by Hayes Grier
One lone tear slid down his cheek. A muscle twitched in his jaw. But Hayes was still, not wiping the tear, not moving. Not doing anything but being Hawk.
“Cut!” TJ shouted. “That’s it! We got it. One take! That’s all you needed, Hayes. You nailed it!”
Violet stepped into the open, smiling and laughing, feeling as though Hayes’s success was her own.
“V!” Hayes spied her and raced over, ignoring everyone trying to congratulate him. He lifted her in the air and spun her around until she was dizzy. “Did you see that? One take! All because of you!”
Hayes set her gently on the ground and smiled at her. “Thank you so much for all your help. I couldn’t have gotten here without you, without someone I trust helping me.”
Violet blinked and tried to keep smiling. But the word trust brought her back to reality with a thud. She still had to talk to Hayes. She still had to tell him about the fanfic.
But Hayes was so happy now. And she was so happy for him. She couldn’t take the focus away from his success, not when he’d struggled so hard and had done so well.
Was she just making excuses? Just postponing the inevitable?
Let’s face it, she thought. I’m totally dreading his reaction.
She gazed at his face beaming with joy. Her heart skipped a beat. She had to do it. Right now.
“So, thank you, thank you!” Hayes repeated, hugging her tightly.
“Excuse me, guys, best friend coming through.” Tez tapped Hayes on the shoulder, and Hayes broke the embrace to give him a high five. “Bro, you rocked!” Tez said. “And you rock, too, Violet. Whatever you told him in the trailer worked like crazy.”
“He was great!” Violet agreed.
“Listen, I need to talk to you, dude,” Tez said to Hayes.
“That’s okay.” Violet stepped away to give them space. Maybe Tez wanted to talk about Mia. Maybe not. Either way, she should get her own thoughts together and figure out the best way to talk to him. She’d do it as soon as Tez left.
“Have you seen this?” Tez was saying, holding out his phone for Hayes to see.
Violet couldn’t help but listen in. The two were so cute together.
“What?” said Hayes.
“It’s that Hayes Grier fanfic. You know those stories about you that are so popular?” Tez sounded anxious and angry.
Violet groaned. Why was Tez so on edge? He’d already seen all her entries, including the last one set at the prom.
“I haven’t had a chance to read it! You think I have any time outside this movie?”
“The author wrote about you volunteering at the dog shelter. I thought that was under wraps. Weren’t you keeping that private on purpose? I mean, who is writing this stuff?”
Hayes grabbed Tez’s phone. He scanned the site, scrolling down the length of the screen. His face turned pale. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out. He’d been shocked speechless.
As she listened, Violet’s face drained of color, too. She stumbled, feeling faint. How could this have happened? The animal shelter story online? It wasn’t possible! She thought back to earlier in the day … running back to the room to save the story … hitting a key without looking, too worried about the time to pay attention.
A knot formed in the pit of her stomach and she leaned against a wall. She must have hit the wrong key. She didn’t just save the story as a draft. She posted it!
* * *
Somehow, Violet got through the afternoon, avoiding Hayes and anyone else who tried to say more than hello. The filming was done. Everyone had been excited and happy, and no one noticed Violet sneak away early—except, of course, TJ.
“Leaving so soon?” he’d asked.
“I—I’m not really feeling well,” Violet had answered. It was true. She felt sick to her stomach.
TJ looked closely at her face and nodded. “You look awful. Go home and get some rest before the wrap party. You know it’s tomorrow night, right?”
Violet had nodded, escaping into her car. And now, at home, she felt relieved, ready to collapse on her bed and figure out what to do.
She opened the front door to a darkened living room. A single candle stood on the floor. Uncle Forrest sat in a meditative pose before it, holding a clear quartz crystal tied to a string. He swung the crystal like a pendulum, slowly, over the flame. “Oh, rays of light. Oh, stars and sun. Oh, blessings of harmony—Oh, Violet!”
Uncle Forest rose to his feet to embrace his niece. “You’re home!”
“What’s going on, Uncle Forrest?”
“I’m performing a crystal healing ritual. I’ve been sensing a dark aura around this house. There are feelings of pain … feelings of guilt … a darkness is falling that needs to be lit.” He paused. “Have you eaten dinner? There’s pesto pizza in the fridge.”
“I’m not hungry.”
Uncle Forrest brought the candle closer to Violet’s face. He peered anxiously into her eyes. “Perhaps the darkness is coming from you, Violet. You seem upset. I can help. I can help heal you with crystal therapy.” He paused. “Or perhaps a simple aura cleanse?”
His eyes were kind, full of concern, and Violet nestled closer to him. “That’s okay, Uncle Forrest. I wish it were that simple. Unless you have a crystal that can turn back time?”
Wouldn’t that be amazing? she thought. To get a do-over, to start at the very beginning with Hayes and tell him about the fanfic right away.
“Sadly, no.” He laughed gently. “But at least I can do this.” He reached for her photo above the fireplace, a picture from her elementary school graduation. Then he moved it to a table, placing the candle next to it. He dipped the crystal in a bowl of water and held it up so water drops fell, and the candlelight refracted into rainbow beams.
“Pain and guilt transform to joy,” he intoned, swinging the crystal over the picture. “And Violet?”
“Yes, Uncle Forrest?”
“Mia is upstairs if you want to talk.”
* * *
Violet trudged upstairs, debating whether to tell Mia what happened. Would it make her feel better or worse?
“Violet!” Mia poked her head out of the bedroom, and the decision was taken out of her hands. Mia pulled Violet inside, closing the door, then turned to her excitedly. “I’m so glad you’re here!” She pointed to her laptop screen. “I’ve just read your latest installment. It’s awesome. It seems so real, like you’re standing right there with Hayes in the dog shelter.”
Violet sighed, throwing herself on Mia’s bed and squeezing her eyes shut to block out the world.
“What’s wrong? It’s a great story. It’s so much more rich and deep somehow, more rooted and real between the characters. And now that Hayes knows the truth, it’s all good, right?”
“Hayes doesn’t know!” Violet almost wailed.
“You haven’t told him?”
Violet shook her head. “And I really did go to an animal shelter with Hayes, and something almost like this happened. But we never kissed! And this piece is way too revealing. Too personal. Hayes doesn’t want this information out there. It was all a secret, until I posted it—by accident!”
Mia’s eyes opened wide. “So now what?”
“Now it needs to come down.” It was the only answer. Maybe she could stop a few people, at least, from reading it. “In fact,” she went on, “I want all of it to go away.”
“You mean take down every story?”
“Yes, all of it,” she repeated. “Can you help me?”
The girls pulled up chairs to the desk and worked furiously. A few minutes later, the screen was blank. The stories were gone. Violet felt a pang. Her best work had just disappeared without a trace. But it was for the best.
Violet leaned back in the chair, trying to give herself a pep talk.
She’d told herself this many times: She had to go to Hayes and tell him the truth. And now there were no excuses. Hayes had finished filming. He wasn’t disappointed about the motorcycle stunt or st
ressed about his big scene. It was over. And everyone knew he was terrific.
Violet couldn’t blame bad timing, not anymore.
Violet’s internship was done, too, and she had no script to show TJ. If he refused to read anything of hers again … well, so be it. She was okay with it. And if Hayes refused to ever talk to her again? Well, she was not okay with that, but she’d understand. She deserved it.
Tomorrow night was the wrap party. She’d do it there. She’d tell Hayes the truth, the whole truth—her feelings and her mistakes.
It was her moment to finally be honest. She was almost looking forward to it.
* * *
Violet slept late the next morning, then lounged around the house, trying to relax. She flipped through channels on TV. She cleaned her room. She even started a screenplay about a high school student who comes to Hollywood on a summer internship and totally messes up. She figured, write what you know. And she certainly knew about that.
Once she started, the writing actually went pretty well. Just as it happened with the fanfic, Violet lost track of time. When she finally turned away from the computer screen, she jumped to her feet. She had to start getting ready! And she hadn’t given a thought to what she should wear. She lifted a lock of hair and let it fall limply to her shoulders. Did she still have time to shampoo?
Wind chimes sounded at the front door. Violet paused, hoping someone would answer it. But apparently, nobody else was home. The chimes rang again.
Hurriedly, Violet made her way downstairs, then peered through the small window on the door. Two bright hazel eyes looked back, framed by sleek black hair.
Coco? Violet drew in her breath. What was she doing here, when the wrap party was starting in an hour? She swung open the door and gasped. Coco wasn’t alone.
“Hey, girl.” Coco stepped inside, not waiting for an invitation. “I’m here with my glam squad.”
“I see that!” An entourage of stylists marched in behind Coco, all smiling, all holding trays of blush, mascara, hair gel, straightening irons, and more. Two women from wardrobe pulled clothing racks filled with dresses and gowns.
Everyone paused in the hall. “Where should we set up?” Coco asked brightly.
A few minutes later, Violet’s room looked like a combination beauty salon, spa, and upscale boutique.
“Why did you do all this?” Violet asked Coco as they settled into chairs, stylists spraying their hair.
“Isn’t it obvious?” Coco joked. “So we can get ready for the party!”
“No, I mean really.” Violet gazed at the racks of clothes, each one more glamorous than the last.
Coco smiled at her. “Seriously, you’re the first real friend I’ve made in ages who isn’t all ‘Hollywood.’ This is my way of thanking you. Besides, we never had that girls’ night out, right? So this is our time! Let’s enjoy it!”
An hour later, the girls walked out of the house, heads held high. Violet wore a sequined red dress with spaghetti straps and red high heels. Coco was dressed almost identically but in white.
Violet caught sight of herself in the mirror on the way out and nodded at her reflection.
“Yup,” said Coco happily. “We look like a million bucks.”
Violet had to laugh. After tonight … after explaining everything to Hayes … their relationship might very well be over. Her life would be in pieces. But at least she’d look her best!
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
COCO’S DRIVER TOOK them to a Hollywood Hills mansion overlooking the twinkling lights of LA. Photographers snapped pictures of Coco—and Violet—on the way in. But the paparazzi stayed outside.
Violet was glad no cameras could capture her dumbstruck expression when she stepped through the doors. Mansion was an understatement. The girls walked through the marble entrance hall into a huge open space. “The grand salon,” Coco whispered to her.
Chandeliers hung from the ceiling. Two grand pianos stood next to each other in a corner. The polished wooden floors gleamed. A band, its members dressed in tuxedos, played jazz on a raised platform. The waitstaff circled, offering crab cakes, sushi, and minifoods Violet didn’t recognize.
In fact, she barely recognized the partygoers filling the room. On set, everyone had dressed casually. Here, they looked as if they’d stepped out of a fashion magazine.
It was all glitz, all glamour, and it took her breath away.
But where was Hayes? She peered around the room. Finally she spied him, way on the other side, wearing a sharp gray blazer and a baseball cap, talking to Tez.
Now, she told herself. Talk to him now.
Violet took a deep breath, excused herself, and made her way across the crowded room. She was almost there when TJ stepped in front of her.
“Violet!” he exclaimed, like she was just the person he wanted to see.
“TJ!” she responded, craning her neck to look around him, trying to catch sight of Hayes.
“I’m trying to talk to as many people as I can tonight,” TJ was saying. “I know I can be a little difficult at times, and I’d like, in my own way, to make amends.”
Violet raised her eyebrows but held back from saying, “A little?”
TJ plowed on. “But you did a lot for this movie, Violet. You really took care of Hayes. You did an exceptional job, and I hope we can work together again.”
Pleased, Violet said, “Thanks, TJ.”
“And,” he added, “I can’t wait to read your new script.”
“I’m still working on it,” she told TJ, not mentioning she’d just started it earlier that day. “You’ll have it soon.”
Maybe now, with her days free—no movie, no fanfic—she could really get cracking.
By now TJ was gazing over her shoulder, scouting out the next person to talk to, and Violet slipped away. She hurried to the spot she’d seen Hayes, but now he and Tez were gone.
Her eyes swept the room, lighting on Tez getting a drink—no Hayes in sight—then on a crew of production assistants goofing around, balancing spoons on their noses. And there was Coco, standing behind a potted plant, flirting with another PA. Violet smiled. That must be the mystery man. The guy Coco wanted to make jealous. He was cute! And he seemed into Coco. Violet felt glad for her friend. Coco may be a teenage star, but she really did like to stay away from Hollywood celebs.
Then Violet glimpsed a baseball cap moving through the crowd. Hayes. It’s now or never, she told herself. For a moment she closed her eyes, focusing on her speech. Hayes, here I come. She stepped forward.
But once again, someone was stopping her, tapping her shoulder from behind. She turned around, annoyed. Then she smiled. “Hayes!”
“Hey, V. You’re a hard girl to find. I’ve been searching the whole party for you.”
Violet felt a tingle—he’d been looking for her!—quickly followed by a wave of nausea. This was it.
“Come with me,” Hayes said, taking her hand. “There’s something I want to show you.”
Violet trembled—from nerves or excitement, she couldn’t tell. She held on as Hayes led her through the room. Something was going to happen. She just didn’t know what.
Hayes took Violet outside, through a rose garden lined by tall hedges, to a dimly lit path. They walked a bit more, seeing fewer and fewer people, until they stopped in a grassy circle. They were alone. The sounds of the party drifted over on a warm breeze, but Violet felt like she and Hayes were a million miles away.
“What is it?” she asked, a little breathlessly. They were face-to-face. In heels, she was almost his height. “What did you want me to see?”
“Look up,” he whispered, his breath tickling her ear. As she lifted her eyes, Hayes said, “Stars! There’s no smog tonight. I bet we can see them all.”
It was true. Hundreds upon hundreds of stars glowed brightly in the clear night sky. “I thought you’d like the view.”
Now she lowered her gaze, staring directly into his eyes. “I do like the view,” she said. Hayes wrapped her in his arm
s. Violet’s heart thumped wildly. But she had to get herself together. She had to tell him the truth. She stepped away.
“Thank you, Hayes,” she said, “for bringing me out here.” She felt herself move closer to him again, as if pulled by a magnet. “I’m glad we’re alone. There’s something I need to tell you.”
“V, let me go first. I have something to say, too.” He grinned at her, his eyes snapping with excitement, like a little kid with a big secret he can’t wait to share. “Please?”
Violet couldn’t say no; she nodded.
Now Hayes drew back so he could look her full in the face. “I like you, V. I mean I really like you, as a lot more than a friend. And I think you may like me, too. I can trust you, V. And I’ve never felt this way with a girl before.”
Violet drew in her breath. Trust. Once she said her piece, he’d never feel that way again. The trust would be shattered. She opened her mouth to speak, but before she could say a word, Hayes’s lips met hers. He threaded his hands through her hair and kissed her slowly, oh so slowly, and so tenderly, she felt her insides melt. The kiss was sweet and soft; so perfect, Violet couldn’t have written it better in her fanfic.
Finally, they broke apart, both with a sort of a gasp, both smiling so widely, Violet felt her cheeks stretch. They stared at each other, speechless.
“So, Violet!” A loud voice interrupted the moment. “This is where all those fanfic ideas come from.”
Violet turned, trying to move from one minute to the next, from sweet rapture to harsh reality. The words didn’t register. “What?” she said.
TJ loomed in front of her, hands on his hips. “The Hayes Grier fanfic. All those romantic stories. They’re yours. You’re the mystery writer.”
Violet’s stomach dropped. She didn’t know what to do—deny it all, confess in front of everyone, or run away. How did he even find out?
Lydia stepped out from behind TJ’s shadow. That’s how, Violet quickly realized. The talent agent had told him, revealing Violet’s secret before she could explain it to Hayes, her way.