“My apologies.” He took a step back and suddenly seemed so uncomfortable. “You’re right. You’re absolutely right. I let myself get caught up in the moment. You have to know that I’ve been thinking about this moment for quite some time.”
“Ricky!”someone called from behind his door as they knocked with insistence. “Rick, are you in there? You’re wanted on set.”
“That sounds like Abbie,” I said. I returned into his room and went to open the door.
“Oh, Darling?”Abbie said. “I didn’t know you were in here. Good. You’re wanted on set as well.”
“We were just going over a scene,” I said with a desperate need to make the reason for my presence in his room clear.
“Of course,” she said. “Be sure to stop by hair and makeup.”
“What scene will we be doing?”
“The scene where Henry implies that Edmund and Mary are getting engaged.”
“Very well. I’ll be right down.”
*****
THE SET WAS QUIET WITHonly a minimal crew. The lighting was somber with several sconces on the wall and several candles on the table, leaving the corners of the room in dark shadows.
But what caught my eye the most was the activity on the sidelines. Matt and Susie stood close to one another, sharing amusing little secrets. They laughed and giggled and leaned into one another in the most saccharine sweet annoying manner.
“Remember, Darling,” Keely said, her hand on my shoulder. “You’re disturbed by what Henry has to tell you, but you’re not quite sure why. After all, Edmund is your cousin, and you have no reason to be jealous or envious of his relationship with Mary.“
I nodded.
From the corner of my eye, I noticed Susie leaning into Matt, whispering something comical in his ear that had him smiling in a very charming manner. Adding to my discomfort was the amused look in her eyes as she glanced sidelong at me.
“Places everybody,” Keely called out.
I had to shake off the disquieting sense of impending doom that fought to take over me. Turning my back to the playful couple, I took my place and mentally prepared for my interaction with Ricky.
“And...action!”
Throughout the scene I was acutely aware of Susie’s hand on Matt’s shoulder, her repeated whispers into his ear and the adoring manner in which she looked at him. Somehow, despite the distraction, I managed to get through the scene.
“Cut!”Keely called out. “Darling. You’re really doing a great job, but I want you to hold your gaze on Henry.”
Feeling like such an amateur, I nodded. While I’d thought I’d faired pretty well, focusing on Ricky and my lines, I now realized that I had allowed myself to be distracted by Susie and Matt. “Yes, of course,” I said.
We shot the scene again and, this time, I completely blocked out Susie and Matt.
“Cut. That was great,” Keely called out. “I love the look in your eyes, Darling. Exactly what I wanted.”
“You guys can take the rest of the afternoon off,” Abbie said as she came to us. Just as quickly, she turned to Susie and Matt. “You two are so adorable together. We’re going to work on...”
Her voice trailed off as she went to them.
“You seem tense,” Ricky said as we walked away from the set.
“I don’t like disappointing Keely. I know that time is tight and I absolutely hate it when I’m the one responsible for shooting a scene again and again.”
“These things happen. They happen to everyone at some point or other. Don’t let it get to you. If you do, the pressure to be prefect every time will play some nasty tricks on you. I’ve seen actors leave a set in tears due to the frustration of not getting a scene perfect.”
“I’ll keep that in mind, but I’ll admit, it’s one of the curious and unexpected effects of flubbing a line or a scene. The pressure to get it right is almost debilitating.”
“And that pressure is often self-imposed.”
