The Setup

1 - Premiere

Chapter 1 - Premiere
Young Dumb & Broke - Khalid

"Celeste!" A fan screams from the crowd, trying to grab my attention.

I wave at the crowd, blowing a kiss before climbing into the limousine. I watch outside the window, cameras flashing brightly, fans reaching for me, and other celebrities making their way to their cars.

Sighing, I lean back in my seat. I hear the front door open and close, letting me know my driver, Marcus, is now ready to head back to the hotel.

"What a movie premiere," he says, "Congrats."

I smile, my eyes shut. "Thanks, Marcus."

The vehicle starts to move, making me hum in satisfaction. I am more than ready to collapse in my bed after such a long day of work.

Before I know it, someone is shaking me awake. I open my eyes, seeing my mom hovering over me. Her warm brown eyes look down at me with love, motivating me to get out of the car.

No cameras are flashing at me. Marcus must of brought us behind the hotel to avoid that exact situation. "Hi Mama," I greet, getting out of the car slowly, grabbing my handbag that has my necessities in it.

"Hello, sweet girl, how was the premiere?" she asks, a little sadness in her tone. She couldn't attend because of her cancer.

We discovered that she was sick two years ago with  Stage 2A breast cancer. I was chasing my dreams at the time, motivated to get jobs so I could be paid to help fundraise for my mom's surgeries. None of my family members suspected that I would have made it this far in my dream career.

"It was amazing. I'm really sad you couldn't come though, I think you would have really liked it."

She smiles, wiping some of my baby hairs backwards so they are out of my face. We walk into the hotel, greeted by some looks and whispers by the staff, but nothing more. It is too late for fans to be waiting here, long past after 1:00 in the morning.

Once we are at our room, my mom pulls a chair in front of the mirror, patting on it and instructing me to sit down.

"Help me take off my dress first," I plead. She nods, motioning for me to turn around. I turn around, letting her unzip my dress. It pools to the floor, the sparkles reflecting brightly from the lights.

I told my team to not bother helping me once I got back to the hotel. They worked very hard getting me ready, and they definitely deserved a night off.

I grab some shorts and a tank top from my suitcase, throwing them on and hanging my dress on a rack to avoid getting wrinkles. I then grab my handbag that I brought with me tonight, dumping it out on the couch and grabbing my phone.

I go over and sit on the chair, letting my mom start taking out the millions of bobby pins in my hair. I unlock my phone, muttering an 'ouch' as my mom tugs and pulls.

"Are you going to post something?" Mom asks, taking yet another pin out. I shrug, debating on what picture I should post on Instagram or what I should say in a Tweet.

"I've got an idea," I say, going onto Instagram. I decide on a picture a famous photographer emailed me that he took of me on the red carpet. My blue sparkly dress falling to the carpet, hugging my body tightly.