For those who have gotten into the story, thanks!! And a note that the writers own any dialogue that I use from the show.
~ ~ ~
Wow, what a night. The guys—Alex, Matt and a few others of the cast and crew—went out to a local bar and were drinking until all hours. I highly doubted that the girls even went near a place that had alcohol, apart from the grocery store that Peyton said they would stop at to get snacks, since both she and Melissa were under twenty-one.
My head was splitting. It didn't take much for me to get drunk, maybe because I was barely old enough to do it, and I was still getting used to it. I never had the hard stuff like some of the other guys did, and neither did Matt, but we had something. And now, I was paying for it with a massive hangover headache. Thankfully, I didn't feel sick.
My phone started to ding, and, as I lay in bed staring at the ceiling around 6am, I took my phone off the nightstand and saw that I was receiving texts from the guys. Yep, they were suffering, too, but from the full hangover, mainly Alex since he had the harder stuff. Both guys felt like their head was splitting, and they felt sick, even to yacking everything up. I was so thankful that wasn't me at the moment. A couple of pills and I would be good to go. Oh, and some more sleep, but I wouldn't be able to get it now that I was awake. That was a thing with me—when I was awake, I was awake. No going back. It had been like that since, well, at least my mom said I was like that when I was really little. Nothing changed.
You guys going to the Lahaina Noon shooting today or staying back? I texted, and they both said that they would be there. They saw the previous one back in May, and since this was the last time it would happen until maybe next May, they wanted to go. They just had to take care of themselves first. They both had filming today, anyway, that they had to be at before and after the Lahaina Noon scene.
But not me. I had to be at the Sky Gate sculpture here in Honolulu, near the capital building, at about ten so we could prep for the scene, practice it, make sure people were out of the way of the shot, and so forth. I had four hours. Getting out of bed would be a good start.
"Ow, my head," I whined as I sat up and rubbed my face. I went into the bathroom and took the pain pills, drank them down, and went to the little kitchenette in the suite. I didn't have much in there, just protein bars, granola bars, cereal, instant frozen meals... I needed something more substantial if I wanted the energy to get going today and to help my head from not splitting in two. I showered, got dressed in a tan t-shirt, light-blue jeans shorts, my brown loafers and my glasses, brushed my teeth, then headed for a little place I saw near the main pool for this hotel.
It took me about ten minutes to get down there. It was a little restaurant that you could only order at and not go in, like the places at a mall food court. It smelled so good, like cooked meat. Like a dog, I followed it, and it was making my stomach rumble. Thankfully, I could feel my headache melt away.
Other people were around this restaurant, sitting at tables set up near the pool that was surrounded by palm trees and had a great view of the ocean, and some were even swimming in it since it was a bright, beautiful morning, probably around eighty degrees already, even at 7am. I ordered my food, and I went and sat at a little round table with a large cerulean blue umbrella and pulled out my phone. While other movies and shows gave out hard copy scripts, which we did, we could also get the digital version. I chose that since I literally always had my phone on me. Who didn't? I sat there and went over the lines for the Lahaina Noon scene.
"Wow. Okay, um... I thought I felt vulnerable in front of you because I was in a gown, but it turns out it's because you're gorgeous," I said as I read, and then I said it again, looking away from my phone and off at the pool at the dozen-or-so people at it. I looked back at the script and read over Peyton's line, then, "Oh, check this out. No shadow. It's Lahaina Noon. It's when the sun is directly above you, so it doesn't cast any shadows. Look. The Sky Gate sculpture lines up perfectly. Well, technically, things did cast a shadow, just straight down so it looked as if some things didn't have a shadow."
I repeated my lines, much like I would do for any theater performance when I was younger. I said, looking away from my phone and at the pool again, I thought I felt vulnerable in front of you because I was in a gown, but it turns out it's because you're gorgeous."
Right at that moment, and speaking of gorgeous, a woman came to the pool, a woman with bright orange hair tied up in a bun on top of her head, and she had one of those long overshirts on that some women liked to wear over a bathing suit. My heart jumped incredibly and started racing. She was a little far away, so I squinted my eyes. These glasses weren't for actually seeing better, anyway.
The woman came closer, and I saw that she was a young woman, and she was... Lila! My heart kicked into overdrive as I saw her stop at a long chair maybe twenty feet away from me, put her bag and towel down on it, and she commenced taking off the long, white overshirt to reveal a modest purple one-piece swim suite with what looked like white dots on it.
I stared. She was so hot. I gulped hard, and I felt myself sweat in places as she started putting sunscreen all over herself.
"Wow... Aloha, Lila."
"Order for Milo?" a man said near me, and I looked over at the same man who took my order, a man who looked like he was from Hawaii and looked islander. I knew that they had to call my name, and I would have to come up and get my food, but was I so distracted by Lila that I didn't even hear my name being called?
"Yes, thank you. I apologize for not hearing."
"No problem. Enjoy."
"Thank you very much."
The friendly man set my plate and drink down and left, and I looked over at the pool again. I saw Lila's head in the pool, above the waterline. The sun shining on her hair made it look like fire. I couldn't look away from her, guiltily so, as I ate my ham smothered in pineapple sauce, rice, and two massive sausages. I also ordered a tall mango juice. It was like I was eating and drinking while watching a movie, but I was watching that gorgeous redhead.
She got out of the pool, dripping wet, aside from her hair. I could see her pretty well since she wasn't too far away, and I could see every curve of her body as she wore that swimsuit, including shapely legs. I found her swimsuit more attractive than the string bikinis that other women at the pool were wearing. She was a petite girl, for sure, and she indeed had a chest that was larger for her small frame, but...
"Wow, what a babe," I muttered, and I cleared my throat, hoping no one heard that. Should I make my presence known? What if she wanted to be left alone? Melissa wasn't with her, and neither were their parents. And what of last night? I thought the girls would still be asleep right now if they were up all hours, too.
Lila was drying herself off with a towel, and I noticed a couple of guys in their twenties walk by my table. They saw her and commented, "Wow, check her out, dude. The redhead."
My sentiments exactly. The guys walked off, and they wolf-whistled at Lila, and she definitely heard it. Her whole face turned pink. When the guys were away, I heard her say, "Wow, the girls weren't kidding."
I was curious about what the girls said, but I pushed that away. I had to finish my breakfast and focus on my lines. I ran over them again, the whole scene, up until Lahela and Nico get on his dirt bike and ride off. I read over and over the line of Nico saying that he felt vulnerable because Lahela was gorgeous. Well, I felt for him. I suddenly felt pretty vulnerable and even intimidated because of how gorgeous Lila was. But I appreciated seeing her beauty. And enjoyed it.
I glanced over and saw that she was looking directly at me, her eyes wide and her mouth open. Well, she saw me. Might as well get on with it. I smiled and put up a hand. "Hey! Morning!"
She gathered her things and walked up to me, and the closer she got, I could see that the white dots on the swimsuit were little white flowers, and the suit sinched a little at the bust, creating some cleavage, which was insanely attractive on this modest one-piece.
"Good morning. Fancy seeing you here. I hardly recognized you without those dark clothes."
I looked down at what I had on. "Yep, I told you that the Nico look wasn't me. So... out for a swim this early? Thought you and the girls would be snoozing away the morning."
"Yeah, we thought it would happen like that, but it didn't. May I?"
She indicated a chair at the table. "By all means," I said.
She sat down, putting her things on the chair next to her. She had no makeup on, so I could see her freckles, and I didn't know why, but the water dripping down her chin and neck was pretty steaming. I had to attempt to focus.
"So, you girls didn't get all crazy last night?" I asked jokingly, and she smiled as bright as the morning sun. "Stayed up until a few hours ago?"
"Actually no. We thought we would, but we actually fell asleep half-way through Turning Red. I recall waking up and turning off the credits at the end, then going back to sleep. I think we all fell asleep around 12:15. I think we all were so tired from the day. Melissa and I were out and about with our parents seeing that sunken ship, which was amazing, and we were up on our feet the whole day. And Peyton and Emma were busy all day with the show, so... we were all pretty bushed. We woke up this morning around an hour ago, and Melissa and I left. She fell right back asleep once we got to our suite, but I wanted to come down for an early swim."
"Sounds like you all had a good time," I said as I started eating again. My food was half-way gone.
"We did. We went shopping at the store, then we stopped at Peyton's suite to drop things off, then we went to this pork hut on the beach and had dinner, then came back, talked, ate junk food, then started that movie, and... like I said, lights out."
I whistled. "Wow, you girls had a pretty tame evening compared to us guys. It was me, Matt, Alex and a few other guys with Doogie, and really... we all got wasted. Mostly the others. I was the least drunk of all of them, along with Matt."
She laughed. "Oh, dear..."
"Yeah, it was a wild night. I woke up with a splitting headache, thankfully gone now thanks to modern medicine and delicious Hawaiian food." I indicated the plate.
She giggled again, a sound that was so cute. "I'm glad you boys had a great time, too. I bet you got some female attention."
I bobbed my head from side-to-side, thinking. "Yeah, sometimes. Some people recognized me, Alex and Matt, but... it was pretty tame as far as attention from the opposite gender. What about you girls? It's a fact that you all are very, very attractive. You probably got some looks."
She smiled at the compliment. Really, I wanted to tell her she was a sight without saying it directly. "Thank you, and... golly. Yes, we got attention. It was pretty hilarious, actually."
"Ooo, do tell. Deets, girl."
She told me some things, and I laughed out loud at parts, particularly the instance at the pork hut. "Oh, that's classic. You fooled those guys."
"We all laughed until our sides were splitting when we were back in Peyton's room. What a complement to all of us."
"See? Told you—you all are pretty attractive. Guys notice. Two blondes, a brunette and a redhead. They'd lose their minds if they found out that you all are pretty awesome human beings, too."
She smiled at that. "You're sweet. Thanks. It's just... hard to believe. I mean for me. The girls made a fair point yesterday, but... I don't know..."
She pressed her pink lips together as she looked around at this area becoming more populated, and she seemed uncomfortable, much like I did a lot in crowded places, thinking in a paranoid way, that people were watching me. I had to ask, "What do you mean?"
Her cheeks started to turn rosy, and while that was cute, I knew it was because she was embarrassed. "Well..."
"You don't have to say anything if you don't want to. Sorry for prying."
She shook her head. "No, no, it's just... well, I was dating someone last year, and it ended horribly. Like, really horribly. People would call it the stereotypical cheating story, but it was much more than that."
Should I let on that I knew about this? Peyton didn't want to tell me for Lila's privacy, but I basically made her. "I admit... well, Peyton and I were talking the other day, and... she said something about it. And I'm sorry that she did since I was curious. She didn't want to tell me."
Lila's green eyes widened. "Wait, you... know that I went through a bad breakup?"
"Guilty. And, again, I'm sorry. Sorry for wanting to know and I'm sorry that it happened to you. I've been through a breakup, and they're not fun at all."
She shook her head. "No, they're not. If you don't mind my asking, what happened?"
"I don't mind." I eyed my food. Maybe I would save the rest of it. "Well, it was back when I was doing Dancing with the Stars when I was around seventeen-eighteen, so a few years ago. I was dating this girl named Holiday, and we were pretty good for a little while, then I started becoming really busy. I was juggling school and DWS, and Holiday and I were seeing less of each other. I was trying to be a great boyfriend and find time to be together like before school or something, but... it didn't work. I broke up with her, and we both agreed it was for the best. We're still good friends, though."
Lila sat there, staring at me, after finding this out. She nodded. "That must've been hard, calling it quits because you got busy."
"Yeah, it was. While it was on good terms, it still hurt, you know? We really liked each other. But like I said, we're still friends, but I don't think we'll date again."
She nodded. "I understand. And... it's good that you're still friends with your ex. I want nothing to do with mine. He's texted me a few times since being in Hawaii, checking in and such, but... I just delete his messages. It seems harsh, and I'm not a harsh person, but..."
"He hurt you. It's understandable. Or... I guess I don't know the full story."
"No, you're right. He hurt me. Well, we hurt each other, I guess." She gulped hard as she eyed my mango juice in a tall glass, and it was half-full. I pushed it to her and gave her the straw that I didn't open.
"Hey, you can have the rest. I'm done with it. I'm taking the rest of the food to go."
She stared at me for a moment, right at my eyes through my glasses, and I saw that her eyes were a little bloodshot. "Thank you. Mango juice is my favorite."
"You're very welcome. Enjoy."
She took the straw out of the paper sheathe and drank some of the juice. I wanted to take a picture of her doing such a simple thing. It actually took quite a bit of will power to not snap pictures of her at the pool.
"So... I guess to continue," she said after sipping, "Ethan and I were dating for about a year. We met at school, and he was in the same program as me—modern history. We clicked because of that and were fine for that whole year. At least I thought so. I have bad ADHD and get obsessed with things easily and I get jumble-brained and everything. Hyperfocus is a big thing with ADHD, the obsessive part of it. It's like my brain latches onto something, and it can't think of anything else. Ethan became that for me, and I think he was tired of it. He wanted a girl who wasn't so neurodivergent, so he went off with another girl who didn't obsess over him as much. 'More normal' as he put it, and a girl who took care of herself. My broken mind couldn't concentrate on other things like my appearance, just him and school. He even got in the way of school, actually. I just... let myself go, and he hated that. He called me ugly at one point, and unkempt."
She blinked, and tears escaped. It felt as if my heart was sinking like a rock in the ocean. Not thinking much about it beforehand, I reached over and took her hand that was sitting on the wooden table. She looked over at it, then at me, her cheeks pink. I leaned over the table a little, looking at her intently.
"I'm so, so sorry you went through all that. And... I think it was his own fault for not accepting the way that you were. That's on him and not your fault. You know, not any person can help the way their mind is and what it focuses on."
She nodded and said after taking a deep breath. "Yeah, I know. It just felt like my fault, and I feel in the wrong since I'm ignoring him."
"You have a right to. He hurt you, said things that no person should say to another person. And I'll add that he was very wrong about what he said." I paused as my heart pounded, and as our gazes were glued to each other. "I'm just going to say this, Lila... You're a very, very beautiful young woman. I'm saying that as your new friend and as a guy."
I saw tears develop in her eyes. "I... wow. Really?"
"Yes. And I think those guys from last night saw the same thing. Really, I think you're driving half the guys here in Honolulu insane."
She smirked. "Psht, I don't know about that."
"There's that little Ethan voice in your head saying those horrible things. Kick him out."
"It's difficult to. I try my best to look my best, with the hair, makeup and all that."
Okay, so I considered myself a pretty nice guy, but I was feeling really negative feeling towards this Ethan guy who called her ugly, and she was trying to do her best to make herself look pretty, when really, she didn't even need to try and do that to be pretty.
"You remember those guys from earlier, right?" I asked. "Who wolf-whistled at you?"
"You saw that?"
"I did, and... c'mon, Lila. They thought you were hot when you hadn't done your hair or your makeup, and you weren't in some really nice outfit, but a simple swimsuit. Which, I might add—and I'm saying this as a guy again—is pretty hot."
A little gasp escaped her. "Are you serious?"
"Pretty darn."
She looked out at the pool, at the women in bikinis, then she looked down at her own suit. It was so heartbreaking that she really didn't have much confidence in herself, enough to not believe that a guy could think her attractive in a one-piece swimsuit rather than a two-piece that didn't leave much to the imagination. But... and I couldn't lie... I wouldn't mind seeing her in such a swimsuit.
"Um," she began, her face nearing the color of her hair, and I had to smirk at it since it was so cute, "thank you. That's really nice of you to say. And..."
"You better not say shocking." I sat up straight in my chair again, being very serious. "Okay, I think from now on, you're going to see yourself in a better light. I get that it's hard, and that jerk made it hard for you, but you can do it. Look at my eyes, Lila." She did so since she was looking at the pool again. "I'm telling you the truth. You're very attractive, no matter what. In fact, I was even looking down at myself earlier because I was feeling a bit inferior."
Her eyes widened in surprise. "Really? You? Because of me?"
"Yes. Actually, in the scene today, Nico says that he felt vulnerable near Lahela because he was always in a hospital gown around her, but it turns out it was because she was gorgeous. It's the same thing here."
Her green eyes were still full of disbelief. "You... really think I'm...?"
If her hearing it over and over would help her move on from the negative image she had about herself, then so be it. "I do. As I said, I'm your friend as well as a guy who is girl-crazy. I admit it. So? Are you really going to start listening to people now?"
She nodded. "I have been, but I think now... Wow, it just took someone famous to say that I'm pretty, and I'm rethinking things."
"Hey, like I said again, I'm just a guy. And you know that I don't feel like I'm famous. But that's not the point." I squeezed her hand a little. "It's wonderful that you're finally seeing what everyone else sees. And you know? I think Ethan really thought you were beautiful, he was just sour about the whole situation and said hurtful things because of it."
"People have told me that before." She took a breath, releasing a lot of feelings, it seemed. "Okay, I think this trip really has forced me to turn over a new leave, and God saw fit to throw you into my life to help with it."
I grinned. "Well, I'm thrilled that He did. So... now, what are you gonna say about yourself?"
"That I'm a beautiful person inside and out. But it's going to be hard. I've thought the same way for such a long time... Well, time to turn over a new leaf. A new start."
I had a thought, and I showed her my phone, and she looked at it. "This is the script for the Lahaina Noon scene. Read Lahela's line."
She looked at my phone and read, "Oh, wow. This is off to a good start."
"Exactly."
She smiled, finally, and what a pretty sight it was. "Okay, I see your point."
More people appeared in this area, and I suddenly remembered that I wasn't just a guy who had an insane crush on the girl with me, but I was a famous guy who had the hand of a girl no one in my fanbase knew about. We both looked at my large hand over hers. I brought it more into mine, squeezed, then let it go. Boy, I loved the feeling of her little hand. I didn't want to let it go the first time I held it for that reason, when I shook her hand when we first met.
"So, I think I'm going to get a box for this," I said, and I excused myself and went to the restaurant counter. I had left my phone on the table, and I saw Lila take it up and read from it. I was given the to-go box, but I remained where I was, watching Lila. I was so thrilled that I was able to at least give her a little nudge in the right direction since she was so beautiful in every way, and she just had to see that.
"Hmm hm hm... hm hm hmm hmm hmmm..."
I started humming that Elvis song, one I was seriously thinking about learning on the guitar and singing it at some point to Lila.
"For I can't help falling in love with you..."
I blew air out of my mouth, taking in the real fact that after only six days, I was so in love with that redhead. At least, that was what I thought I felt. I was in an awkward place because of it with us being friends and with neither of us really wanting a relationship at the moment because of my busy life and because of her breakup. Plus, we both wouldn't be in Hawaii forever and would eventually part ways.
I went back to her, and I offered to walk her back to her suite. It completely escaped my mind to tell her that she could be an extra in the scene today.
~ ~ ~
I came into the suite as I heard the shower going, and I was in a slight daze, thinking about this morning. I just wanted to go out for a morning swim by myself, but I ended up seeing Milo and having a very pleasant conversation with him. He looked so adorable, not dressed as Nico but dressed as himself in lighter clothing, glasses, and his hair wasn't in the up-do, but was sitting tastefully on his head. It probably dried naturally like that.
I couldn't get those eyes out of my head, nor how he held my hand the majority of the time he was trying to tell me that what Ethan said was basically bologna, and that I should really try to see myself as beautiful like, he, my family and clearly everyone else saw me. It was such a natural thing, Milo holding my hand, something that Peyton told me he did because he was a friendly, feely person. But he was doing it to encourage me, too.
And it worked. Well, it didn't cure my self-deprecating, but talking with him and having him saying honestly with those eyes and that mouth of his that I was something to behold...
"Oh, wow..." I breathed, sitting on my bed. I checked my phone. 8:32. Milo said that he had to be at that Sky Gate sculpture here in the city at around ten, but he said that Melissa and I could show up close to noon, before actually filming the scene. He said that they did practice runs before the actual shooting.
The shower stopped, and I suddenly heard music coming from the bathroom. Melissa did that sometimes when getting ready—listen to music. Even though the band was popular around ten years ago, she started playing One Direction. She was still a huge fan of Harry Styles and wanted to go to one of his many concerts, though. I sat there, listening to the song, and I couldn't help but imagine Milo singing it to me, trying to tell me the very thing the song was trying to convey...
It seemed like I really had to get passed this negativity. I wanted to get passed it, anyway—that was one of the reasons for coming to Hawaii. And, boy, I was being thrown so many ways in which to get passed it.
Milo was a huge #1 on that list of things.
"You don't know you're beautiful!" Melissa shouted when the song was over, and I laughed. She was also probably really excited to get to see an actual show being filmed and meet more of the cast. Honestly, it was because they were beautiful boys, but still. I was pretty excited to see what it was like on a TV show set, too.
Melissa came out of the bathroom after twenty minutes, all ready for the day. Of course, she wore another really cute sundress, white this time, and she had her hair down in waves, and her face was covered with makeup, but in a tasteful way, not gobbed on there.
"You looked so pretty, Melissa," I complemented her, and she smiled brilliantly. She would sure turn those boys' heads, even if they were older than her and not allowed to go after her because of her age.
"Thanks. You going to get ready? We promised Mom and Dad that we would have breakfast with them, and they we would head over to the Sky Gate place."
Mom and Dad wanted to see it, so we planned to go there together before they set off on their day of activities, just the two of them. I told Milo this before we said goodbye to each other just half-an-hour ago.
"I'll get ready, I'm just... wow. I need to tell you something."
She gasped and sat next to me, clearly excited. "Wait? Did you meet up with Milo when you were going for a swim?" She pointed to my suit. "You were clearly at the pool."
"I was, and... actually... yes, Milo was there."
She screamed, and she demanded I tell her everything. And that meant everything. I had to get ready, so I showered as I was telling her, and I was telling her through the door as I was getting out of the shower, and as I was doing my hair and makeup, I was still telling her. She reacted to everything I told her, mostly to him saying what he really thought of my appearance.
"I so freaking told you, Lila!" she hollered. "Didn't I?!"
"Yes, you did, and could you lower your voice, please? I'm right next to you."
I was done putting on makeup, so now, I was putting on my earrings and necklace to compliment my blue dress that Melissa wanted me to wear last night. It was normal cotton, but it was a pretty style and strapless and went to the knee. To cover some skin on my back and at my collar area, I was leaving my curly hair down.
"He's so in love with you, Lila, c'mon."
"He was convincing me not to think so horribly about myself thanks to Ethan. He just used his opinions as examples, along with those guys wolf-whistling at me. I guess... well, that One Direction song hit me hard since I think that was what Milo was trying to tell me... what everyone was trying to tell me."
She nodded. "I highly agree. You didn't know you were beautiful until a hot guy told you so." She nudged me slyly. "A hot guy who happens to be an actor, singer and dancer."
I broke a smile as I was finished getting ready, and I met my pretty sister's big blue eyes complimented by her makeup. "Yeah, I know. But like I said to him, it's going to be hard. Breaking a habit, especially with ADHD, is..."
She brought me into a hug, and I immediately smelled her sweet perfume. "I know, just try. And whenever you find yourself thinking something negative about yourself, just think of Milo sitting there in front of you, staring at you with those big brown eyes of his and holding your hand so sweetly. No matter what you or Peyton have said, he was holding your hand because he likes you."
The natural thing for me was to agree to disagree with that, but... maybe she was right. Milo was indeed crushing on me. If he didn't show it by his kindness and compliments, it was a feeling that I had. "Okay, okay." We came out of the hug. "Let's get to breakfast and then Lahaina Noon."
She squealed with excitement, and we were off. At a little after eleven, we could easily see where they were going to film the scene. For one, there were a lot of people, and those tall film cameras could be seen, and the sculpture stood out in this park that was a part of the state capital building complex.
"Wow, would you look at that?" Dad enthused. And just a note, Melissa filled our parents in about the slumber party and what happened with me this morning. Mom said that Milo was an angel sent from God to help get me through this huge rut I was in. I agreed with her, and I also knew that Milo would love to hear that, knowing how he was.
"Quite the party going on here," said Mom. "Makes sense since this occurrence happens only twice a year, and there's a show being filmed. Maybe we shouldn't interrupt."
"Are you crazy, Mom?" Melissa demanded. "We were invited by one of the stars of Doogie Kamealoha himself! We have to be there! Or, I want to be there. You guys can go and do whatever."
Since we were parked, she got out of the car into the bright day. I laughed. "This is going to be fun, you guys. C'mon."
I exited the car, and the warm wind immediately caught my hair. Mom rolled the window down. "Honey, as amazing as this natural phenomenon is, I think your dad and I are going to skedaddle. It's just too crazy here for our liking."
My heart dropped in disappointment. "But you two wanted to see it, and you can even see a scene from the show being filmed."
"We're not as into that sort of thing as you and your sister," said Dad. "You girls have fun, okay? Call us or Uber a ride back to the hotel when you're all done."
"Or maybe your handsome actor friend can give you a lift." Mom winked.
"But... okay. I just wanted to experience this with you."
"This won't be the last time we come to Hawaii, for sure," said Mom. "You girls have fun and say hi to Milo and the other actors for us."
There was no changing their minds. "Will do. You guys have fun today."
We bid our last goodbyes, and they were off. I went to find Melissa, and I found her getting into the crowd of tourists wanting to see the sculpture and most likely the film set. "Hey, Melissa!" I called over the ruckus. "Mom and Dad left."
"What, really? The didn't want to see all this?"
"They changed their minds, apparently. Let's try and push through the crowd. I think the moment Peyton or Milo sees us, we'll be able to pass those guards I see up there. Hold on, wait... are those police officers?"
"I thinks so. This is a huge deal."
Before we could take another step closer to that sculpture, we heard our names in a female voice. We turned, and we saw Petyon walking up to us, wearing an orange top with one strap that showed her belly a little, and she had on vertical striped pants to match it, and Emma was behind her in shorts and a blue tank top that matched my dress. Peyton hugged me then Melissa.
"Hey, girls! Long time no see," she joked.
"Yeah, I know!" Melissa said, and we hugged Emma as well.
"Milo said that your parents were coming," said Emma, looking around us. "Where are they?"
"They felt that they couldn't handle the craziness here," I said. "But they say hi."
"Where are the boys?" Melissa asked, and I rolled my eyes. Of course, she was interested to know that.
"Over there," said Peyton, and she pointed behind her to a car that was parked maybe forty feet away, and there stood Milo, looking like Nico with the black pants, shoes, shirt and jeans jacket, and his hair stuck up stuck up in that 'do. He was accompanied by Alex and the guy who looked like the guy who played Kai in the show. That was Matthew, or Matt as everyone called him. I couldn't help my reaction to seeing all of them together...
"Holy cow, look at them!"
The girls laughed. "I know, right?" said Emma. "Quite the handsome bunch. We're actually on a little break right now so people can go see the sculpture. Or, I guess, since this is a scene with only Nico and Lahela, Peyton and Milo are taking a break. This scene actually happens after Lahela and Nico get together. The whole of the Jellyfish Jam scenes, the scene before this one, are being filmed throughout all next week."
"Jellyfish Jam?" Melissa asked.
"It's a school dance for the teens in Lahela's high school, or the high school she went to when she was like seven," Emma explained. "My character's school. It in that episode, two new couples are created."
"Boy, I can't wait to watch it!" I said excitedly, "Especially since I know the actors now."
"Or most of them," Melissa corrected. "Let's say hi to the boys. I want to meet Alex and Matt."
She couldn't get over there faster. Us girls started over, and that brought the attention of the boys. It was a comical sight—when they saw us, they stopped mid-conversation as their eyes widened and mouths opened. I had only seen things like this in movies. It was flattering for all us girls, the guys' reaction to us.
"Hey, boys," Peyton said as soon as we came up.
"Wow, look at all of you!" Milo exclaimed, a wide smile on his face. "I think the island just got prettier."
"You're such a charmer," Emma said, playfully punching his arm. "So, Alex and Matt, these are our new friends Lila and Melissa."
"I've met Lila already," said Alex to me. "Nice to see you again." I said the same. "And it's nice to meet you, Melissa."
Melissa stood post-still and blushing as this attractive guy with tan skin and dark hair put out his hand. She took his extended hand. "Um, yeah, you, too. Sorry, I'm just so nervous here and a bit starstruck."
"It's all good," said Matt as he put out his hand, and Melissa shook it. "Nice to meet you. I'm Matt."
Now this guy... his hazel eyes were sparkling as he was looking at Melissa. He greeted me as well, but then he looked right back at her, but hilariously, she looked back at Alex.
"So, let's show you the sculpture," said Peyton, and she took my arm, and Emma took Melissa's. "Excuse us, gents."
We left the boys, and Melissa was looking back at them. I did as well and saw that all three of them were watching after us. I happened to hear Matt ask, "Milo, those were the girls you befriended? Are you kidding me? They're more beautiful than the island, and that's saying something since I grew up here."
What a complement!
"Oh my heck, they were gorgeous," Melissa gushed as we rounded the crowd of people in this park trying to get to the sculpture and see the filming that wasn't happening at the moment. "And I mean all three. You girls are seriously so lucky. And I can see why you like Matt, Peyton. He's a cutie. I can see the Asian in him."
"Yeah, he grew up on the island, and his dad is actually half-Japanese, so he's fourth," she explained. "And he's a pretty nice guy. They all are."
"Alex is a seriously really hot guy," Melissa said. "Was I a complete idiot when I was talking to him? I just... I don't think a guy's given me that kind of impact before."
"You have to remember how old they are and how old you are, Melissa," I reminded her. "And they'll have to remember that, too. Matt had stars in his eyes."
"You two are just so beautiful, those boys couldn't take it," said Emma. "You saw how they all stared at us as we were walking up to them. I guess Milo won't have to do much acting for this scene since Nico has to be taken aback by Lahela's beauty. He can just recall seeing how beautiful you look, Lila, and nail the expression."
I wanted to say that he was reacting to all of us, but I was working on thinking better about myself. "Thanks, and... I can't get over how hot that guy is."
They giggled as we came up to the sculpture, and we all jumped when we heard a male voice behind us say, "It's something isn't it?"
We all turned and saw the guys standing behind us. My eyes widened and heart started beating up my throat. Did Milo hear what I said?!
"Were you guys following us?" asked Peyton with hands on her hips and in a mock accusatory tone.
"We took the best route to get to the sculpture to avoid all the people," Matt defended. "Sorry if it looked like we were following you."
"Likely story," she said as she ruffled his hair, a very sister thing to do since they played siblings, but I remembered that she had a thing for him. She was flirting. If they did this all the time, how did he not know that she liked him? He probably did. It was that feeling.
"Hey, Peyton, let's rehearse the scene for our little audience here," Milo suggested as tourists were around taking pictures. "Once more before we actual shoot."
"Okay, Nico," she said, using his character's name. "Let's do it."
We stood aside and watched as Milo went up to the center of the structure, to the circle in the middle as other people were there, too, and Peyton started walking up, and they got on their acting shoes. How fascinating this was! They were saying exactly what I read in the script on Milo's phone this morning.
"Wow. Okay, um... I thought I felt vulnerable in front of you because I was in a gown, but it turns out it's because you're gorgeous."
Milo walked down to her as she said, "Oh, wow. This is off to a good start."
"Oh, check this out." He stood there, arms out, and she looked as if she was wondering what he was doing.
"No shadow," he said, then pointed to the sky. "It's Lahaina Noon. It's when the sun is directly above you, so it doesn't cast any shadows. Look. The Sky Gate sculpture lines up perfectly."
He pointed over to the structure, and it was off a bit since it wasn't noon yet but getting there. When would they start shooing people away?
Milo and Peyton stood there looking up at the structure, and she takes his hand. My heart jumped. I had to remember that they were in a role, especially when she started counting his pulse. He turned to ask her, "What are you doing?"
"That's just how I hold hands. Oh, and there's something on your forehead."
She put a hand against his forehead. He smirked, amused. "How bad is it, Doc? Am I burning up?"
She put her hand down. "Sorry. You feel fine, actually, but it's hard to tell in this heat. Maybe we can find someplace to cool off. You know, someplace cute with a blood pressure cuff, like a hospital."
He huffed. "Lahela, can we just have one day where we can pretend that you're not a doctor and I'm not a cancer patient?"
Her eyes saddened. "I would love that, but you need care."
"I know, but just for today, okay? Let's just pretend that we are normal teens, and then we can focus on the next steps, okay? I promise."
"Nico." He gave her a serious look. "You know what? Okay. Your vitals appear normal. So I guess a few more hours won't hurt."
"Amazing! Okay, prepare yourself for the greatest day of your life."
Someone shouted something over a megaphone, which made all of us jump, especially us young people over here watching the practice scene take place. We were so sucked into it, that we forgot about other things going on around us.
"Please clear the area for filming! Filming will take place in twenty minutes! Actors, get ready!"
"That's literally our cue," said Milo, and he looked over at us. "So? What do you think? The scene goes on a tad longer with Nico and Lahela getting on the dirt bike and zooming off."
He indicated the bike about ten feet away from us. "It was amazing!" Melissa gushed. "It was like I was actually watching the real thing!"
"Same here, wow," I enthused. "I seriously can't wait to see this actual scene in the show and say that I watched it being done."
"It's an amazing feeling, it's it?" asked Alex. "We've all been there, especially when we get to watch our fellow actors."
The megaphone came on again to remind people to get going and stand behind the barriers, and that included us. Alex and Matt walked away, and Melissa and I followed after wishing our actor friends good luck. Once out of the scene and behind the barrier, I saw who I guessed was the director come up to Milo and Peyton, and they started talking. Milo was looking over at us now and then, and he came up to us a minute later.
"Lila, Melissa," he began, "I have a question for the both of you."
"What's that?" I asked.
He made his cute smirk. "How would you two like to be extras in this scene?"
Both Melissa's and my jaws dropped. We both asked at the same time with the same disbelieving tone, "I'm sorry, what?!"