Page 35 of Holly Jolly July

Ellie

This morning while Mariah got ready, I made us breakfast, brewing a big pot of coffee while whipping up some eggs and toast.

Mariah comes out of the bathroom looking stunningly gorgeous as she always does, her hair defying gravity in its intricate

teal swoops and curls, makeup done to perfection, and smelling like shea moisturizer. After we eat breakfast together I have

a quick shower, careful not to get my hair wet, and we carpool into town.

I’m tired from staying up too late last night, but I have zero regrets. Something happened between us, something I can’t put

into words, or even sort in my own mind, but it’s different. At least, I think so. I could have sworn she’d wanted to kiss

me.

I’ve had feelings like this before. It’s an odd tickle in the back of my mind, like an itch you ignore long enough that it

eventually goes away. But last night it wouldn’t subside. I’d had a hard time letting my thoughts of Mariah go, tossing and

turning while imagining her out on the sofa with those beautiful plump lips of hers parted as she slept.

When I thought I’d finally found escape by slipping unconscious, I was only met with horny dreams of Mariah and myself dancing

together in explicit TikToks.

I woke even more perturbed than when I fell asleep. The itch in the back of my mind had spread to somewhere deep inside my

core, stronger than it’s ever been before.

Only this time, I’m not sure if I want those feelings to fade.

With Mariah focused on driving, I let my eyes linger on her profile. I’d always noticed how beautiful she is; how could anyone

not? I’ve looked at her a hundred times, but this time feels different, like I’m seeing her in a new way.

Can she tell I’m sitting in the car next to her, thinking about how the seat belt parts her breasts? Or about the way the morning light highlights the flecks of green in her eyes? Or how her lip-stain leaves no mark on the rim of her coffee cup and she could easily kiss me and no one would know?

I squirm in my seat and look out the passenger window, trying to focus on something else. But even the mountains, backlit

in gold and pink with a glorious sunrise, can’t distract me from how close she is, from how much I want to be closer to her.

We go all the way into work with neither of us speaking. For the first time, I don’t know what to say. I feel like saying

anything might break the fragile... whatever it is between us, and all I want to do is bask in it.

Mariah begins my makeup routine as she always does, spreading a cool, clear goop onto my skin. Her touch is different though,

slower, softer, more methodical. She lingers on the hump of my nose, a nearly imperceptible smile meeting her lips. She massages

it into my cheeks. She swipes delicately over my cheekbones. The brushstrokes of foundation are carefully applied with smooth,

firm strokes, and I find myself missing the touch of her fingers.

“Close,” she says, her voice barely above a whisper, her eyes meeting mine.

I oblige, allowing my lids to fall shut as she works with delicate care. With my eyes closed I can imagine her doing anything,

like bringing her lips to mine. My pulse quickens at the thought, and it takes all my effort to stay still.

I should be thinking about my lines, not about Mariah’s touch. I need to focus on filming my scenes, not on how good Mariah

smells. I have to get my head in the game, but all I want is to explore this new feeling with her.

She’s finished my makeup too quickly and steps back, leaving me bereft. I look in the mirror at a faded version of myself and feel self-conscious next to Mariah and her vibrancy, with her rosy cheeks, bright red lips, and turquoise hair.

“Thanks,” I squeak as I get up.

“You okay? This is the least you’ve spoken since we’ve met,” Mariah says, repeating what I said to her last night in a different

way.

I nod. “Yeah, just tired. And nervous, I guess.”

She reaches out and squeezes my arm. “You’re gonna rock it.” Her hand stays there for exactly seven seconds—five seconds longer

than necessary—and I’m craving more.

“Ellie, we need you in costume,” Jimmie’s voice calls from somewhere in the crowd, which I’d completely forgotten exists,

as if Mariah and I created a tiny vacuum-sealed bubble around us.

“See you later,” I tell Mariah, breaking away from her spell.

Once I’m away from her I can breathe again and focus on the day, going over my lines, the blocking, the storyline, and get

into character. After I’m dressed, I make my way down to the set, where several extras are waiting. Walking past the blue

fencing and into a winter wonderland would normally send a bolt of excitement through me, but today it barely garners a smile.

I wait in the coffee shop and listen as Yueyi goes over everything with the gaffer and grip.

Julia and Oscar join a few minutes later, chatting amicably. I should be stoked to finally be on set with a juggernaut like

Oscar Fizak and a rising star like Julia Miles, but I can’t lie to myself. There’s somewhere else I’d rather be.

“Ready?” Oscar asks me with all of his swagger, but his usual charm has less of an effect than it normally does. Even Julia’s

perfect toothpaste-commercial smile holds little sway. My mind goes back to a tall woman with enviable curves and a sarcastic

semi-permanent smirk.

Teal catches my eye and I look past him, off set. Mariah is there behind the monitors with the rest of the crew. We make eye

contact, and the corner of her mouth lifts in a smile.

I grin back, focusing on her and how settled she makes me feel. “I was born ready.”

After a full day of filming, and only one retake despite Mariah taking up so much room in my thoughts, I start to make my

way off set toward hair and makeup.

“Great job, Ellie,” the grip says as I pass.

“Thank you.” I smile, surprised by the compliment.

The gaffer joins in. “Yeah, you really knocked it out of the park.”

“Oh, really? Why—”

Oscar and Julia approach me, a phone between them. “This is good stuff,” Oscar says. Julia nods, giving me a thumbs-up.

“Thanks.” I’m taken aback that I’m finally getting the recognition I deserve, and from the leads no less. All my work and

dedication is paying off! “I’m glad we finally had a day on set together! I could really feel the tension between you two,

and feeding off that worked wonders for my own character. It felt great working with you both today, and I hope we get other

opportunities after this to—”

“Oh, we mean your TikTok,” Oscar clarifies, pointing to his phone.

Julia nods. “The horny alien? Love it!”

“Wh-what?” I stammer, baffled. How do they know about that?

Mariah pushes past the crowd and grabs me by the shoulders. “Ellie!”

My skin tingles at her touch. I hope she can’t see me blush under my layers of pasty makeup. “Mariah?”

She grips me harder. “It’s our video. It blew up.”

I narrow my gaze. “What do you mean, ‘blew up’?”

Mariah shows me her phone. “It’s at four million views.”

“Four million ?” My mouth hangs open. “I thought you said you only had a few hundred followers!”

“I did. But now I’m at twenty thousand and climbing. I can’t keep up with all the comments and messages. It’s... surreal. I’m sorry, I had no idea this would happen, I—”

“Wait, why are you sorry?”

Mariah gestures to the room. “Everyone’s seen it. They’ve seen... us. Like that.”

I shrug. “It’s just acting, though. Nothing to be ashamed of.”

Her shoulders slacken. She takes a moment to consider this. “Yeah. You’re right. Just acting.”

“I get it, it’s your first time on film for a large group of people. It can be nerve-racking, but you get used to the attention.”

I rub her arm in consolation.

She looks from my hand and back to me. “Right.”

“If anything, this is good! More publicity for you and your work, more publicity for my acting career.” I take her arm and

turn her toward the exit. “Now four million people have seen your incredible makeup skills!”

“What about your directing talents?” she adds. “The film wouldn’t have been anything without your ideas and you calling the

shots.”

I scoff. “No, it’s the way you designed the alien that’s getting all the attention. You killed it!”

“I think it’s how you embodied the alien and brought it to life.”

“But we did it—we went viral!” I squeeze her against me before letting her go to grab the door. “We make a great team.”

Mariah nods in agreement, that adorable half smile of hers lighting up her face. “Yeah, we do, don’t we?”

“Ellie?” a familiar voice calls from somewhere off set.

We halt where we are, me half outside and holding the door open for Mariah. I look over my shoulder and panic, shutting the

door quickly.

Mariah mouths, What? through the window.

I mouth back, Matt!

She gawps and takes three big steps backward. Our cover was almost blown.

I give Mariah a wide-eyed stare through the door, then put on a bright smile and jaunt to where Matt is standing on the other

side of the fence. I wait for butterflies, for tingles, for something , but nothing happens. “What are you doing here?”

He flashes his hundred-watt smile, which is regrettably back to its pearly-white lustre. His smile used make me weak in the

knees, but now just makes me sick to my stomach. “Haven’t heard from you in a few days,” he says. “And I thought this would

be less creepy than showing up at the cabin.”

“Ha... yeah, you’re right.” I give him some finger guns. “Still a little creepy, though.”

“Or is it romantic?” He pulls a small bouquet of orange and pink dahlias from behind his back.

I gasp, eyeing the arrangement. “A point for romance.”

“What time are you finished here? Can I take you out for dinner? I know this amazing—”

“Actually,” I interrupt, stopping him there, “we have more filming to do. It’s just a quick break, a touch-up in hair and

makeup, and then I’m full on again. But I’ll call you, okay?”

His smile wanes. I reach through the fence and hold out my hand, which he takes.

“I’ll call you,” I reassure. If I didn’t know he was a two-timing player I’d almost feel guilty. But I know the truth about

him now. His acting skills are nearly on par with my own.

“What do you want me to do with these?” Matt gestures with the flowers, unable to fit them through the fence.

“Keith?” I ask.

The guard takes them for me. “I’ll deliver them.”

Matt thanks him, gives me a wink through the fence, and walks off.

I take a few steps backward, then turn and bolt to the café set. Mariah is there waiting. “He’s gone,” I tell her, opening

the door and double-checking over my shoulder.

She exhales a relieved breath. “That was close.”

“Yeah. I didn’t think of it before, but what if he sees our TikTok? He’ll see us together and then our cover will be blown.”

“Should we... delete it?” She looks down at her phone as if it’s something precious.

“No. Leave it. But we have to act fast.” I grab her and pull her along the sidewalk.

“What do you mean?”

The guard interrupts us, handing me the bunch of flowers. Mariah and I eye it, then look at each other. “He obviously hasn’t

learned anything from our pranks,” I say, waving the flowers about.

She sighs. “You’re right.”

I open the door for her and let her go up the stairs ahead of me, trying not to be distracted by her bubble butt in her tight

pants. “We have to try again, use a different tactic.”

Mariah holds the door open for me at the top of the stairs. “What are we going to do, though?”

I march to Mariah’s station, throw the flowers down in an open spot, and flop into the seat. Grabbing the box of remover wipes,

I begin scrubbing at my face. “Making him smell bad didn’t work. I caught a whiff of him through the fence, and if anything,

he smells better than before.”

Mariah takes the wipes from me and starts working, much more gently, at removing the makeup. “I’m not surprised by that. He

has a good natural musk.”

“Agreed.” I roll my eyes. “Lucky bugger. My natural musk is like overripe parmesan.”

Mariah huffs her weird wheezy laugh. “No, it’s not.”

“And I was thinking,” I continue, ignoring her comment, “equipping him with a year’s supply of condoms and lube isn’t exactly

teaching him anything.”

Mariah snorts another laugh. “You mean a month’s supply.”

“Right?”

“Let’s brainstorm tonight,” Mariah says, applying a moisturizer to my clean skin, which she’s never done before. “We’ll come up with a new plan. A better plan.”

“I like the way you think, but we can’t tonight.”

Taking a step back, she rubs the spare moisturizer into her hands while regarding me through the mirror. “Why?”

“We have dinner with your parents.”

Mariah pales. “Oh. Right. Well, this is more important, so we can cancel—”

“Nope,” I interrupt, standing. “You’ve put this off for far too long.”

Mariah seems to shrink in on herself.

I grab her shoulders and force her to make eye contact, leaning in close. “It’s going to be fine. I’ll be there with you,

remember? I’m your buffer. You don’t even have to talk. I can talk enough for the both of us.”

“This is true.” Mariah relaxes under my touch.

“And you promised them you’d see them. How nice has it been not getting called by your mom every five minutes?”

She considers this. “It’s been nice.”

“Exactly. How much better will it feel knowing you’ve done your due diligence and visited your parents while you’re in town?”

“You’re right.” Mariah tenses once more. “But you don’t know what it’s like with them. Your family sounds great. And why isn’t

your mom calling you all the time?”

I release her. “I’m the middle child of eight siblings. She barely remembers I exist.”

“Ouch.”

I shrug. “Just facts. Now quit stalling, I have to go get ready to meet your parents!”

“Sit back down and I’ll do you up.”

I squeak, clenching my fists. “Really?”

“Of course,” she says, as if it’s the most natural thing in the world.

I take my seat once more, trying not to squirm in excite ment.

I love how Mariah does my makeup; it’s like she sees the real me and accentuates it rather than using my face as a blank canvas to turn into whatever she wants.

She brings out the best in me, in all the features I’ve learned not to love over the years, all the parts I’ve deemed imperfect. She helps me see them the way she does.

No one has made me feel more beautiful, more myself, than Mariah.