Personal Assistant (17 page)

       
Then
she saw it. Frankie sat up straight and paid more attention. The butterfly
tattoo on the left ankle of the porn star that just entered the scene looked an
awful lot like the one Shay had, and in the exact location. As the camera
panned out, Frankie started to feel sick. It was her, wearing a bad wig, a wig
Frankie borrowed for Halloween their freshman year of college, the year Shay
dropped out. She was wearing contacts to hide her eye color, but there was no
doubt about it. Shay had made a porn film. Frankie couldn’t watch what happened
next, she stopped the movie, grabbed her phone, and texted Shay immediately.

The
next day…

       
She
had bigger things to worry about than Jonas’s morning jog. He understood why
she decided not to run since her hands and knees were still skinned up. Frankie
could only hope Shay would be on time for once in her life.

       
She
was. They had to meet mid-way between where Frankie lived and where Jonas
needed her to be next. It was frustrating, but this could not wait.

       
“Why
didn’t you tell me, Shay?” Frankie could not believe her best friend had kept
this from her for years.

       
“Tell
you what?” Shay asked. “I thought I had to meet you here so you could tell
me
something. I never see you anymore,
and I get random texts that tell me nothing about the inside life of
our
man.”

       
Frankie
had only felt possessive of one other man when it came to Shay. The old
memories flooded her. Shay had tried, and failed, to take him. She said it was
innocent. Said it was to make sure he was dedicated to Frankie. Frankie said it
before she could register anything else. “He is
not
yours.”

       
“Whoa, Frankie.
Settle down. Sheesh, what the
fuck are
you so mad about?” Shay was looking her up and
down.

       
Frankie
reached into her purse and pulled out the porn. She tossed the case on the
table. “Why?”

       
Shay
looked at the case,
Barely Legal Cock
Sucking Hoes
.

       
Shay
shrugged. “I…wanted to be an actress.”

       
“Shay,”
Frankie warned. “Tell me the truth.”

       
“All right, all right.”
Shay put the case into her own bag.
“Sit, shit, Frankie. I’ll tell you. You look a mess. What happened to your
hands?”

       
“I’m
not a good runner. Back to the point, I don’t have a lot of time.” Frankie took
a seat at the table. “Why didn’t you just tell me?”

       
“Tell
you what? That the great guy I met and dropped out of college for turned out to
be the director of, not blockbuster movies, but porn. I was young, stupid, and
I thought no one would ever know. I mean, it is just one video. I barely have a
part. And…it worked, sort of. I did meet someone on set and that is how I got
the part on the sitcom.”

       
“Shay,
you sat in a gym for a week as an extra.” Frankie knew this side of fame.
Shay’s defeat, repeatedly. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

       
“I
was ashamed. I mean you’re judging me now and it happened years ago. I’m not
like you, Frankie. I’m not smart, I’m just pretty.  Do you have any idea
how hard it is to be me?” Shay looked around as though at any moment someone
would notice her and ask for a photo. She had picked up commercials, more extra
work, but she was not breaking through.

       
“Do
you realize when you land that first role, the one you star in, they will dig
this up. He will tell just to get money out of it. I spend my entire fucking
day making sure Jonas doesn’t do something that could destroy him in the press
and you did this, knowing, knowing that it would be disastrous. It’s like you
set yourself up for failure, Shay. You’re better than this.” Frankie sighed.
Her phone buzzed and she pulled it out. It was Jonas. “I have to get this.”

       
“Who the fuck is more important than your best friend?”
Shay
opened her eyes wide as she asked.

       
Frankie
held up her hand and answered the phone, “Hello?”

       
He
knew by her voice.

       
“No,
I’m fine. Yes. I know. I will be there, don’t worry. I know.” He had sent her a
new task for the day and she dreaded it as much as she dreaded her current
meeting.

       
Shay
crossed her arms and leaned back in the chair. Her petite leg started swinging
back and forth with impatience.

       
“Shay,”
Frankie said as she hung up the phone.

       
“You’ve
made your choice, Frankie. Just like you did in high school. Guess what, I did
fuck him. I ran into him when you went to New York for graduate school. He was
home for a weekend or something.  He thought I knew where you were. I did,
but I told him you wanted to get on with your life. That he should too. Then I
fucked him in the back of his car. I don’t know why you were so hung up on him.
He sucked. So I don’t need your help getting to Jonas Gunner, Frankie. I have a
screen test this week with none other than your employer, and you know what? I
plan to fuck him, too.” Shay stood up, put her sunglasses on her face, and
looped her oversized Chanel bag over her shoulder. “Maybe you’ll get it through
your head, Frankie. I’m
your
best
friend. Without me, you’re just an average person, a teacher for crying out
loud. I’m done carrying you through life.”

       
Frankie
steeled her spine. She wasn’t about to give Shay the satisfaction of a
reaction. She had stomped off a few steps then turned to look at Frankie. Being
around Jonas had done something to her. He had given her confidence, not the
bravado she was sure she had when she met him, but genuine ability to think she
mattered as much to the people around her as they mattered to her.
Appropriately, she put up two middle fingers and waved them at Shay.

       
Too
bad
paparazzi wasn’t
there to catch that picture.
Shay’s face was priceless.

Later…

       
“Hi, Frankie.”
Janice greeted her as she sat down.

       
“Hi.”
Frankie said awkwardly. It was a hell of a day already. What else could go
wrong?

       
“Fane-
kie
,” Buddy Junior leaned over to say hi and hug her. His
mother tried to get her hands on the toddler, but he was too fast. He grabbed
Frankie with two chocolate covered hands and squeezed.

       
“Oh my.
Hello.” Frankie said as she embraced the toddler.

       
Satisfied
he was greeted, he went back to his cake.

       
Janice
looked horrified. “I’m so sorry.”

       
“It’s
a shirt.” Frankie laughed. “And a handprint on my shoulder…”

       
“And
boob,” Janice pointed out.

       
The
waiter arrived and they ordered lunch.

       
“Well,
I am sure it will make a fashion statement should anyone care to look at me.”
Frankie shrugged.

       
“I’ll
have it cleaned for you.” Janice offered.

       
“Cotton,
I’ll toss it in the machine. Don’t worry about it.” Frankie refrained from
telling her how many shirts she had ruined by now. “Jonas said you wanted to
meet with me. Is there anything I can do for you?”

       
Janice
gave a confused expression.

       
“Do
you need a sitter so you and Buddy can enjoy a night out?” Frankie asked. She
wasn’t sure what the woman wanted.

       
“You
think I want you to do work for me?” Janice said it as though Frankie had just
slapped her in the face.

       
“I
don’t know. He just told me to meet you here.” Frankie was feeling awkward,
confused.

       
“I
wanted to talk to you, Frankie. I owe you an apology, for that night. I…didn’t
know.” Janice looked very sincere.

       
“Thank
you, but you don’t owe me anything. He tends to break the conventions of the
agreement all the time. I think it makes other people awkward because they
don’t know if I’m to be seen and not heard. Half the time,
I
don’t know if I’m to be seen and not heard.” Frankie sighed.

       
“Frankie.”
Janice looked more confused than ever. “Are you or are you not dating my
brother?”

       
Glad
it was only water she was choking on, Frankie tried to get her composure and
her mind right at the same time. Buddy Junior patted her arm leaving more
chocolate hand prints.

       
“Fane-
kie
,” He said as he tried to help.

       
“You
don’t know, do you?” Janice put a hand up to her own mouth and closed her eyes.
“God, I’m sorry. I, he…you…Can we just start over?”

       
Frankie
nodded, took another drink of water because she really needed it to go down
right this time.

       
“
Thanks,
Buddy. You helped a lot. I need to be more careful.”
Frankie smiled at the toddler. She looked at her arm, then to Janice.

       
Janice
rubbed her forehead and finally asked, “Do you want to come with me to fashion
week?”

       
“Me?”
Frankie was pretty sure, even with her pay as an assistant, she could not
afford couture.

       
“Yeah,”
Janice looked at her.
“Why not?
Jonas should be busy
with filming and I’d like to get to know you better. I’m sure you can take care
of whatever he needs from New York.”

       
The
mention of filming brought back the morning encounter with Shay. Her face must
have shown her thoughts.

       
“What?”
Janice asked.

       
“I
lost a friend today…she didn’t die.” Frankie said as she watched Janice’s
facial expression. “But our friendship is beyond resurrection.”

       
“I’m
sorry.” Janice nodded. “I’ve lost a few over the years. It gets difficult,
especially in this business. I’m sure you’re learning that.  Fortunately,
we have always had a strong family. Even when our parent’s split they agreed to
come together for family things.”

       
“My
parents are a little confused right now,” Frankie admitted. “One minute I’m
teaching at the university, the next I’m trying to teach abroad, and then I
ended up in this job.”

       
“He
likes that about you, but I’m sure you already know that.” Janice said.

       
“I
have a feeling I don’t know a lot of things right now.” Frankie frowned. As if
summoned, the phone began ringing.
His ringtone, the chorus
of
Super Bass
sung by Nikki
Manaj
.
“Excuse me one moment.”

       
Janice
gave her a telling smile.

       
Frankie
walked outside and to a quiet place out of earshot of others.
“Sir?”

       
He
told her he saw the list of people he was supposed to be running lines with in
the morning and that Shay was on it. He wanted to know if she wanted him to get
her a part, because he wouldn’t feel right with her as his leading lady. It
would be weird for him.

       
Frankie’s
hand went up to her heart. She tried to hold back the surge of emotions as she
said, “I don’t want her anywhere near you, but I can’t make that decision.”

       
He
had one final question for her and it hung in her thoughts as she walked back
to the table where his sister sat wiping the chocolate off of Buddy Junior’s
fingers. Janice said, “He’s such a messy eater.”

       
Janice
looked up at Frankie. Frankie was certain the day’s rollercoaster was wearing
on her. She was exhausted. She sank down into the seat and tried for a smile.

       
“What’s
wrong, Frankie?”

       
“I
think you’ve been mistaken. He just gave me Friday night off because he
definitely has a date.”  Frankie tried not to break down, but really, how
much more did she have to take?

       
“Of
course he does, don’t you remember? It was your idea, Frankie.” Janice frowned
at her. “You did get tickets, right?”