Sip of Assistance

Chapter 14

Chapter 14

At the end of September we were still on the set of Long Winter, shooting scene after scene. James loved every bit of it: the director, his costars, the script, and even the set.

I, on the other hand, was feeling a bit more lethargic. It had been months since I was on the scene of a film and the whole ambiance of it brought me back to a different time. Everywhere I turned there was another reminder of Jon, another reminder of a chapter of my life that was over.

I went looking for Sammie Cordova, Tony’s wife, because the day’s shooting was over and we were all heading out. While wandering, I saw posters of movies Jon was in. Those were bad enough until I saw the classic Scream poster. To some it may just be a reminder of a horror filmed that mocked the genre while still playing into it. To me, it screamed JON.

As usual, I forgot all about where I was and became consumed in the past as if reliving it. It was Monday Movie Night. We had skipped out on the last two because filming had been so hectic, but Jon insisted that he would work all Tuesday exhausted if he had to because we were not skipping another one. We’d been doing it for months; each week whoever’s turn it was got to pick a movie the other hadn’t seen and might ‘enjoy’.

It hadn’t taken long for Jon to realize that his “big bad arse-kicking assistant” –as he had called me- was terrified of horror films. Much to my displeasure, he had chosen scary movies the last three times it had been his turn, which is another reason I had been insistent on us skipping again, but to no avail.

I was lying on my stomach on Jon’s huge bed in front of the television, in the bedroom of his hotel suite while he popped in an unknown dvd.

“Why exactly do we have to watch it in here? What’s wrong with the living room?” I asked, curious about his choice and slightly uncomfortable after what Trudy had asked. Was this what normal friends did?

“Better atmosphere for the film.”

“What is it, a porno? What does that even mean?” I questioned.

He just laughed at my questions, flipped off the light switch, and walked back towards the bed.

“Oh no,” I mumbled, knowing he had once again decided to torture me. He always insisted the lights be out for horror films.

He looked at me with a smug smile, winked, and jumped on the bed, sitting with his back agains the headboard.

“It’s ‘Scream’. Can’t believe you’ve never seen it,” he announced, still smiling.

I glared at him over my shoulder, then turned to face front just as the film started.

About three minutes in, I had moved to sit next to Jon and thrown the comforter over me to give myself a sense of safety. Covers always equaled safety.

"Will you marry me, Holly?" he whispered at once the scary scene in the beginning ended with the girl being murdered.

"Love to, but alas no time with how tired I'll be from all the night terrors that will be throwing off my sleeping pattern for years to come thanks to these stupid movie nights!" I shouted in reply.

He merely laughed as always, but after that -to Jon’s credit- he didn’t laugh at me when I jumped and screamed, but that was probably because my jumps and screams made him jump and scream- which I did find pretty funny when I wasn’t terrified.

Before long he noticed my hands over my eyes. He reached over and wrapped an arm around me, pulling me into his side so I could bury my face in his chest and peak when the sound affects announced the creepy scenes were over. We stayed like that through the film, until I fell asleep.