The Make-Up Artist

Chapter Eleven: Someone Saved My Life Tonight

You wake up the next morning feeling stressed and anxious. Your interaction with Taron the night before was so different than anything you'd ever experienced with him, and you're not sure what to make of it. He was definitely upset, you just aren't exactly sure why. You had hoped he would call or text once he got home last night, but he hadn't. So you had endured a fitful night sleep, tossing and turning, and now you are just groggy, tired and frustrated. You assumed he wouldn't be picking you up this morning after your "altercation", so you are a little surprised when Julia calls up the stairs that a "fancy big car" has just pulled into the driveway. You take a quick glance at yourself in the tiny mirror in your room, grab your belongings and race down the stairs. You are a little out of breath when you reach the bottom and Julia smiles sweetly at you.

"Thanks Julia! Have a great day!" You call out as you leave the house.

"You too dear!" You hear her call back. When you see Taron's car, you slow your step just a bit, wondering what kind of mood he's going to be in this morning. You open the car door cautiously and peer inside. He is looking at his phone, but looks up at you as you take a seat inside the vehicle. He smiles politely at you.

"Good morning", you say softly.

"Morning", he says putting his phone away and grabbing the steering wheel. He looks over his shoulder as he backs the car out of the drive and you eye him warily. Is he just going to pretend yesterday didn't happen? After a few more minutes of silence, and once you've reached the main road, he finally speaks again. "Look, I'm sorry for yesterday", he says not taking his eyes off the road. You don't respond but continue to listen intently. "Your personal life is your business and I have no right to question it. We're just colleagues and I guess I over-stepped a bit. It won't happen again."

Just colleagues??? You don't know why this stings, but it does.

"Ok...", you respond when you think he's done. He glances over at you and gives you a tight smile that doesn't reach his eyes. You appreciate the fact that he's apologized, but it doesn't really make you feel any better. " Thanks for saying that", is all you can think of to say. He nods his head, and the rest of the car ride is spent in relative silence.

The day at the studio passes in much the same way. He makes simple conversation with you, but he just doesn't seem like his usual self. You want desperately to ask him why, but you can't get up the courage, so you take his lead and keep quiet.

Over the course of the next two weeks, nothing really changes. Taron picks you up in the mornings, you make small talk in the car and during the day, then he takes you home in the evenings. You are glad that the tension between you seems to be gone, but you aren't happy with what's left behind either. You feel like you are strangers again, and it leaves you with an empty hollow feeling. You haven't seen Colin since the night you went for drinks. He's texted you a few times, but the conversations have been short and you've been fine with that. You have been too busy to pay much attention to him anyway, even if you had wanted to.

They've been finishing up with the young Elton scenes; the Bluesology scenes, his early interactions with Bernie, and some of the other key moments before Elton became famous. Now they have moved on to the L.A. scenes and are focusing more on "location" filming. You've been traveling with the crew to various places around London and have had less time to sit around waiting and thinking than you normally do. Taron has been just as busy trying to keep up with everything, all while running lines and enduring endless costume fittings. The cast and crew have been pulling twelve to fourteen hour days to stay on schedule, and even if you and Taron had tried to have more interaction, you probably wouldn't have had time anyway.

At the end of the two weeks; the marathon days, lack of sleep and stress you've undergone finally catches up with you, and you feel the tell-tale signs of a nasty cold developing one morning upon waking. Your head is pounding, your throat is scratchy and your nose is completely stuffed up. Knowing you can't just "call in sick", you take some aspirin that Julia had in the kitchen, grab some tissues for your bag and suck it up. You make a mental note to stop by a pharmacy after work to get some real drugs. Taron notices your state of ill health right away when he picks you up that morning.