Mr. Hollywood
Authors: Tracy Tegan
Mr. Hollywood
WRITTEN BY TRACY TEGAN
No part of this book may be reproduced, reverse-engineered, transmitted in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, taping, or by any information storage or retrieval system, without the permission in writing from the publisher except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical articles and reviews. Please respect the hard work of the author and do not post or share this work.
This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, establishments, organizations, real people, or real places are used fictitiously to provide a sense of authenticity to the story. Other names, characters, places or events are products of the author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2016, Tracy Tegan,
http://www.TracyTegan.com
.
All rights reserved.
ISBN-13
:
978-1534621992
ISBN-10
:
1534621997
My roommate came bolting into my room, jumping on my bed.
“Oh my God Alison! Guess what?”
I turned my head and looked at the clock and groaned when I saw it was only five in the morning. I threw my pillow at Jennifer’s head but that didn't dissuade her. She was still too excited and clearly had no intention of letting me go back to sleep until I found out what it was she had to tell me.
“Let me guess, you won the lottery?”
Jennifer laughed. “I don't even play the lottery. But that would be so amazeballs, right?”
“Jennifer please, it’s too early in the morning for this.”
“Just guess, Alison,” she insisted.
“I truly have no idea. Just tell me.”
“I got us jobs,” Jennifer announced enthusiastically.
“I already have a job,” I said as I pulled the blanket over my head, praying she would let me go back to sleep.
“No, silly,” Jennifer said as she pulled the blanket back down so that she could see my face. “I got us a job as extras.”
“Extra what?”
“Wow you really have no idea what’s going on around campus do you?”
“Apparently I don’t, so can you please, please just tell me so that I can get back to sleep?”
“I don’t know how we can be best friends sometimes. You are way too serious for your own good,” Jennifer said in a huff.
“I’m sorry. It’s just really early. Can you please tell me what you are talking about? I really do want to know. I promise,” I said as I sat up to give her my full attention.
“I got us a job as extras in the movie they’re filming on campus.”
“Is this actually a paying job or are you just doing this to meet someone famous?”
“Both,” Jennifer said with a laugh. “Okay the truth is, I would have totally done the job for free because who doesn’t want to meet some sexy Hollywood hunk? But they are actually going to pay us, so that’s even better. Can you believe it?”
“And when are we doing this?”
“In an hour, so hurry and get up. We have to get ready.”
“An hour from now? You can’t be serious? It’s still dark,” I protested.
I couldn't believe she was actually dragging me out of bed at five o'clock in the morning on my day off -- the first day I’ve had off in forever. But I knew Jennifer and I knew that if I didn't get out of bed to go with her she would never let me hear the end of it. Sometimes, it was just easier to give in to her.
When we got on set, which was actually a sectioned off area of our campus, we had to fill out a bunch of paperwork. Then we were systematically broken down into categories by looks, age, sex, hair color and who knows what else. Clearly they had some sort of system, I just couldn’t quite figure out what it was. Luckily my roommate and I are the same age and look a lot alike - people often thought we were sisters - so we were in the same group.
We didn't have speaking parts but we were put into hair and makeup as well as costumes. And by costumes, I mean really slutty dresses and super high heels. They didn’t say, but I think my group was cast as streetwalkers or at least really slutty looking girls that could be easily mistaken as hookers.
It took about two hours to get all of the extras organized and where they wanted them to go and then we began shooting. Embarrassingly enough, I had no idea what the movie was about or who was even in it. I’m sure someone along the way told me, but I didn’t really care enough to listen. All that really mattered to me was my roommate was happy and I was going to make a cool five hundred bucks for the day. To a habitually broke college student like me, that was a lot of money.
After we filmed our two scenes we were sent back to the wardrobe department to change back into our street clothes. It didn’t take as long to film as it did to get us all organized. It was amazing how fast things went once they got everything in motion.
Both Jennifer and I thought we were done for the day but as we got dressed one of the staffers came over to us and asked some questions she had written down on a clipboard. The odd thing was, as she was asking us, a camera man stood behind her filming our answers.
They were your basic interview type questions like how old we were, did we go to school here at the University of Houston, what we were studying and if we had boyfriends or were married with children. They wanted to know what our favorite movie was and if we watched a lot of reality TV -- just random questions like that.
Once we answered all of her questions, she tapped her pencil on her clipboard for a moment, as if she was thinking and then said, “Okay, you two will do.”
I looked over to Jennifer then back to the lady. “Will do for what?”
“We need a couple extras for another scene. You'll be given additional compensation for your time.”
I looked at Jennifer and she just shrugged, so we went for it.
The lady with the clipboard led us to the corner of the dressing room and had us change our clothes. Then she sent us back to hair and makeup. This time our attire was classier. They left my hair pretty much the same as before, but they put Jennifer in a red wig. While they were doing our makeup I looked around at the other girls in the chairs. I was the only blonde.
When we were ready, they walked us back on set, this time we were going to be doing a scene with the star of the movie, which turned out to be Grayson Chase.
I thought Jennifer was going to have a complete breakdown when she found out we were going to be doing a scene with him. She had a big crush on him, but then again, who didn’t love Grayson Chase? He was a sexy movie star, a really sexy movie star.
Even I had a little crush on the guy when I was growing up and he was on Malibu High – a cheesy one-hour teen drama. When they cancelled it, I, like millions of other teenaged girls, was sufficiently traumatized.
Out of all of the large ensemble cast, Grayson Chase was the only one that really transitioned into major movie stardom. Sure, some of the others from Malibu High went on to TV shows or did little parts in random movies, but none of them came close to the mega movie stardom that Grayson Chase now had. He was a huge box office draw.
In the scene we were doing with Grayson, he was having a meeting of some kind in a restaurant and Jennifer and I were going to be eating at a table next to him. Although we didn’t have speaking parts, because we were positioned so close to him, we would get a lot of camera time.
All we really had to do was sit there and look like we were enjoying our dinner and talking to each other without actually making any noise. It couldn’t have been simpler. That was, until Jennifer laid eyes on Grayson. I thought she was going to pass out. I was so embarrassed. But luckily she got it together by the time the director figured out what was going on and we were able to get the scene done in just a few takes.
When it was over I went back to the wardrobe department to change into my real clothes. I was ready to go home for the day. Don’t get me wrong, it was fun being an extra in a movie and the money we made doing it was great, but I was tired and wanted to just get home and pass out. We had been on the set all day.
Jennifer, however, took her time leaving the set, hoping to catch Grayson’s attention, or perhaps that of one of his co-stars. I don’t think she really cared which Hollywood heartthrob asked her out, as long as it was one of them.
Apparently Grayson nor any of the others gave her a second glance, so after a few minutes, she was by my side again changing into her street clothes.
We were about to head out when a big man (and by big, I mean JJ Watt big) came up to us and asked if I would follow him.
I really could use the money if they were offering me another part but I was also exhausted. I was just about to decline but Jennifer squealed in excitement so I knew that meant I wasn’t getting out of there anytime soon.
I sighed and followed the man who had to easily have been six foot seven, and three hundred pounds. The guy was just enormous.
“Do I need to change into a costume or something?”
He looked me up and down. “What you have on is fine.”
And without another word he led me through several sets to where the star trailers were set up.
I looked around, confused. “I don’t think I’m supposed to be back here, I’m just an extra.”
The man didn’t respond. Instead he opened the door of one of the bigger trailers and ushered me inside. I looked around, thinking at first the trailer was empty because I didn’t see anyone. Then Grayson walked out of one of the back rooms, wearing a robe.
“Hey,” he said in his sexy southern drawl.
“I’m sorry, I don’t know what’s going on but some really big guy brought me here.”
“I saw you on set today. You did great. Was this your first time in a movie?”
“Yes. My roommate Jennifer drug me along for the day. This is really more her thing than mine.”
“So, I take it you are a student here at the University of Houston?”
“Yeah, I graduate this year with a double major in Business and English.”
“That’s impressive and an unusual combination of majors. Couldn’t make up your mind what you wanted to be when you grew up?”
I giggled, actually giggled like a little schoolgirl. My goodness, what’s wrong with me?
“So, I hate to be rude, but was there something that you needed me for?”
Grayson looked a little sheepish for a moment. It was downright adorable.
“I noticed you on set earlier and I thought it would be nice to talk to you.”
“So you had your bodyguard summon me? Okay then. Well it was nice meeting you Mr. Chase, but it’s been a long day and I think I should be going. My roommate is probably freaking out right now worrying about me.”
I turned around and started to leave.
“Wait, I’m sorry. I know this seems odd. I didn’t mean to scare you. I just thought that maybe sometime we could go out for coffee or something?”
“I don’t know. You seem like a nice enough guy but I’m just not into the whole celebrity thing.”
He put his hands up. “Hey, I get it. I’m not that much into it lately either. Maybe you would let me at least call you sometime?”
I didn’t want to be rude and I really just wanted to get out of there so I gave in.
“Sure. I guess that wouldn’t be too bad.”
I programmed my number into his phone before turning around and heading out the door to rush back and find Jennifer, who was waiting patiently for me in the wardrobe department where I had left her.
“What happened? Where did you go?” She asked excitedly.
I knew she would be full of questions for me, but how in the world do I tell her without giving her a full blown heart attack?
“If I tell you I don’t want you to freak out. Do you promise?”
“Of course, Alison. Is everything okay?”
“Yeah. It’s just … I don’t know, hard to explain.”
“Where did that guy take you? Did they ask you to do another scene?”
“No, the guy was Grayson Chase’s bodyguard and he took me to Grayson’s trailer.”
“No. No. You lie! Oh My God!”
I looked around nervously to make sure nobody was listening to us.
“Please Jennifer. Let’s just go. I’ll tell you the rest when we get home.”
We rushed home and the second our front door was shut, Jennifer started in on me.
“Okay Alison, tell me everything.”
“There isn’t really much to tell. Basically it’s like I said before, the bodyguard escorted me to Grayson’s trailer. He came out, we talked and then I left.”
“You
talked
to Grayson Chase in his trailer and you really think I’m going to just be okay with that explanation? Tell me everything he said, word for word,” she insisted.
For a moment I was worried she was going to hyperventilate so I carefully led her over to the couch and sat down next to her.
“It wasn’t that big of a deal. He said he noticed me on the set and thought I did a great job.”
“He did? Really?”
I shrugged. “That’s what he said.”
“Then what else did he say?”
“I don’t know. I guess it was just casual stuff like do you go to U of H and did I want to go out for coffee sometime.”
“OMG,” she squealed. “You totally said, yes, right?”
“Not exactly.”
“What do you mean not exactly?” She asked in exacerbation.
“I live in Texas, he lives in Los Angeles. Even under the best of circumstances long distance relationships don’t work out.
Throw in the fact that he's a mega movie star that women throw themselves at on a daily basis and this relationship was doomed before it even started. Why would I want to put myself through that? Come on Jennifer, you know me better than that.”
“You’re killing me, Alison. You are actually killing me.”
“Still, it was nice to be noticed by him in the first place. I admit that was flattering.”
“I can’t believe you. Why do you have to be so damn logical all the time Alison? Can’t you ever just throw caution to the wind for once and just go for it?”