Dare You to Chase the Soccer Player (Rock Valley High 5)

“Anything to keep you humble,” I said, blowing him a kiss.

Laughing, he picked up the pizza boxes and left the room. I flopped back on the bed and reread Alanis’ message for the third time.

Today hadn’t turned out so bad after all. I had the job. And with the job, doors to my future were opening. So what if a boy I thought I’d liked had given me the cold shoulder today? Or that we were sure to run into each other on set now? I was a modern woman. I could take care of myself.

I’d show Zane Rees just exactly what he was missing out on.

He could eat his heart out.

Chapter Five

The Egyptian clay mask had done its job. My skin was moisturized, dewey, and radiant, if I said so myself. And I was ready to start my first day as the assistant to THE Alanis Nori.

The school day had gone by achingly slow. The only reason I’d survived was because I knew that I’d soon be basking in the glow of one of Hollywood’s best and most talented makeup artists. And here I finally was, with an official employee badge hanging from a lanyard around my neck, standing outside of her makeup trailer like in a dream.

Someone should’ve pinched me.

The climb up the stairs was hugely different from yesterday. Today, I belonged here. I had the badge to prove it. There was a definite skip to my step. When I made it up the three steps to the top, I turned with a beaming smile to face my hero once again.

Goodbye to the failures of yesterday. I was going to blow her mind. She wouldn’t have to lift a finger. I was going to be the best assistant that ever assisted. That was my silent promise to her and my future career.

Alanis stood in front of one of her occupied chairs. She had changed her hair color to pink for today. I suspected it was a wig, as the intricate ringlets fell all the way past her hips—nearly a foot longer than her previous hairstyle. Her eyes glimmered with a matching pink eyeshadow and I had to cover my mouth to keep from squealing with excitement.

“Thank you for the job, Ms. Nori,” I said, rushing toward her with my hand outstretched. Once again, she ignored me as she concentrated on applying foundation to the girl sitting in the chair. “You don’t know what this means to me. I am so excited to be here.”

“You will call me Alanis,” she replied curtly, her lips pursing with disapproval. “As discussed, you will not get in my way. You will follow all instructions. You will not discuss my work outside of this room. And unless I specify otherwise, you will occupy that chair over there.” Her gaze flicked briefly to a black leather chair on the other side of the trailer.

“Over there?” I couldn’t help the disappointment that leaked into my voice. So much for taking the makeup world by storm. My fingers were itching to sink into some eyeshadow cremes.

“Yes, that chair.” Her dark brown eyes were flat with emotion when she looked up at me. “Get used to that chair. Become friends with it, because you’ll spend a lot of time on that chair observing. Do you understand?”

Okay, so my dad had worked miracles, but apparently, even his influence had its limits. Banishment to the chair had to be good enough for now. I nodded at my new boss, swallowing down any reply, and hurried over to sit. In my hands, I held a spiral-bound notebook and a purple jelly pen. Anything Alanis did, I was going to take notes on it. I wasn’t going to miss a thing. Maybe I’d be chained to this chair, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t make the most of it. A master was at work, only a few feet away. No one complained about watching Michelangelo work.

I wouldn’t, either.

A few minutes went by. I stirred restlessly. And then...a few more minutes. The actress sitting in the makeup chair inhaled and sighed several times. At one point, I was pretty sure she started to drift off to sleep. The trailer was as silent as the grave, except for the occasional jingle of Alanis’ gold bracelets.

I bit on my bottom lip hard, feeling the urge to chatter bubble up inside of me. I wasn’t good at silence. It was one of the few things that made me nervous. Why be silent when you could fill the air with goofy nonsense? My sister called it Lexi-itis. It was a curse—one that I couldn’t break. When I could hardly stand the quiet anymore, I scooted to the edge of my chair and cleared my throat gently.

“Alanis, can I ask why you decided to take on this movie project? You usually do projects with more stage makeup required.”

I looked down at my notes I’d taken from Alanis’ biography on her website. She had an impressive resume, including an Oscar nomination from her work on a fantasy movie three years ago. It was everything I wanted for myself. Surely, she wouldn’t mind if I asked her questions about herself. Most people couldn’t stop talking about themselves, if you gave them the chance. It was a trick Dad used when he was working an active court case that usually produced results.

“You may ask questions, but I probably won’t answer,” she said flatly, drawing my attention back to her face. She was still entirely focused, her long eyelashes nearly brushing her cheeks, she was squinting so hard with the eyeliner between her fingers.

“Um...okay.” I chewed on the inside of my cheek. I had so many other questions for her, but Alanis still hadn’t warmed up to the idea of me. Maybe she needed some refreshments to perk up. A hot drink always worked for me. “Can I go get you some coffee?”

Her lips pressed into a deep frown. “I don’t consume chemicals that alter my body chemistry.”

I slumped in my chair. So far, zero for two. At this rate, I was going to end up spending all my time rotting in this chair in the corner of her studio. Observation was great, but it would only get me so far. “I’m guessing that’s a no to a donut, then?”

The look she threw me should’ve burned the skin off of my face. I made myself small, trying to avoid her notice. She returned to her job, putting on a last round of setting spray to set the makeup, before declaring the girl finished. The actress moved so fast, I could’ve sworn she jumped out of her chair and sprinted out of the trailer. Apparently, I hadn’t been the only one picking up on the hostile vibes in here.

“Now, you may do something for me,” Alanis said, looking down at a clipboard on the edge of the vanity. I stood up quickly, unable to keep the grin from my lips. Was she going to finally teach me something? Or maybe, let me do the first round on the next actor? I wasn’t sure, but I couldn’t wait. When her eyes lifted from the clipboard to take in the expression on my face, she groaned and rolled her eyes at my excitement. “Go fetch the next on my roll call. He’s got a scene to shoot on the field this evening.”

She held the clipboard out gingerly with two fingers, as if it were a dirty sock. I grabbed it from her and scanned down the list. She’d crossed out most of the names, but the next one made my stomach turn to lead. Zane Rees was printed in bold, black letters. I gulped, realizing my plans to show Zane what he was missing were happening sooner, rather than later.

“Um...sure. Zane Rees. I’ll get right on that.”