Luminary Love

Chapter 16

The plane landed in Boston, Massachusetts at approximately seven o'clock in the evening. You walked through the airport, your mind involuntarily noticing the groups of people reuniting with their loved ones. Daughters returning home from college, husbands returning to their wives from business trips. It was all so sickeningly sweet that it made your insides hurt. You were in the exact opposite boat of them, leaving your loved ones behind so you could pursue your dreams. In fact, the whole situation seemed ironic to you. The first of the two movies you were shooting was the rom-com; however, right now, and to put it lightly, you were feeling less than romantic. As you grabbed your suitcase from the baggage claim, you turned to see the "as seen in the movies" group of drivers lining the wall near the exit. Your eyes scanned each of the makeshift signs, looking for your name.

A man. probably in his mid-fifties, stood in black jeans with a tucked-in black t-shirt near the door, the sign in his hand had your name on it. He was bald on the top of his head and kept the hair growing on the sides short. When you approached him, his eyebrows shot up from behind the black sunglasses he wore. His head tilted to the side. "Are you (y/n) (y/l/n)?" His voice was deep and gravely, like he had been smoking for about ten years. The local accent was apparent in his voice but not enough that it could be parodied in any way.

"That's me!" You smiled. "And you are?"

"Joe. Pleasure to meet you." He tucked the sign under his arm and stuck out his hand, the calloused palm almost encasing yours completely. "I'll be your driver today and probably for the majority of your time shooting." He reached down, grabbing the handles of your luggage and nodding his head towards the doors. You followed him out. Even though it was summer, the Boston air nipped at your skin, the temperature being on the cooler side. You triple checked that you had everything as Joe put the cases in the trunk. After deeming that you had everything, you approached the car, reaching out for the handle. "Allow me." Joe interjected, jogging around to your side of the car. You hopped backwards a bit, allowing the man to open the door for you.

"Thank you." You smiled, blushing at how weird this whole experience felt. Joe walked to the other side of the car and got into the driver's seat. "Alright, I'm supposed to take you to the hotel and then to set tomorrow."

"Yes!" You confirmed, looking up to the front of the car as he pulled away from the curb. "Do you know what time that'll be?"

"I haven't been told yet, but I assume I'll know by tomorrow morning."

"Awesome." You nodded, leaning back against the leather-clad backseat. Once you were out of the airport and onto the highway, your mind began to wonder to all the important things you were going to need to do the next few days. Memorizing lines, call times, hair and makeup appointments... You had to shift into work mode and put all personal matters aside to assure that you were doing your job and doing it well. This was big. And you weren't going to mess it up.

A little while later, you found yourself getting bored of the green blurs of trees that lined the highway. You shook your phone, illuminating the screen. The photo of you and Shayne from your first hangout (Date? Whatever...) flashed across the screen. You smiled to yourself, your heart aching a bit from the knowledge that it was going to be a while before you saw him again. Joe looked in the rearview mirror, noticing how you'd continue to awaken your screen once it went dark.

"Missing someone already?" He asked, returning his eyes to the road. You perked up, your eyebrows raising to attention.

"Hmm?"

"You keep looking at your phone. I don't mean to pry, but we're going to be spending a lot of time together and you seem upset... Didn't know if you needed to talk or anything."