Melinda’s Journal

Tuesday, March 6

Since Pat and I have been together, I have only watched one movie with him in it. It wasn’t a big deal, since it was several years old and I could think of him as just a kid.

Tomodachi is the first movie I have seen starring my boyfriend. And I could no longer imagine him as just a kid. He was the same guy sitting beside me.

And watching the movie was strange. It felt like Pat was lying to me. It took me a long time to separate Pat from his character, Kevin. I had almost managed it when he kissed his costar. I kept trying to remind myself that Kevin was kissing Akari, but it was hard not to see Pat kissing Hana. More than once.

Overall, the movie was fantastic. I loved seeing Pat in such a dramatic role. And he did an amazing job with his character. But I don’t know if I will ever be able to watch it again.

Melinda’s Story

When the movie ended, the audience erupted with applause. The house lights turned back on and people stood to leave. I wanted to tell Pat what I thought, but other people were already congratulating him. Soon, I found myself being ushered out of a side exit and into the limousine.

“That was a fantastic movie,” Miss Kara said as the car pulled back into traffic.

Walter nodded. “I really liked it.”

Pat smiled, but I could tell it didn’t reach his eyes. I squeezed his hand, but no one else seemed to notice. His mother changed the subject.

“Your father and I are going back to the house. I have to be on set early tomorrow.”

“I’m just exhausted,” Mr. Adam added.

“We’re going to drop you kids off at the hotel. We’ll send the limo back for you when you’re ready to come home.”

“I want you to make responsible choices.” Mr. Adam glared at each of his sons.

“I want you home by midnight. Shelia’s staying in the guest room tonight. Check in with her when you get in.”

“Responsible choices.” Mr. Adam glanced at his sons one more time as the car pulled to the curb in front of a hotel.

I followed Walter out of the car and looked around. “We could have walked here.”

“And miss that wonderful lecture?” Walter groaned as we headed into the lobby.

“Who’s Shelia?”

“I think she’s one of Mom’s cousins. She’s our housekeeper.”

“I thought Fiona was your housekeeper.”

Walter shook his head. “Fiona is our Connecticut housekeeper. Shelia is our California housekeeper.”

When we reached the elevator, Pat turned to his brother. “Hey, Walter? I’m going to take Melinda for a little walk. We’ll meet you upstairs, okay?”

Walter nodded, although I could see a look of concern on his face. I understood why. Something was obviously bothering Pat. I was worried about him, too.

We found a small lounge down the hall. Low tables were scattered around the room with couches arranged in conversational groups. Even though the room was empty, we sat at a table in the corner.

I ran my hand along Pat’s spine. “What’s wrong?”

“You hated the movie.”

“I never said that.”

“You didn’t have to. I could see it in your face.”

“Pat, I didn’t hate the movie. It was just weird.”

Pat put his arm around me, drawing me close. “How so?”

I sighed. “This is the first movie I’ve seen you in since we’ve been together.”

“That’s not true. You watched GnomeWorld. I remember because you got jealous.” Pat poked me playfully on the nose.

“That doesn’t count. That was a little kid movie. This isn’t.”

“Were you jealous of me and Hana?”

I shook my head. “Not at all. It’s just, when I watch a movie, I like to spend two hours in a make-believe world. I get completely lost in it and pretend everything I’m watching is real.”

“But you didn’t feel that with this movie?”

“Usually, it’s easy for me because the actors are just actors. They’re not people I know. But watching you, it was like you and not you at the same time. It was like you were lying.”

“So, it wasn’t believable?”

I shook my head. “Pat, you were fantastic. I know I don’t say this a lot, but you are really an amazing actor. It’s just, I just know you really well. And watching the movie, I could see you acting.”

“So, it wasn’t believable?”

“No. It was. It was an excellent movie. If someone else had been playing your role and had done as great a job with it as you did, then it would have been absolutely perfect. And I think everyone else is going to see that perfect movie. It’s just that, for me, it wasn’t someone else. It was you. And that was just weird.”

Pat looked crestfallen. “So, does this mean you’re never going to watch one of my movies again?”

I snuggled closer to him. “Of course not. I want you to make this running movie. Then, I want to watch it with you. Just so I can see you without your shirt.”

Pat smiled. When he kissed me, the warmth extended from my belly to my purple nails until I thought I might burst. For the first time in a while, it wasn’t quite enough.

Pat rested his forehead against mine. “Okay. So, I’m not saying I’m going to. But part of me wants to just skip the afterparty and go upstairs and get a room. Rule number four says I have to tell you that.”

I smiled. “I feel the same way. Well, somewhat. But rule number two says we should probably go to the party. Besides, there’s this voice in my head repeating responsible choices.”

I giggled as Pat swore. “You can really kill a mood, you know?” He stood, extending a hand to help me to my feet. “Let’s see if Walter left anything for us at the buffet.”

---

The party was being held in the hotel banquet hall on the second floor. After showing our passes to the guard at the door, we passed through the grass curtain covering the doors and entered another world.

The dark room was illuminated by rotating disco lights of many colors. At first, I thought the tiki torches being used to create different themed areas were actually burning. But I quickly realized it was a combination of lights and special effects to make the LED flames appear real. A DJ at a tiki bar in the corner was playing music loudly enough to be heard, but quietly enough to still maintain some conversations. Throughout the room, low couches, similar to those in the lounge, were arranged in conversational groupings. The people lounging on them were balancing food on their laps while they talked.

Multiple food stations comprised the buffet. One table was covered with fresh fruit. Another contained trays of meats, including what I thought might have been a roasted pig. A chef prepared fresh sushi to order. Another chef was preparing hibachi to order and putting on quite a show.

I glanced at Pat. “Is everyone from the theater coming to the party?”

He shook his head as we moved further into the room. “No. Some people go to just the theater and aren’t invited to the afterparty. There are some people who may come to the party who didn’t go to the movie. Any sign of Walter?”

I looked around, squinting in the dim light. “Is that him? Over there?” I pointed to a couch in a far corner where Walter was talking to the camera woman’s daughter he had met at the theater.

Pat sent me a mischievous smile. “We should go say hi.”

“Or we can let him find us if he needs help. Why don’t we grab some food? I didn’t eat that much during the movie. Walter stole my swag bag.”

As we walked toward the food, everyone stopped to congratulate Pat on his performance in the movie. He thanked everyone and made some small talk before excusing himself politely. When we finally reached the buffet, I insisted on looking at every table before deciding what to put on my plate.

Everything looked delicious, but I was always hesitant when it came to trying new foods. Somehow, Pat convinced me to try a seafood-free sushi roll in addition to some of the fruit and meat I had piled onto my plate.

I bit into the sushi as I followed Pat toward the sitting area. “This is delicious!”

Pat flashed his famous smile. “I told you you’d like it.”

A guy suddenly appeared at his side, signing frantically. Pat smiled at his friend. “Now, that was just uncalled for.” He turned to me. “Um, sweetheart, can you hold this for me a second? I can’t sign with one hand.”

I took his plate with a smile as Pat introduced me again to his friend. “Frankie, you remember Mae. Mae, this is my friend Frankie. You guys met earlier.”

“Hi again.” I nodded, lifting one of the plates in a small wave. “Um, I’m going to go sit near Wally.”

“Okay. I’ll come find you.” Pat didn’t turn his attention away from his friend.

I headed to where I had last seen Walter, but he had disappeared. With a shrug, I found a random seat and bit into my pork.

“Bored yet?”

I smiled as Hana plopped herself down beside me on the couch.

“Actually, I’m really enjoying this food.”

“It’s incredible. This is like the best sushi I’ve ever had in my entire life. And I’ve been to Japan more times than I can count.”

“Really?”

Hana nodded. “My grandparents still live there. We try to go back at least once a year. So, tell me about you and Patrick.”

“There’s not much to tell.”

“How long have you been together?”

“It’s complicated.”

“How’d you meet?”

Pat sighed as he sat on my other side. “Hana, you’re starting to sound like a reporter.”

“No, just an obsessive fan. You’re still one of my biggest Hollywood crushes. Although there’s this guy I saw you with at the theater. He was really hot. Maybe you can introduce me?”

Pat nearly choked on his teriyaki chicken as he turned to me. “Who were you with at the theater?”

“I think she meant Wally.” Giggling, I slapped Pat on the back to help him breathe.

Pat raised his eyebrows. “You’re kidding.”

“That suit? He’s like one of the hottest guys here tonight.” I turned back to Hana. “I don’t know where he disappeared to.”

Hana shrugged. “I’ll find him later. He single?”

“He’s fourteen,” Pat replied in a dangerous tone. “Besides, I thought you were seeing Jarrod.”

Hana shook her head as she popped a mini cupcake into her mouth.

“We broke up weeks ago. He’s slime.”

“Where did you get that?” I pointed to another cupcake in Hana’s hand.

“The dessert table. It’s . . . over there.” Hana pointed through the crowd.

“That looks good. I’m gonna go get some. Patrick, you want something?”

Pat smiled at me. “I’ll come with you. See you later, Hana. Have fun.”

Pat’s hand found mine as we headed toward the dessert table. “Thanks for getting me out of that.”

“No problem. You okay?”

“You more or less said you were attracted to my brother.”

“No. I was acknowledging that other girls could find him attractive.”

“Not if he’s going to stuff his face like that.” Pat sighed as we approached the dessert table, where Walter was piling mini cupcakes and puddings onto a plate. “Hey Wally.”

Walter smiled mischievously. “Are you guys just getting here?”

Pat smacked his brother as I explained. “When we got here, you were talking to someone. I didn’t think you wanted your brother interrupting.”

Walter popped a cupcake into his mouth. “This food is amazing.”

We went back toward the couches, grabbing waters from the beverage table as we passed. Pat turned to me as we plopped onto our seats. “I don’t get it. I see horrible table manners. Why do you think he’s hot?”

I giggled while Walter took a long gulp of water to stop himself from choking on his cupcake. “Wha?” he spit out between breaths.

I smiled. “Hana was asking about you. Said she thought you were hot.”

“Yeah, and you agreed with her,” Pat pointed out bitterly.

Walter had been taking a large gulp of water. It seemed like he didn’t completely comprehend what Pat had said at first. When it hit him, I could tell it was taking every ounce of his energy not to snarf the water. I caught a horrible case of the giggles as Pat encouraged his brother.

“Don’t do it. Don’t do it.”

Walter managed to swallow the water and hit his brother simultaneously. The three of us were laughing uncontrollably when a girl bounced up to us.

“Hey, Wally. I was looking for you.”

“Oh, hey Marisol.” Walter got to his feet. “I was looking for you, but I couldn’t find you.”

“I’m here now. You wanna go for a walk or something?”

Walter didn’t respond. He simply took her hand and began leading her toward the balcony. Pat turned to me.

“So, who’s hotter? Me or my brother?”

Pat’s Story

During the movie, I kept trying to gauge Melinda’s reaction. She had stopped leaning against me before the title credits. Other than a slight tensing whenever I kissed Hana, I had no idea if she liked the movie. When the house lights turned back on, the audience applauded and headed out of the theater.

I rose as people around me told me what a fantastic job I had done. I watched Melinda as I accepted their praise. I knew her too well. She didn’t quite agree with what everyone was saying. But I didn’t have an opportunity to ask her about it.

I followed my family as we migrated toward a side exit. The limo was waiting for us. Mom, Dad, and Walter told me how much they loved the movie. I did my best to return their smiles, but my concern about Melinda weighed in the back of my mind. Before I could even thank them, Mom changed the subject.

“We’re going to drop you kids off at the hotel. We’ll send the limo back for you when you’re ready to come home.”

Dad glared at me and Walter. “I want you to make responsible choices.”

Mom gave us a midnight curfew and reminded us to check in with the housekeeper, who was spending the night for the express purpose of making sure we were home before curfew, although Mom didn’t exactly say that.

“Responsible choices,” Dad repeated as the car stopped.

Walter more or less bolted out of the car, although he reached out a hand to help Melinda. I escaped as quickly as I could, following them through the lobby to the elevator bank. After Walter pressed the call button, I turned to my brother.

“Hey, Walter? I’m going to take Melinda for a little walk. We’ll meet you upstairs, okay?”

The look of concern on my brother’s face suggested there must have been something in my own expression to cause him worry. I led Melinda to a small abandoned lounge where we found a table in the corner to have a private conversation. She put her arm around me, rubbing her hand along my back.

“What’s wrong?”

“You hated the movie.”

“I never said that.”

“You didn’t have to. I could see it in your face.”

Melinda sighed. “Pat, I didn’t hate the movie. It was just, weird.”

I pulled her close to me as she tried to explain why she didn’t enjoy the movie. I found it her logic perplexing. She seemed to contradict herself, saying I was fantastic, but she could see me acting.

I tried to put myself in her shoes, eventually remembering watching Meghan in Zombie High. It was the first film she had filmed without me. I could still recall how strange it felt to see my sister in such a different role. I knew it wasn’t quite the same, but I thought I was understanding what Melinda was trying to tell me.

I sent her a hesitant look. “So, does this mean you’re never going to watch one of my movies again?”

Smirking, she moved closer to me. “Of course not. I want you to make this running movie. Then, I want to watch it with you. Just so I can see you without your shirt.”

When I kissed her, I instantly felt better. The love between us was palpable. My heart stopped beating normally and for the first time since we got back together, I almost lost control. I rested my forehead against hers, knowing I had to talk to her about how I was feeling.

“Okay. So, I’m not saying I’m going to. But part of me wants to just skip the afterparty and go upstairs and get a room. Rule number four says I have to tell you that.”

Melinda smiled. “I feel the same way. Well, somewhat. But rule number two says we should probably go to the party. Besides, there’s this voice in my head repeating responsible choices.”

Leave it to Dad to ruin the moment. I swore as I stood and helped Melinda to her feet. I never let go of her hand as we went up the elevator to the banquet hall.

Afterparties had a tendency to have a theme similar to the movie. This one had a Japanese-Hawaiian Luau fusion thing going on. The DJ was in some sort of tiki hut. Tiki torches lined the room. When we had finished filming, the wrap party had been a traditional Hawaiian luau. I recognized some of the food in tonight’s buffet. However, this spread also included a made-to-order sushi station and a hibachi chef.

Melinda espied Walter sitting on one of the couches dispersed throughout the room. He was talking to the cute girl he had met at the theater earlier and I knew we had to go interrupt him. Melinda, however, overruled me, insisting we let him flirt alone and get some food instead.

I wasn’t about to turn down that suggestion. Now that the show was over, I was starving. But it took a long time to get to the buffet. We kept bumping into people who wanted to tell me how well I had done in the movie. I spoke briefly with everyone, not bothering to introduce Melinda, hoping to reach the food faster.

Finally, we could grab plates and heap them full of food. We were looking for a place to sit when Frankie showed up beside me.

“Look who showed up fashionably late,” he signed with a smirk. “Were you two perhaps having a little party upstairs before the party?”

“Now that’s just uncalled for,” I said aloud. I held my plate toward Melinda. “Um, sweetheart, can you hold this for me for a second? I can’t sign with one hand.”

I hadn’t meant to call her sweetheart in front of everyone, but it had slipped out. She must not have minded since she smiled. I reintroduced Frankie to Melinda, who nodded and waved with a plate before excusing herself. I turned back to Frankie.

“You know? You keep making a lot of comments about my girlfriend, but I don’t see you here with anyone.”

“Oh. Nice avoidance.”

“We were just talking. I wanted to know what she thought of the movie.”

“Then why do you have lipstick on your cheek?”

I reached up instinctively before remembering that Melinda wasn’t even wearing any lipstick. I called Frankie a vulgar name, to which he just smirked. I changed the subject.

“So, what’d you think? The premiere, the movie, the party?”

“Amazing. Everything was amazing. I’m really glad I got to be a part of it.”

“Me, too, man. So, what’s next?”

“Matt’s got a few prospects he’s considering. He’s gonna see if I can be a PA on one of them.”

“So, you’re staying here in Hollywood?”

Frankie nodded. “Rented an apartment and everything.”

“Send me the address. I’ll stop by while I’m in town.”

“Hey. Your girlfriend have a sister?”

I sent him a rude hand gesture before going off to find Melinda. I found her sitting near where Walter had been, although he was nowhere to be found. Instead, Hana was grilling her about me.

I sat beside Melinda with a sigh. “Hana, you’re sounding like a reporter.”

“No, just an obsessive fan. You’re still one of my biggest Hollywood crushes. Although, there’s this guy I saw you with at the theater. He was really hot. Maybe you can introduce me?”

I turned to Melinda and swallowed my chicken wrong. “Who were you with at the theater?”

Melinda slapped me on the back to clear my airway. “I think she meant Wally.”

That didn’t help. “You’re kidding.”

Melinda shrugged. “That suit? He’s like one of the hottest guys here tonight.”

My girlfriend thought my brother was hot? I almost started choking on my chicken again. Melinda turned back to Hana.

“I don’t know where he disappeared to.”

Hana shrugged. “I’ll find him later. He single?”

I glared at her. “He’s fourteen. Besides, I thought you were seeing Jarrod.”

Hana shook her head as she popped a mini cupcake into her mouth. “We broke up weeks ago. He’s slime.”

Melinda pointed to Hana’s next cupcake. “Where’d you get that?”

“The dessert table. It’s . . . over there.” Hana pointed through the crowd.

“That looks good. I’m gonna go get some. Patrick, you want something?”

Thankful for the change in topic, I stood. “I’ll come with you. See you later, Hana. Have fun.”

I squeezed her hand as we walked away from Hana. “Thanks for getting me out of that.”

“No problem. You okay?”

“You more or less said you were attracted to my brother.”

“No. I was acknowledging that other girls could find him attractive.”

I didn’t see how when he was busy piling desserts onto his plate at the buffet. He smirked when he saw us approach.

“Are you guys just getting here?”

I thought hitting him was a sufficient explanation, but Melinda saw the need to elaborate. We all grabbed dessert and headed back to the couches, grabbing some bottled water on the way. When my brother started talking with food in his mouth again, I turned to Melinda.

“I don’t get it. I see horrible table manners. Why do you think he’s hot?”

Walter started choking on the cupcake he had just shoved in his mouth. “Wha?”

Melinda giggled. “Hana was asking about you. Said she thought you were hot.”

I looked at her. “Yeah, and you agreed with her.”

I couldn’t believe I was actually jealous of my brother. Especially since it took him a minute to figure out what I had said. When he finally did, he had a mouth full of water. He was trying hard not to spit it out.

Melinda was giggling hysterically. I tried to help him out.

“Don’t do it!” So, maybe my tone wasn’t very helpful, but he managed not to spray water everywhere. Apparently, hitting me helped him swallow.

The girl he had been flirting with all night appeared beside our couch. When she suggested they go for a walk, Walter took her toward the balcony. I watched them disappear before turning back to Melinda. I just couldn’t let the issue die.

“So, who’s hotter? Me or my brother?”

Melinda refused to answer me, suggesting we go mingle instead.

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.