"Okay, so that's all?" I asked, feeling relieved.
"Yes. That was great."
"I just let you do all the work. If that's all I need to do, then great. What do I do about my facial expressions? Should I just keep them neutral?"
"I would start with that, but they'll tell you if you need to change something. We've been working with them for two days. It's a good team. The director likes it done a certain way. He's got a vision. Are you doing any of the outdoor scenes coming up?"
"I don't think so."
"I think he's already notified everyone who's doing it."
"Oh, no, I'm… I don't live here. I live out of state."
"Really, where do you live?" He gestured toward the door. "I'll walk you to wardrobe."
"Oh, we're done? Should we try it one more time?"
"Sure. You did great, but sure."
I tried to imagine that the music was playing. I stood on my speck and imagined everything he told me about how the scene would open. I stood in aneutral pose while James took a few steps away and then turned to walk up to me. He spoke quietly.
"May I have this dance?" he asked, like a gentleman.
I gave him a slight nod and put my hand in his. He swept me into his arms. I got a little more tripped up this time than I did the last time. I resisted him when he tried to turn me, and he ended up going the other way instead.
"Sorry about that," I said when he stopped.
"No, don't be sorry. We just adjust and go with it. You'll do fine. And they'll do another take if they need to."
"Okay, you sure?" I asked, nodding.
He smiled and bowed to me. "Yes, I am, and thank you for the dance," he said. "I'll walk you to wardrobe."
"Thank you, James," I said.
I wanted to tell him how scared I was. Or better yet, I wanted to tell him that I just couldn't do it at all and that he could find someone else, like maybe my sister. But I knew I wasn't going to chicken out, so I told myself just to smile and pretend I was okay.
James took me into the trailer that was next to the wardrobe tent. I followed him even though my sister and niece were in the other place, and I was pretty sure my dress was too.
"Hey, Ms. Barb, she needs to get ready, and Cameron said Alex wants her with her hair up. Herdress is next door, but I heard them say she needed to come see you and her hair up."
"Braids or what?" Barb asked.
James looked at me, and I shrugged.
"Is she a townsperson or a traveler?" Barb asked.
"A townsperson," James said. "She's a featured dancer in the opening scene."
Barb sighed and looked me over as if these answers meant we were on a time crunch.
"That's why I brought you in here first," James said to me when he saw her expression. "Bye," he continued. He tapped my back to say goodbye. "I'll see you on set."
"Yeah, sounds good. Thanks, James."
Chapter 11
"Where have you been? And look at your hair!" my sister exclaimed when I found her a little while later. I had just gone into the large tent where all the extras were gathered to get dressed. There were benches and tables with free-standing mirrors so that we could all have room to get ready. The space was divided with curtained walls and cubicles set up for changing, and I had to walk through half of the tent before I spotted my sister and Luna.
