Chapter Twenty-Six
Hailey
I was cooked from the sun. It had been a long day, but a fun one. I was a little buzzed from the beer and definitely on a high from catching the fish. I hadn’t been thrilled about getting woken up early for fishing, mainly because I had never been and all I wanted to do was sleep, but I was really glad we had gone.
The day had been fun in a lot of ways. The fishing was definitely the highlight of the day, and then there was, of course, Caleb, who kept kissing me every chance he got. I don’t know why it surprised me; it was my job after all to play his girlfriend, but I still found myself astonished when he would wrap his arms around me or pull me in for a kiss. I couldn’t complain, nor did I want to. I loved being close to him, even if it was just for show.
We were heading back to the shore to grab some dinner. Caleb knew of a great seafood place on the water that we could go to for dinner, and the idea of eating some crab made my stomach grumble. When we docked, Matt got out of the boat and tied it up. He then helped Mandy and I out of the boat while Caleb hauled out the coolers. We were bringing our fish to Caleb’s parents’ house to eventually grill. We packed away our coolers and Caleb settled with the owner.
We then piled back into the car and drove to the seafood place. It wasn’t far from the marina and was a happening place. Caleb talked to the hostess and got us a table outside on the patio. It didn’t look like there was any room, but the hostess knew who Caleb was and made sure to get a table ready for him. It must be nice just to walk into any restaurant you want and know that you would have a table. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted that life – that was one of the many benefits I would have as an actress.
The hostess led us to the table, and we all settled in. Looking out at the view I was mesmerized. It was so beautiful, and although we had already been out on the water that day, the view startled me every single time. It was breathtaking.
“It’s so gorgeous out here,” Mandy said as if she was reading my mind. We all nodded and then started opening our menus. I decided to get a plate of crab and lobster with mashed potatoes, and it was all I could do not to drool all over the table. The waiter arrived, and Caleb ordered us a pitcher of beer, and we all put in our food orders, as well.
We chatted for a little while about the fish and the things that were going on during the week. We were tired, and it was mindless chit chat for awhile. I sipped on the cool drink the waiter had brought, letting it refresh me from the day. It was a great day, and I was thankful that I was getting the opportunity to be part of these kinds of days.
We got onto the conversation of the majors, and Matt was talking about how good Caleb was doing so far. I couldn’t help but beam with pride. I always knew he was a good player from what I read on the internet, but having it confirmed by Matt only made me happier for Caleb.
“Now we just need to focus on what Dr. Brentwood told you.”
Caleb nodded almost lost in thought.
“Are you seeing a doctor?” I asked carefully.
He looked over at me and smiled. “Yeah, it was something that the sponsor suggested. I actually went, and I think that it ended up being a good idea. I have a problem at the majors, and the doctor thinks it’s too much pressure. So, he gave me some ideas to try to prevent it from happening again.”
“What exactly is the problem?” Mandy asked. We weren’t being nosy; we all genuinely cared about what happened to Caleb. I, for one, wanted to hear what he really felt about the fact that he choked when things got close.
“I choke. I will finally get to there, everything looks good, and then I manage to do things to fuck it all up. I suddenly start playing poorly, mainly because I can’t breathe or focus on anything. I choke like a rookie.”
“Easy there, man; it’s not your fault.”
“Why do you think you do that?”
Caleb thought for a moment while he took a swig of his beer. “I don’t know. I talked to Dr. Brentwood, and he says I’m under a lot of pressure. Which certainly makes sense because I don’t even think about the tournaments until I get to the majors. That’s when things really count. The fear of failure takes over then, and I end up doing exactly what I’m afraid of – losing. My father is ready to throw in the towel with me, I swear.”
I felt for him. I couldn’t imagine the type of pressure he was under, especially when it came to his father. My parents were definitely unimpressed with my career choice, so I could relate.
“So, what are you going to do about it?” Mandy asked.
Matt jumped in. “The doctor told him to focus on things that make him happy. Instead of focusing on the mounting pressure of the day, for example, he will focus on good things and not let the rest get to him.”
“That sounds like a great idea,” I said, smiling at him.
“Yeah, hopefully it works,” Caleb said.
“It will, buddy; we got this one in the bag this time,” Matt stated confidently.
I loved seeing Matt being so good to Caleb – they were true friends, which was rare to find these days. They were good together, and they always had each other’s back. Our food arrived, and no one spoke until the waiter was gone. Everything looked so delicious that I couldn’t wait to dig in.
“Let’s get off that depressing topic anyways and on to something better. Let’s talk about Hailey’s blossoming career,” Caleb said.
I blushed deeply, but I couldn’t help but smile. I looked over at Mandy, who was smiling as well.
“Oh, I think I’m out of the loop. What’s going on?” asked Matt.
“Caleb took Hailey to that movie opening the other day, the one for the horror flick. She made some connections, and Rick Bendell wants her to audition for his next film.”
Matt put his hand up for a high-five, and I gave him one. “Good girl, Hailey, that’s awesome.”
“Yes, I have your friend to thank for that one.” I grasped his hand under the table and squeezed. I was pleased when he didn’t let it go. “He introduced me to Rick, and, well, we really hit it off.”
“So, what’s going on with that? Have you heard back from him?” Caleb asked.
“Well, after you sent over my comp card, he contacted Jillian. They are still in talks about everything right now, but Jillian said he didn’t have enough nice things to say about me. She certainly expects to have an audition date soon.”
“Whoa, Hailey, that’s awesome. We are going to have another celebrity in our midst, aren’t we, Caleb?”
Caleb nodded, smiling.
“I want more than anything for this to work out. I feel like my career has been stalled lately, and I only just got started. It’s kind of scary.” I couldn’t believe that I was saying all that out loud, but I felt comfortable with everyone at the table. I wanted to get it out there and deal with my fears. I didn’t want to be haunted by them anymore.
“I want to be an actress so badly. To just DO something with myself, you know?”
“You will get there, Hailey; I totally believe in you,” Mandy stated firmly.
“Yeah, we all do,” Caleb agreed. I smiled at him. I loved how sweet he could be – you would never know that from reading all the bad stuff about him and women online.
“Thanks, guys; you have no idea how much that means to have people believe in you. Well, I guess you know what I mean, Caleb.”
“Yes, definitely.”
There was a moment of silence as everyone dug into their delicious food. I was lost in thought about everything we had discussed so far. It was really nice being able to talk to them that way. We were all getting to know one another much better and becoming real friends. It made the job a lot easier and definitely a lot more fun. I had no doubt in my mind that we would all stay friends after the job was done. How could we not when we got along so well?
“So, Mandy, what are you going to do when your sister becomes famous?” Matt asked her.
“Aside from being insanely proud of her, I plan on going after my own bit of fame.”
“In what way?” Caleb asked.
I was working hard on my crab, cracking shells and pulling out delicious meat while I listened to my sister talk about dreams I had heard a million times. I loved hearing about them, though. Just like mine, I wanted her dreams to come true. She deserved it. She worked hard, and having a job in writing was not easy.
“Well, it’s usually every writer’s dream to hit the New York Times Bestseller list, and that’s my dream, as well. I want to write a book one day and have it go big. It’s always been my dream to be walking through a bookstore and seeing a book that I wrote on the shelf. Just thinking about it makes me excited.”
“No doubt. That would definitely be very cool,” Matt agreed. “There is so much talent at this table that it’s crazy. What would you write a book about, Mandy?”
“I think I would like to write children’s books, actually. I think when I’ve had some more life experience I would eventually write a memoir, but for now, I have a lot of interest in children’s books. Mainly, the ages between 9-12, so I could write chapter books; they are a lot of fun.”
“Wow, that’s insane. Good for you. You’re right, Matt, there is a lot of talent at this table,” Caleb said.
I looked up from my crab feast and looked at Matt. “What about you, Matt? What are your big dreams.”
He pondered that for a bit when the waiter stopped at our table. Caleb ordered another round of beer and Matt waited until the waiter left to speak.
“I guess I would have to say that my big dream right now is just to be content.”
“Really? Why’s that? Were you not happy before?” I asked.
“Well, I used to golf like Caleb and, of course, I had the same dream that he did that I would win the majors and have a solid golf career. Then I fucked up my shoulder, and my dreams went crashing down around me.”
“Oh, Matt, I’m sorry.” And, I was; I could just imagine how I would feel if I knew for sure I could never be an actress. I would be crushed, not knowing what to do next or how to move on past that dream. I didn’t even want to have to think about it. I respected the fact that he was able to move on without being totally devastated over it.
“Yeah, it was really bad there for awhile,” he said as he nodded to Caleb. “I thought my life was over when the doctor said that my shoulder would never heal enough for me to get back in the game. Even when I play for fun, it often hurts so bad that I have to go soak it or get a massage immediately. It sucks.
“But these days I’m genuinely happy, and that’s something that I’m really grateful for because I didn’t think that would ever happen. So yeah that’s my dream right now – just being content. Supporting Caleb in his dream and helping him make his dreams come true has really helped me in a lot of ways. I thought it was all over, but it’s not. Helping Caleb has been the best thing that’s ever happened to me because it gave me purpose again.”
There were tears in my eyes as I listened to Matt speak. It was the most beautiful story of friendship that I had ever heard. To have someone like that supporting your life’s work was amazing, and I knew that because I had Mandy.
“Wow, Matt, I didn’t realize you were such a softy,” Mandy said jokingly.
“Yeah, Matt, holy, this day of relaxing is going to turn into a sob fest soon,” Caleb added, laughing.
I wiped at my tears, and everyone laughed at the gesture. “Sorry, I can’t help it. That was really awesome. You guys are great friends.”
“Oh, there’s no doubt about that. Cheers to that!” We all lifted out beers and cheered to old friendships and to the new ones that we were developing together.