Original Work: You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home, Chapter 8, Part 1
Chapter 8, Part 1
Maybe it was because the morning was winding down to an end and they’d been on the air for hours but Jeremy Windsor and Austin Reynolds were relatively easy on me. I didn’t have much experience giving radio interviews, but as far as I could tell, this one had gone as smoothly as could be expected. Though they poked fun at Emilia’s past escapades and questioned the motives behind this reformation, they weren’t as tough and hard to handle as I had expected they would be. I was starting to get comfortable in Emilia’s skin, though trying to keep up with my sister’s life still had it’s challenges, though I managed to blunder my way through any tough questions. At the end, after we were off the air, they seemed sincere in thanking me for being on the show, though Jeremy did look a little disappointed, as though he’d been expecting a little more out of the interview than I’d given. I guess I could have broken something on my way out.
I didn’t have much of a chance to congratulate myself on the miniature victory of getting through the interview without breaking down or falling into a stunned and confused silence because Schapelle and Linda were quickly ushering me back down to the lobby and out into the waiting car. This time there were more people grouped outside, no doubt summoned by the interview and as soon as I stepped outside I had camera and notepads and CDs thrust in my face, my ears ringing with people shouting out my sister’s name. I had to admit, all the attention felt nice; it was hard not to bask in the interest that everyone was constantly showing me and I couldn’t imagine how anyone could get tired of this. I couldn’t help but feel like, for a few minutes at least, the most important person on the planet, at least in the eyes of the people gathered around me, all wanting my attention.
The moment was short lived because Schapelle dispersed the crowd after several minutes, reminding me of the commercial shoot I was going to be late for if I didn’t pick up the pace. The crowd seemed disappointed and they remained on the sidewalk even after the car had pulled away from the curb and was disappearing into traffic. Maybe being Emilia wasn’t so bad all the time.
I had been watching the crowd grow smaller and smaller through the back of the car but now I turned around so I was facing the front once again. “So what kind of commercial is this?” I questioned, wondering if maybe I should have asked this beforehand. “I’m not going to be selling anything…embarrassing, right?”
Linda smiled at my question and shook her head. “Of course not. It’s for a new perfume that’s about to be released and the company wants you as their spokesperson.”
“You mean Emilia.” I doubted any perfume would be interested in Scout Gallagher endorsing their product.
For a minute, Linda looked a little taken aback, as though she’d forgotten that we were actually two different people and that we hadn’t just miraculously merged into one. “That’s what I meant. It gets a little confusing.” She laughed and shrugged her shoulders.
I decided not to dwell on the details, figuring that I would probably get tangled up in my own thoughts. “So why didn’t Emilia want to be in their commercial?” I figured that my sister would have jumped at the chance to have her face splashed across television and magazines. Countless celebrities endorsed products and I couldn’t understand why my sister didn’t want to be one of them.
Linda didn’t seem to have an answer either. “Anything that seemed like it would be good for her career wasn’t something she was interested in.” She said after she’d shrugged and admitted she’d never asked Emilia the reasoning behind her decisions. “She didn’t use to be like that, she used to love to sing and perform and meet people.”
It seemed like Emilia was suffering a starlet’s case of teenage angst; when normal teenagers fell into a funk, it didn’t end up splashed across the front page of every newspaper in the country.
“When she sees how this improves her image, she’ll change her tune.” Schapelle predicted from the front seat. “She’ll be begging to take your place in no time.” And then I would be back home in Little Paris, watching my sister’s antics from afar once again.
Though Schapelle and Linda both swore that traffic had thinned out since our trip to the radio station, I couldn’t see any proof of their words. I watched as the city inched past the window, trying to remember all the shops and places I wanted to visit if I ever got the chance. I had to be able to do at least a little sight-seeing before I went back home; what was a trip without some souvenirs and pictures to show for your troubles?
Michaela looked at me and rolled her fake color-contacted eyes. “No, I’ve started a new career as a weather forecaster.” She snapped.
Oh, really? What was the forecast? Partly cloudy with a hundred percent chance of bitch? “Well, it’s always good to have a back up career.” I replied and Michaela’s eyes narrowed into slits. Schapelle and Linda both managed to keep their laughter to controlled snorts.
Thankfully the elevator reached their floor and Michaela and her manager quickly left without a backward glance. I couldn’t keep from muttering, “Bitch,” though it was only after the word left my lips that I realized the doors weren’t completely closed.
Linda looked at me and arched an eyebrow. “Maybe you are a little more like Emilia than we gave you credit for.” But it didn’t sound like it was completely a bad thing.
If you enjoyed this, please check out the next part here.