Page 7 of Off Script

“What else? Ren’s hawk eyes.” Tristan pointed to the dark circle under his own eye to bring his point home.

Cass held on to his chin, tsking unhappily. “I don’t blame him. You must have been rubbing at it for it to come off like this.”

“It was itchy.” Tristan defended himself. While he was used to being done up for film shoots, his skin was proving extrasensitive today with the blossoming bruise. Still, Cass had little sympathy for his plight.

“Stay. Still.”

After some quick foundation work and idle chatter with two of his favorite ladies, Tristan eventually got the go-ahead to return to set. He bypassed the science lab setup and headed outside. A lot of the crew had congregated on the exterior café, and Tristan spotted Ren smiling and laughing with Jada on the outdoor patio. She seemed decidedly less stiff around the director than she had been around him. The two were chatting like old friends while Angela lingered off to the side, impatiently scowling at them. As he approached, she glanced at him, her eyes red rimmed.Oh shit, Tristan thought. The remnants of Angela’s tears meant either she was still angry and would take it out on anyone in the vicinity or she would be sulking the whole day.

“Excuse me. I’m sure you two are having an absolutelyrivetingconversation,” Angela said, “but can we go over the scene we’re supposed to be filming?”

Okay, looks like she’s chosen lashing out, Tristan realized with sinking dread. Ren’s easy manner evaporated as quickly as his laid-back smile.

“We are perfectly on track, Angela, but thank you for worrying,” he said with mild diplomacy. “We’re just waiting on—oh good, Tristan, you’re back. I wanted to let you know we’re going to tackle Angela and Jada’s first scene, then you’ll come in a bit later, also meeting Jada’s character for the first time. Got it?”

“Got it, boss.” Tristan threw Ren a thumbs-up. Technically, since he wasn’t needed immediately, he could go chill for a bit, but he found himself wanting to stick around. He’d never seen Jada act in person, and watching this scene would help him get a feel for what their dynamic would be like when he shared the screen with her later.

As Ren went over the logistics of the scene, Angela studied Jada. The other actress remained oblivious as she nodded along with Ren’s instructions. Meanwhile, Tristan was on edge, fearing Jada would become Angela’s next target.

“All right. So, I know this is your first day filming together, but for this scene, we want it to feel extremely natural. Two best friends catching up on life and relationships, like they always do,” Ren said, going over the logistics.

Despite the director’s emphasis on friendship, Angela’s scrutiny of Jada was about as subtle as a vicious piranha. Jada either remained oblivious or had decided to block it out as she paid careful attention to the blocking for how she would need to move through the scene. Still, Tristan knew better than to underestimate Angela when she was in this kind of mood. Filled with apprehension, he stayed glued to his spot off camera as the girls ran through a rehearsal and then finally took their marks, just inside of the café. After Ren yelled action, Jada and Angela exited the coffee shop to sit on the patio, drinks in hand. Perfectly in character, Jada looked attentive and excited as Angela started off with Claire’s dialogue.

“Lana, the most amazing thing happened today.”

“You got that big promotion at work?”

“No, he’s back.”

“Who?”

The girls made it to the outdoor table, and Angela sank into her seat with a dreamy sigh.

“Diego.” Angela’s eyes sparkled with lovestruck glee. At least until she slipped up and glanced offscreen in Tristan’s direction. Her bubbly aura splintered, forcing Ren to call things to a halt.

“Angela, you’re supposed to be looking at Jada, not off to the side.”

“Who says I wasn’t going for, like, Claire daydreaming or something?” Angela batted the criticism away.

“And that would be one direction to take, but we want this scene to be about the chemistry between you and your best friend. Got it?”

“Sure, Ren,” Angela said with false sweetness. “But I don’t think that should solely fall on me.”

To her credit, Jada didn’t engage with her jab and stayed focused on Ren’s correction. “Thanks for clarifying that, Ren. We’ll try it again.”

Although Jada was able to stay cool and collected, Tristan struggled to hide his annoyance with Angela. Just once, he wished she’d surprise him by showing an ounce of empathy instead of taking her resentment toward him out on their newest co-star. Knowing that would only happen once hell froze over, Tristan headed back to the soundstage as everyone reset to do the scene. Maybe his exit would take some of Angela’s heat off Jada. On his way, Erica, one of the PAs, rested her hand on his arm. With bright, brown eyes and her dark hair smoothed back into a ponytail, Erica’s youthful overeagerness to help with the production was well known. Her zealousness to prove herself often overlapped with chatting up Tristan.

“What’s up, Erica?”

“Do you need anything? You look a little . . . tense.”

“I’m just going to grab some water or something and then head to my trailer to regroup.”

“Okay, we’ll let you know when it’s time for you to come back. But if youdodecide you need anything else, let me know.” Erica’s friendly expression remained professional but Tristan noted the undertone to her offer.

For once, he didn’t hop on the innuendo with a joke. Like he promised, Tristan retreated to his small oasis, going over lines and absorbed in his music playlist. He loved putting together his own idea of a soundtrack to whatever movie he was making. In the middle of him singing along to Cher’s classic “If I Could Turn Back Time,” Erica knocked on his trailer door to let him know they were ready for him.

When Tristan regrouped with the team at the science lab, Jada looked slightly less chipper. She still greeted Tristan pleasantly but stayed a good distance away from Angela. For her part, Angela tensed at Tristan’s arrival but refused to address him outright.

---