After beating myself up the entire way home, I quietly prepared for bed, worried that I couldn’t stop thinking about Jared. I needed to get a grip, and get one fast, or I’d soon be one of the vagrants who shambled along railroad tracks, talking to myself and swatting at imaginary insects, sure that at any moment a Prince Charming who didn’t exist would swoop in and carry me away to a castle of spun sugar, even as I curled up at night beneath an overpass for shelter from a cold rain.
Chapter 7
The next day I began to relax in my classes, comfortably anonymous among the other students. I deliberately avoided the cafeteria for lunch, preferring to keep to myself after so much time with my roommates. I actually did like them, all of them, but after years of being a loner, living with others took some getting used to. Instead, I hung out alone in the shade of a tree, listening to my favorite songs, lost in the music.
When my classes were over, I made my way to where my work-study duties with the catering department would be fulfilled, in a banquet room off the cafeteria kitchen. I arrived there just as Melinda, the head of the department, was calling the meeting to order.
“All right, everyone. Welcome, and thank you for coming.” She held up a clipboard. “Let’s get attendance out of the way, and then…I have some exciting news for everyone! This will easily be the most demanding assignment we’ve ever tackled, and I’m looking forward to it.”
She called our names and, once she had a head count, sat down on a folding metal chair by the bank of refrigerators.
“Normally we’d be handling routine jobs for the administration, as well as some of the town business functions. But this year we’re in for a treat…and a challenge.” She paused, gripping her clipboard with barely contained excitement. What could possibly be so exciting about catering? A wedding? Something entirely gluten-free? “As of this evening at eight o’clock, we’ll be working with a production company that’s shooting a feature film on campus for the next three weeks. All the filming will take place after classes let out so as not to disrupt things too much. But as part of the deal, we’ll be handling the meals for the cast and crew, which means we have to perform without a hitch.”
An excited buzz rose from the students, and a girl close to Melinda raised her hand. “What’s the movie about? Are there any big stars in it?”
“I just found out about this yesterday, so I don’t know much more than what I told you. But one of the producers will be coming to meet with us in a while to go over things.” She checked her watch. “Because the working hours are going to go late into the night, anyone who wants to transfer to alternative duty can. Let me know and I’ll make it happen.” She looked at me and a few of the other academy students. “Especially any first-years and those from the high school.”
Melinda waited to see if anyone wanted out. When nobody took her up on her offer, she smiled.
“Good. That’s what I thought. I know I don’t want to miss the making of a Hollywood film. We’ll all work tonight, and then we can try shifts once we have a routine. But this is every catering group’s dream, and I expect everyone to give their all.” Melinda’s voice softened. “Now, how many of you have any restaurant experience? Fast food counts.”
Most of us raised our hands. I’d worked all summer at a local diner, busing dishes and helping with the back-of-the-house chores to help raise money for my dorm costs.
Melinda gave us a breakdown of what we would ordinarily be expected to do, and she was finishing up when a young man with heavy black-framed glasses, dyed black hair, and a “Fight the Power” T-shirt entered through the steel double doors.
“I’m looking for Melinda Towers?” he said, in a lilting voice.
“You’re in the right place,” Melinda said. “That’s me. I’m just winding down my orientation.”
“Oh, sorry. Didn’t mean to interrupt.” He hesitated. “I’m Trent. Christina Walkins’s assistant? We spoke earlier.”
“Of course, Trent. Give me a moment and I’ll be right with you.”
Trent nodded and raised a miniature two-way radio to his lips. A minute later a tall woman pushed through the double doors, and my mouth dropped open.
It was the woman from backstage – the one who’d been part of Jared’s entourage.
And she was even more beautiful up close. Her skin was flawless, her ebony hair gleaming and lustrous, and her outfit looked like it cost more than my stepmom’s house. Melinda stepped aside, and the woman joined Trent at the front of the group. All eyes were glued to her. Including mine.
She cleared her throat, and when she spoke, her voice was as musical as wind chimes, her cadence measured and lyrical.
“Melinda, everyone…thank you for giving me the chance to fill you in on what my group will be up to. My name’s Christina Walkins, and as you’ve no doubt just heard, we’re shooting a feature for the next three to four weeks at Ridley, which we’re very excited about. You’ll be an important part of the action, working behind the scenes…and maybe some in front of the camera. We’ll be hiring extras for some
