27. Emmett
The morning goes by in a blur. Cassie is already stressing out, even though she’s trying her best to hide it. After asking me for the 5th time if she curled every piece of her hair, I knew she was getting stressed out about this interview.
I did my best to reassure her, but I also know that she has every right to be stressed out about today. It’s going to change a lot for us. She doesn’t even know that I’m going to announce the movie yet. I want that to be a surprise. I hope she doesn’t slap me while we’re filming.
We agreed to do the interview at the studio since it’s where we both spend most of our time. Being the primary filming location for my movies, it”s the ideal place to symbolize the closure of one chapter and the exciting beginning of another.
We still arrive separately, just in case we have any lurkers outside the studio with cameras. I find Cassie exploring the set inside, her footsteps echoing in the empty space. Even in its stripped-down state, Ed”s chair remains a focal point in the center of the room.
A warm smile graces her lips as she spots me coming toward her.
“You ready for this?” Cassie asks. Before the person interviewing us arrives, I lean to plant a soft kiss on her lips.
“I should have done this a while ago, so yes, I’m ready.” She nods because she’s the only one who truly understands. I rarely open up about my parents, but Cassie”s probing questions have shed light on why I chose to pursue acting. She also knows that without her helping me work through my past and question my career, I wouldn’t be doing this interview. I wouldn’t be quitting acting, and I sure as hell would not be making a movie next week.
That last part she still doesn’t know, but soon she will. It’ll be the last question that gets asked in the interview. To avoid any surprises, I took the responsibility of approving the questions for today. I knew the interviewer would bring up the movie and prompt Cassie to share her thoughts. We have done a bit of preparation, but her response will be unscripted and in the moment.
I’m being a little selfish with wanting her to be a part of the movie. The prospect of being on set together, collaborating, and bringing art to life fills me with excitement and fulfillment.
Finding Cassie was never in my plan. I didn’t know what I was going to do after this movie, but I just figured I’d sign some other contract to appease my dad and keep him off my back. Sometimes I fantasized telling him I’ve had enough and being truthful about what I want to do. But then he’d encourage me to take a deal or my mom would call and talk to me about acting. I didn’t have someone on my side, not like Cassie is. My friends have always been supportive, but I haven’t been as open with them about how unhappy I am as I should be.
Today that changes. Within the next hour, everyone will know that I’m done acting.
The person interviewing us walks in, accompanied by two others. One person handles the camera, while the other person takes care of the audio. The interviewer offers a warm smile, extends her hand, and introduces herself as Mia. In order to conduct this live interview, we only need a small crew.
Cassie and I sit next to each other and Mia is across from us. I reach over the arm of the chair separating Cassie from me and intertwine my fingers with hers. She looks over, her eyes meeting mine, and gives me a nod and a small smile, letting me know she’s ready.
The interview begins.
“So, Emmett, first off. Thank you for letting us do this exclusive interview with you. I know you don’t do a lot of them, so thank you for giving us the honor.” I nod. “Now, let’s start by talking about the lovely lady sitting next to you. I want to get into your current movie, but I know viewers are probably dying to hear who she is.” Mia pauses to let me respond.
Cassie and I prepared for most of these questions, so we knew this one was first. I give Cassie’s hand one squeeze.
“Of course, yes, this is—” I look over at Cassie and back over at Mia, “Cassie. My girlfriend.”
“Lovely! So the rumors a few months back were true, huh?” Mia raises her eyebrows. I chuckle.
“Well, at the time, Cassie and I weren’t together. We were truly just friends, but over time we became more. We wanted to wait until after the movie to announce our relationship.”
“Cassie, how was it keeping things private? How do you feel about your relationship being made public?”
I look at Cassie and smile, a sense of unwavering support evident in my eyes, letting her know she’s got this.
“Keeping things private was intentional. We didn’t know where things were going to go, and workers aren’t allowed to have relationships with actors for that reason. Things go wrong, actors getting distracted, you know, so we kept things private and allowed our feelings to develop naturally. We had a few articles that tried to make our relationship public before we were ready, but we got through it together.” Cassie looks over at me and smiles, squeezing my hand once. “Now, I’m more than ready to announce our relationship. Over the past few months, I’ve gotten to know Emmett, genuinely know Emmett, and I love him.”
Mia grins.
“I love you too,” I say and lean over and plant a kiss on her cheek.
“Gosh, you two are adorable. Okay, let’s switch gears a bit. Emmett, you had something you want to announce. Is that right? Is it what movie you’re acting in next?” Mia asks. I didn”t disclose the purpose of this interview to her, but since I rarely do interviews, the content didn”t matter to them.
“Actually, Mia. The opposite.” I let my words sink in before I continue. I can see the confusion on Mia’s face. She keeps opening and shutting her mouth, but no words form. “I am stepping away from acting and shifting my focus toward a career in writing.”
Mia’s jaw drops, but she quickly closes her mouth once she remembers we are live. She’s as stunned as I expect the rest of the people watching to be. I can already picture my dad pacing his room, getting ready to give me an earful. I sent my parents the interview link, and told them I had an announcement. My dad obviously took that as something different, thinking I was announcing my next movie like Mia did, but I didn’t bother correcting him.
“Not acting? Well, that’s one way to make this weekend more exciting,” Mia says joyfully. We all laugh a little. “Well, Emmett, if you”re not acting and instead writing, what is next for you? Do you plan to write movies instead?”
“I do. With Cassie”s love and support, I”ve decided to stop pretending and start chasing my dream, which is not acting. I want to write. So, I did just that. I wrote a movie. The movie”s plot, which is inspired by a true story, holds a special place in my heart.”
I can feel Cassie”s penetrating stare, but I resist the temptation to look back at her. Not yet. I keep my eyes on Mia, waiting for her to ask her next question.
“Can you share anything about this movie?” Mia says, sounding way more excited than before if that’s possible. This interview has evolved from being an exclusive interview with me to announcing some of the top news in Hollywood. Her company is going to be thrilled with the amount of traffic they’ll get after this.
“Yes, thank you for asking. So this movie is a romance movie. It’s about a couple that goes through life searching for love, acceptance, and understanding. They end up finding it in each other and fall in love over a short period. It’s called A Little Bit Extra, and we start filming next week.”
“What?” Cassie says and then covers her mouth with her free hand. “Sorry, Mia.”
I give her hand a squeeze and look at her this time. She has a look on her face that I enjoy, slightly irritated, slightly amazed, but mostly surprised.
“Wow, that’s so soon, Emmett. Well, I can’t wait to hear more about it. Tell me, do you have a cast yet?” Mia asks.
“We set the cast. Cassie is playing the lead role, and I will actually act alongside her. It’s our story.”
Cassie’s hand goes back over her mouth.
“Cassie, I can see from your expression that this is news to you. If you don’t mind me asking, can I get your thoughts on what Emmett just talked about? It looks like you didn’t know about the movie?”
Cassie’s hand slowly leaves her mouth. She looks at me once, gives my hand a squeeze, and returns her gaze back to Mia.
“I knew about the movie. Well, I knew they cast me as the lead in A Little Bit Extra. I knew the plot, to an extent. It’s honestly why I accepted the role. They only gave me the title page and a short synopsis of the movie. They didn’t even give me a script. But, after reading about it, I could envision myself being a part of this movie. I related to the main character in a way I couldn’t understand, and now I know why. Because it’s my, our,story.”
“That’s great, Cassie. Well, thank you both for sharing your story with me and the rest of the people tuning in right now. Emmett, I wish you the best on this new journey and can’t wait to see your film. You can count on me to be there when it premieres.” The interview is over. Cassie remains silent until Mia and her crew pack up and leave.
“You’re in trouble, Emmett Davis,” Cassie says. My gaze meets hers and I’m met with her intense stare and defensive stance, arms crossed firmly over her chest.
“Oh, come on, Cass, you can’t be mad at me.”
Cassie is trying extremely hard to hide the smile that’s appearing beneath her fake frown.
“Why didn’t you tell me it was your movie?” she asks.
“You wouldn’t have accepted the role if you knew from the beginning. I wanted you to know that you got the role because of your talent, not because of me. It was important to me that you knew how ridiculously talented you are. You deserve the world, Cassie. I just wanted to help move the needle and give you an opportunity to chase your dream. You’ve given me so much these past few months and have asked for nothing in return.”
I walk up to her and stand a foot away. I tip my jaw down and give her my best puppy dog face, earning me a chuckle. She steps forward and throws her arms around me.
“You’re the worst,” Cassie says into my chest.
“You love me.”
“Yes, I love you.”
Cassie looks up and I meet her halfway to press my lips against hers.
My phone buzzes in my back pocket. I sigh and reach around to grab it. It’s my dad. I’m not surprised. I honestly thought he was going to call as soon as the interview was over, so giving me 10 minutes is a record.
“You don’t have to answer it,” Cassie says, and I know she’s right, so I press the decline button.
If my parents want to support me and my writing, that’s a decision they will make over time.
“Want to talk about it?” Cassie asks.
I shake my head. With our first date on the horizon, I don”t want to delve into it. When I have the love of my life standing in front of me, I don”t need to think about my parents. She’s the one who’s given me the courage to face my past and look at my future. Cassie reaches out with her hand, intertwining her fingers with mine.
The world now knows that I’m done acting. They know about Cassie and I.
We don’t have to hide anymore, and I feel so relieved.
We walk hand in hand out of the set doors to find our friends waiting by Cassie’s car.
“So, your movie, huh?” Tyler walks up to me and gives me a hug.
“It appears that way.” I smile.
We walk a few steps over to the rest of the group. Everyone comes up to me to congratulate me on my career change, the movie, Cassie. It’s a lot. I didn’t expect to become an emotional person today, but having formed my own chosen family, I have a lot to be grateful for.
Three months ago, I didn”t know where my life was headed. Then one evening, a little sassy woman by the name of Cassie flipped my world upside down. All it took was one look from her and I knew I was a goner.
I shift my gaze toward her, taking in her presence. She’s deep in conversation with Marcy. They’re talking about something, their laughter bubbling up and filling the silence.
Walking over to her, I lean in close, my lips almost brushing against her ear as I whisper softly, “Let’s go, Sass. We have a date to get to.”
A warm smile spreads across her face.
We say goodbye to everyone and get into Cassie’s car. I settle into the driver’s seat and reach over to gently rest my hand on her thigh.
We pull out of the parking lot and I can see the sign of the diner flickering in the distance, inviting us in for a meal.
“We’re here,” I say and look over at her.
Cassie”s gaze finds mine, and I am drawn into the depths of her piercing blue eyes.
The diner is the place where we began. We didn’t quite know where our relationship would end up, but I knew from meeting her I couldn’t let her go. The pull between us was too great to ignore. I know she feels the same way based on the way she”s looking at me, her gaze filled with unspoken emotions.
What started as a friendship blossomed into something neither of us saw coming. The tension between us kept escalating, like a rubber band stretched to its breaking point, until it finally snapped. Now, it is impossible for either of us to dream up a life that doesn’t include the other.
The girl who was once an extra has become a permanent character in my life story, and I”ve fallen in love with her.
I gently grasp her hand and bring it to my lips, planting a soft kiss on her palm.
“Let’s do this, shall we?”
With a playful grin, she leans over the middle console, her lips gently brushing against mine.
“Let’s.”