same, and they put in their drink orders as well. Their menus were taken away, and they were left in silence.
“Where do you come from?” Javon asked.
“I’m originally from Wisconsin,” Ashlyn said, referring back to her childhood days. “But when I finished high school, I moved to California. That’s where all the hopeful camerawomen live.”
“Well, it seems like you’ve been successful so far,” Javon said.
“Actually,” Ashlyn paused then decided that she should be open and honest, at least about this subject, “this is my first shoot. That’s why it’s so important that I do everything right. If I mess up, I could get fired. And getting fired from my first filming job could make it impossible to get another gig. And I don’t live for free.”
Javon nodded. “I’m sorry. I really wasn’t trying to start any trouble, and then you got all fired up.”
Ashlyn screwed her face up as she looked at him, confused about his tone of voice. “Yeah, well, I had a right to be mad.”