“Well, that sounds like an excuse, but pretend it happens this year, and you stay for that. What happens then? Do you have another sibling who’ll be getting married, and you need to stick around for that excuse, too?”
“No, just Lainey, asshole,” Dana replied, feeling like she could say that to her now.
“Older or younger?”
“Older. Two years. Marrying Paige.”
“Paige?”
“Yes. Lainey is gay. I’m bi. Our parents don’t care. Next question, counselor?” she teased.
“And you don’t have any girlfriend or boyfriend.”
“No. I told you that.”
“I meant that you don’t have a significant other keeping you here.”
“No, I don’t,” she confirmed and took a gulp of water.
“And LAwaspart of your plan at a time, right?”
“Yes,” she said, setting her glass back down.
“I know you love it here, but auditioning is always easier there. They could throw a call in the trades that morning for something later that day or the following morning. There are video auditions, too, but things usually work out better in person. Even if you submit a video audition, you can see how it works already. Some productions will fly you in to audition or chemistry read in person, but not all, due to budgets. Or, they’ll askyouto pay for it because you’re not a name theyneedto pay. It slows down the process, and sometimes, speed is key.”
“I get that,” she said.
“Dana, you really are talented. I can only imagine how good this movie could be with you playing Bray, but I told you that I watched your YouTube stuff, and I did. I watched everything last night, not just a few snippets here and there.” Samara paused for a second. “You owe it to yourself to give it a real shot.”
“Why don’t I go ahead and decide what I want for my life on my own, and we’ll see what happens with this part?”
Samara nodded and said, “You’re right. Fair enough.”
Dana stood then and said, “I have to go meet Lainey.”
“Okay,” Samara replied and took another bite.
Dana dropped the food she didn’t touch into the trash can, wrapped the thin plastic bag, tied it in a knot, removed it from the can, replacing it with the bag stowed beneath it, and hefted the warming bag and the trash.
“I don’t want your room to smell like green beans.”
“Thank you,” Samara replied with a small laugh. “And, Dana?”
“Yeah?” she said as she began walking to the door.
“I know that feeling.”
“What feeling?” she asked, turning back to her.
“The fear. It hit me at a different time than you because I was only a kid, but we moved from my hometown in the middle of nowhere to LA after that agent saw me in the store while he was on vacation, of all things. I left everything behind, and it was terrifying.”
“You were, like, six.”
“I had just started school with my friends, and my dad couldn’t come with us. My sister stayed behind, too, so it was just my mom and me until I got the show and we could afford for them to move. So, I might have only been six, but I understood enough to know that I was responsible for my family being separated and that the responsibility of getting us all back together rested on my shoulders. I just wanted to say that fear is part of it for pretty much everyone.”
“Yeah, okay,” Dana said and sighed loudly. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Sure,” Samara replied.
