Melinda’s Story

After the grand and antique feel of the lobby, I was a little surprised to see such a modern restroom, complete with automatic hand driers. When I returned to the lobby, I felt a little lost. Walter and I hadn’t agreed on a place to meet. I had no idea where he was.

“Miss me?” Pat snuck up behind me, placing an arm around my waist.

I turned to face him. “Hey. I went to pee and lost your brother.”

“Did you try the concession stand? Oh, hey. There’s someone I want you to meet.”

Pat took my hand, leading me through the growing sea of people to his costar.

“Hana! This is Mae. Mae, Hana.”

Hana smiled. “Nice to meet you! I’m so excited to be here. This is my first premiere.”

I nodded. “Mine, too. It’s all so amazing.”

“I know, right? My parents are a little star struck. I keep losing them. So, Patrick has been keeping you a secret. How long have you two been together?”

Pat flashed his famous smile. “Who says we’re together?”

“Oh, puh-lease. You haven’t let go of her hand since you dragged her over here. And I was standing next to you when you saw her outside. I saw the way you two looked at each other.”

A boy about my brother’s age appeared beside us. “Hey Patrick. Hey Hana.”

Pat smiled at the interruption. “Tommy, this is Mae.”

The boy waved excitedly at me. I had a feeling he may have had a little too much soda already. My suspicions were confirmed when he started speaking rapidly.

“Hi! Nice to meet you! Are you guys having fun? I am having such a blast. Walking the carpet was so amazing!”

A hand waved in front of my face. I followed it to see Pat’s other young costar, Matt King, standing beside me. I had met him at Pat’s house a few weeks ago. After waving back, I used my limited knowledge of American Sign Language to ask Matt if he was having fun.

He sent me a curious look and Pat burst out laughing. Pat quickly signed something to Matt, then put his arm around me for a quick side hug. He signed as he explained my mistake.

“You called him a tomato animal.”

“How? I don’t know either of those signs.”

“That’s what made it funny.”

I pouted. “I was just wondering if he was having fun.”

After Pat relayed the message, I saw Matt nod before the two of them fell into a silent conversation. Pat’s other costars had disappeared. I was feeling a little lonely. I scanned the room, catching sight of Walter talking to a girl near the concession stand. She was obviously flirting with him. I couldn’t blame her. He was one of the best-looking guys in the room.

When someone walked in front of me, I realized I had been staring. I turned my attention back to Pat, who was now signing with a guy closer to his own age.

“Mae, this is Frankie. He was my ASL mentor.”

I made sure my signs were slow and purposeful. “Nice to meet you.”

Frankie signed something to Pat, nodded his head toward me, and disappeared into the crowd.

I frowned. “Did I call him a tomato animal, too?”

“No. He said you were incredibly hot, and I should take you up to the projection room to make out.”

“He did not!”

Pat wiggled his eyebrows. “You’ll never know, will you?”

“Remember what I said about me not falling for Patrick McGregor?”

“Yeah.”

“That means I’m not making out with him, either.”

“Hey. I’m not so sure I like Mae. She’s sassy.”

Pat’s mother approached with a cup of soda in her hand. “Are you two behaving yourselves?”

“No, Mom.” Pat’s sarcasm came out as a near whine. “We’ve been making out in the middle of this crowded theater.”

“I think she meant were we socializing with people and not being rude.” I rolled my eyes in apology to Pat’s mother.

“What did you just say about me?” Pat sounded so panicked and paranoid, I had to giggle.

Miss Kara pursed her lips. “That she may have to go to the afterparty without you unless you’re on your best behavior.”

“I was kidding!” Pat called to his mother’s back. He turned back to me. “If I don’t go to the afterparty, you can stay home with me. We’ll have the entire house to ourselves. We can go swimming.”

“Seriously?” Walter appeared behind us. “The last time you two went swimming, you broke up.”

“Hey, you.” Smiling, I bumped my shoulder against him. “Who was that girl I saw you flirting with?”

“Her name’s Marisol. Her mom was part of the camera crew.”

“She seemed interested.”

Walter looked at his feet, turning red and mumbling. “We’re going to meet up during the after party.”

The lights in the lobby dimmed and brightened a few times.

Pat looked around. “I gotta go. I’ll see you inside.” He kissed my forehead before heading toward a door marked Cast Only.

I frowned. “He’s going to miss the coming attractions.”

With a laugh, Walter led me toward the concession stand. “There are no coming attractions. Grab an extra popcorn for Pat. I’ll grab him a soda.”

“He can share my popcorn.”

“Fine. Grab an extra one for me then.”

---

I followed Walter into the theater, which was decorated much like the lobby. Each row had ten seats in the middle aisle and five on each wing. Walter went straight to a row in the middle of the theater, where his parents were waiting for us.

I looked around. “I want the aisle seat. You’ve got me all paranoid about having to pee.”

Walter sat beside his father. “Let Pat have the end, so he doesn’t have to climb over you.”

“You just want to take my popcorn.”

“That’s a bonus.”

After taking my seat, I automatically glanced at the screen, but it wasn’t there. Instead, a heavy scarlet curtain sat closed on a stage in the front of the room. I leaned closer to Walter, keeping my voice low.

“I thought this was a movie theater.”

“It is.”

“Why is there a curtain and a stage?”

Walter shrugged. “This place is like a hundred years old. It was a vaudeville theater. Then movie house. They kept it retro.”

While I waited, I examined the little bag that had been waiting in my seat. A fake flowered lei was buried with a bottle of water and a bag of kona macadamia nut cookies, some dried passion fruit, and pineapple coconut balls.

The foods sounded too strange to eat, although they looked interesting. I took a small bite of each. The cookies were amazing, but I was never a big fan of nuts. I lost interest after biting into one. The dried fruit was too sweet. The coconut ball was too pineappley. When I placed my bag on the floor, Walter snatched it.

The house lights dimmed again and the stage lights grew brighter as a man entered holding a microphone. The audience cheered as he stood in the center of the stage.

“Welcome to the premiere of Tomodachi! I’d like to introduce you to the people who helped make this movie possible. Ed Rogers.”

The audience applauded as a middle-aged man came to stand behind the man with the microphone.

“Who’s that?” I whispered to Walter.

“He played Pat’s father. And she played the mother,” he added as a woman was introduced and joined the man. The announcer introduced two other adults, who joined the man on the stage. When Pat’s name was called, he was met with loud applause as he joined his on-screen parents. Hana came out next, followed by Matt and finally Tommy.

After the cast was on the stage, the man continued, gesturing to a person standing in front of the first row of seats. “This movie would not have been possible without the help of Karen Pearson, our ASL interpreter.” Karen turned to wave before again facing the stage to continue interpreting for Matt.

The man resumed, thanking the Japanese interpreter, the writers, and the camera crew. “And now, I’d like to introduce the man who made all this possible, Mr. Henry Fisher.”

The crowd cheered as the director, who was also the producer, came onto the stage. He shook hands with each member of the cast, hugging several before taking the microphone the announcer proffered.

“We had so much fun making this movie, and I’m thrilled to share it with all of you this evening. Tonight is bittersweet, of course. We became a family while working on this movie and this premiere marks the end of the production. I hope you all enjoy watching the film as much as we enjoyed making it. And with that, may I present, Tomodachi.”

The man bowed as the room erupted in applause and the curtains behind him opened. The name of the movie appeared on the screen while everyone left the stage. A moment later, Pat took his seat beside me. The room grew darker, and the movie began.

Pat’s hand found mine almost immediately. Its clamminess surprised me. I squeezed it and leaned into him, keeping my voice low.

“Are you nervous?”

“This movie meant a lot to me. I want it to make a good impression on you.”

Pat’s Story

As I walked through the main entrance of the theater, I took a deep breath and sighed. The hard part was over. There would be no more interviews for the rest of the evening. Now, I could just sit and relax and enjoy spending time with friends and colleagues.

And my girlfriend, who emerged from the ladies’ room on my right looking thoroughly lost. I came up behind her, placing an arm around her waist.

“Miss me?”

She turned around and smiled. “Hey. I went to pee and lost your brother.”

“Did you try the concession stand?” Where else would Walter be? I glanced in that direction and my eyes fell on Hana. “Oh, hey. There’s someone I want you to meet.”

I took Melinda’s hand, navigating the maze of people to introduce her to my costar. The girls chatted about their excitement over their first premieres before Hana abruptly changed the subject.

“How long have you two been together?”

I smiled to hide my shock. “Who says we’re together?”

“Oh, puh-lease. You haven’t let go of her hand since you dragged her over here. And I was standing next to you when you saw her outside. I saw the way you two looked at each other.”

Tommy appeared literally out of nowhere, providing the distraction I needed to avoid answering Hana’s question. I introduced Melinda to Tommy, who sounded as if he had already consumed about four cups of cola, then Matt waved a hand in front of Melinda’s face to say hi.

I had introduced them a few months ago, so they already knew each other. I knew Melinda was trying to be polite when she signed to Matt. I wasn’t sure what she intended to say, but it came out as you animal tomato.

I burst out laughing as Matt tried to figure out what she had said. After telling him she was not trying to insult him, I drew Melinda close, translating what she had signed.

She pouted. “I was just wondering if he was having fun.”

Melinda turned to look around as I translated for Matt.

“Oh, yeah. I’m having a lot of fun.” He nodded his head toward Melinda. “Crystal told me you two used to be together but broke up. You just here as friends?”

I smiled. He was pretty smart for a sixth grader. “No. We’re back together. How are things with you and Crystal?”

“She’s a great friend. We chat a lot. Thanks for introducing us.”

“Introducing who?” Frankie signed as he stood between us.

I let Matt explain. “I used to go to school with Crystal. Crystal’s sister is roommates with Pat’s girlfriend. Pat introduced us a few weeks ago.”

Frankie winked at me. “Girlfriend?”

Matt disappeared as I gestured to Melinda.

Frankie wiggled his eyebrows. “Where’d you find this supermodel?”

“We go to school together. She’s actually my brother’s best friend.”

Melinda turned around and I introduced her.

“Nice to meet you,” Melinda signed slowly.

Frankie smiled at Melinda before signing to me. “If I were you, I’d ditch the party and go make out with this hottie.” He winked as he wandered away without waiting for my reply.

Since I liked Frankie’s plan, I suggested it to Melinda. She wasn’t as amused by the idea.

Mom approached with a cup of soda in her hand. “Are you two behaving yourselves?”

What did she think we were doing? I tried not to let too much sarcasm into my answer. “No, Mom. We’ve been making out in the middle of this crowded theater.”

“I think she meant were we socializing with people and not being rude.” Melinda rolled her eyes in some sort of secret message to my mother. That wasn’t fair. She knew I couldn’t speak eye roll.

I pouted. “What did you just say about me?”

Melinda giggled while Mom replied. “That she may have to go to the afterparty without you unless you’re on your best behavior.”

Mom glared at me before walking away. Walter found us a moment later and Melinda teased him about some girl she had seen him with. Before I could grill him, the lights flickered. I turned to Melinda.

“I gotta go. I’ll see you inside.” I kissed Melinda’s forehead and headed toward a door I knew led to the backstage area.

I lined up with my costars in the crowded wings. Hana was wringing her hands together.

“I’m nervous.”

I gave her my most reassuring smile. “We don’t have to do anything. Just go stand on stage when Sheldon calls your name.”

The movie’s publicist waved at the sound of his name, then looked back at the theater. When it seemed as if just about everyone had taken their seats, he moved to the center of the stage and nodded toward the projection booth. From the wings, it looked as if the house lights dimmed a little. I heard the audience cheer.

Sheldon introduced the four adults in the film before introducing me, then Hana and the boys. He thanked the interpreters and various crew members before finally introducing Henry.

Henry spoke about the movie, saying what every director – slash – producer says. We had fun making the movie. We’ve become a family. We hope you enjoy the film. When he bowed, the curtain behind us opened to reveal the movie screen. One of the promotional images shone on it as we all left the stage to find our seats.

I was in the center of the theater, in the same row as Tommy. Melinda had saved me an aisle seat and brought me popcorn, which I discovered I was too nervous to eat. I had absolutely no interest in the bag of cookies and candy waiting on my chair and quickly passed it to my brother.

As the lights dimmed and the movie began, I found Melinda’s hand. She squeezed it and snuggled against me.

“Are you nervous?” she whispered.

“This movie meant a lot to me. I want it to make a good impression on you.”

Attention Hammerheads

Melinda is always trying to build her vocabulary. What were some words in this episode that were new to you? She will add them to her vocabulary journal.