Chapter 7
It was two weeks after my birthday celebration and final exams were coming up
soon. For the rest of May and early June, I planned on concentrating more on my
studies than anything else. That is, until one day Tony called me from his
office and told me that he’d come over after work because he had something
really important to tell me. From that point on until he arrived, I wondered
what it was that he had to tell me.
When he arrived, we went into my bedroom and sat on the couch.
“So what was the
important thing that you had to tell me?” I asked while playfully hitting
his leg.
“I received a phone
call from Kenneth today.”
“What did he
say?”
“First he asked if
you got the flowers he sent on your birthday and I said yes. Then he said
he’s going to be acting in and directing a new movie and he wants you to
be in it.”
“He wants ME to be
in HIS movie?” I bet that Tony had never seen such a look of shock on a
woman’s face until he saw mine! I couldn’t even begin to imagine
myself in a Kenneth Branagh film. That seemed so high up there to me. “Are
you being serious?”
“I’m serious.
But he wanted me to just ask you first, and if you refuse then he’ll go
find somebody else. He told me that he was reserving this role just for you. But
of course you can talk to him to at least get an idea of what the movie’s
about and all that.”
“I really
wouldn’t care what it’s about at this point. As long as I’m in
a movie, I don’t mind. Even if it had the suckiest plot ever, I’d
still do it.”
“So you’re
going to take the role?”
“Why not? This
could be the beginning of something great. But with my
luck…”
Tony moved closer and put his arm around my shoulder. “Now don’t you
go on about bad luck again. You just THINK you’re cursed. It’s all
in your head.”
“If that’s
what you want to think. You have no idea how many times bad luck has hit me.
Whenever I get what I want and everything goes how I wish, there’s always
something that comes along and ruins it. For instance that whole Nannette thing.
We fell in love, which was the happiest thing that’s happened in my life,
and Nannette comes in to mess everything up.”
“That’s all
in the past. Look at your life at this moment. Has bad luck come your
way?”
“Not
yet.”
“No luv you
can’t be thinking that way. I said right now. Where are
you?”
“Probably the
happiest that I could ever be, just being with you.”
“Now that’s
what I want to hear!”
We positioned ourselves to hug one another and sat that way for as long as we
could.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Before Tony left my place that afternoon,
he gave me Kenneth’s cell phone number and told me to call him. I dialed
the number and waited for an answer.
“Yeah?”
“Hello,
Kenneth?”
“Jennifer? Is that
you? I’ve been expecting a call from you!”
“Yeah! Tony told me
that you called and explained about the movie.”
“Well first of all,
let me start by asking this. Did you like the flowers?”
“Yes I loved them!
Thank you so much!”
“It was the least I
could do for an old friend’s fiancé. What did Tony get you for your
birthday?”
“Um, we went out
for dinner at an Italian restaurant and then went home.”
“No
gifts?”
I thought about it for a while and
realized that Tony didn’t get me any presents!
“Actually he did
give me a present: himself.”
“How is
that?”
“Well besides the
most obvious way to give himself to me, he didn’t go out and buy something
for me and say ‘Here. Happy Birthday.’ He tried to spend the whole
day with me but got caught up in work.”
“You know what?
I’ve figured it out. He thought that if he spent the whole day with you,
you wouldn’t care about getting a physical gift. If you loved him enough,
you wouldn’t care about him actually getting you
something.”
“Oh, so my love for
him would have distracted me from thinking about birthday
presents.”
“That’s
correct.”
“I see. So about
this movie…”
"It’s about this college student who falls for one of her
professors. They do that and they have to keep everything a
secret."
"Hmm. So it’s
almost like a based on a true story movie?"
"See I had a feeling
it would offend you, but once I read this script I thought you’d be
perfect for the part. If you don’t want to do it—"
"I’ll do
it."
"You
will?"
"Yeah. I don’t
mind going through all that again."
"Fantastic! Shooting
starts July first. I’ll let you know of any arrangements and preparations
for the film."
"Thank you, Kenneth.
You really are a wonderful man, you know that?"
"You are very welcome,
Jennifer."
"Why are you doing this for me?"
"Because you are my
friend, and you told me yourself that you wanted to be in a movie so here you
are."
"Thanks again,
Kenneth. I don’t know how to repay you."
"Oh don’t worry
about that. You don’t owe me anything."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Well, so much for concentrating on my studies. All I could think about was the
movie I was going to be in. One day I went to Theresa’s place so that we
could study for the exams together. We studied half the time I was there, but
near the end of the day we both got sidetracked. Theresa and I were sitting on
the couches in her living room, where there were books and notebooks scattered
all over the table and floor.
"Hey I just remembered
something," said Theresa as she left the room.
"What is it?" I
asked and put my notebook down on the couch. Theresa came back in with the
school newspaper in her hand.
"Here. You can read
what Nannette wrote about you and Tony in the paper." She handed me the
papers and I noticed that we were on the cover page.
Dundee Rector Secretly
Romances Student
Dundee’s own Rector, Tony Slattery, had been romancing Jennifer Frianela,
a student who recently moved here to Dundee from the United States. The two have
been carrying on a relationship since September and have kept it a secret until
now. Questionings have been conducted and an interview with Theresa Evans,
Jennifer’s closest friend, reveals more of the situation.
"She mentioned that
she was a big fan of Tony’s before she came here. They met one day and
instantly hit it off." Apparently Slattery, 41, initiated the relationship,
much to the approval of Frianela, 18. Others don’t agree.
"It’s totally
wrong. To me, she is still a child. Eighteen or whatever, I don’t care. It
would be like my husband dating my daughter! I would see why she would agree to
the relationship, but I hope there is something in that girl’s heart
telling her it’s not right."—Anonymous.
An
anonymous staff member of the University confronted Principal Langlands and
informed him of the situation. Slattery has attended a hearing to discuss his
rectorship, and it seems that it is still intact. As for Jennifer, she has left
Dundee and gone back to the U.S. No word on whether they have ended their
relationship together.
"Interesting
article," I said as I put it away in one of my notebooks.
"Yeah I know.
Everybody was talking about it while you were gone."
"Oh well. It’s
in the past. I’m not going to worry about it anymore."
"So what about this
movie you were telling me about?"
"Oh! It’s about
this college student and professor who fall in love and they have to keep their
relationship a secret."
"Kinda hits home,
doesn’t it?"
"Yeah, I don’t
care. And I know that once the people here see the movie, they’re going to
relate it to me."
"Who’s playing
the professor?"
I sat there and thought about it. Kenneth
never told me who I was starring with, or who was even going to be in the
movie.
"I don’t know.
Kenneth never told me."
"What if it’s
him? What if Kenneth is the man you’re going to fall in love
with?"
"So what? That would
be great."
"Oh please.
Don’t tell me you’re not that excited and that you don’t find
him attractive."
"No I do find him
attractive. It is exciting to be in a Branagh movie it’s just
that…Well I can’t think of Kenneth in that sort of way anymore.
I’ve got Tony."
"We’ll see."
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