Suddenly Starlet

Suddenly Starlet--Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

“Laney, stop messing with your hair,” Laney’s mom said as she drove through the streets of Los Angeles.

Laney had wanted to try something funky with her boring brown locks that morning, but she wasn’t sure it was working. About 100 bobby pins and a can of hairspray later, she was worried her hairstyle looked a little more Kelly Osborne than her intended Britney Spears.

Frustrated and a little bit fed up with her hair, Laney turned her focus to her makeup job. Now that was more like her. Shimmery eye shadow lit up her eyes, a bit of brown mascara that nearly matched her eyelashes perfectly and a little lipgloss played up her full lips. Laney’s mom had explained to her that the point of a headshot was to give the casting directors a chance to see what she looked like, and that meant a clean face.

Hence, the little to no makeup rule her mom had given her before they’d left the hotel room. Laney hadn’t minded though, since she never wore much makeup anyway. When you woke up each morning with only 15 minutes to get ready, there wasn’t a whole lot of time to put on a new face. Besides, when you were cheering, you ended up sweating off most of what you put on before getting out in front of the crowds.

Laney snapped closed the mirror on the car’s sun visor above her head and turned her attention back to her mom.

“So, what exactly are we doing this morning?” Laney asked.

Her mom looked through her back windshield before changing lanes and then glanced over at Laney.

“Well, right now we’re heading over to meet with Mr. Hyperman, so he can ask you a few more questions, let you know more about his agency and we’ll sign a contract making him your official agent,” her mom said staring at the road ahead. “Then, later this afternoon, we’ll head over to meet with the photographer who will be taking your headshots. And then we’ll go back to the hotel where I will relax in the Jacuzzi after a long day of driving around.”

Laney smiled and rolled her eyes at her.

“Yeah, I can already tell it’s going to be a tough job driving me around,” Laney said sarcastically. “I should be the one relaxing at the end of the day, since I’ll be doing all the work.”

Laney’s mom ignored her last comment and made a right turn onto a busy road.

“So, are you excited? Nervous? Feel like throwing up?” her mom went on.

“Ew and no,” Laney answered quickly.

Though the truth was that she had had butterflies in her stomach ever since she woke up that morning. In fact, the night before had mostly been spent dreaming about all the ways she could screw up in front of the camera. She wasn’t sure what else Mr. Hyperman wanted to ask her and still had no idea what she was supposed to do once she got to her photo shoot. Secretly, Laney was worried that the tan man would take one look at her and wonder what he’d been thinking.

But she wasn’t about to say anything out loud, mostly for fear that it would come true.

“I’m excited and a little nervous I guess,” she finally answered, chewing on her bottom lip.

“Honestly,” her mom said, turning into a parking lot, “I’m a little nervous, too.”

Her mom parked the car outside a pink stucco building. They both looked at the sign ahead of them that read “Hype Entertainment.” Then her mother looked at her and winked.

“Shall we go?” she asked grabbing her purse.

“Crap. I guess so,” Laney mumbled under her breath and got out of the car.

* * * * *

Laney swallowed down two steaming cups of coffee as she waited for Mr. Hyperman to call her into his office. Her mom had already been gone a few minutes and Laney figured she had to gulp down as much of the brown liquid as she could before she came back.

Not that what she was drinking really qualified as coffee. Caffeine sludge was a better description for what she had poured from the coffeepot in the waiting area. In fact, if she weren’t in great need for an early morning pick-me-up, she wouldn’t have drunk the stuff at all. And seeing as she needed to be on her game when she met with Mr. Hyperman, Laney thought that drastic times often called for drastic measures.

Hearing the bathroom door opening up, Laney took one last swig of her coffee concoction and tossed the cups in the trash. Her mom appeared in the doorway and picked up a copy of “People” magazine before taking her place in the seat next to Laney.

Laney herself had picked up the latest copy of “Teen People” and had busied herself looking through its pages. As she turned each page, she saw teen heartthrob after teen heartthrob posing at various press events.

Laney quietly pulled out her wallet and took out a small copy of her school picture. Glancing around to make sure no one was watching, she took the photo and placed it next to a group of young stars in the magazine.

I so do not fit in with this group, she thought, sighing, and put her picture back in her purse.

Disappointed at her lack of teen idol potential, Laney went back to flipping through the glossy spreads. She was just about to decide whether the outfit Hilary Duff was wearing to her latest movie premier was a “do” or a “don’t,” when she heard the door to Mr. Hyperman’s office open.

“So, we’re meeting for lunch next Tuesday at Frankie’s before the cover shoot, right?” the girl asked, as she walked out into the lobby with the tan man.

Laney glanced up and her heart started racing. She looked from her magazine and then back up to the girl that was now heading her way.

“Yes. Frankie’s on Tuesday,” Mr. Hyperman answered smiling.

“Okay. Oh hey, tell Raven that I said hi when she comes in later,” Hilary said as she gave him a little wave goodbye.

Laney sat perfectly still as the girl walked toward the door. She tried not to stare, but couldn’t help it. It was sort of like that whole deer in the headlights kind of frozen. Before she could turn away, the movie star locked eyes with her and smiled.

“Hey,” Hilary said before pulling the door open and walking out in the California sun.

“Hey,” Laney said, watching her disappear.

“Who was that?” her mom leaned over and whispered.

Laney just passed the magazine over to her mom and pointed her out on the page.

“Hmmm,” her mom said after staring at the page for a few seconds. “She looks shorter in real life.”

Laney couldn’t believe it. She had only been in LA for two days and she’d already seen her first movie star. And she was about to sign with the same agent as Hilary! If things didn’t seem surreal before, they definitely were now.

“Laney Herman, Mr. Hyperman’s ready to see you now,” the receptionist said, motioning to the door that he had just walked out of a moment ago.

“Thanks,” she said, still in shock.

Snapping herself out of it, she took a deep breath and stood up, making sure to keep her head high and her shoulders back. Putting a smile on her face, Laney marched into Mr. Hyperman’s office.