She hated him.

Wait. Maybe hate was too strong a word for an opinion.

Correction.

She strongly disliked him.

Summer resisted the urge to slam the door of her trailer when she marched in. She still couldn't believe his nerve to speak that way about her. To another colleague. In public. The nerve. And who was to say Venice was the only one he had shared his doubts with. He could have spoken to the director or some of the producers. With Mathew's influence, half the crew could have been looking at her as some kind of liability.

"A liability."

Freaking unbelieveable.

To think she had been most excited about meeting him. She didn't judge his skills or prowess despite all the news about him years before. Good Lord, she made so many excuses for him. For every single fault. Only for him to undermine and look down on her because she was cast as his leading lady. The. Freaking. Nerve.

She wanted to walk back out, find his trailer and finish giving his smug, no longer handsome face, a piece of her mind. There was no way he was that self-centred. Some great actors sometimes fail at putting their best foot forward on a project. So how could he know if he got Mellissa Forttight or Julia Hemings, that he would have more success than with her. He could go suck it for all she cared.

"Whatever."

She crashed on her bed and began tugging the heels off. The next scene was in an hour or more, and she had to get there ahead of time for makeup and a change of clothes. As luck would have it, her next scene was with Mathew. She was supposed to hug and smile at the same man who thought her incapable of holding her own.

She scoffed.

She'd show him acting.

If he thought her skills were mediocre, wait till he saw her show off the nonexistent chemistry between them.

Her phone rang, and she grumpily dug around her skirt pockets to find it.

"Mom!" She smiled.

"Summer? Sorry, it was an accident. I was trying to call your dad."

"No. No. Don't hang up."

"Don't you have a scene to prepare for?"

"It's not for another hour. I miss you guys so much already. It's crazy."

"Oh, we miss you too, dear. Your dad is on the hunt for a new waitress to take your place, and you have made that man very biased."

"I am the best. What can I say."

"You aren't helping."

She laughed, tucking her legs underneath her as she pressed against the body of the van.

"We finished a scene this morning."

"That's amazing. How was it?"

Mathew Higgins wasn't in the car to criticize and poke holes at her weakness. In this space, at least, she could be honest with herself and her mother.

"Terrifying."

"I can imagine."

"I had to kiss someone, and it was so weird to act normal about it. The director called cutso many times, and my heart was racing each time, thinking it was my fault. I was so scared of messing up my lines, and there were barely any for that scene."

"Acting takes a lot. I think."

"I am tuckered out, but also buzzing with excitement. I don't know how to explain it."

"It was the same with your father."

"Huh?" She deflated in confusion, and her mother laughed.

"Marrying your father was scary and exciting at the same time. Moving towns to open the restaurant was scary and exciting at the same time. Having a kid was scary and exciting. It happens to all of us, is what I am trying to say."

"Oh."

"It's not exactly like acting, but..."

"I get it. You are right."

"Don't let the scary overtake you, though. I know it's your first time, but I also know you wouldn't have said yes if you didn't think you could deliver."

Summer fidgeted with her toe, twisting it as she chewed on her lip. "Do you think I can do this?"

"I don't see why you can't. You haven't acted on the big screen, but you used to put on a show for your dad and me. Remember those?"

She chuckled, "Yeah."

"You'd dance and perform musical numbers like you were at a concert."

"I was Mariah for your fifteenth anniversary."

"And Kelly Clarkson for our twentieth."

"It was cringeworthy." She chortled.

"It was excellent. Now, you get to do that but on television. You know your dad and I are cheering for you."

"Thanks, mom. I'll call you later tonight."

"Timezones, honey."

"Right." She needed to get on learning how to keep track of the time. "I'll figure it out. Give Dad a kiss for me."

"Sure. Love you."

"Love you, too."

As much as she tried to brush off his criticism, she couldn't shake the certainty in his voice when he spoke to Venice. She didn't want it to mean anything, but it did. It reminded her of how cordial he had been when they first met until they introduced her as the female lead. It made so much sense how he changed. Of course, he hid it well.

"He is an actor after all."

Apparently, he was also good at masking his disdain for her. All the smiles, she saw right through them now. She couldn't let him chip any more of her self-esteem away. She had ten episodes to shoot, and she would give her all for every second.

She got her shoes back on and took a healthy drink of water before heading out. The makeup artists were already working on other actors. She was only early because silence left her with too much time to think of a particular asshole.

Maybe she should stop calling him that.

Before the words left her brain and came out of her mouth.

"Hey, Summer."

"Hi." Vienna was playing the role of her best friend, Celine. "Early start?"

"Why not. I was just filling Ella in on the best spots to eat."

"Hi, Ella. Hello, Patrick." Summer greeted the makeup who took his spot behind her.

He removed the wig she had on for the previous scene and got to work setting the new one on her head and styling it. He was good at his job. She had been in his chair less than an hour for their first shoot, and would easily believe it was her hair if she hadn't been conscious while he worked on it.

Her character's change in time would be documented by her hair. That was why Summer opted out of using her natural hair for the videos. For the future, she was a straight-haired brunette. In the past, she had short reddish blonde waves with highlights and rocked long curly golden brown hair in the present. She couldn't put her hair through that.

"Oh my goodness, girl, you kissed Mathew Higgins." Vienna squealed as she read off some messages from her phone.

Summer was stuck for what to say. The mere mention of his name made her mouth sour. But she wasn't ready for others to pick on the tension between them. It was enough having doubts about who he had shared his stories to. She didn't need to confirm they existed.

Geek.

Geek.

"Right!"

"He is so handsome and tall, and dreamy. I haven't even met him yet and I am salivating."

Keep it up.

She would have gushed the same way if she never heard that conversation.

"I am still shocked I get to be the lead with him. He has the most gorgeous eyes."

"Doesn't he? So vibrant! You are so lucky the director decided to shoot the final scene first. It would have taken forever to get that kiss."

"Then I am off to a good start."

"You are off to a good start being the lead." Vienna sighed.

Patrick listened, a smile lifting his lips every now and then. He set the wig, dampened it and went to work applying the products. Someone else joined to work on her nails.

"Can you imagine, even as your best friend, I don't have a single scene in the same room with him."

"What kind of scenes would you have liked."

"Anything, telling him off for breaking your heart, running into him at a party. Literally anything. I saw him once at the table read, and, let me tell you, I need more."

"Lucky me. I get all the more I need."

"I am trying not to be jealous, and you are not helping."

Summer wasn't sure how much she could keep her smile going. There was a moment of relief when the makeup artist started working on Vienna's face. But even when her lips were being done, Vienna wouldn't stop gushing about Mathew Higgins.

He was hot as a platinum blonde in Ego.

He is taller in person, right?

She had wanted to meet him since she saw his fantasy movie eleven years ago.

Maybe we can all go out for drinks.

It was shocking that a few hours ago, that was Summer. Enamoured, doe-eyed and eager to be the female lead in a show starring Mathew Higgins. She had the same reputation of praising him back home that was making her cringe now. No doubt Patrick didn't see Vienna as a liability. She was the youngest on the cast list but had at least been in three other movies and one TV show before this. Two of those three movies did amazing at the box office.

Bet he'd have wanted that kind of accolade in his female lead.

Patrick started with the diffuser, minding his business while Summer kept up her end of the conversation.

"By the way, I watched some of those old videos you mentioned."

"The singing?"

"Yeah."

"Oh."

"Don't be shy. I think your voice is amazing."

"Thank you."

"Why did you stop uploading. You could have been so big."

"School." It was the easiest reply. It didn't allow follow-up questions.

"The director should have had you sing on the show."

"There's hope."

"Improv." They said together and laughed.

"You should try it again now that you are acting. It would be so cool for your fans to support your first TV Show."

"Yeah. I'll...think about it."

Food for thought. It didn't harm to consider it.

She was spared further comments when she stood to change into new clothes. Elijah was very particular in having everyone dress and look how a teenager in a public school would normally dress, while also being stand out and stylish. Her make-up was minimal, everyday make-up with a few faux freckles and glitter added for her look of the day. Her nails were short press-ons, fit enough to pass in school but, also, lightly bedazzled with jewels and gel designs.

"Okay, let's help you with this."

She turned around and slipped her hand into the baggy, orange jacket. She had been put into a tightly fitted long-sleeved top that ended just below her waist. It showed a little skin before her baggy denim trousers, which rested on her hip.

"This is good." She smiled at the stylist as she ran a hand through her hair to pose in the mirror.

The sneakers were comfortable and a welcome difference from the heels she had worn in the previous scene. Her beige student backpack was weighed down by actual textbooks from the school, written by some of its staff. The principal was a PhD, she heard. They were basically advertisements for the high school.

"Left hand."

She raised her finger, and they slipped a few rings on there. Again, nothing eccentric. Just enough to pass for normal.

"Right."

They slapped a black watch on her wrist and added a few bracelets. She looked herself over in the mirror with a proud smile. She was acting. This was her first character. Abigail Struman; a seventeen-year-old high school student. She combed her curls with her fingers and turned her head one way and then another.

"The shoes comfortable?"

"Super."

She was practically floating.

"Hope I am not late."

Her smile froze at the sound of his voice. Of course, he would be using the same trailer. It had never crossed her mind until that moment. She watched him from the mirror, she was gracefully hidden from his view. He spoke to a cheerful Vienna and took the seat she occupied before.

Damn.

"All finished."

"Thanks," she replied with more steadiness than she felt.

He already doubted her, she couldn't give him more reason to do so. She was a professional. Well, at least she was becoming a professional. She waved at Simone, and...she needed to remember her name. But there was always later.

"Hi, Mathew."

He was shocked to see her. Guilty? Not so much.

"Summer."

"Ready for our scene. See you out there." She winked at him and walked around to rest a hand on Vienna's shoulder. "Vienna, I'll see you too."

"You know it. I'll be right out."

Vienna stood but tried to keep talking to Mathew as she walked to the dressing area. Summer didn't hear the rest of their conversation, as she apologetically weaved her way out of the room. She didn't make it far before he was out and running after her.

"Summer!"

She paused and turned, folding her arm when her eyes fell on the bag he held.

She had forgotten the bag for the scene.

"Simone said you forgot this."

"Thanks."

She grabbed the bag, and he stepped in front of her. "I would like us to talk."

"Don't you have a scene to get ready for?"

"There's still time. And I wanted to talk."

Maybe he wanted to apologise, she hoped as she nodded.

"Go ahead."

"I didn't mean for you to hear what I said to Venice. I swear I haven't spoken about you to anyone else. I didn't think you'd be around, I thought we were alone, and I was simply sharing a worry with a trusted friend. Venice wouldn't share what I said with anyone."

That didn't sound like an apology.

"We have a long way to go for this show, and the last thing I need is a disconnection between us. You know, given our roles."

Yep. Definitely not an apology.

"I am still waiting."

"Waiting?" He looked confused.

"For the apology. You said we needed to talk. I thought you were ready to apologize, but I am standing here and listening to you not apologise."

"I did."

"Not, you said you were sorry I heard what you said those things about me. I didn't hear you say you were sorry for saying them in the first place."

He stared at her dumbfounded, and she smiled in understanding. How could he apologize for words he meant? He couldn't. That's why he was sorry she heard it.

"You are only worried I wouldn't be able to handle acting with you. You are worried I'd mess up more than you thought I would."

"I don't want this to be uncomfortable. That's all."

"It won't be."

"Summer."

"Truly. You don't think I have what it takes, and I don't hold it against you. It's not my job to make you see my potential. It is my job to do my best for my audience. Yes, one I have never been introduced to, but that means nothing."

"It's..."

"Ah, ah, ah. Don't say anything. I would take care of our show, despite your doubts. I am going to love you so hard." She realised her words when Mathew's brows raised, and lifted her index finger to say with conviction. "Pause! Fans would be shocked when they hear I could barely stand you."