Evening the Score // Book One

Chapter 1

"When I was a kid...they told me I wasn't good enough. If I had listened to them, I wouldn't be here. Don't listen to them. Listen to you."

"CUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

The voice of the Director cut through the fog like a knife. Who knew filming a yogurt commercial could be so damn time consuming.

When Elena Bennett had been told about the commercial, she thought for sure it would be 30-45 minutes of work. She had less than 30 words to say, how long could it possibly take? However, the moment she and her best friend Chrissy Lawrence walked into the stadium to see the setup, it was clear this was no small production.

Chrissy let out a deep sigh as she lifted herself off of the Director's chair with Elena's name on the back of it that she'd been sitting in the for the last two hours. She was bored, Elena could see that much. Chrissy walked towards Elena, her eyes rolling so far to the back of her head that Elena was sure they'd get stuck there if she wasn't careful,

"That's like the 9,328th time you've said it today. None of them sounded any different than the one before it. This is why movies cost billions."

Elena closed her eyes as the makeup lady again dusted her face with makeup,

"I think movies cost billions because the actors get paid 20 mil to be in them. I don't cost that much."

Chrissy scoffed,

"Up your price. This is torture."

Just then the Director ran up to Elena, looking as though he was going to dispel some morsel of wisdom on her that would completely make sense. He smiled,

"Doin' great Elena. Just a few more times huh?"

"Sure-" Elena stopped when she realized she couldn't remember his name for the life of her even though she had just been introduced to him a few hours earlier.

"How long's this gonna take, Mike?" Chrissy chimed in, knowing full well Elena's penchant for forgetting names immediately after she'd learned them.

Mike smiled,

"Few more takes. There's a fully stocked buffet over there if you wanna get some food." He pointed out.

Chrissy quickly righted her attitude. Sure, she could get snippy from time to time but when it came down to it, she was giddy to be there. She smiled,

"Thanks, I'll go check it out."

Elena giggled as she walked away sheepishly, quite sure that Chrissy would no longer be uttering any attitude for the rest of the shoot.

Mike focused back on Elena,

"You're doing great so far. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine. This is all a little overwhelming but it's ok."

Mike laughed. Elena liked Mike. He put her at ease. He wasn't forceful with his direction in any way. He simply asked her to emphasize certain words during one take and other words during another. He was very patient the first ten times she missed her mark and he never seemed irritated that she forgot her lines once or twice. For her first foray into the world of commercial endorsements, this was pretty awesome.

He nodded,

"I'm sure it is. How old are you again?"

"I'm 22. I'll be 23 in a few months."

"Right...I forgot you're one of the younger girls on the team. You're very mature and focused for your age. I'm impressed."

Elena smiled, trying to control the blush from coloring her cheeks. Some days it was hard to believe this was her life. Elena Rose Bennett was a soccer phenom. In fact the only thing she could remember ever wanting since she was little was to be the best soccer player in the whole world.