Mom went on and on about the breath-taking palm trees lining the streets like a postcard.
"Marco, is it?" Mom said to their Uber driver.
"Yes ma'am," Marco said looking at her in the rear view mirror.
"What street is this?"
"Sunset Boulevard," he said with a knowing smile.
"It's beautiful."
"That it is, ma'am," he said. "Sorry about all the traffic. I'll have you at the Central Casting office shortly."
"Thanks Marco," Mom said to the charcoal eyes in the rear view mirror.
She was right, LA was amazing and beautiful, but I needed to focus on my audition. I plugged my earbuds in and the sounds of Reiki calming music flowed through my mind. I reached into my bag for my script, but it wasn't there.
"Shit. Shit. Shit." I swore, tearing through my bag.
"What's wrong?" Mom asked pulling the earbud from my ear.
"Shit!" I swore once more. "Stop the car. We have to go back."
Marco slowed down.
"We don't have time to go back honey," Mom said motioning for Marco to continue driving.
"We have to!" My voice pitched with panic. "I left my script at the hotel."
"Ma'am. There's significant delays up ahead. If we circle back now, I cannot guarantee that you will make it to your destination in time," Marco advised.
"It's fine. Keep driving Marco. You're doing great." Mom reassured him.
It was certainly not fine! I pulled out my phone. "I'm texting Cassidy. She'll know what to do."
"You know these lines, sweetheart. Why do you need the script?" Mom asked.
"Because I will look unprepared and unprofessional if I walk in empty handed," I explained. My voice shook as I swallowed back tears.
"What did she say?" Mom asked when Cassidy's reply lit up the phone screen.
"She sent me photos of the script," I tapped the screen trying to enlarge the document to a readable font. "I can't use this in the audition," I said typing the same thing to my agent.
Mom dug out some papers from her bag and handed them to me. "Of course not. You already know the lines. Just carry these in so you're not empty handed."
"Here we are," Marco announced pulling up to the curb in front of the casting office.
"Are you kidding?" I said reading Cassidy's reply as we stepped out of the cab.
"What?" Sharon asked.
"She said 'Do your best.'" How could this get any worse? My first big chance, and I was about to blow it. My knees weakened as I plopped down on the iron bench in front of the building.
"What are you doing?" Mom asked.
"Preparing myself for how badly this is going to suck," I mumbled beneath my hands.
Mom stooped down in front of me. She pulled my chin up so our eyes met. "You stop that right now!" she scolded me like when I was a kid. "No negative talk. You hear me?"
"Yes ma'am," I sniffled feeling like that small child again.
"You sit here until your breath calms and your head clears, then you meet me inside with your new attitude. Got it?" Mom ordered.
YOU ARE READING
Pillars
Teen FictionFor as long as Kelci can remember she has always wanted to be an actress. Her sister, Lorin's, harsh critiques and the fact that her father abandoned her when she was a toddler fuels her self-doubt. The only thing she is sure about is acting. When s...
