by M. S. Parker
Rhett raised an eyebrow and tossed his chosen steak into the cart. “So? I thought you told them you were on vacation and they were fine with it?”
I nodded. “They were, but they’re coming up to the decision deadline, and they haven’t found another applicant they’re as interested in.” I could barely believe what I was about to tell him. “They want to fly me out tomorrow to do the interview. The woman I talked to said it was only fair considering they’d be taking time from my vacation.”
“Holy shit.” Rhett gripped my shoulders and looked down at me with wide eyes. “That’s huge news, Jinx. What did you say?”
I blinked. “I told them to go shove it, obviously.”
For a moment, Rhett’s eyes lit with glee. Then he realized I was joking. Seeing his reaction, I wished I hadn’t made the joke in the first place. How could I forget that Rhett was staying here? It still seemed so surreal that I’d have to go back to Boston without my best friend.
“I’m so excited for you,” Rhett said. He mustered up a happy smile that I knew was mostly genuine. “We should do something to celebrate.”
I shook my head. “No can do, amigo. I’ve got interview prep to do, and the last thing I want is to show up hung over.”
He laughed. “Well, then I guess I’ll drink for the both of us.”
I tried not to feel disheartened as we continued our shopping. Rhett wasn’t trying to make me feel bad. If anything, he was actively suppressing the part of him that was depressed to hear my news, but the realization that a job in Boston would mean leaving him – and for more than just the next town over – scared the life out of me. It was my dream, and I would do what I needed to do, but I still felt raw from it.
It wasn’t all Rhett either. I had to be honest about that.
Leaving North Carolina forever would mean leaving Drew too. Yeah, he screwed up. And no, I didn’t regret breaking up with him. But I missed him like crazy and being able to see his family if I wanted to made me feel connected to him still. And a part of me kept expecting him to walk through the door, full of apologies and sweetness.
But I couldn’t wait for Drew to figure his shit out. I was putting me first, and that meant going to Boston tomorrow and nailing the hell out of this interview.
31
Drew
I finished my second day of training feeling better than I had in weeks. All the hard work I’d been doing since I got to LA had done wonders to clear my head, but it had taken some time. Now I was just beginning to feel like things were getting back to normal, and that me being there was best for everyone.
We were working on location a couple hours outside of the city, surrounded by nothing but dust and desert shrubbery. The desolate landscape was both beautiful and intimidating, and I hadn’t quite gotten used to it yet. It was a far cry from North Carolina’s lush forests and rivers, that was for sure.
I headed over to the refreshments tent, kicking aside a few pebbles on my way. When I reached the cooler and grabbed a bottle of water, I noticed someone was watching me from the other side of the tent. A woman. Not just any woman, either. I hadn’t spoken to the little redhead, but I knew she was one of the supporting actresses.
Our eyes met, and I gave her a friendly nod. She grinned, her teeth perfectly white and straight.
“I like to check out what the stunt guys are doing in between takes,” she said, strolling over to me. “If this isn’t a weird thing to say, I’ve been keeping an eye on you.”
A few months ago, I would have jumped at the opportunity to bang an actress. Especially one who was so hot. Now, even the way her pert breasts strained against the cotton of her tank top hardly roused interest in me. But I thought it best to be polite.
“And what’s your assessment?” I asked.
The redhead blinked prettily at me, her eyes like warm hazelnut. “You’re really good. And what’s more, you seem to really enjoy what you do.”
I smiled. “Thanks. I’m Drew. Drew Mikelson.”
She reached a hand over and clasped mine, shaking gently. “Elayne Lords.”
The name was familiar to me. I’d probably seen a movie or two of hers in the past. Even though I was starting to ensconce myself in Hollywood life, I wasn’t sure I’d ever get used to casually meeting celebrities as part of my day to day work. It was incredible.
“Nice to meet you, Elayne.”
I dropped her hand and took a sip of my water. This would normally be the part where I’d be wondering if there was dirt on my face or if I smelled particularly bad, but for whatever reason, it didn’t bother me.
“You’re new, right?” she asked. “I heard some of the guys talking. Is it just LA you’re new to, or the movie industry in general?”
“Both,” I admitted. “Though I think I’m picking it all up pretty well.”
Elayne flashed me another pretty smile and crossed her arms. “I’ve lived here my whole life and been in movies basically since I was born. If you wanted, we could go out for a beer after work, and I could share some of my expertise?”
I mulled it over for a second. The idea of a beer sounded great. I just wasn’t sure if I wanted company for it.
Hell, whether I wanted it or not, I needed it. I had no friends here yet, and I needed to talk to someone other than the old man who lived in the hotel room across the hall from mine.
“Yeah, that’d be cool,” I said.
We arranged a time and place, and I began the long walk to where we’d all parked. I hadn’t been out for a beer with anyone since the night Jinx dumped me. But I needed this. I needed to get her out of my head. Having drinks with a coworker was a good place to start, and I did have lots to learn still about Los Angeles. It had a much richer history than my hometown, and I knew there was a limitless amount of information ready for me to consume.
The bar we met in was probably nicer than ninety percent of the ones I’d been to in my life. It had rustic decor that looked like it was made from cobbled together wood pallets, but it was somehow expensive as hell. And we were in Korea Town, too, which I’d been told was one of the cheaper areas to go out in. Good thing I was making better money now than I had all summer.
“Tell me about North Carolina,” Elayne said, sipping on the straw of her cocktail. “I haven’t done much traveling on the East Coast.”
My hand gripped a little tighter on my beer at the unexpected mention of home, but she didn’t notice. I guess I just hadn’t prepared myself to talk about where I came from since I’d thought this would be more of an opportunity to learn about where I currently resided.
“It’s nice,” I said. “Quiet, peaceful.”
“But you’re not into the quiet life?” Elayne pressed.
I scratched at the label on my beer. “It’s not the lifestyle that made me leave. It was the opportunities or lack thereof.” I shrugged. “I never thought about it as wanting to leave so much as I did needing to go.”
Elayne nodded thoughtfully. She’d put on bright red lipstick and curled her hair. I don’t know where she found the time to do it, but it looked good. She looked like she was out on a date. But maybe that was just how people dressed out here all the time.
“I wasn’t completely honest with why I asked you out,” Elayne said. She nibbled at her bottom lip lightly.
My eyebrow shot up, but I didn’t interrupt her.
“I’ve been trying to get into doing my own stunts,” she admitted. “I’m too embarrassed to ask Osric to set me up to shadow someone.”
“Why?” My brow creased. I couldn’t see anyone laughing at her, or whatever it was she feared.
“I guess I just always end up being the piece of ass in these things, you know? I don’t want to start doing more work and completely suck at it and have everyone laugh at me.”
I was more at ease with this conversation than I’d been when we’d been making small talk, and I happily went over each of Elayne’s concerns with her. We discussed some of the mechanics of the stunts she would have to perfor
m in the movie, as well as a few tips and tricks that I’d picked up while working with the director. By the time our third drink and the bill came, Elayne looked much more relaxed.
And I felt more relaxed.
“It really means a lot to me that you helped me out with this,” Elayne said, picking up the bill.
I grabbed it from her hand and smiled gently at her. “Southern manners and all that.”
She laughed. “I wish all the guys here could be like you.”
It was the first time there’d been something a little...more in her tone. Maybe she’d been flirting with me earlier, but this was the first time I noticed it. And it completely threw me off.
“No, you don’t,” I said quietly. “Trust me, I’m far from the paragon of the perfect man.”
“You don’t need to be perfect.” Elayne’s fingers reached over the table and stroked the top of my hand resting on the table. “I already like you.”
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a vibrant blonde head pass by on the way to the back of the bar. My gaze immediately shot toward the woman, eyes widening in disbelief.
Jinx?
“Excuse me for a second,” I told Elayne.
She looked confused but otherwise didn’t move to stop me as I hopped off my bar stool and made a beeline for the bar’s darkened back hallway. Jinx disappeared around the corner. I sprinted and caught up with her just as she was about to go into the women’s bathroom.
But when I saw her face in profile, I knew immediately that it wasn’t her. My heart sank.
I hadn’t realized how much I’d been hoping it actually would be her, nor did I know what I would have done if it had been. I returned to the table with an apologetic smile.
“Sorry. I thought I saw someone I knew.”
Elayne smirked. “Well, since you still have nobody better to hang out with, why don’t you come back to my apartment?”
The words themselves were fairly innocent, but her tone was far from it. Elayne wanted me. There was no denying that now. I’d suspected it this whole time, but I think I was just so hopeful that she’d be the first step in cementing my life here. A new friend. Getting out and actually doing something instead of watching shitty TV shows until it was time to go to work again.
I declined as politely as possible and extricated myself from the bar. Elayne would have no shortage of guys jumping to fill my place in her bed, so I didn’t feel too bad. What could I say? It just didn’t feel right. She wasn’t Jinx. Even though I needed to get over Jinx, I wasn’t ready to do it quite yet.
But did I need to get over Jinx? I suppose the better question was would I be able to get over Jinx?
No matter how I looked at it, I just didn’t see that being possible.
32
Jinx
“It’s not fair,” Rhett complained. “I just got you back!”
I grinned at my friend and pulled the suitcase out of his grip. I hadn’t even properly unpacked from my day trip up to Boston for the interview, which was what he was referring to. Apparently, me leaving for all of twelve hours was too much for the poor guy to handle.
“And you’ll see me again very soon,” I said. “This job pays way better than the Grantsboro Gazette ever could, and I get an amazing benefits package. I can afford to come visit.”
Rhett slumped down onto my bed, pouting as I packed. “Don’t think I’m not happy for you.” He sighed. “I just wish you weren’t leaving so soon.”
Me too, if I were being honest.
Being offered the job at the Globe on the same day as the interview left little time for me to process. Especially since they wanted me to start as soon as possible and were even paying for my flight to move back up to Boston.
I didn’t see any future for myself in North Carolina. Even though there wasn’t any reason for me to stay other than my friendship with Rhett, I was still reluctant to leave. It felt like I needed more time to think, but all the thinking had been done.
I supposed what was actually going through my mind was that I needed more time to wait, not to think. What if I went back to Boston and never heard from Drew again? It seemed so final. So concrete. If I stayed here, there was at least the chance that I might run into him. If he ever came back from LA, that was.
“What will I do with the rest of my summer?” Rhett asked.
“You’re a big boy.” I grinned and tossed a sock at him. “You’ll figure it out. It’s not like you don’t know anybody here. Hang out with your sister. Besides, it’s only a couple more weeks until school starts.”
Rhett let out a long sigh before growing more serious. “I guess I just got so used to you being a part of my life,” he said. “I’m a bit at a loss of how I’m supposed to live it without you.”
The worst part was that Rhett wasn’t exactly prone to fits of dramatics. If he was saying that, it was because he really meant it.
“I understand.” I went and sat beside him, resting my head on his shoulder. “It’s scary for me too. I don’t know what I’ll do in Boston without you. You’ve been my Boston buddy for so long now that it almost seems like the city can’t exist without you.”
He chuckled. “I’m sure your parents would be happy to hear you say that.”
My parents had been ecstatic to hear about the job. Rhett thought it was more because they wanted me back in their orbit than anything else, but I knew better. I just chose not to tell Rhett that the real reason they were excited was because they didn’t see any hope in my future if I stayed down here. Being a journalist was bad enough. Being a journalist in a small town would be both social and career suicide.
Rhett, however, would have easily proven my mom wrong in her theory. Maybe his preferred career would have been different in a big city, but I don’t think he would have enjoyed it more. He liked being home. He liked being part of his small town. And he liked that he would be doing what he loved in a place that he loved. That was enough for Rhett. It wasn’t enough for me, but I was beginning to wish it was.
Sometimes, it felt like all my experiences after Drew would be stale. The fact that I was having trouble enjoying landing the job I’d been dreaming about for the past four years wasn’t a good indicator that my life would get better from here on out.
“Can I tell you something?” Rhett asked.
I’d moved to continue packing but locked my attention back on him. “Of course. What’s up?”
He smiled sheepishly. “I had an ulterior motive to inviting you down to North Carolina with me.”
“I know. You wanted someone to be here in case things went badly with your parents. We talked about it.”
He shook his head. “No. I mean there was an ulterior motive behind my ulterior motive.”
I chuckled. “The depths of your deception are limitless, Waters. What am I actually here for then?”
“Would it be completely crazy if I told you that I hoped you would fall in love with the North Carolina lifestyle and want to stay with me forever?”
I broke out into a grin and jumped over to Rhett, giving him a huge hug. “That would be completely crazy, but in the sweetest, most wonderful way possible.”
He returned the hug, exhaling long and hard. “I just don’t know what I’m going to do without you. You know?”
“I do know.”
We stayed like that for a few seconds, just breathing each other in. He was my rock. The closest thing to a brother I had. Then my phone rang.
“I should get that.” I pulled back and waggled my eyebrows. “Could be my new boss.”
Rhett smacked my ass as I walked over to my phone. “Go get ‘em, cowgirl.”
My smile evaporated as soon as I saw the name on the caller ID. Dallas.
“Hey,” I answered. “What’s up?”
Dallas’s voice was ragged. “It’s Drew.”
With those two words, my world came crashing down.
33
Drew
My eyelids felt like sandbags. It was unusual for me to be t
ired while I was doing stunts since the whole reason I liked them so much was that they got my blood pumping. But I’d gotten maybe two hours of sleep last night, total. I was in rough shape.
“Hey, man,” said Gray, the guy I’d shadowed during my first few days on the job. “Feeling alright?”
I blinked and looked over at him from where we were getting ready to ride out onto the track together. His eyebrows were knitted together in concern. I didn’t realize I looked that shitty.
“Yeah.” I cracked my neck. “Just tired.”
It was late in the afternoon on a Thursday. An understandable time to be tired. It had been a long week, made even longer by my chronic restlessness. Sleep had all but deserted me, and the feeling that things were finally slipping into place had done a runner too. I’d never felt as lost as I did, standing above my bike on that ridge. I was exactly where I was supposed to be – but it felt so wrong. Why did it feel so wrong?
“Maybe we should just call it for the day.” Gray turned to signal the crew, but I reached out and stopped him.
“I’m fine,” I said. “Really. Let’s just shoot the scene, and I’ll go home for a nap.”
The last thing I needed was to fuck up everybody else’s work day just because I hadn’t gotten enough shut-eye.
Gray gave me one last appraising look and then shrugged. “Whatever, man.”
Someone yelled for us to go. I kicked up dirt in my wake as I dipped over the edge and tore down the embankment. Nothing but the growling of the engine in my ears. Nothing but red dust and heat in front of me. Nothing. Nothing.
Nothing.
I didn’t know how it happened. It was like I slipped out of my skin for a second, and when I came back into myself, it was just in time for everything to fall apart. My tires skidded against the ground and threw me from the seat. I flew through the air, trying to twist myself so I wouldn’t hurt myself on impact. I didn’t twist enough.