AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter 11
Ivy was exhausted. The first day of filming was over. They were in the auditorium of the high school, which now served as the screening room for the production. They were looking at the day’s footage, also known as the “dailies.” Vera and Ivy watched intently while Drew texted on his phone. What Ivy really wanted was to go home and collapse in her childhood bed and sleep for about ten hours. But she also needed to prove to Drew and Vera that it was valuable to have her around.
The first day of shooting had dragged on, no thanks to those crazy Griffineers. Ivy hadn’t realized that Griffin was such a teen heartthrob. During college, she didn’t own a TV for a while and completely missed all the new shows, including the one that Griffin was on. And she also never watchedEntertainment Tonightor those other gossip shows likeTMZ. She preferred to read her news. Deadline andVarietywere her go-to sites.
“Can I see that scene again?” Vera called out. They rewatched the master shot of Amari waiting for Griffin at the train station. Amari, playing Ilsa, paced back and forth. Griffin, playing Rick, walked through the fog to meet her. Ivy had rewritten the scene to reflect Rick’s lateness since they couldn’t actually show Ilsa stepping off the train. Ivy watched as Amari jumped into Griffin’s arms. She winced as she remembered watching Amari hugging Nick hello in a similar manner. The scene ended.
Vera turned to Drew. “What do you think?”
“I think it’s good,” he said. But he was more focused on his phone.
“Ivy? What do you think?” she asked.
Ivy suddenly felt insecure. Not sure if she should echo Drew’s practically monosyllabic comment. Should she tell Vera what she really thought, or what she thought Vera wanted to hear? “Ilsa is not into PDA. She’s more private. But Amari was all over Griffin. She was really too big in this scene,” she said quickly before she lost her nerve to reveal her true feelings.
Vera looked at Ivy. For a moment, Ivy was sure that she was getting kicked out of the auditorium. But then Vera smiled. “I agree. Too flirty. We’re not making a soap opera.” She glared at Drew.
“Uh, yeah, I agree. Of course,” he added absentmindedly.
“Really insightful note, Ivy. I knew it was going to be a good idea to have the writer on set.” Vera glared at Drew again. And what Ivy didn’t know was that Drew had a secret. He hadn’t really wanted to have her on the set for the entire film. It cost him more money. Vera was the one who’d convinced him.
Ivy smiled at Vera. “Thank you. I appreciate that.” But Ivy also had her own secret. She was starting to not like Amari—and not because of her acting. She didn’t like the way that Amari seemed to be all over Nick. Flirting all the time. And maybe she wasn’t objecting so much to the acting on screen but what was happening off-screen.
“Okay, kids. That’s it for me. I’ve got to run.” Vera opened up her backpack and took out her running shoes. She laced them up. She was literally going to go running. Drew and Ivy looked at her in surprise. They’d already put in a twelve-hour day, filming and watching the dailies. “Don’t look so surprised.” Vera laughed. “One of the best things I learned in film school was to always stay in shape during production. Gives you energy throughout the day.” She grabbed her keys and ran out the door.
Drew and Ivy were suddenly alone together for the first time in days. Ever since they’d arrived in Geneva, there’d been a whirlwind of activity. Ivy had almost forgotten that she and Drew were dating. They hadn’t had sex together in two weeks, which was quite a stretch for them. She suddenly wanted to spend some time with him.
“Any plans for tonight?” she asked.
“Uh, yeah.”
“Oh.” Ivy was disappointed.
“And I’m actually kinda late. So I’d better get going. Come on, I’ve got to lock up,” Drew said impatiently.
“I was hoping that you could come over,” she said sadly.
“Maybe another night,” he said.
Drew held open the door, and they both walked out of the high school. “See you tomorrow,” she said. But Drew had already rushed off and didn’t seem to hear her. Ivy wondered why he was acting so mysteriously. Was she going to loseanotherboyfriend?
Ivy’s phone rang. It was her mom. “Hi, sweetie. Can you pick up some blueberries for me at the market? I want to add them to the salad.”
“Sure,” Ivy said, when in truth all she wanted was to go home and relax. And figure out why Drew was blowing her off.
Fifteen minutes later, Ivy was pulling into her driveway. She was still marveling at how easy it was to get around town. Unlike LA, there was no traffic! If she’d gone to the market in LA, it would have taken her at least forty-five minutes. Ivy stepped out of her car and noticed an unfamiliar car in the driveway. Her parents must have invited someone else over, or maybe Carol had a new boyfriend.
She walked into a dark house, and suddenly the lights flashed on and there was a loud “SURPRISE!” Ivy was stunned! She looked around to see her living room filled with her family and neighbors. The room was in the midst of getting decorated for Christmas! The fake tree was in its usual spot, loaded with white lights and homemade ornaments. Christmas-themed pillows were thrown on the couch. A giant wooden nutcracker welcomed everyone at the entrance.
“Wow! I didn’t expect this!” Ivy exclaimed.
Mitch stepped over and hugged her. “All the neighbors wanted to come over to say hi and to see the house decorated for Christmas in July.”
Ivy looked around the room. There were Jim and Candy, the next-door neighbors. She used to babysit for their kids. And there were Collin and Sue, who lived down the block. Ivy used to ski with their kids. Her childhood friends, Kathy and Lauren, were talking and drinking at the punch bowl. She hadn’t seen them much since high school. It was amazing how none of them had moved away.
Ivy saw Wyck, the production designer, waving his staple gun with one hand and a cup of red holiday punch in another hand. He was stapling garlands around the windows and adding colorful red balls. There were white Christmas lights everywhere. “Hi, Wyck. This all looks amazing.” She beamed.
“Thanks. Your parents are so cool,” Wyck said as he gulped the rest of his punch. Linda rushed over with a pitcher and refilled his drink. “Thanks, Linda.”
