Page 76 of First Impressions of You

I take forever to fall asleep, my body still coming to terms with the absence of Winter. It’s like I’m an addict going through withdrawal.

The sun slips through the curtains, bathing my bedroom in a soft warm glow, but it’s not the light that is waking me up. There’s a constant knock on my bedroom door followed by the high-pitched voice of my younger sister calling my name.

“Luiza, get the fuck up.” I groan into my pillow, placing it over my head to try and pretend I can’t hear her. “I’m opening the door,” she warns me. I let her, even though my body is screaming for at least a couple more hours of sleep. I’m not on the call sheet today, so I could actually sleep in for the first time in ages.

The mattress dips with the weight of my sister dropping her body next to me as she shakes me awake. “Luiza, wake up.”

“What?” I bark into my pillow.

She continues to shake me relentlessly until I uncover my face, tossing the pillow at her.

“It’s here.”

“What’s here?”

“The promo posters!” She waves her cellphone in front of me. “Graham sent them to me early, but they’ll be posting them soon.”

“What?” I sit up so quickly all the blood rushes down my body, and my head gets lighter. Or maybe it’s the excitement of finally seeing myself as Melina. “Wait, who sent it to you?”

“You look amazing, mana.” The admiration in her eyes is so genuine, I don’t focus on the question she doesn’t answer.

“If you stop moving, I can see it,” I reprimand, wrapping my hand around her wrist to hold her phone in front of my eyes.

My breath catches. My eyes instantly tear up. I look… I look like a princess. The poster has one of the pictures of just me in my wedding gown. I’m looking back, and somehow my tight shoulders and clenched fist show fear, and at the same time my gleaming eyes show relief. The exact emotion I imagined Melina to be feeling in that moment.

After a while, I start taking notice of the details. My right hand is being pulled by a hand covered in leather gloves. I don’t recall having anyone in those shots, so it must have been digitally added. It’s almost hidden, and I think that’s what they were going for. If you’re not paying attention, you might miss it. And then the poster has a completely different meaning.

Even the hand pulling me looks ambiguous. If you don’t know the plot of the play, you might think it’s a lover with whom Melina is running away.

Either way, the image is enticing. The entire composition of the poster, with a castle digitally added on the background, and the multiple elements surrounding my body, looks amazing.

My heart is about to explode in my chest.

And then I see it. The two lines at the top of the poster.

Movieland’s first Latina Princess

Meet Melina in Frostbound Loyalty this holiday season, only at Movieland

My stomach drops. My chest constricts, threatening to squeeze all the air out of my lungs. I can hear the words that have haunted me. Words I had somehow managed to banish to a dark, forgotten corner of my mind. They all come blasting out into the spotlight.

You know if they cast her, it’ll only be because she’s Latina and fat, and they need to show diversity in the cast.

“Luli?” Olivia asks. The smile on her face turns into a concerned frown.

“This… I…” I have a hard time putting my feelings into words. My brain can’t process so many emotions at once. “This is not… what I wanted.” It finally comes out in a breath.

“What?” My sister’s eyes are rounded in surprise that slowly changes into annoyance. “You look beautiful. I don’t know what you’re complaining about.”

“‘First Latina Princess’?” I point out, irritation lacing the words.

“Well, you are,” she argues back.

“But I don’t want to be reduced to that.” I sling my legs out of the bed and march out of my bedroom. I need coffee if I’m going to deal with this.

Olivia follows me out to the kitchen. “You’re not being reduced to that. They’re just stating a fact. I don’t know why you’re making such a big deal of it.”

Of course she doesn’t. Olivia has never had to worry about anything in her life.

---