And Playing the Role of Herself (Frankiana)

CHAPTER THREE

Kreizeck's episode, titled 'Snap', wrapped shooting early the following week, and despite my original misgivings and intense dislike of the man, when post production was finished, it turned out to be one of the better episodes we'd done. Still, we were all glad to have some of our regular directors back in the director's chair, and the next few weeks went by quickly as we settled back into our normal routine. 

9P worked on a sixteen-day cycle for each episode, with the first eight days dedicated to preproduction activities such as casting and finding and confirming locations, and the next eight days consisted of the actual shooting. With rotating directing and production teams, they were able to overlap the preproduction of an upcoming episode with the actual shooting of the current episode, so the actors were always shooting, the casting department was always casting and one of the production teams was always working on setting up our next week.

It was a grueling schedule that ran from late May until mid July, and I knew I wasn't the only one looking forward to have a break. Like many of the other cast members, I had other projects going on during the break so I'd still be busy, but a change of pace would be very welcome.

Kiara hadn't mentioned the dreaded Internet-authors-who-thought-she-was-a-lesbian again after the day of the Q&A, but Ate Hasna told me she had asked for more sites.

Franki caused a stir during Davis Cup play, where she watched from reserved seats as Argel Saycon served and backhand-volleyed his way to two match wins, helping the Philippines gain a victory over the Taiwanese team. Her sunglass-shaded face and commented on so many times during Argel's matches that it was amazing anyone watching actually remembered there was tennis going on. I watched what matches I could, not even making the effort to lie to myself and say I was watching for the tennis, although the tennis was pretty damn good. I just wanted to see her face, as pathetic as that sounds. The memory of her body against mine no longer stopped my breath, but it was still burned in my memory, and wasn't going away any time soon. 

I'd seen her rarely and only in passing since our scene together; the plotline she had been involved with on 9P had concluded for the moment and she was no longer required on our set, so I was surprised one morning, more than a month after the wrapping of 'Snap', when she showed up for the preliminary table read for the season finale that would start shooting at the end of our current eight-day shoot.

A table read was a sit-down reading of a script for an upcoming episode with the writers, producers, director and the regular cast members present to give feedback and discuss any location or casting issues. It was one of the only roles that the cast members had in the preproduction process, and I liked the chance to get a peek at what we would be doing the following week, as well as being able to give feedback.

I'd arrived about ten minutes early and after pouring myself a glass of water, chatted idly with Josiah Garcia, a short, slightly rotund man with thinning black and Micah Tan, a beautiful giant of a man with rich, brown skin. Both were regular cast members, playing two of the other four detectives on the series besides Kiara and me. 

The rest of the regulars sat across from us; Gino Roque, an undeniably likable ladies man, Henry Salvador, stocky and strong with a bald head and bushy mustache, and finally Marco Gumabao, a handsome face with a dazzling smile, charming and an ego to match.

I glanced at my watch. None of the writer's had arrived yet, which was odd. They were usually here before anyone else, eager to pass out script drafts and get first thoughts before the producer or producers showed up. The producers were absent as well, but that was normal, and Kiara, of course, would be one of the last people to walk through the door. She always arrived when the dramatic impact of her entrance would be the greatest, and none of us expected her for another twenty minutes at least.

I smiled slightly as Gino and Henry debated the specifics of the latest story making the rounds of the gossip circuit, involving two crew members, several pulleys and a power tool. 

Finally, my goat-loving days appeared to be over. Maybe people would stop bleating behind my back and joking about goat cheese sandwiches during lunch. 

One could only hope.

The door swung open and Franki walked in, pausing in the doorway to survey the room.

"Hey y'all" she rasped.

Gino stopped in mid-sentence, and Josiah and Micah fell silent.