Role of a Lifetime
By: Kenneth Kirk
(© 2021 by the author)

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

kkirk@tickiestories.us

Chapter 22

The next morning was Saturday, but Brant and I were up at our usual 6:00 time.  I was very tempted to snuggle with him in the warm cocoon of my bed, but soon thought better of it.  We had stuff to do.  After a warm hug (no kiss – morning breath), I sent him to his room to get ready for our jog.

“What, no morning blow-job?” he protested.

“Not today, but maybe when we’ve wrapped the shoot and are back in L.A.”

He grinned and rubbed the stiffy filling out those cute briefs.  “There’s hope, at least.”

When we met downstairs, I asked if he was sore this morning.

“No,” he answered thoughtfully.  “I do feel something a little different down there.  Maybe a tenderness I’ve never felt before, but not what I’d call soreness.”

“Then let’s run.”

It turned out Cole and Max were waiting for us, so the four of us had a nice stretch of our legs in the brisk morning air.  It was good to be alive and to be me right now!  

*******

At breakfast, David told us the producers had okayed Brant going back on Hollywood Weekly as soon as it could be scheduled.  He would be able to share the name of the movie and to introduce his co-star if that was good with me, which I assured him it was. 

Apparently the video of Brant’s first interview with Juanita was blowing up on YouTube as the public tuned in to get titilated about our little film.  Entertainment Weekly was showcasing a story about the “mysterious movie project marking Brant Kimber’s first gay role.”  They had called for an interview and were told they would need to wait a couple of weeks.

 David said they would be contacting Juanita’s producers today to see how soon Brant could get back on the schedule. 

In preparation for the chase and battle scenes with the mobsters scheduled for filming on Monday and Tuesday, David wanted to film some short scenes of Brant tramping through the woods today.  These scenes would be edited into the mobsters’ scenes to create the illusion of them chasing him.

I had nothing much to do except go over a few lines for our scenes scheduled to be shot Wednesday and Thursday.  So, I took the opportunity after Brant and the crew left to call home and talk with Mom and Dad.  I went back to my room with a mug of coffee, stepped onto the balcony, and clicked the call button on the phone.

“Residence of Miss Rachel Harris and Mr. Brodie Ford,” Katrina answered.

“Hi, Kat, it’s Sky.  Are the parents available?”

“Hi, Mr. Sky.  They’re on the lanai with coffee and the newspapers.  I’ll get them.”

It was a couple of minutes before Dad answered, “Good morning, Sky!”

He sounded chipper.  “Hi, Dad,” I responded.  “Put me on speaker so I can chat with you and Mom both.”

He did.  “How is my precious baby boy this morning?” Mom asked in her best Zsa Zsa Gabor accent.  (If you are too young to know who that is, check her out on YouTube.  She was a gay icon before there was such a thing.)

I chuckled.  “I’m good, Ma,” I drawled with a Jeb Clampett twang.

We all laughed.  I gave them a quick update about our progress on the shoot, noting the arrival of the Riccis tomorrow so we could shoot the climactic scenes early next week.  I told them we still had a few scenes to do after that, so we would be here more than one more week, but probably not two.

“Brant’s interview on Hollywood Weekly has certainly fueled a lot of speculation this week,” Dad said.

“We’ve heard just a little bit up here, but not a lot.”

“It’s rather humorous,” Mom said.  “One article in Variety was speculating about who the mystery boyfriend might be.”

“I can’t wait to hear the rumors.  Tell me.”

“I don’t know if I can remember all of them,” she said.  “Help me, Brodie.”

“Richard Madden, Matt Bomer, of course, Luke McFarlane, Scott Evans, Russell Tovey,” Dad listed.

“A who’s who of out gay actors or, in the case of Richard, deeply suspected.  But they’re all a little old to play a college student now.  They aren’t guessing anyone younger?”

Mom said, “Yes.  Chris Colfer and Darren Criss, you know from Glee.  That’s a little more reasonable.”

“Brandon Flynn, from 13 Reasons Why,” Dad added.  “Oh, and both of the actors on 9-1-1 Lonestar.”

“Those are all more reasonable.  Ronen Rubinstein or Rafael Silva are young enough and Brandon would be a good pick.”

It was quite interesting to hear who my competition for future rolls might be.

“According to some reporter at Variety, she has the inside scoop and says the lucky actor is Charlie Carver,” Dad said.

“She’s as wrong as all the others, but actually Charlie is probably the best suggestion of all.  I can see him in this role.”

“It’ll be interesting when the truth comes out,” Mom said.

“Yes, it will,” I said.  “I hope the world isn’t disappointed that it’s me.”

“Take note, son,” Dad said, “that just because this is a gay role, they’re speculating about every actor known to be gay or to have played a significant gay role.”

“True,” I said.  “It’s hard to avoid typecasting but I’m not sure I would object too much as it might result in getting me a few parts I might not have otherwise scored.”

“Yes,” Dad said.  “You’ll just have to find an occasional non-gay role to show you can do something else.  Like Matt Bomer and Neil Patrick Harris have done.”

“Uhm,” I daydreamed, “to have a career as good as theirs.”

“You’ve got a shot, son.”

“Anything new in your world?” I asked.

“Uhm, yes,” Mom answered.  “I’ve been notified that production on Beauty Queen is expected to begin again on September 1.  It will be nice to get back to work, so I hope it happens on time.”

“Any word on Lunar Base 1?”

“Not so far.  But I did get some scripts from my agent.  There is one I might be interested in doing that would not begin production until next summer.  It would be a change for me.  It’s a role as a governor of a Southern state.  Of course, he’s a slimy bastard conducting two different affairs, taking bribes from anybody who will pony up some cash, and ignoring the needs of the people in order to make his rich buddies richer.  You know,” he chuckled, “standard governor plot.”

I laughed.  “Movie or series?”

“Limited series, 6 episodes, for Hulu.  Of course, I would get arrested in the end by, get this, the husband of one of my mistresses.”

“I like the ending.  Does the governor have a gay son?”

“Nope.  Sorry.”

“Just checking my options.”

 *******

After the conversation with Mom and Dad, I noticed Valerie sitting alone on the dock.  She looked pensive so I wondered if something was the matter.  I didn’t feel I had really gotten to know her yet, so I decided to join her if she didn’t mind.

When I stepped onto the dock, she looked my way and smiled warmly.

“May I?”

“Of course,” she said.  “I’ve been hoping for the chance to get to know you before the shoot finishes.”

“Me, too.  When I noticed you sitting out here I thought maybe this would be a good time.”

“Please, sit down,” she said.

I plopped down beside her and we spent the next half hour sharing our basic backgrounds.  She is a rather quiet, introspective soul who hails from Boulder, Colorado.  She’s a trained prima ballerina, but suffered an ankle injury that now prevents her from dancing.  So, she came out to L.A. to live with her aunt, who is an established wardrobe mistress and got her into the props arena.  Laughingly, she said this had been a really easy gig as we don’t have many props, just some guns, food stuff, towels, and lube.

Coming from her, the reference to lube was slightly embarrassing, but I swallowed it down.  “So, you are aware of the content of our scenes?” I asked.

“Oh, yes!” she giggled.  “Cole keeps me fully informed.  He was so horny last night, he couldn’t get enough.  We hardly got any sleep.”

“Wow.”

“It was amazing!” she gushed.

“I’ll bet.  You two are a very cute couple, you know.”

“Thanks,” she said.  “I really like him.”

“I can tell by the way he looks at you and the way he gets all dreamy-eyed when you are mentioned that he really likes you, too.”

“Can I tell you a secret?”

I guess we are getting to be friends this morning.  “Of course.”

She leaned close to whisper, “I wouldn’t mind it if we stay together forever.”

I grinned and planted a little kiss on her cheek.  “I think that would be wonderful, Val.”

She beamed in her pleasure at my encouragement.  “So, tell me a little secret.”

“What?”

“You and Brant.  More than method acting?”

I laughed at her words.  “Yes, definitely.  Or maybe just method acting taken to an extreme.”

“I can’t believe how comfortable you and he are with being sexual in front of all the straight crew.”

“They’ve been incredibly respectful.  We just sort of ignore them and try to give each other a good time, you know, like lovers would.  We trust them to handle it all with discretion.”

She took my hand and gave it a firm squeeze.  “That’s awesome.  It is a very nice crew.”

I nodded and we sat holding hands a moment.

“So, you and Brant.  A future?”

“Very good question, my dear.  I’m not sure.  Maybe.  It depends on whether he is gay enough or will revert to his old ways when we’re back in Lala land.”

“I hope you don’t wind up with a broken heart.”

“Me, too.  Or him either.”

“Yeah.”

“How about we go to the main cabin and see if we can get a game of Risk going?”

“That sounds like fun.”

When we got back to the cabin, we found Gianni with Tammy and Rita playing Hearts.  When they finished, Gianni said he needed to start lunch, so Valerie and I brought out the Risk board and set it up.  For the next couple of hours we battled around until finally Rita took out Valerie on a massive invasion from Iceland into Greenland and then overtaking North America.  Valerie was a good loser.  Soon after Rita took me out of South America and then set her sights on pushing Tammy out of Africa. 

The return of the crew for lunch ended the assault on Tammy, who conceeded defeat to the junior sound tech.

While we were eating, David took a call from the producer of Hollywood Weekly.  After a couple of moments, he turned to Brant and said, “Next Sunday on Hollywood Weekly?”

“Sure,” Brant said.

“Sky?”

“Yes, of course!”

Speaking into the phone, David said, “They’re ready.”  A short pause.  “We don’t want to divulge the name before the show.  Let it be a surprise to Juanita and the audience.”

A bit more was said, but we didn’t pay attention.  This was to be a very important moment for me.  I glanced up to see Brant looking at me approvingly.

“I can’t wait to introduce you to the world,” he said sweetly.

“I just hope the world is ready.”

“Oh, trust me.  They’re dying to meet you.”

To be continued...

Posted: 10/15/2020