Page 64 of Beyond the Bright Lights

“A broken arm.” She scoffs, letting a bit of anger infect her grief. “He was sentenced to twenty years on vehicular manslaughter charges and released ten years later on good behavior and overcrowding. Ten years. My parents lost their lives, and this man walks free. It’s not fair.”

“It’s not. I’m so sorry, Lana.”

She sighs against my body, and I wish I could stay here, like this, forever. She feels so good in my arms—like she belongs.

“Did you always want to become an actor?” she asks, quietly. She starts tracing a scar on my shoulder. A small diagonal line from the one and only time my father put his hands on me. I was eight. He’d pushed me against the wall, my shoulder hit the window, breaking the glass, causing a chunk to fall and slice my skin. It was the first time I ever got stitches.

“No, not at all. I was forced into it by my parents. They moved us from some small town near Sacramento down to L.A. They took me to endless auditions. I hated it. All I wanted to do was play video games, or watch cartoons, or go to the park and play like the other kids. I wanted a puppy. I’ve never had a puppy.”

Lana smooths her palm over my chest, soothing the building anxiety.

“You don’t hate it now though?”

“No.”

“What do you love about it?”

“That it lets me escape. I can be anyone in the world.”

“Anyone but yourself?”

“Yeah, well, sometimes being me is tough.”

“Is it not exhausting? The fame, learning the lines, becoming a different person every time?”

I sigh because it is exhausting but being me is near debilitating.

“It’s . . . exciting. Challenging. I wasn’t lying when we met. I research every role I take. I talk to people similar to the character, who knew the character, or to the actual person the character is based off. I came here early to meet the people of this town who knew Tyler. Then I found you. You helped me understand the importance of this role—how important Tyler was.”

Lana lifts her head to look at me.

“Tyler was important to everyone.”

“And to you?”

She lets out a long breath. “He was my soulmate. The love of my life. We met when we were kids.”

She smiles to herself, the memory likely crossing her thoughts. I read about how they met in the script, and I’m eager to hear it through her words.

“He managed to turn the worst day of my life into my best. My parents had just died, and I decided to run away. I loved my grandparents, but I didn’t want to move in with them. I didn’t want them as my parents. How horrible is that? I wasn’t thinking because I was just a kid. I was confused, shocked, in denial. So, I left, and I wasn’t planning on returning home, either. I packed clothes, toys, and food—no money because I really thought I could sell my toys. Anyway, I got on my bike and rode it all the way to the cliffs, the same one we jumped off, the one where Tyler proposed to me. That cliff was also where my parents used to bring me a lot. I went there to say goodbye, because a part of me thought if I ran away from Silo Springs, the pain would also go away.

“The cliffs were miles and miles away. It took forever to get there and when I showed up, I was surprised to find Tyler. His light brown hair flopping all over his big head in the hot summer breeze. He smiled at me and waved. He was missing a tooth, his canine I believe. I thought he looked ridiculous, and I was pissed that he was there at my special place. I crossed my arms and stomped over there, demanding he leave. Instead, he laughed at me. He laughed and pushed me over the edge of the cliff, my packed bag of clothes, food, toys, and all.”

“He pushed you?” That part wasn’t in the script.

She laughs. “Yeah, can you believe it? I hated him so much in that moment. Then I started panicking, struggling to keep my head from going under. I started swallowing water, choking. I thought I was going to die. Then Tyler jumped in after me and pulled me to safety.”

“That was the reason you never jumped off the cliffs?”

She nods.

“Anyway, he helped me climb up the rocks back to the top. He apologized and offered to share the lunch his mother made since the food I packed was ruined. We talked and talked. I told him my parents just died, and he told me his father got a job in Silo. How strange that we met there, miles away from both our homes. As if we were destined to be together.”

“How did Tyler end up there that day?”

“They were new to town and Tyler’s parents wanted to explore the area. They drove to nearby towns, including Beverly, and that’s when they stumbled upon a nearby picnic area. They stopped to eat the lunch Tyler’s mom packed. After they were done eating, Rebecca went swimming, but Tyler wanted to hunt for snakes, so he wandered off and found the cliff. I found him minutes later.”

I give her a hum of understanding and she keeps talking.

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