Chapter Twelve #2
‘Pretty much. He gives me great restaurant recommendations too.’ Alex opened the cab door for her and she felt like a princess.
Richie was waiting for them to arrive and had given them strict instructions for when and where to pull up outside the Royal Albert Hall. To her surprise they were quite far away from the entrance, but, when she looked at the set-up as they circled around, she realised why.
The crowds!
The entrance, the terracotta and cream dome of the Hall perched at the top of a huge stone staircase, looked miles away.
The ‘red carpet’ was actually green, an environmentally friendly grass carpet that rippled down the steps with photographers and reporters rammed either side held back by cattle railings.
At the bottom, the carpet pooled to the side, with a spot for yet more photographs, this time in front of a walled backdrop plastered with the Olivier Awards logo and branded sponsors.
It was a terrifying gauntlet she wasn’t sure she could run, especially in heels.
An usher opened Alex’s door, and a dazzling cacophony of cameras flashed.
The light burned her retinas and she shrank back from the glare, suddenly feeling very exposed in her bright and slinky dress.
No woman looked her best bent over and shuffling out of a black cab.
The door beside her opened as well, and Richie’s face dipped down to stare at her.
‘What the fuck! It’s you,’ he hissed, looking appalled to see her, and Alex turned in his seat with a lethal expression.
‘Richie.’ Alex barked his name like a warning. ‘She’s my choice.’
Richie blinked. ‘Fine.’ He gave her another one of his hideous up-and-down looks, before offering her his hand. ‘I’ll make it work,’ he added with a huff, which meant she’d somehow passed muster on this occasion.
It may have been childish, but Ellie gave him an up-and-down appraisal of her own. ‘Looking not so bad yourself, Richie. Scrubbed up nicely.’
Richie scowled, but didn’t respond to her comment on his appearance. ‘It’s always best for ladies to get out of cars turned away from the cameras. Be grateful I’m here to guide you.’
Alex got out at the same time as she did, on the opposite side. There was a riot of sound, as if everyone were shouting at once.
Richie spoke into her ear, his words filled with warning. ‘Take my advice. Always remember, he’s the star, not you. Ordinary people don’t last long in this business – they don’t fit the part.’
He moved away before she could answer, and a prickle of fear ran down her spine. Fans and photographers were buzzing around and she’d never felt so exposed in her life. Cold to the bone, she shivered.
Vaguely aware of Martin shouting her a cheery goodbye as he pulled away, she walked towards Alex. Richie hurried ahead, disappearing into a throng of crews and planners that were beavering away in the background while the glamorous celebrities shone in the limelight.
Alex stood poised and confident, his legs wide and his spine straight as he patiently waited for her. His whole body was facing towards her, oblivious to the chaos behind, and an enigmatic smile graced his perfect sculpted lips.
He’d kissed her not that long ago, and her mouth tingled with the memory. She focused on his smile, hoping it would give her the strength to keep walking forward with her head held high.
Time slowed, and she reached out for Alex.
His handsome face brightened and his hand met hers, pulling her close as the cameras popped and flashed around them.
He looped her arm gracefully around the soft fold of his tuxedoed elbow as if she were a queen, his warmth seeping through the fabric to her chilled skin and reassuring her this was really happening.
Nurse Ellie is on a date with a Hollywood star!
She gathered up the silk of her dress with one hand, and they climbed up the kerb to the first waiting area – the logo-crowded backdrop.
‘Sorry about this,’ Alex murmured in her ear. ‘It’s really weird, but you have to stop and give them a good picture. Sometimes it stops them hassling you later.’
She nodded, her throat too dry to speak.
A queue of stars were waiting to be photographed, all of them making their slow progression towards the entrance.
An acclaimed Shakespearean veteran stood between where they, and a musical star further up the steps, stood.
At intervals, the stars would stop for interviews, photos or autograph signing.
It was the weirdest queue she’d ever been in, and she’d gone to the Sound of Music Sing-a-long last year where one group of people had dressed up as the lonely goatherd and his goats.
They’d even had wire frames above their heads to look like puppet strings.
This felt much the same, people nonchalantly waiting in line while wearing a variety of outfits from black tie to Met Gala outrageous.
Alex guided them to a position that was marked with a tiny black-taped cross on the carpet. Unsure of what she should do, she stood awkwardly at his side, shifting on the spikes of her heels.
Cameras flashed and clicked once more in a frenzy of light that made her turn her face instinctively away, leaving her temporarily blind as a roar of shouts rang in her ears. The shouts were all confusing instructions that contradicted one another.
‘ALEX, OVER TO THE LEFT.’
‘WHO IS SHE?’
‘RIGHT!’
‘WHO’S YOUR DATE?’
‘SMILE, LOVE, FOR GOD’S SAKE!’
‘LOOK LEFT.’
‘WHO IS SHE?’
‘LOOK AHEAD.’
‘RIGHT!’
Her panic and uncertainty were so unlike her, she had a weird sense of losing herself, like she was experiencing the moment outside of her body.
Alex’s knuckle stroked beneath her chin, gently guiding her face to tilt upwards and look into his ocean eyes. Suddenly the noise of the press disappeared, and all she could see was Alex, the sharp cut of his jaw in stark contrast to the softness of his expression.
‘Just remember the posing advice you gave Hannah.’ The low rumble of his voice rippled over her like a comforting blanket.
‘Yes,’ she answered weakly, followed by a much stronger, ‘yes.’
She could do this. A few photographers were nothing.
She’d dealt with worse. She’d not even blinked when a builder had walked up to her in A in her mind they were cheering, and she was finally being accepted for who she was.
Alex had kissed her publicly – declaring them as a couple, claiming her as his own – and, even if it wasn’t real, she didn’t care.
Plus-size, ordinary Ellie had finally triumphed. Alex’s kiss had stuck up a middle finger to every person who’d ever made her think she wasn’t good enough. David, Richie, even her mum.
Richie beckoned them impatiently from the side and they moved on.
A scream of noise and light came from behind them and Ellie had the sudden horrifying thought that one of her duct-taped boobs might have fallen out of her dress.
But no, it was for the glamorous and tiny woman who had just stepped out of a limousine and was currently walking up to the position they’d just left.
‘Is that— Oh my God!’
Alex grinned. ‘Get used to it. I’m not the biggest name here, not by a long shot.’
Wild-eyed, Ellie whispered, ‘Don’t leave me alone. I’ll end up doing something ridiculous, like beg her to kiss my hand or sing my name.’
They walked up the steps towards the scarlet and gilded archway and the memorial statue guarding its royal entrance.
‘I’m having such a great time,’ gasped Ellie, holding on to Alex’s arm tightly.
His eyebrow quirked up playfully. ‘It’s only just begun.’
‘I know, but if I forget later, I just want you to know that I had the best time!’ She beamed up at him, her heart thundering in her chest. If this were a dream, she never wanted to wake up.