14. Oaklyn Bridges
OAKLYN brIDGES
One month later . . .
“Let’s call it a day!” Brady called out. He was the director for the movie I was recently casted for. “Oaklyn, could I speak with you for a minute?”
My heart began to hammer uncontrollably because I already had a feeling what he was going to say.
Since I had been picked for this role, it was clear to me that Brady didn’t care for me.
I’d heard from my agent, Princess, that he’d wanted to cast someone else for the role, but she didn’t accept it.
To him, I was just the actress he got stuck with.
I could feel the pressure of not being liked in the way he nitpicked everything I did.
From my costumes to my voice, he critiqued it all, to the point that I was beginning to feel self-conscious, which was something that hadn’t happened in a long time.
Not since I finally made my way into Hollywood and began to make a name for myself.
I kept quiet, offering him a curt nod to acknowledge I’d heard him. “Everyone else, great work. We’ll pick back up first thing tomorrow morning.”
I gulped down what I really wanted to say in response to him saying that everyone else was doing great work.
He was clearly targeting me, and I couldn’t understand why.
Granted, I was struggling with my character a little bit, but that was because she was weak as hell, letting everyone walk all over her, and in real life, I’d never been timid.
For majority of the movie, she was written to be a doormat before finally gaining a backbone.
When Princess first brought the script to me, I fell in love with the story, but for some reason, they wanted to make changes to it, and I was left unsatisfied with the way they’d ruined the character.
I tried to speak up, but Brady was an asshole who felt as if he knew everything.
Since I was under contract, I couldn’t say fuck this and leave without being penalized.
Maybe even without being blackballed in the industry.
The last thing I needed attached to my name was being untrustworthy.
After everyone began to disperse, Brady pulled me to the side. “I’ve heard great things about you, Oaklyn, but I have to say I am a bit disappointed in your performance since we’ve began filming.”
I tucked my lips, trying not to spazz on his ass. I started my day early, and Mother Nature was having a disco party in my ovaries. I was not in the right headspace for this, but I jutted my chin out and took it for the time being.
“I am struggling with the script. A lot of changes were made that I’m not a fan of, and I just feel like?—”
Before I could finish, he was quick to cut me off.
“Your personal opinions on the script are not needed.” He tucked his greasy strands of hair behind his ears, making him look more like a mouse with glasses.
“I don’t care what you have to do to pull it together, but I need you to show up as your best self tomorrow. ”
I tucked my lips and nodded once. There was no point in wasting my words on him. “Got it. Tomorrow will be better.”
I backed away slowly then beelined for my trailer.
I was in pain, and his stank attitude was not helping the cause.
I packed up all my things within a minute before rushing to meet my driver at the front of the studio.
For the entire drive home, I kept my mind locked on the city passing by, wishing I felt as lively as it did.
Picking up my phone, I glanced at my screen to see I still hadn’t received a call or text from Jasoni all day, even though I’d reached out to him multiple times.
This was his first time going ghost on me, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it.
My cortisol levels had to be through the roof, and all I wanted right now was one of his hugs.
Relocking my phone, I placed it back in my purse before slamming into my seat.
Thankfully, we finally arrived at my home.
I didn’t wait for the driver to come around and open my door before I hopped out.
There was a hot bath and a fat, juicy steak calling my name.
The sound of my heels was the only thing that could be heard as I walked up the driveway.
I was so out of it that I didn’t realize I wasn’t alone until he spoke.
“Hi, beautiful.” Jasoni’s deep voice rumbled from nearby. I almost thought I was imagining it until I slowly lifted my head to find him standing in front of me with a warm smile and a bouquet of lilies.
I tossed everything in my hands to the ground without a second thought and took off running toward him. My arms and legs simultaneously wrapped around him in a constricting hold. He chuckled softly but didn’t make any complaint. “Did my baby have a hard day?”
“The hardest. It was terrible,” I whined before I burst into tears. I felt like a small child who just needed a safe space, and since we’d mended fences, Jasoni had quickly become mine again.
He rubbed small circles on my back to calm me down.
“Shh,” he consoled me. “Let’s go inside so you can tell me all about it.
” I nodded through my sniffling. He tried to put me down, but I held on to him tighter.
He laughed at my unwillingness to let him go.
“Baby, I need to grab your things.” I shook my head, still refusing to let him go.
He walked over to where I’d tossed down my bags and bent over to pick it up without putting me down. I rested my head on his shoulder as he used my keys to unlock the door and safely lock us inside. He set my purse down by the door, kicked off his shoes, then carried me to the living room.
“What do you need right now?” His voice was as gentle as his touch.
“You,” I confessed without shame.
He nodded. “Okay.” He carried me down the hallway to my bedroom and into the bathroom.
He sat me on the counter and tried to walk away, but my arms wouldn’t let him.
I didn’t know why I felt like if I let go of him, my world would fall apart, but my trembling bottom lip must’ve portrayed that to him, because he bent down so we were eye to eye. “Talk to me. What’s the matter?”
“My director hates me, and I’m doing a terrible job on set. I’ve been having cramps since I woke up, meaning my period is coming, so my entire body hurts on top of all that.”
He placed the sweetest kiss on the middle of my forehead. Without saying a word, he bent down to take off my shoes. “Would you like to take a bath?”
“Yes, please.”
He walked away to get started on that while I leaned against the mirror, rubbing my cramping belly. When he was finished with the water, he instructed me to get inside. He walked out of the bathroom to give me the privacy to do so.
Once I was naked, I eased into the hot water, feeling my muscles relax the deeper I sank inside.
I sighed in relief once I was fully submerged with only my head poking above the mountain of bubbles.
Since I was a young girl, I loved bubble baths.
The more bubbles, the better, so this was something Jasoni was aware of.
He came back into the bathroom and set a pair of pajamas on the counter, along with my slippers. “What do you want to eat for dinner?”
“I took out a pack of steaks this morning.”
“Okay, cool. When you get out, just get in bed. I already plugged up your heating pad for you and the weighted blanket.”
I gave him a half smile. “Thank you, babe. You just don’t know how badly I needed you today.”
He winked with a sly smirk. “I have an idea. Just relax, and let me take care of you.”
I nodded my understanding, and he left me alone in the bathroom.
I laid back, allowing my eyes to drift closed.
With Jasoni here, it didn’t feel like the Earth was shifting under my feet anymore.
His presence was a surprise but a much-needed one.
I wasn’t sure how he could tell I needed him, but I was thankful that not even being across the country from each other was enough to keep us apart.
When I was finished soaking in my bath, I rinsed off in the shower then got myself together.
All cozy and warm in my pajamas, I went to get in bed.
Like he said, my heating pad was already warm.
I sighed in relief after lying on it and snuggled underneath my blanket.
Reaching for the remote, I turned on the TV and went to Netflix to watch my current C-Drama obsession.
I was a little way into the episode when Soni came into the room, holding a food tray.
The aroma from the steak he’d cooked wafted over to me, and my stomach rumbled in excitement.
I sat up so he could place the tray in front of me.
I licked my lips, seeing he’d made some chimichurri too.
There was also a loaded baked potato and corn on the cob for me to munch on.
“Babe, this smells amazing.”
He pecked my lips with a wide grin. “Thank you. Dig in.”
“You’re not eating with me?”
He shook his head. “Nah, not right now.” I was getting ready to ask what he was going to do, but he removed the cover from my legs and placed my feet in his lap.
I began to eat my food, savoring every delightful bite while he massaged the soles of my feet. It was the perfect combination along with my show. By the time I finished eating, I was nearly ready for bed. After going to relieve himself in the bathroom, Jasoni came back to join me in bed.
“Come here.” I scooted over to his side, laid my head on his chest, and tossed my leg over his. “Talk to me about work.”
I developed a case of diarrhea of the mouth as I spilled everything. With Jasoni, I didn’t have to hold anything back, so my fears, doubts, and frustrations were all exposed for him to see. Instead of convincing me to be positive, he gave me the space to be honest about where I was mentally.
“Do you feel better?” he asked once I finished letting it all out.
I nodded with a smile. “A bit.”
He chuckled. “Aight, well, give me the studio address, and I’ll straighten that Brad nigga the fuck out.”
I hollered loudly. “Brady, babe.”
“He gon’ get fucked up no matter what his name is messing with my woman.” He gripped my chin, forcing me to look at him. “You know I always have your back, so if you want me to give him a little straightening, then I will.”
While I loved the idea, I knew it wouldn’t solve my problems and would likely do more harm than good. “I can’t let you do that. He is the type to press charges.”
“That’s what the shiesty is for. How he gon’ identify a nigga he can’t see?”
The way Jasoni lifted his eyebrow had me so weak my back started to hurt.
“But nah, seriously. I think ’cause this nigga is giving you a hard time, it’s even more reason for you to prove him wrong.
Since I’ve known you, there’s nothing you haven’t been able to do.
I know you don’t relate to your character, but you agreed to this story for a reason.
I know you can pull her out of you. You’re the best actress to ever exist.”
Glancing up at his handsome face, I said the first thing that came to my mind. “Can you move here? I need to come home to you every day.”
I thought he was going to call me crazy, clingy, and every other name in the book, but instead, he smiled softly. “Okay,” was all he said, so I thought he was joking.
I sat up quickly. “Really? Because I’m being serious right now.”
He nodded. “So am I. If my woman wants me here, then this is where I’ll be.
It’s not like I’m confined to South Carolina now that I’ve been honorably discharged from the Air Force.
” He pulled me forward to kiss my third eye.
“You’ve been through harder things in your life.
A biased white man is no competition, because you have God on your side.
He blessed you with raw talent, and He won’t let it go to waste.
If you need to run lines with me, I’m here, and we can make it happen.
Whatever it takes to prove them all wrong, you have to do it. ”
And just like that, my confidence returned with a fiery spark. I leaned forward to give him a kiss, and he froze in place, not kissing me back. I sat back with a frown. Folding my arms over my chest, I said, “Boy, if you don’t kiss me back.”
“My bad. I was acting like I was in one of them dramas you like to watch,” he teased me with a goofy grin.
In a fit of laughter, I attacked him by raining kisses all over his face. “You get on my nerves.”
“But you love me,” he rebutted.
“And do. Nothing gives me peace like being alone with you.” And I meant every word.
I didn’t know where I would pull it from, but I wouldn’t let this role be the death of my career.
Because of Jasoni’s faith in me, I would use it as a catalyst to get me to the heights I always knew I was destined to reach.