% CHAPTER 6 %

"Woohoo! I'm boarding a plane!" Luca screams at the top of his lungs.

"Calm down. I can always take it back and get aunt Angele to go instead," Glenda scowls.

Luca immediately shuts his mouth. He's never been on a big airplane before though, so I give him credit. He's also very big on expressing his feelings so he tends to shout a lot.

I'm so excited about Luca and Glenda coming with us back to the U.S. I could scream like a girl. But I don't. Because I'm not a girl. Angele was supposed to come as well, but she decided not to. There wasn't really a reason. She just chickened out I guess, or maybe my dad convinced her not to so he didn't get caught dating more than one woman.

Flying has always thrilled me. Just being in the air, surrounded by floating white mist, feels so magical. I love it way better than road trips because I tend to get carsick, and that's no fun. Ear popping is way less intimidating than puking your guts out.

We hand off our tickets to the attendant before walking through the long hallway. I can't wait to be back in California.

Throughout the first few hours of the plane ride, Luca and I talk about a lot of things, mostly about what America will be like.

"How do the streets look? Do they actually have retro diners like in the movies? How much does a pretzel cost? Oh, do they sell pretzels? Do Americans know what a pretzel is?" my best friend asks me, chatting my ear away.

I look away from the gorgeous view of the setting sun and turn to face him with a sigh. "Dude, of course we have pretzels. America isn't Antartica."

"Well how much do they cost then?"

"A few dollars, maybe three or four."

"And what about the streets and the diners?"

"The streets don't look that different. Okay well, they're kind of wider, and there's more space between houses. As for the diners, those are from the seventies. There aren't that many retro diners left."

"Oh." Luca looks crestfallen, and I feel the need to cheer him up.

"But they do have a lot of amusement parks, especially in California. We should definitely go check them out. They're totally different here!"

A hint of a small reappears on his face. "Cool! How about the weather?"

"Be prepared for some sun dude. It gets super hot in Southern California. Not so much in the North, but the sun still beats you down most of the time. Sometimes I feel like it's draining away my energy."

"So cool," he responds. "Are you ready to start back on your movie?"

His question immediately gets Taylor into my head. Damn it. I was on such a roll with not thinking about her. Now that she's there though, she won't leave. I almost forget about Luca's question altogether, but his awaiting gaze reminds me and I answer honestly.

"I don't know. I mean I definitely miss it. Acting is my passion. You know that, but just the crew..."

Luca rolls his eyes. "Not the crew dude. Taylor."

Why did he have to see through that one? "Whatever. Anyways, I'm excited to see how it turns out in the end. It's going to be good I hope. It'll possibly open up new career opportunities."

"Career opportunities? As in long term? But you never really think about long term Bret. You're always just in the moment."

Taylor has become an inspiration to me in that way. I know acting is what I want to do. So does Taylor. That's why she is pursuing it as a career. Through her responsible actions, I realize that that is what I want to do too. Gosh, this goody two-shoes really rubbed off on me last year.

I shrug and come up with a decent reply. "Yeah, but I've put some thought into it. This is what I want to do so I might as well make this movie as good as it can be so my future ones will be even better."

"True. Well, I'm taking a nap. We've been talking for three hours and we still have five hours left. Jesus Christ, if I knew flying was going to be this boring, and uncomfortable, I would have taken a few more things with me on this plane."

After Lica drifts off to sleep, I decide to watch a movie. I throw a blanket over myself quickly, just in case I fall asleep before the movie ends, but that doesn't end up happening. As soon as the movie finishes, however, I turn off the little TV in front of me and close my eyes. I need to get some rest, especially if I want to be ready for the time change. California is a few hours behind France, so it's still day over there. When I begin to see images coming out of the blackness, I know that I'm falling asleep.

When I wake up, my ears are already beginning to pop and I can feel the altitude shifting. The plane begins sounding differently as it descends in the sky. We're about to land.

Luca is already up and he looks as awake as ever. Of course. Even when he's tired, he still manages to be jumpy. I search around in my little bag for some chewing gum before unwrapping it and popping it in my mouth. Little by little, the big pops in my ears turn into smaller pops and the headache in my temples disappears. Chewing gum always helps, or just moving around your jaw too.

"Wow! This place is amazing!" Luca shouts when we land. It's so weird to know that he's never been to California. This state is practically everything to me, and my best friend is setting foot here for the very first time.

I practically know everything about this state. I know how the temperature gets. I know the surroundings. My life is in California, and to know someone hasn't experienced the cool nights and extremely hot days yet is so odd to me.

"Yup this is it," I say.

The wave of heat almost knocks me over as soon as we get outside. It's almost as welcoming as it is irritating. I already feel a little more tired than I was when we were still seated on the plane.

One step closer to the end of Christmas break. That means one step closer to the annoying, yet incomparable Taylor Bradwick. I never ended up getting a girlfriend in France. I was having too much fun with Luca and Glenda anyway. Although Taylor had always been looming in the back of my mind for break, it hadn't been as bad as here in California.

Now that we're back though, I know my peace isn't going to last. Here in California, I'm going to need a distraction from Taylor, to keep her from affecting me. I have a feeling that if I don't get one soon, then Taylor is going to get to me. I don't want that. I want nothing to do with her anymore. I've convinced myself she's a terrible and dirty manipulator. After all, she makes me feel completely stupid and everything. That persona just fits her in my mind.

"Hey, could I meet her?" Luca asks suddenly, bringing me out of my thoughts.

"Who?"

"That girl Taylor. She's not taken, right?"

"Nooo," I say slowly, although it's painful for me to say so. I should have just said yes, even if it wasn't true.

"As soon as she learns I'm half French, she'll be all over my ass." He winks in conclusion.

I laugh. "Oh its not that easy Luca. Trust me I've tried," I admit.

"Dude, I'm joking," he replies. "I'm not stupid. I can tell you have the hots for her. It wasn't obvious at first, but I'm your best friend. I can pick up on your feelings quicker than most."

"Yeah okay. You keep telling yourself that. I'm not into Bradwick, okay?"

Yeah, okay. Just lie to yourself Bret.

***

There she is. Taylor Bradwick. She's not as innocent as she makes herself out to be. I bet she made up that whole story about having virgin lips, just to see my reaction. I mean she's a pretty good looking girl. Someone must have had the privilege of kissing her before me.

Then again, Taylor doesn't lie. Or maybe she does. She's just so good at it that she looks like an innocent bystander with a gorgeous smile and those adorable blue eyes that get all fiery when-

Damn it.

"I'll miss you Tay!" a little girl yells. Tears are streaming down her face. "Don't leave!"

Taylor picks the girl up around the waist and twirls her in the air before bringing the girl's nose against her own. "Don't worry Lorelei. I'll always be there for you. I have to work now though. Remember what you're getting when I come back?" she asks, smirking.

Lorelei claps her hands over and over before chanting, "Lolli! Lolli! Lollipop!"

As if on cue, Taylor digs a lollipop from her pocket. Lorelei shrieks in delight.

This is all an act. She's putting on this act so everyone thinks she's a family girl, I say to myself. But in reality, she's not a family girl. She's a stupid little girl who thinks she can fool everyone just because she knows how to act.

I look away from her. I need a distraction. Taylor is already filling my head more than I would have liked her to. My eyes survey the area to look for any other familiar faces. Jenna. I walk over to Jenna, who has already said bye to her family hours ago.

"You ready for work?" I ask her.

She turns around and smirks at me. "Definitely."

I smile halfheartedly. Jenna's nice when she wants to be, but that's not usually the case. Her break must have gone well because she's acting pretty okay. I usually don't like associating with people like Jenna, but it makes Taylor mad, and for some reason I like infuriating her. I tolerate Jenna so I don't have to tolerate Taylor, because we all know that Taylor is so much worse.

After making some conversation with Jenna, I decide to leave and go find Luca, who's probably messing around on the set. Jenna isn't going to work. Just by that conversation, I could tell. I might as well stop wasting time on her if it won't keep Taylor out of my head.

"Long time no see," a soft voice calls out.

I freeze. Then I readjust my featured to make myself look calmer. She's not the only one with good acting abilities. "It's only been about two weeks. Relax. What, did you miss seeing this?" I smirk. Annoying her is just too much fun.

Taylor scoffs. "As if! I didn't think of you for one second!" She snaps. I can't tell if she's lying or actually being truthful.

"Ouch. You know how to hurt someone."

"Please. It's not like you care!"

I roll my eyes and send her a cocky grin. "Exactly. So why are you talking to me?"

"I just wanted to be civil and say hello! But of course, being the egotistical jerk you are, I shouldn't have bothered. You are a waste of my time!"

"Then leave. No one's stopping you."

She gives out an outraged huff before stomping off to her trailer with her bags. This is more like it.

Still, as I hear her storm off, I can't help but feel a sour feeling in my chest, like that was the wrong thing to do. I know it isn't. Taylor deserves all of the crap I put her through, but my heart just doesn't want to work when I'm not around her.

Oh, boohoo Bret. Why do I care so much?

I walk over to Derek to get my mind off of those things and onto some others. "Hey what's up director!" I say while smirking.

He rolls his eyes. "Oh please Bret. Don't even try. I can see through the whole charade. What is it?"

"Just wanted to say hello," I state innocently.

"Yeah right. Just tell me."

"Well I was wondering if I could have a peek of tomorrow's scene..." I say slowly.

He sighs. "Well it wouldn't hurt." He then grabs some sheets of paper from various places and staples them together.

I take the script and utter a thank you before walking off in the direction of my trailer. While walking, I decide to start reading.

Hayden: Emily?

Emily: Yes?

Hayden: (scoots closer to Emily's side) Remember when we were little kids and my father would let us go to that small pond 3 miles down and swim?

Emily: (smiles at memory before turning to Hayden) Why yes I do.

Hayden: (fingers mess with the hat in his hand) Would you like to go there some time soon?

Emily: (looks down sadly) Oh I don't know if I could. My mother wants me to cook for the feast tomorrow and...well I'm a lady now.

Hayden: (kisses Emily cheek lightly) Every lady deserves to be happy. It'll be just you and me. No one will know.

Emily: Well what do I wear?

Hayden: (grins mischievously) Something you can get wet in.

Wow. What a nice piece. This is very like me. I think I'm adapting to being Hayden. Too bad this is Taylor we're talking about. She's not really this type of person. Her personality is a bit different than Emily's. She's more rowdy.

I smile. An idea just popped into my head. I'm going to use this skit to my advantage. When I'm done with her, she'll be crawling on her knees.