Kismet

7 | Rehearsal

Raven and the others in the room turned to stare at them.

"Sorry," she murmured, heat burning her face.

"Oh, dear. I didn't mean to frighten you." Dark arms shot out, and Imani helped pick up the papers, then neatly put everything back into place. With a grin on her face, she returned Alicia's manuscript. "I think everything is all there."

Instead of staring at the crumpled paper in her hands, Alicia looked into the woman's gentle eyes. Only once had she met Imani, but that was enough to form an opinion that she was far too gorgeous to be a screenwriter.

She was a sunflower among an ocean of wheat.

Because she was so pretty, Imani should have been in fashion magazines and on billboards all over the world. Her black, curly hair was much longer than Alicia's. She was also tall and thin, and her characteristics were almost too perfect.

Her face broke into a euphoric grin. "Do you feel better now? I didn't mean to scare you. Sorry about that, Alicia."

"No, no. It's all right."

"Great. I just wanted to let you know that I made slight changes to your and Raven's characters."

"Our characters?" she murmured, giving the tiny group, who were still practicing lines, an occasional glance.

Imani pointed to the script lying on the table. "Yeah. Both Oliver and I had the same idea about how to enhance certain parts of the film. Making the adjustments was quick and easy."

"Oh. It won't be a problem. I have faith in my ability to handle anything." They became silent for a moment until Alicia asked Imani, "Does Raven know about the changes?"

She smiled. "Yes. Her agency emailed her the latest script."

Alicia's eyes narrowed as she nodded. She didn't have an agent like many famous people do, and even if she did, she probably couldn't afford to pay for one. She didn't think she'd ever make it far enough in her career to need coaching throughout auditions. And she really got lucky when part-time gigs for this movie opened up a few weeks ago. If she hadn't made it, she wouldn't be in this rehearsal room and on the cusp of becoming a Hollywood star. In the end, things worked out well for her.

Imani then said, "I've also been wondering how you like your character." This made Alicia stop and think. "I mean, I'm sure being in a movie like this and working alongside Raven Diaz is kind of overwhelming."

She took a deep breath, showing that she understood what the scriptwriter meant.

Curiosity filled Imani's face as she watched Alicia with her intense brown eyes. "But you don't look like what I said. It looks like you've been performing for a long time and that nothing can stop you." They both laughed a little, and she went on. "Anyway, girl, you can do this. Just learn your lines, how to block, and where the director wants you to be, and you'll do fine."

Alicia looked over at Raven as she and their co-star, Nancy, moved over to the window for their exercise.

She gave Imani a quick look before speaking. "You're right. It's a dream, but it's also a lot to take in. I only want to give it my all and do everything I can to make Qala come to life."