The Magic of Hollywood // Charlie Gillespie

Chapter 45

"So... when should I be at the club tonight?" Charlie comes out of his room right before Jenny and I were about to leave. "You really don't need to come." - "I really will come though." - "Just be there at 8." Jenny says. Then she turns to me. "Can't you guys just straight up answer questions sometimes?" She rolls her eyes but laughs. Charlie comes walking over. "Thanks Jenny." He pulls me towards himself and places a kiss on my lips. "See you tonight, Love." First darling and now love? Is he trying to make me drop dead right at the spot? Before I can say anything Jenny drags me out of the apartment. Once we're around the corner she says "See you tonight LOVE? When did that happen." I shrug my shoulders. "Like five minutes ago?" I smile thinking back to the first time he called me darling. I could really get used to this. Max called me babe at the beginning of our relationship. I hated it. I don't even know why but I never like it when guys referred to their girlfriends as babe. He soon dropped it anyways and only ever called me Vicky. I hate that nickname ever since. Honestly, I can be glad I have a name that leaves room to multiple nicknames.

We don't go to the club right away. Valerie and I decided it is ok to meet at around 4 or 5 pm to set everything up for tonight. We don't open until 8:30pm anyways, so there is plenty of time. I wanted to meet earlier, but she told me to stop being paranoid. Everything was going to work out just fine. So far everything eventually turned out ok so I decided to listen to her. Now, instead of walking over to my club, we walk down to the beach. Jenny and I haven't had time for a proper beach day since she got here so it is about time. Also, I've been in LA for almost three weeks now and I still didn't really get a tan... that needs to be changed. We find ourselves a nice spot relatively close to the water but far enough away to not be bothered by the screaming of kids having fun. Not that I mind it too much, but Jenny isn't the biggest fan. We lie down and just let the morning sun do its thing. It's nice since it's not burning hot yet, it is a very comfortable temperature. I listen to the sound of the waves... I don't think I will ever get sick of being here.

"Alright V. Hate to wake you up but it's time to head over." I startle into a sitting position. "Did I fall asleep?" Jenny laughs a little and nods. I always had my issues with heat. Now that I think about it, I have a lot of issues. I love laying at the beach but eventually the heat makes me so tired. Once I almost got a pretty bad sunburn because I fell asleep at the beach. Of course neither one of my parents bothered to check on me. It's a miracle they even took me with them on that trip. But that was before everything. We never had a too close relationship, but the older I got the worse it got... once my grandpa died it broke apart even further and then Max... I snap back into reality and get up. Together we walk over to my club where Valerie is already waiting for us. "So, you excited for tonight?" I shake off the last pieces of the memory of my parents and focus on today. I nod my head because yes, I am very excited.

"Everything is set, only thing that needs testing is the sound. Victoria?" I nod a little. "J, will you do the honor and sing with me?" Her eyes widen a little. "You're gonna sing? Voluntarily?" I nod again. I don't know where that came from but right now I'm in such a good mood I just have to get up that stage and sing. When we were younger Jenny and I sometimes did karaoke-parties and sing-star sessions. Jenny follows along and Valerie plays a karaoke tune on youtube, making sure all the sounds and boxes work fine. Jenny and I blast I kissed a girl from the top of our lungs, having the fun of our lives. I feel like we are little kids again, just having a fun time. Once we finish I can hear someone clapping. "If I would have known you're that kind of best friends I would have thought twice about taking you in." - "CHARLIE!" I exclaim excitedly. I'm so pumped on adrenaline still. He comes walking towards the stage and I jump into his arms. For a second I fear he's gonna loose his balance but he just swirls us around once and places me back on the ground. "Someone is incredibly cheerful today." I shrug my shoulders and smile. "A girl doesn't kiss and tell."

The club is, once again, packed with people. It is still so surreal to me. I watched Valerie talk to a few of the people so I'm assuming they've been costumers of hers but there are so many people she doesn't seem to know. Of course a small part of me is worried that some of them are only here in the hopes of seeing Charlie but considering the fact that he is standing right next to me and hardly anyone seems to care... I look around the room to take everything in. My eyes get caught by one person. No this can't be. I can feel my heart racing as I walk over to where I saw him. The closer I get the more I'm having trouble to breathe. When I get to the spot he isn't there. I'm going insane. This is crazy. Of course he isn't here but I could have sworn it was him... Max.