That Summer

Disclaimer: This is obviously 100% fiction; a product of my over active imagination. This is my first real person fan fiction and reviews are greatly appreciated. They'll motivate me to continue.

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Chapter 1

Life without love is like a year without summer.
~Swedish Proverb


It was a beautiful day. But then, it was June 3rd and this was Southern California. Every day was gorgeous. The breeze was blowing slightly, bringing in a salty fresh scent through the window of a small three bedroom house. The breeze chilled the house just enough to make the hard wood floor cool to the touch.

Victoria rolled over, squinting at the clock. Her dark hair hanging messily over her face. "Shit," she muttered yawning and stretching dramatically. She wasn't a morning person. Unfortunately having a job means waking up and going to it. Hers happened to need her there by 10am and it was already 7am.

After stumbling out of bed and directly to the shower she crept into the room to the right of hers. Joseph is sleeping soundly. (Probably because he tried his best to stay up and play with his Mommy after work. He hadn't gotten to sleep until 10pm.) Idly she brushed the back of her hand across his pudgy cheek. Two almond shaped brown eyes opened and a smile spread slowly across his face. "Good morning, baby," she whispered, letting him stretch before lifting him out of the crib.

After the breakfast and the make-up and the double checking in the hall mirror they set off across town by taxi. The first stop being the home of Laverne Garcia, an in-home day care provider. The stout woman with short brown hair takes care of Joseph, along with two other toddlers. From there Victoria heads for a studio. One she's never been to before but the address was faxed to her home this morning. Luckily the cabbie knew what he was doing.

After paying the fare, and exiting the cab, clad in a fashionable pair of red, black, and grey plaid gauchos and a long-sleeve black v-neck blouse, she headed toward the first building she saw. Her black hair was straightened and parted on the side. It hung just to her collar bone. Looking up once inside, she saw some familiar faces. A stylist friend of hers came running towards her.

"Kelli!" she squealed.

Kelli was older than Victoria. She was in her early forties but as hip as ever. She had long crimson hair that fell to her waist and high heeled black leather boots. Victoria always found her beautiful. She was like sister more than anything. It can be hard to find people out here that are genuine, so Kelli was a find, both personally and professionally.

The two women hugged and checked each other over. Kelli would be doing the hair for this project while Victoria handled the make-up.

The people were beginning to scatter and it was fairly easy to decipher the actors from the rest of the crowd. She didn't know their names but they were just a bit more polished than the rest and usually talking on cell phones. (But then this was LA... everyone was on their phones.) Victoria'd been watching this scene over Kelli's shoulder. Kelli looked behind herself and smiled.

"So didja hear who's working on this movie?"

Victoria shrugged. "Some independent film and I get paid weekly. I don't really care." She really didn't. Celebrities had lost their glitter a long time ago. The majority she'd met, especially considering her position, were less attractive in person and their personalities were usually disappointing.

Kelli's brown eyes sparkled and she grinned. "Oh, well fine. More for me."

Victoria smirked, "It's obvious that you're bursting to tell me, so spill it already."

"Oh, I don't know all of them. But I know that two of the leading men are British actors!" Kelli made it pretty clear that this was a good thing by squealing and clapping her hands. Victoria's face turned red and she hoped to god no one heard that.

"God, you're so bad." Shrugging off the momentary loss of cool Victoria added, "So, do you have the schedule? I know that we're here for a week, beyond that.."

Kelli nodded, "Oh yeah." She motioned to Victoria, "I'll show you the make-up room."

Victoria nodded, following and dragging her make-up studio on wheels behind her. There were several small groups of people standing around but none of them were recognizable to her. She saw the producer hovering and waved. He grinned, while continuing the conversation he was engrossed in. The man he was talking to turned so see what the producer had been smiling at. Victoria waved to him too and they exchanged grins.

It wasn't anything unusual to be smiled at by unidentified males, but none the less she smirked to herself and continued on.

The man had been wearing a simple pair of loose fitting jeans and a faded navy blue t-shirt. He looked like a member of the crew. When Victoria turned her head she caught Kelli looking at her with raised eyebrows and mouthing something at her she couldn't quite make out.

They stepped into the trailer and Kelli smiled. "Isn't he just too hot?" Victoria smiled and began to unpack. "Who?"

Kelli put her hands on her hips. "Oh come on, girl. You can't be serious."

Victoria raised her eyebrows in a show of genuine confusion, "The producer or the other guy? I don't know your tastes."

Kelli gave her a somewhat disgusted look. "Other guy? That was Alan Rickman. Please tell me you know who Alan Rickman is."

Victoria thought for a second, 'British actor... Alan Rickman. Hmm... ' She giggled. "The guy from Dogma. Oh, right." He looked quite different. Older. Handsome all the same. Yeah, whatever.

"And Die Hard! And the Harry Potter movies! And a ton of others. I saw him on stage in New York when I was with my first husband." Victoria frowned and listened. "He was amazing. Oh my god and his voice. It's too much." Kelli fanned herself dramatically.

Victoria snorted, unable to hold back the laughter any longer and started giggling hysterically. Kelli gave a hurt look and crossed her arms. Victoria doubled over and tried to catch her breath. The redhead narrowed her eyes. "It's not that funny."

Victoria stood straight, hands on hips, stretching. "Oh but it is. You sound like a 14 year old girl."

"Bullshit. Women don't peak until their late thirties. You're still in neutral, little girl," Kelli said, giving Victoria a lecherous look. "Someday you'll understand."

Victoria jumped on the chance to pay her back with a disgusted look. "You think my sexual appetite is inadequate because I don't buy into the hero-worship shit? Whatever girl. You don't know me that well. Trust me. My libido is alive and well. He's just an actor. Another arrogant, self-absorbed actor."

Just as she'd started that last sentence Alan himself walked up to the trailer door. Instead of tapping on the screen door he merely stood, letting the women finish their conversation, and tried his best not to listen. Still... he heard every word.

Sighing and finishing her little stretch, she continued, "Or, he'll be kind and intelligent and charming. And be either married or gay." She yawned. "Or both." She sounded a bit bitter, really, but she really didn't care. She'd been burned too many times and there was no point in hiding it.

"You know, for a 50 year old, you don't look a day over 18." Kelli said matter-of-factly. Victoria smiled, her eyes squinching up and bit her tongue. "Fuck you, Kelli!"

Alan decided it was probably time to knock. He was technically supposed to have started make-up and hair fifteen minutes ago and they were set to film in an hour.

Kelli heard the tap and smiled mischievously at Victoria. "Coming," she called, making her way to the door.

Alan smiled politely. "Is everyone decent?"

Kelli opened the door grinning. "Decent? Never. But we're dressed, of course. Just settling up."

The man with graying blondish hair grinned and gave a brief chuckle, stepping into the trailer. After giving the room a quick once over he turned toward the women who were tidying up still. "So uh.. who will have me first?"

Victoria turned red and looked at Kelli. Kelli smiled coolly, "That'd be me, darlin'. Sit down, please."

"Victoria, would you go get my blow dryer? I left it in my car." Victoria smirked to herself and teased, "Sure. Why not? I mean, we wouldn't want anyone to get the impression that I'm not your slave." The man with smiling hazel eyes grinned the faintest of grins. It was a sympathetic smile, she thought. 'Oh great. He already feels sorry for me. Nice.'

"If you don't hurry you're going to get the whip!" Kelli grinned and started playing with Alan's hair.

Victoria grabbed the car keys from Kelli's purse and made her way out the door. "If I'm not back in five minutes you can assume I've stolen your car and headed for Mexico."

~*~

Kelli was excited to be in the room alone with Alan. She was a huge fan. She was also an oversexed hair stylist with 34DD breasts, unnaturally white teeth, and an affinity for actors.

"So, do you color your own hair?" Alan was a bit startled by the question but simply shook his head. "No. No I have a colorist in London." Kelli nodded knowingly.

There was a slightly uncomfortable silence as they shuffled around. Alan had closed his eyes and Kelli was washing his hair just as Victoria returned. She walked in, huffing and out of breath. "Gosh, I'm sorry. I ran into someone on the way back here and got a bit sidetracked." She walked over and placed the hair dryer on the stand.

Alan peaked at her. She was giving him an odd look. Then she went back to her business. Just then there was a tap on the door and it swung open. "Hello?" called the lithe Englishman with dark hair. Victoria smiled; this must be the other actor. She definitely recognized him. "Hi. Would you like to sit down? I can take care of you and when I'm done Kelli and I will swap."

The man looked at her appraisingly and then at Kelli and grinned. "Not a bad deal at all." Alan laughed, his deep voice humming through the trailer, as Kelli began to dry his hair.

~*~

Meeting Gary Oldman had been interesting. It was funny to listen to him and Alan chatter and Alan balk at the things Gary would say. He kept flirting shamelessly with both Victoria and Kelli. Hell, he might have been flirting with Alan. He was a charming man. Very polite, a dry sense of humor, but ever charming.

However, Victoria's attention was drawn to the other well-built man with the aristocratic nose and curling lips.

By lunch time Victoria decided she'd gone too long without sex. Or companionship. Or perhaps she was regressing back to her teenage years. It wasn't exactly easy to stand there, inches away from the man's face without feeling that all too familiar flutter in her abdomen. Was this a crush? 'He's an actor,' she told herself. He was just an actor. Why was she so flustered? Why did he keep looking at her like that? Gary looked at her the same way most men did. Slightly lecherous, and a little too interested in her clothing, or rather what lay beneath it. (This left little idea about what he was actually interested in.)


Kelli'd already left the studio, otherwise she would have caught a ride with her. Victoria squinted and put on her oversized sunglasses. 'Oh well. I'm sure they have a buffet table around here somewhere.'

She turned and headed inside. Sure enough two large buffet tables. One full of sweets, the other covered in various fruits. The sweet table was calling her name but there were still 10lbs to be lost. Fruit was sweet enough. She wondered over and began piling a plate with strawberries, grapes, slices of orange, and blackberries. A now familiar voice spoke from behind her, "You've got a bit of everything, don't you? Why not take the cantaloupe and banana as well?" Victoria blushed prettily, in spite of mentally berating herself for it. "Oh, I love them but they make my throat itch."

Alan squinted behind his dark glasses and laughed. She raised her eyebrows as he now began to fill a plate. "I'm serious. I swear. I used to be able to eat all sorts of fruit. Now those two make me want to claw my throat out." He chuckled, "Hmm. That sounds violent." She nodded and waited, unconsciously, for him to finish piling his plate.

He looked around and saw a few chairs. "Shall we sit?" She nodded. It was nice not having to eat lunch alone. Just as they sat Victoria's cell phone sang a happy tune and she held up a finger, "Just a minute." He nodded and began to eat as she turned sideways and spoke. "Oh, good. I'm glad he ate for you." ... "Thank you for calling. Kiss him for me. Yes.. it should be 7, if it's going to be later I'll call you. Right. Bye-bye."

She turned back, smiling nervously and crossing her legs.

"Your pet?" Asked Alan, spearing a strawberry.

Victoria blinked. "What?"

"He ate? You asked someone to kiss him?"

She ducked her face and laughed a bit. "No. No. My son. That was his sitter."

"Oh?" She didn't really look old enough to be a parent, he thought. He was guessing she was nineteen, or somewhere near there. He took a bite and she nodded. He cleared his throat. "How old is he?"

If there were a way to ply her into real conversation, asking about her son, something she was proud of, was the way. She grinned wide. "One and a half."

"How fun." He didn't really know what to say but continued to enjoy the plate of fruit before him.

"Yeah. Do you have..." before she could complete the question he shook his head. "No. Not for lack of want. It just wasn't to be." She nodded. Feeling bad for him and feeling bad for bringing up something so personal. "But you've gotten to do things you probably couldn't have if you had children." He nodded and took a drink from his bottled water. "I probably could have done everything I've done. It just would have taken me a bit longer." She laughed and wondered briefly if he'd sensed her guilt and was trying to console her. Perhaps that she'd a child and that implied that she was being held back.

Ignoring that thought they ate in silence. The sounds of the set around them. Sets being moved, lights being tested, people speaking quietly, cars driving by. It sounded like 'just another day in LA,' she thought. Alan was smiling. A man in a small group of people was talking loudly and smiling, pointing at him. Alan just grinned away and Victoria frowned, feeling a bit left out.

Alan feigned a laugh and looked at Victoria, "That is Brent Allen; our director."

Victoria nodded and rolled her eyes a bit dramatically. "Right. A friend of yours?"

Alan took another bite and shook his head. "Not so much. Just someone I work with. He's friends with friends of mine though."

"Small world." Yeah she could feel the tension, on her end. She was making small talk with him. And doing a poor job. 'Awkward situation, time to escape,' she thought to herself.

He wasn't completely oblivious to the ridiculous way she thought she was acting. He chocked it up to his being a celebrity. Or maybe she just was a strange person and always behaved that way. It didn't matter. He found her refreshing, attractive. Enjoyable company. She seemed quiet and he always found that intriguing. It meant she was paying attention. He liked that.

She started to pick up her things, "I hope you don't mind but it's almost time for me to get back and I have to go.. freshen up." She was smiling nervously and hated herself for it.

He shook his head, "Oh no. You're free to go." He watched her stand and straighten her clothes, smoothing her hands along her body to get rid of the wrinkles.

She tossed her plate into a near by trash can and tried not to think about whether or not he was watching her. She didn't dare look back to find out.

"Victoria?" She turned around and continued walking backwards, slowly. "Yeah?"

"I was wondering if perhaps tomorrow you'd like to get a bite to eat," he stared at his plate with a look of distaste, "elsewhere."

She giggled despite herself and looked down a bit embarrassed, "Sure. Yeah... sure."

He laughed as she turned and left with the biggest grin on her face. Nobody saw it, but it was there...

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The day went by quickly. She spent the majority of it with Kelli, gossiping. (Well... listening to Kelli gossip.) Kelli made Victoria feel mature in spite of everything. It was an exceptional cast and crew to work with. No prima donnas. No attitudes that she was made aware of, it was very relaxed for the most part. The scenes were quiet ones between no more than four characters. The last shot for the day was wrapped around 8:45pm. She was exhausted and returned to the trailer to pack her things.

Kelli was packing as well, yawning now and stepping out of the boots she'd insisted on wearing. "Tomorrow we should have a liquid lunch. Don't ya think?" Victoria started sputtering. She didn't want to mention anything about having a lunch date with the actor. She'd never hear the end of it. "Um.. uh, why not Thursday? Tomorrow is no good for me." Kelli gave her a look, accompanied by an arched eyebrow and went back to her packing, "Fine. That works for me. I'm always up for a liquid lunch."

"Ok. Well.. I'll see you tomorrow." Victoria made to leave, pulling her rolling bag out behind her. Everything was dark now except for the headlights of cars leaving the studio.

They passed her by as she walked out to the sidewalk. She'd called her cab as soon as they wrapped. She knew the cab drivers liked to take their time. It was now 45 minutes and counting. She sighed impatiently and sat on the curb, too exhausted to care who might see her.

Several cars pulled out of the studio, turning in various directions. Victoria was resting her head on her knees when she heard the sound of an electric window being rolled down, then a familiar face and an equally familiar English accent came through. "Do you need a lift?"

She laughed nervously. She could only imagine what she looked like right now. Her hair pulled back, off her shoulders, her make-up atrocious, sitting on a fucking dirty curb in LA.

"No. Um. No, I called a cab." She smiled, "Apparently they're very busy on Tuesdays."

She looked away, feeling sort of embarrassed. It wasn't exactly normal for a grown woman to not drive. But she never had. Spending the majority of her life in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York she'd grown accustomed to public transportation and walking.

"Perhaps I should re-phrase that," he said, his baritone voice making her stomach flip. She turned her head as he spoke and quirked an eyebrow. "Would you like a lift, Ms Amatuzzi?"

"Uhh.." as she started to stammer her taxi pulled up and she grinned. "You're too kind, Mr. Rickman. Maybe another time."

He nodded shortly and gave her a grin that made her insides tingle, "Sure."

As she got into the taxi she'd long forgotten any annoyance relating to the cabbie being late, how much her feet ached, how tired she was. That evening her thoughts were on him. How old was he? Did he have a girlfriend? Was he that nice to everyone? Is there even the slightest possibility that he was interested in her? Could he be gay? All she could do was grin... right up until her head hit the pillow.

She had something to look forward to. Tomorrow.


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Thank you, please review! I don't have a beta, so be gentle.