Lights, Cameras, Outsiders!

Chapter 39

LCO 39

"No, the apartment's big. It has 3 bedrooms, a full kitchen, and a bath," I told Susie.

"Living area?" She said, putting her glasses on and taking the notes from me that Matt took from the realtor on the phone.

"Yeah there's a living area."

"And where is it again?"

"New Rochelle," I said.

"Ohhhh. When you gonna get your stuff outta my damn house?" She teased and laughed.

"I don't know. End of the picture."

"And you gotta get stuff from your house," she said. Oh, God. My parents.

"My house?" I said.

"Yes, the one you actually lived in before you came here."

"Does that mean I have to tell my parents?"

"Well who is?"

"You."

"I'm not telling my brother that. No way. He'll kill me, Essie."

"Please, Susie. I can't just wa-" we heard a gunshot on the other side of the set. We were out on the town and shooting at the DX.

"Was that what I think that was?" I said.

"I think so," she said. We saw Francis fly out of his chair and dash behind the DX. We popped up and ran after him. A gun was in the dirt and Rob, Cruise, Tommy, and Ralph all stood, wideyed. I looked over to the ground to see Matt on the ground, holding his chest.

"What the fuck happened?!" Francis screamed.

"We were playing around with the squibs for the shooting scene. We didn't know," Ralph said. I lowered to my knees by Matt and pried his hans from his side.

"Oh, shit," I said. He had the gas bags taped to his bare chest and the blanks hit the bags...and his flesh.

"Whose idea was this?!" Francis demanded.

"Matt's."

"Okay Matt I'm getting real tired of this ridiculous fooling around.

Once Essie cleans you up, I want you off the set."

"Francis," Susie started.

"No! I want him off! He's irresponsible!" He started to stomp off but Susie started after him.

"What the hell was that?" Christine said, coming around the corner.

"Can one of you get my big blue first aid kit?" I said.

"Hey, Darlin'," Matt said.

"Don't start right now," I said.

"How come? Am I dying?"

"You got a flesh wound," I said.

"I did?" I pushed underneath the blank to see how far it really was. Barely anything.

"AH! FUCK!"

"Stop it! You're the idiot that did this to yourself!" I said.

"They shot me!"

"You encouraged it. And now Francis is flaming mad. He wants you off the set!"

"No he doesn't. I'll be fine. FUCK! STOP! Stop poking at it!"

"Uh, I'm the nurse. Shut up and let me do my job," I said. Next thing I knew, Ralph gave me the first aid kit.

"Okay, this is gonna hurt but hold on," I said. I took my metal "scooping tool" and dug underneath the lodged bullet.

"SHIT! ESSIE! STOP!"

"I have to get it out! Grab my arm if it's that bad!" Once I started to lodge the tool under the bullet again, he grabbed my arm and tried his best to not scream. I threw the bullet aside, and put hand sanitizer on my palms. I took water, rubbed it on a rag and

started to dab around the wound and then I got the blood inside.

"GODDAMN IT! ESSIE!"

"Matt, shut the hell up! I'm trying to clean you up and you're screaming!"

"Because you're doing a shitty job!" I smacked him in the chest.

"You're the fucking idiot here. Let me do my job!"

"You're a crappy nurse." I knew he was just pissed because he was pain but it still got to me.

"You're a crappy patient. Hold still. This is gonna to burn like hell," I said, taking an alcohol pad and rubbing it inside his wound.

"OH MY GOD! FUCK, ESSIE, FUCKING STOP! OH MY GOD, THAT HURTS SO BAD!" I guess he realized everyone else was still there.

"There's nothing to see here!" He snapped and everyone scrambled.

"Oh my god, Essie, that hurt so bad."

"I know, but it's over now. Sit up," I said. I refused to give him my hand but he sat up by himself after a while. I put some gauze pads on the wound and wrapped the roll of gauze around his torso until I was out.

"Now, go back to acting."