The Stars Trilogy (7 page)

Ben was silent. He stared at her and then at his nearly empty mug, his fingers toying with the handle.“Tell me how you feel,” he said gently after a while.

“I just wanna meet him, you know?”

“Okay…so, have you been successful in meeting him so far?” he asked encouragingly.

She was just so glad to unload some of her anxieties to this kind, old man. She seldom saw her guy friend Rocky lately because he was busy with his classes at the UCLA. Rocky always listened to her with amused indulgence whenever she’d start harping about Dare as opposed to Shavonne who would immediately make fun of her Darelusions.

“You know, it’s funny but I’ve tried all these years to meet him but it just didn’t happen. He’s more elusive than a unicorn. I went to his premieres thrice, but he never showed up. I found out later that he rarely attended his movie premieres that were not Jack Logans, especially if it was a rom-com. But his Jack Logan premieres always happened in the UK and Europe and it wasn’t like I could just jet around the world following him. My parents won’t let me. I was studying back then too, so it was hard to find time to meet him. I was in Asia, he was here in the US.”

Ben nodded. “He’s not an easy man to locate, that’s for sure. And it’s expensive to travel trans-Atlantic just to meet your idol, right?”

“Uhm, money’s no object, really. I have a dual citizenship, both American and Filipino. My Mom is actually an American citizen, Canadian-French by birth but she chose to live with Dad in his country, the Philippines when they got married. I was born here. I could travel anytime. Can you believe I even went to Japan once just to see Dare at the Tokyo premiere of Jack Logan 4? But security was so tight. Fans were not allowed within twenty meters of him and he was surrounded by bodyguards. I barely saw the top of his head before he quickly disappeared inside a building. Okay, don’t give me that look. I told you, I’m a die-hard fan.”

Ben was trying hard to keep a straight face. “You didn’t tell me it’s suicide-hard.”

She rolled her eyes. “I even tried getting bleacher seats at the Oscars last week and I blew my entire two months’ salary for a ticket from a scalpel and it turned out bogus. I joined the online lottery for free bleacher tickets but I didn’t win. He’s so famous all over the world, so huge in Asia and I thought he would be easy to spot here in LA like all the other celebrities. Boy, was I wrong.”

“Dare is a big paparazzi target here and everywhere and he’s known to have a heavy security detail all the time. He hates the press. Avoids them like a plague. ”

“Tell me about it! I have seen practically all the famous celebs in LA except him. They walk around Beverly Hills freely. It was easier to meet President Obama in person and I did when I went to tour the White House and he stopped by our group with his PSD and said hi, but Dare is like a convicted felon in a maximum security prison. Totally inaccessible.”

Ben chuckled. “I feel you.”

“I was able to attend a party years ago courtesy of a well-connected friend here and Dare was attending, too, but he came with his second wife then and before I could even muster the courage to approach him, he was gone. Like poof! It’s like all the cosmic powers in the universe are conspiring to prevent us from ever meeting. It’s so unfair!” she whined.

“Maybe the cosmic powers are just protecting you from getting hurt. Think about it. He’s married, after all.”

“Well…maybe. But I just want to meet him, not as a fan but as a colleague. Someone he can respect and even work with. I’m not delusional. I know that he’s a huge celebrity and I’m just a fan who wants to work in one of his movie productions. But I have studied a lot for that. I’m working hard toward that goal.”

She proceeded to tell Ben of her academic credentials.

The old man dropped the piece of bagel he was loosely holding on the table. He hastily picked it up and finished it, washing it down with coffee. “Wait, let’s back track a bit. You talk too fast, young lady. You went to Lee Strasberg acting school? You never told me this. You wanna be an actress?”

“Well, if I can land a small part in a Dare movie…” She shrugged and smiled. “I’ll do anything.”

“You studied dramatic writing at the Tisch in Singapore? Did you complete the course?”

“I went there right after graduating from a journalism course so it was not a big transition. I got high grades!”

“You also studied professional make up at Cinema Make Up School? This is odd.”

“Who knows, I could land a job as his make-up artist.”

Ben looked a bit incredulous now. “Your parents must be really rich.”

She shrugged, almost embarrassed. “I told you.”

“Do they know what you’re doing here?’

“No. I told them I’m auditioning for LA theater.”

Ben shook his head and she didn’t like the pity she was seeing in his eyes. The last thing she needed was another person thinking of her as pathetic and delusional when she was losing hope of ever making her dream come true. “Sweetie, how old are you? Twenty?”

“No. I’m twenty-five.”

“Oh, I thought you were younger. But anyway, you want the advice of an old man who has lived in LA all his life?”

“Sure.”

“Dare is not the kind of man a young woman like you should mess with. He’s a product of Hollywood through and through. He’d be bad for you, Celine, very bad. He’d totally destroy you.”

“You sound like you’re best friends,” she teased him.

Ben smiled kindly. “You only have to google about him. He’s a cynical man who’s been divorced twice, his third split is in the works and extra-marital affairs in between. That says a lot about his character.”

“It’s called life, Ben. We all go through such failures in our relationships, until we meet our true destiny.”

Ben stared at her, a frozen smile on his lips. “And I suppose, you think you’re his destiny?”

“I know what you’re thinking. I know it all sounds crazy, but I know it’s real. I don’t think he’s all that bad. Maybe he’s a bit cynical, but everything can be healed. He’s just been…unlucky in love.”

Ben leaned back in his chair, his eyes shining with a strange light. “You’re a beautiful young woman with your ideals still intact. Ahh, the boundless zest of youth.” He sighed wistfully. “Hollywood is a very dirty business, Celine. It will corrupt you if you stay here longer.”

“I’ll take my chances. I’m young. I’ve plenty of time to explore life, right? I want to live my dreams and one of them is to meet Dare. Some would say I’m wasting time but you know, my career goals are actually related to movie-making. So, it’s like killing two birds with one stone. I’d get to meet Dare soon, and I’m getting valuable experience in Hollywood.”

Ben did not comment. “Hmmm.”

“Have you ever seen him? You said you’ve lived here all your life. You must have seen him at least once?”

Ben cleared his throat. “A few times, yes.”

Her eyes widened. “Really?! When? Where? Tell me!”

“Well...I bumped into him at a hotel once, and when he visited UCLA for a talk. He studied film there. He’s working on becoming a director.”

“What is he like? Is he nice? Is he cool?”

Ben shrugged. “He is...okay.”

“I know he’s the coolest!” She sighed dreamily. “Oh Ben, I wish I could see him just once!”

He smiled in this mysterious way. “Maybe you would. Anything can happen in Hollywood.”

Oh, the stuff she would do for good ole love!

Celine sighed as she arranged the costumes neatly in the make-shift wardrobe room. She’d been sneezing from the moldy smell coming from the old costumes used by the actors starring in the movie being shot in that part of the Universal Studios.

God, how long could she stand this job? When will Dare ever come visit his friends, Tim and Johnny? She’d been waiting for a month. Maybe she should look for another job, another movie set where Dare would likely show up.

Dare was not shooting any movie lately, not even an indie film. She was alarmed by the gossip circulating in the tabloids and internet blogs. Alana hit the headlines last week when the actress overdosed on sleeping pills. According to the rags, Dare was there at the hospital when his ex-wife opened her eyes. Thanks to Twitter, she can easily follow Dare’s most recent activities. Speculations spread immediately of a possible rekindling of romance between the two most famous actors in Hollywood.

No, it was not going to happen! Alana’s time with Dare was over!

It was HER time!

She was tempted to call her Uncle Steve now and ask for his help. Uncle Steve owned Zenith Pictures, one of the biggest production companies in Hollywood. She could just ask Uncle Steve to introduce her to Dare. But if she did that, her parents would find out what she was up to in the States. Her ultra-conservative folks were allergic to anything connected to Hollywood bad boy Dare Montgomery. Well, except when her father’s DVD distribution company was making a huge profit out of a Dare movie, then they were all praises. That was the last thing she wanted right now, for them to be snooping on her activities here in LA. They’d surely compel her to go back home.

Nope, no Uncle Steve. She wanted her freedom to do as she pleased. Her deal with her parents was one year of zero interference from them. By God, she will not waste this chance.

Dusting medieval costumes was not bad at all, she consoled herself. She might get promoted to another department soon and get offered a better job. She submitted her CV to the producers. She was targeting the screenplay department where the directors discussed the scripts with writers every filming day. If she can only break into that inner creative circle, rubbing elbows with Tim Burton—

“Hey, Celine, would you iron this for me, please?”

She smiled at Frank, one of Johnny Depp’s doubles. “Sure, Frankie!” She lifted the garment he’d handed her and inspected it. It was a medieval shirt with ruffles around the neckline and at the wrists. “Wow, dandy!”

“You should come to the set and watch me do my stunts.”

“Wish I could but like you, I have a job to attend to and I’d like to keep it longer, too. By the way, why are you here? You could have just asked one of the gofers to bring your shirt here.”

He grinned. “I wanted to see you.”

Frank was really cute and had been flirting with her since she started working in this movie set.

“You’re too pretty to be dusting these antiques, Celine. Have dinner with me.”

She turned him down subtly. “It’s not good to mix business with pleasure, Frankie.”

“Aw, you wound me, always.”

“Go back to work. I’ll bring this to you once I’m done,” she told him cheerfully.

“Next time, you gotta say yes,
bellisima.
” He winked at her and walked away.

She sighed. So this was how ‘so near yet so yet so far’ felt. She’d been in LA for almost four months now but she hadn’t seen even a shadow of Dare. He was a recluse. He didn’t go to the usual celeb spots. She learned from the gossip mill that Dare partied in those exclusive mansions hosted by multi-millionaires. Of course, those parties were not open for the regular citizens of LA who wanted to celeb-watch.

Her big chance to see him would have been at the Oscar red carpet last week, but alas, some damn punk sold her a fake ticket. Grrrrr!

When she arrived in the US, she immediately enrolled in a 30-day acting course at Lee Strasberg. After the course, she was confident enough to go looking for a job in Hollywood. Her target was Phoenix Films, Dare’s production company.

But when she went to the office of Phoenix Films, she was disappointed. Dare wasn’t shooting any movie so there was no immediate hiring for extras. For two weeks she’d called the Phoenix office, inquiring for whatever job available for application, to no avail. She even hung out at the building’s lobby hoping to see Dare but she had no luck. The guard eventually suspected she was up to no good and asked her to leave the premises.

She found out that Hollywood was a self-contained universe of various social classes. At the top of the tier were the A-listers, the most popular, most sought-after movie stars along with the big shot producers, writers and directors, the main players in the biz, the ones with fame, cash and power.

In the second tier were the character actors, the ones who played support to the lead stars. They were actually the more talented lot for they took their craft very seriously. They did theater, would willingly appear in indie movies for free and were respected for their dedication to the art of entertainment. She liked this crowd very much. People here were not so jaded but full of passion. They were down to earth and happy. It was where she wanted to belong.

In the third tier were the bit players, extras, stunt men and the production workers. They were the backbone of the industry, the silent movers. But they didn’t have power. They just followed orders. This was where she currently belonged, the lowest tier.

But she didn’t mind. She would work her way up. Her ultimate goal was to meet Dare as a professional. She wanted him to look at her as his equal, his colleague, and earn his respect in the process. She’d read that Dare only worked with the best in the business and so she had to strive to be the best. To be the best, she had to have work experience.

It wasn’t as easy as she first thought. She’d applied for all kinds of positions– secretary, assistant, gofer, but she’d quit after only a few weeks in the job. Hollywood culture was too shocking for her and in this city, she was not the boss, the heiress whose father owned a TV network. In LA, she was a regular person with a menial job who had no clout and influence.

Some attempted to take advantage of her. She had been sexually propositioned and harassed by men who thought her so naïve and down and out that she would use her body to land a job. She’d wanted to tell them that she was a billionaire’s daughter and didn’t need these lowly jobs to get by.

She could just spend her days shopping for designer stuff, gallivanting in Europe and the Caribbean with her spoiled Asian friends now that her over-protective parents had relaxed on her a bit, instead of taking care of some sleazy male bosses who all wanted blow jobs from her during breaks and some bitchy female bosses who made slurs at her for having real, bigger-than-average boobs for an Asian, and don’t mention those moldy medieval costumes she had to dust and press every effing day! She’d never pressed her own clothes in her entire pampered life!