“You do?” Dana asked.
“Definitely,” Samara replied. “Not exactly like Bryce’s hair – yours would have some serious waves in it, so it could be a little shorter than hers – but the general cut would look good.”
“I don’t know. It’s a lot to chop off. And what if it turns out awful? I’d have to deal with hideous hair for the next year while it grows back out.”
“I say trust them,” Samara suggested. “They’re professionals and know what they’re talking about. Same with wardrobe and makeup. Their job is to make you look camera-ready, and they’re good at it.”
“I don’t look like you, to begin with, though,” Dana said and turned away, trying to hide her blush from Samara.
“Dana?”
“Yeah?”
“You’re beautiful,” Samara said. “You might not see it, but it’s there. And you’re talented. This is a crazy thing somepeople do for a living, but it’s not for everyone. Maybe after this, you go back to theater because that’s more your thing, and you stay here, in New Orleans, and you cater for movies instead of starring in them, but if you want, you can have this now, too. You can try it while you’re at home, surrounded by your friends and family and sleeping in your own bed at night. You can give it your all once, and at the end, you’ll at least know if this is what you want for your life or not. If it’s not, that’s okay. And if it is, if being on a set, acting out a scene, is the thing that gets you up in the morning, you’ll have a way in now. You’ll have your breakout role, something that most actors would kill for, and you’re right here.” Samara stood up. “If you get nervous again, that’s okay. Ask for five minutes. Pretend you need to return a call or just tell them you need a quick break. Disappear in here. Catch your breath and get back out there when you’re ready. If you need me again, I’ll be here, too, okay?”
“Okay,” she said softly.
“Now, I have to get back out there myself,” Samara told her. “Are you okay?”
“I’m good, yes.”
“I’ll see you back out there, then,” Samara said. “And if not, I’ll send Jana for you.” Samara winked at her.
“She brought me food.” Dana nodded toward the small kitchen. “It’s all in there.”
“Yes, that’s part of her job,” Samara said with a smile. “Why don’t you have some water and grab a granola bar or something? It helps, too.”
“I will.”
“See you out there.”
Dana nodded and stared after Samara, who closed the door behind her. Then, she stood as well and walked to the thermostat, which read seventy-one. She lowered it to seventy and reached for a bottle of water.
CHAPTER 15
The rest of the day’s rehearsals had gone a little better. Samara could tell Dana had still been at least a little nervous, but while rehearsing her scenes with other actors, Dana had been fine, and when they had rehearsed together, Dana had been great. It was like she’d been back to being Bray in all the right ways. Samara had tried not to give herself a compliment about bringing out the best in her scene partner, but if she’d done anything to help Dana with those nerves, she was happy.
They’d only had one full day of rehearsals and tests because they were already too far behind to do much more than that, so they would rehearse for a few minutes later, right before they shot a scene, or they would have to do it on their own time in their trailers, on their walks, or at lunch to ensure that they were ready. Samara was used to that. It seemed like every film, even the big-budget ones, was always behind in some way, so the time allotted for rehearsal or run-throughs often got shortened. One film she’d worked on had cut their two weeks of upfront rehearsals entirely due to a crew dispute that had delayed everything. They’d done fine, but Samara would have loved to have had those two weeks to at least try to get to know everyone on the cast a little prior to shooting some tough scenes with them.
The next day, at just after seven in the morning, they were on location, shooting the interior bar scene, which was one of the first in the film after the scenes where they introduce Bray and her friends and their trip to New Orleans, as well as Stella and her friends heading out for a night on the town. They were shooting the downstairs stuff today, where they meet for the first time, and later, they would shoot the first kiss there as well. That scene was important to convey because, in the film, same as in real life, a fight would break outafter, interrupting them. Bray – Bryce in real life – would be pulled away as part of the police roundup, taken to the station, and questioned before they would let her go, and by the time she would return to the bar, Stella – Sophie in real life – would be gone, without them having each other’s last names, or a phone number, or any other piece of helpful information.
“Everyone ready?” Reed asked when they all took their positions.
Dana looked a little nervous now that they were actually about to shoot this thing, so Samara leaned in. She knew their mics would pick it up, but she didn’t have much of a choice either way, and she wanted to tell Dana this.
“Use it,” she said softly.
“Huh?” Dana asked.
“Use the nervousness. Our characters are meeting for the first time, and it’s love at first sight, so youwouldbe a little nervous. Use that. Mix it with that cool confidence Bray has, but use it.”
Dana nodded and replied, “Thanks.”
Samara just winked at her. She actually winked and wondered where that had come from. She wasn’t a winker. Waswinkereven a word? What did people who winked all the time call themselves? Someone who winks?
“Samara?”
“Yeah?”
