More than a week had gone by, but Noelle still felt the phantom weight of the costume on her shoulder. It was a very heavy burden for such a young girl. It might be a good idea to ask for a hazard pay.
That day she would visit the set. And he would be there. These past days, she behaved as professionally and coldly as possible around him. Distant, but still awkward. She hoped that he would do something awful, something that would extinguish any flicker that dared to appear within her.
But first, she had to talk to her parents. That morning they had their usual video call. It was past two o'clock back home. Classes were over for both of them, making it easier to catch up with her before work.
The camera's tiny green light flickered, and her face filled the screen. She grimaced at the reflection; the lighting made her look awfully tired, like she hadn't slept in days. Knowing this would only invite a barrage of questions from her mother, she hastily angled the laptop, trying to catch a more flattering light.
On the screen, the question 'Ready to join?' pulsed mockingly. She took a deep breath, clicked 'Join now,' and stepped into the digital void. 'You are the only one here,' Google informed her, a reminder that she was well-trained - always on time.
A few moments later, her father logged in.
"Cherie! Bonjour!" he said, a large smile on his face making him look much younger. He was at his office at the university, probably working on the new article he was talking about.
"Bonjour papa!" she replied, also smiling.
"Before your mother joins us, let me tell you something! Sébastien has a girlfriend!"
She began blinking. Her baby brother had a girlfriend? Well, baby brother he was, but a baby no longer. He would turn fifteen in October.
"Sébastien? Our Sébastien?"
"Yes! I found out two days ago. They were kissing in the backyard! If your mother were to see them…"
That last thought was terrifying. Her mother had a strict 'policy' - no romantic relations until school is over. She had followed that rule, but her brother… He seemed brave. Or reckless.
"Anyhow, they didn't see me. Try to find out what's going on!" her father said.
"You know, he doesn't speak to me a lot. And aren't you the one who should talk to him… about these things?"
"I'm not talking about… these things. He is too young, right?"
"Is he, papa? Please talk to him. I'll try to find out something."
Their family gossip was interrupted by her mother logging in. The moment she appeared on screen, her father's face straightened.
"Noelle, bonjour," she said.
As always, she had the stern headmistress mask on, the same she was addressing every kid at school.
"Bonjour, maman. Ça va?"
"Everyhting is fine, thank you, dear. What about you? Is your thesis progressing? When am I going to take a look at it? You need reviews before submitting," her mother demanded.
"Maman, I'm half way there, but I told you. I don't want any help."
Like she was going to ever show her the real thesis. Celebrity marketing! Her mother screams would cross the ocean. She only knew that Noelle had an internship in the 'Red Ocean' group of companies, with diverse activities - which was true.
"I respect that, but…"
Her father interrupted her. "Béatrice, trust Noelle. She'll ask for our assistance if necessary."
"Auguste, I feel you two are conspiring again. Anyhow, how is the weather there today?" her mother continued.
And they kept talking about indifferent casual things for a couple more minutes.
When they hung up, Noelle decided she should schedule calls with her father alone.
_______________________________________
An hour later she was at the set.
"Good-morning sweety!" Mi-Suk said, when Noelle reached the basecamp.
"Hey Mi-Suk! Anything out of the ordinary today?"
"No, luckily! Chae-Youn has no scenes, so our boy is the ultimate star!"
"He wants to be the center of attention the whole time, doesn't he?" Noelle was trying to gather all the necessary scores to make him look like a villain.
"Attention? Not at all? If he wasn't a movie star, he would be an archivist, hidden behind his desk, avoiding all contact. Ye-Jun is incredibly introverted."
Noelle scratched her head. "Introvert?"
"Yeah, why does this surprise you? Arrogant he may be, but that doesn't keep him from being a wallflower."
Mi-Suk could be right. Noelle decided to dismiss that thought. It didn't fit her narrative.
She saw him from afar, approaching. She carefully walked away to avoid him - again.
_______________________________
After almost nine hours, that day was over! Noelle felt so tired. With Mi-Suk, they had to follow Ye-Jun around to film and take pictures, after his filming was completed. Her band reported something less than twenty thousand steps. God... And it was a warm day. Of course, Mr. Male Lead had a small car that was carrying the cast around. Little he cared if they were struggling behind him.
She packed her stuff quickly, greeted Mi-Suk and the other crew members and set off for the bus station. To get there she had to walk through the parking lot.
While walking, she was thinking of the cold shower she would enjoy soon. And then she would do the final review of chapter four of her thesis. So close to finishing this part of her life. Good riddance Mr Yeong!
Suddenly, she heard a cry. Not a human cry. It was a cat. A kitten actually.
And it was a piercing, shrill cry. There was a problem.
She looked around to find where the meowing was coming from. She first took a look at the trees. It wouldn't be the first time that she would find a kitten stuck up on a branch. Depending on the size of the tree, she would be able to climb up to get it down. But there was no sign of a kitten there.
The sound was coming from a lower spot. She took a look under a couple of cars. Noelle didn't spot anything. But the cry was heard again, and now she could locate it somewhere around a blue hatchback. She started looking under the car, behind and on the wheels. Nothing.
She heard it again. The kitten sounded scared. Poor little thing... Where was it?
When it started meowing again, begging for help, she realised that it was in the worst place possible. Somehow it had climbed inside the car engine and got trapped in there.
Shit!
There was no way she could help it right now. The car was locked and she could not imagine where to look for the owner. She looked through the grilles but again no sign of the kitten.
"Hé! Chaton! Où es-tu?" Noelle said. French came naturally. But then she said again in Korean: "Hey! Kitty! Can you hear me?". Of course, cats don't speak any language, but she thought that Korean might sound familiar to it.
She wanted to go home, but wouldn't leave it alone no matter what. She would just stay there until the driver returned. She had a life to save.
She sat on the pavement. Luckily a tree provided some shade. She grabbed her phone and started looking up information on how to take a kitten out of a car engine.
"Don't worry little one! I will stick around until you're safe and sound!"
After reading enough information on what other people have done in similar situations, she started to look at pictures and diagrams of the particular car's engine.
The kitten was crying now and Noelle started talking to it: "Hey little one! I'm here for you!". She extended her hand and touched the grilles. Probably it could smell her and feel a bit better. "See how much I care for you? I will stay here by your side. All night long if it takes! You are my number one now!" she continued.
At that moment she heard something like a guffaw and a snort from someone standing behind her. She was startled and turned around quickly.
She froze.
Yeong Ye-Jun was standing next to the tree, holding a headset and trying to keep himself from laughing. He was not that successful although.
Noelle looked at him angrily. "What are you doing here?"
"Sorry, I didn't want to interfere with your... confession," Ye-Jun responded laughing.
"What the hell are you talking about?" Noelle said even more angrily. He was making fun of her.
Ye-Jun was still laughing, and took him a while to reply. "So, you're one of those guys who marry their vacuum? Or their fridge?" he said while he was clearly enjoying himself.
Noelle's eyes narrowed to slits, her lips pressed into a thin line.
"Ok, now go do your thing and let me flirt all I want," Noelle said.
"I had no intention to intervene. But as I was walking by, listening to my favorite playlist, I saw you sitting here. I approached and saw blueprints on your screen. Like you were preparing to steal the car. My reputation would be ruined! So, I had to stop you. But... it was more interesting!" Ye-Jun said excited.
"Oh my god... I had realized you were demented but you keep confirming my diagnosis. Now, please go...."
"I am the subject of your book. Will you present me there as demented?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Book? I'm not writing a book. Anyway, I can assure you, I'm not dealing with your sanity. Just go...." Noelle insisted.
"Hey, that's my line!" Ye-Jun said.
But then, he heard it too. "What was that?" he asked, turning serious.
Oh no! Now I won't be able to get rid of him! He and the animals…
"An angry lion that will eat you alive!" Noelle said sarcastically.
"No seriously, is it under the car?" he asked again while dropping his bag and falling down on his knees to look under the blue hatchback.
Noelle didn't expect that. He started looking carefully, as much as he could. He didn't mind that his clothes would get dirty. Even his hair was all over the ground. His hands would be full of dirt, but he was moving around to make sure he hadn't missed a spot.
She knew he loved animals and nature. But going to such lengths? It didn't exactly serve her plan to make him look… bad.
"It is not under. It's in the car," she informed him.
"In?"
"Inside the engine. I'll wait for the owner to get it out," she said.
"So, that was what you were doing. You were talking to the kitten," Ye-Jun said, looking at her a little bit longer than he should, with a strange smile on his face. It was strange because it seemed genuine.
"Yeah.. Now go..." Noelle said in a hurry. She didn't want to be confused or anything.
"No way! I don't trust you can handle this. I am going to save it!" Ye-Jun said.
Thank you for reminding me who you are!
He was again the same arrogant and insolent prick he was usually.
"Trust me, I'm fully capable," she said, annoyed.
"You haven't done your homework properly!" Ye-Jun said as he was sitting on the pavement like Noelle. "You should have read about how I rescued a little lamb a few years ago during a filming up on the mountains!"
Yeah, she had forgotten about that. He had clambered down a steep hill to save a lamb that seemed trapped there.
"Really? Did a lamb need a rescue?" she said.
"Of course it did! And I got away with just a light fracture."
"You broke your leg during the... operation?"
"Light fracture, I said. And yes the production sued me for delaying the filming, there was a penalty, but it didn't go public. So don't mention anything to a soul," he said, with a meaningful look.
What's wrong with him? Why is he so talkative and honest?
"Anyway, Chloe is not looking for more penalties so leave this to me," she said, trying to send him off.
He paused. Looked at the car and then turned to her.
"Let's agree on something. For today, for the kitten. Let's work together."
He extended his hand, ready for a hand-shake. And he smiled.
"Truce?"
Noelle stared open-mouthed. Why was she thinking of shaking that hand?