“Yes,” I say with a laugh, and she nods in understanding. While the rumors of animosity between us have always been complete bullshit, I’m equal parts relieved and delighted to discover I genuinely like Selma. She’s funny, insightful, and down to earth, and we’ve learned we have countless things in common. I’m confident we’ll become great friends and that working with her will be a highlight of my career for multiple reasons.
The makeup artist, who introduced themselves to me earlier as ‘Jase, they/them pronouns’ bustles over for one last touch up. They stand back to admire their handiwork, smiling a red-lipped smile. “Gorgeous. I’ve applied to work in the makeup department on the movie. If you happen to have any sway…”
“I’ll put in a good word for you,” I promise, eyeing myself in the small mirror Jase hands me. I’d nearly forgotten what my face looked like with full makeup, but Jase has done an incredible job. “I’ve been calling in favors left and right lately with a one-hundred-percent success rate.”
Jase laughs, blowing me a cheeky kiss as I’m swept away by a production assistant who murmurs in my ear that we have five minutes until we’re live.
I settle onto a long, plush couch between Nat and Selma. They both reach for my hands at the same time, and I let out a breathy laugh as I squeeze their fingers, drawing strength from my old friend and my new one, the two women who will play my sisters on screen for several months starting in January.
“We’re ready for this,” Nat says, phrasing it as a statement rather than a question. It didn’t take much convincing to get her to join us for the interview. She initially thought the focus should be on Selma and me to dispel rumors of our supposed feud, but I told her this interview was about much more than that and we needed our costar by our side.
“Soready,” Selma says.
With a final squeeze, they release my hands as Samira sits in the armchair across from us. The next few minutes are a blur of last minute questions and directions, an unseen person flitting behind me to fix my hair, and then we’re being told we’re going live in three, two, one…
“Good morning, folks, I’m coming to you live fromthemost adorable town in Northern Ontario called Honeywell Hollow,” Samira says, smiling into the camera. “I’m here with Josslyn Hazelwood, Selma Melissa Graham, and Natalie Huang, the leading ladies in the upcoming indie flickFinding Us, written and directed by the Pascal sisters. Welcome, ladies!”
We give the standard enthusiastic greetings expected of us.
“Josslyn, I want to start with you since you’re the reason we’re all here in Honeywell Hollow,” Samira says. “The public has been wondering where you disappeared to, and, of course, speculating about the reasons. Is Honeywell Hollow where you’ve been hiding out all this time?”
This part was something we agreed on beforehand. I specifically wanted Samira to use the words ‘hiding out’ so I could be the one to turn it around and control the narrative, something people in the spotlight rarely get to do.
“This is where I’ve been, yes, and hiding out is exactly what I was doing at first. Just ask Natalie.” I hook a thumb in Nat’s direction. “I’m sure she’ll be all too happy to tell you she thought I was running away from my life.”
Samira turns her gaze to Nat. “Is that true? You two have always been quite close, right?”
“Joss is my best friend,” Natalie says simply. “And yeah, I did accuse her of running away. That’s not how I see it anymore, although I’ll let her explain that.”
I smile at Nat, and she pats my leg encouragingly. “I came to Honeywell to get away from everything. Back in Toronto, I felt like I was being haunted in a way. Haunted by my failed marriage, haunted by the press, haunted by my own image everywhere I looked. I wanted a break, and I had the luxury of being able to take one.
“I chose Honeywell at random, hoping to escape everything for a while, and I ended up stumbling into what felt like a real-life film set. I didn’t think places like this existed outside of the kinds of movies I’m known for. And, to be perfectly honest, I wasn’t sure I wanted to stay at first. I hope this doesn’t damage my image as the Queen of Christmas, but the holidays and all they entail were part of what I was trying to escape.”
Samira nods, her expression full of understanding. “I’m sure there are plenty of viewers who would like me to pursue that, but that’s not why we’re here today, right? I think it’s safe to say the holidays can be rough for a lot of people for a whole slew of reasons, and leave it at that.”
“Thank you,” I say, my throat tight. Selma hands me a glass of water that seems to have materialized from thin air, and I take a quick sip. “Anyway,” I say with a self-deprecating laugh, “Honeywell wasn’t what I thought I wanted, but it was exactly what Ineeded. I ended up falling head over heels for this little town.”
Samira’s face lights up with a knowing smile. She leans forward slightly as she asks, “With just the town itself or…?”
We didn’t rehearse this part. It would be easy for me to deflect. To laugh and say yes, just the town. But that’s not true and I'm tired of hiding my true self. “Not just the town,” I say slowly. “With its people. And…one person in particular.”
Samira waits a beat, brows raised expectantly. When it’s clear I won’t be volunteering more than that, she gives an exaggerated huff and flops back in her chair. “You’re not going to say any more than that, are you?”
Now I do laugh as I shake my head. “Sorry. I haven’t even toldhimyet.”
The words slip out. I barely realize what I’ve said until Samira’s eyebrows hitch up further and whispered voices filter into my awareness a second before someone out of view shushes everyone. Natalie shifts beside me, clearing her throat. She murmurs something out of the corner of her mouth that I don’t catch, but part of it sounds like ‘ratings gold’.
“Who knew Josslyn Hazelwood could be such a tease?” Samira says, rearranging the note cards in her hand. “When all of this comes to light, I hope I get first dibs on the scoop.” She shoots me a subtle wink before continuing on smoothly. “And now the three of you will be filming a movie here in Honeywell Hollow. I have to ask the question that’s on everyone’s minds: what about the rumors of the rivalry between you, Josslyn and Selma Melissa?”
“The rumors are just that: rumors,” Selma says firmly. “They don’t have any basis in fact, but they were perpetuated by the media. No offense,” she adds quickly, and Samira chuckles, waving her off. “To be fair, we didn’t do anything to put the rumors to rest. We’re looking to do that now, though.”
“The thing is, Selma and I were barely more than acquaintances until a couple days ago,” I say. “We saw each other at various industry events, but that’s it. The first time we were photographed together, neither of us knew there was a photographer there. We both looked serious, and they caught me mid-eyeroll, looking irritated about something Selma said. The truth is, I was commiserating with whatever she’d just told me, and I happen to be an eye-roller.”
Nat leans across me to get in the shot. “It’s true.”
“I learned from the best,” I say dryly.
“Everything after that was completely made up,” Selma says. “Joss and I didn’t see each other for probably a year after that, by which time our supposed feud had become legendary. Of course, it didn’t help when rumors started that Joss was being cast alongside me inAll the Heart Wants, and it supposedly fell through because we refused to work together.”
