Spending all day filming with Andrea Block is exhausting. The woman is so stuck up and full of herself that she ruins the vibe of every room she walks into. I feel like I should win every acting award in existence for the performance I’m doing. This is some high-level acting skill to read my lines and make it look like I’m falling in love with her on screen. The woman is a rude brat. I don’t know how her equally famous and rich boyfriend puts up with her.
I’m so exhausted from filming. I miss Annie. And I hate being stuck in my hotel room. On Saturday morning I decide I need to get out of here or I’ll lose my mind. I get creative with the clothes in my suitcase and some items from the hotel’s gift shop. The gift shop’s clearance rack had discount sweatshirts that advertised the thirty-third annual Lake Sterling fishing competition that apparently happened last month. I buy one and match it with a pair of sweatpants. No one who sees me would think I’m a celebrity when I’m wearing a fishing competition sweatshirt… right?
I know it’s risky. My manager would tell me not to go out in public if I wanted to stay under the radar. But he’s not here, and I’m sick of my hotel room.
I wear a beanie, tucking all my hair up underneath it, then I put on a pair of sunglasses. Does it work to disguise myself? I’m not so sure. But I’m going to risk it anyway.
On the way out my hotel door, I notice a newspaper on the floor, so I pick up and fold it open to the sports page. When someone walks by, I can pretend to be reading the paper. It may not be a fool-proof plan, but it’s something and I make it out to the parking lot with no one noticing a thing.
In my rental car, I hit the road. Sterling is such a small town that it really only has one main road and some smaller roads that seemingly lead to nowhere. I cruise around, get bored, then turn back to the small town so I can grab a bite to eat.
The historic main street is charming, with old fashioned iron streetlamps lining the road, antique-looking shops, and lots of small-town flair. My ideal place to stop would be at a small restaurant owned by an old couple who don’t watch much TV and have no idea who I am. I drive slowly down the road, keeping an eye out for something like that.
But then I see Annie and my heart skips a beat.
I slow to a crawl in the car while I approach her as she walks on the sidewalk. I lower the car window.
“Hey beautiful, need a ride?”
She jumps, then looks at me, a horrified expression on her face for a quick moment before she realizes that the crazy guy yelling at her from a car is me. Very quickly her fearful expression turns into a grin.
“What are you doing here?” she asks, walking up to my car as I pull over on the side of the road.
I shrug. “I had to get out of that hotel room.”
“And you’re in a disguise, I see?” She peers down at me from above her sunglasses. “Or are you just one of those celebrities who dresses weird for the sake of it?”
I grin. “I’m trying to blend in.”
“No one in Sterling dresses like you, Trevor.”
“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” I ask.
She considers me for a second. “Both.”
“You want a ride?” I ask, desperately hoping she agrees.
To my great delight, she does.
My rental car smells like flowers and vanilla when she slips into the passenger seat. The scent of her immediately brings me back to working with her in front of the cameras. To kissing her in my trailer. Being near Annie always smells nice, and I hadn’t realized how much I wanted to be near her again until just this moment.
Maybe my heart didn’t have a random desire to cruise around town. Maybe it just wanted to find her.
“So where are you headed?” I ask, trying to play it cool.
“Home, actually.” She tucks her hair behind her ears. “I’ve been running errands all day but I’m done now.”
“Your errands don’t include tons of shopping bags?” I ask. She’s carrying a purse, but nothing else.
“Yes, technically, but I already dropped them off at the diner.” She smiles to herself as she gazes out the window. “I’ve spent the day planning an epic party for tonight. It was way more fun than pretending to be an actress,” she says with a grin. “I am not a good actress.”
“No,” I agree with a chuckle. “But you did well for someone with zero acting training.”
“You don’t have to humor me,” she says. “I know I sucked. That’s why they fired me.”
“Theyfired you?” I’m about to call up the director personally and chew him out and demand that he hire her back. She’s the best extra this industry has ever had. And by best, I mean the most beautiful. But still.
She shrugs. “I guess it wasn’t a firing… they just didn’t need me anymore. Which is fine, because it’s not like that was my dream job or anything, but I hope I find a new job soon.”
