Chapter 26
JOSIE
After the movie in his cute little private cinema, Victor takes me for a nighttime drive. As he opens the car door for me and I make myself comfortable in the front seat, I still can’t believe he actually has a real cinema in his mansion. He built that. Just for himself. It must’ve been a hell of an expense, but it must’ve been a dream come true for him. It was clear how much he loves it from the look in his eyes and his eagerness to show it off to me. I can easily tell he really, really loved doing that.
We ended up watching some classic romance movie from the fifties through the old-fashioned film projector. Victor chose it and told me it was one of his favorites. It was a sweet movie, and it was a sweet gesture for him to show me something that clearly means so much to him. I could hear the crackle and pop of the film filtering through the projector as it played.
The sound of magic. That’s what Victor called the crackle and pop.
Yeah, his love for cinema is so damn real.
And now we speed through Los Angeles streets in his cool sports car with the top down. The night air is fresh on my face. Neon colors pop around me. I hear the sounds of the busy city - the cars flashing past us... the wacky people dancing on the sidewalk. It feels like I’m on vacation somewhere.
Victor isn’t just aimlessly driving around, though - he knows these streets. He’s taking me on a little private tour of the city, showing me famous film locations. I recognize so many places from movies I’ve seen. I can’t believe how many magical moments have been filmed all over this place.
And Victor is loving all this. He is loving having someone from back in Crystal River to show all these things to. He clearly loves being a big old show-off.
And, as we drive, we talk and we talk and we talk. We go on long tangents all about movies and Los Angeles and his life as a famous actor. He’s so damn knowledgeable about movie history. I can’t keep up with him as he rattles off names of actors and little facts about movies. I ask him questions about the sets he’s been on and what’s that all like and who he’s met. He gladly unloads all.
And it’s all so interesting...
“I always find it so cringe when the hero runs up to the heroine in the pouring rain at the end of movies,” I tell him as we fly down the highway. “It is so incredibly cheesy.”
“Oh, I always love that moment,” Victor replies. “Because it is so cheesy. That’s the power of movies. It’s a fantasy.”
“You really like it when that happens?” I ask. “When it’s so cliché like that?”
“I’ve actually done it before,” he explains with a grin. “In one of my movies. I ran up to the heroine in the pouring rain and professed my passion for her at the very end. Yes, I love it. And I would do it again.”
I laugh and roll my eyes.
I really do appreciate that he showed me classic movies in his fun little private cinema. I really saw that passion in his face – that unashamed joy in the art of moviemaking that he tries to keep hidden with his cool, tough exterior. It’s a shame he doesn’t reveal that passion and is instead known to the world as a rich playboy. There’s more to him than the media gives him credit for.
“You really are such a movie nerd,” I tell him.
“You think so?” he asks.
I take in a deep breath. I feel like I need to say this. As his friend.
“You should honestly show that side of yourself to the world instead of being just a playboy,” I say seriously. “People would care about that. They want to see that enthusiasm. They would care about you.”
Victor goes quiet. He turns the steering wheel and slowly shakes his head.
Something changes in that moment... he doesn’t want to joke around anymore. He doesn’t want to talk about his secret passion. He doesn’t want to ruin his cool actor image.
I really can’t figure him out sometimes.
I walk downstairs to stumble across Victor making coffee in the kitchen. It’s the morning after the night spent driving around LA. We barely spoke when we arrived home after the drive – we were just so tired from all our traveling.
I didn’t expect him to make coffee.
“You had a good sleep?” the actor asks me as he handles two mugs.
I nod and rub my eyes, still waking up.
“Yep. That bed is so comfy. I didn’t want to leave, but then I smelled coffee, and then I was wide awake.”
“Here.”
Victor passes me a mug, and again we stroll out to his amazing balcony and look over the city.
“Thank you for this.”
“I still owe you for that almond croissant,” Victor says. “I guess we’re even now.”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
Now spending so much time with him, the actor seems so different - he’s human and not just the unreachable star on the screen. He has an inner life. He’s not just vain and arrogant.
I smile at him.
“What?” he asks me, blue eyes narrowing in suspicion at my smile.
“Nothing,” I reply, feeling blood rush to my cheeks.
“You’re very funny, Josie. You know that?”
“Thank you again for the coffee. I’m surprised you made it. I would’ve thought you hired someone to do that for you, like how you got a driver to bring our luggage here.”
Victor scoffs playfully.
“I’m not that high and mighty to have someone brew my morning caffeine. That’s a task I love to do.”
“Sure.”
Something buzzes. It’s his phone. Victor quickly checks it, reading a message.
“We have to get going,” he says to me somberly.
“And go where?” I ask, blinking in confusion. He didn’t tell me his plans.
Victor pockets his phone and takes another sip of his coffee.
“We’re going to an interview,” he says. “An important one. An interview to reveal you to the world.”