The Actor: Celebrity Romance based on a True Story PREVIEW

Chapter 3

[RECAP: Eloise went backstage and met The Actor, who has asked her out on a date. This would mean lying to her parents and travelling up to London by herself...]

It was too big a deal to tell the others. I needed to think about things first. I would tell Milly, obviously, but not with Claire and Amanda there. When I rejoined them they were all avid to know what had gone on.

"Did he remember you?"

"What was he like, did he mind you going to see him?"

"Did you get a repeat performance?" This was said with some sneering, because Amanda had never really wanted to believe that I'd kissed him in the first place.

I had already rehearsed a safe answer in my mind, in the few seconds between leaving his dressing room and coming outside again into the cold shock of the night air. "He was very nice, and he was glad we liked the play," I told them, as we walked back around to grab some chips from McDonalds as we still had ten minutes to go.

"That's it?" Claire looked very skeptical. "I bet you didn't even get to see him, did you?"

"Well I did, so..."

There wasn't a lot you could say to that. Either she believed me, or she didn't. In the end it was more interesting to believe me.

"But did he remember you?" Claire asked.

"He said he did. In fact..." I wondered whether it would be safe to tell them about the phone call. They would doubtless pretend not to believe it, but it would give them something to feast on. And it was hard not being able to tell them all of it. I know I shouldn't have needed to brag, but the two of them were so smug and insufferable all the time.

"In fact what?" Amanda demanded.

"He said he tried to phone me, at my aunt and uncle's, after that party."

"Yeah, right." Amanda rolled her eyes at this and she and Claire smirked.

We were at the front of the line now, and I ordered a large chips to split with Milly. I shrugged. "Well, that's what he said, anyway. I don't know why he would have made it up."

"It's obvious why you'd make it up," Amanda said.

"Your aunt and uncle might remember the call," Milly suggested, coming to my defence.

"I suppose I could ask them."

Curiosity and a desire for gossip was outweighing Claire's desire to disbelieve me. "So what happened with the phone call?"

"He said he was going to ask me out for a drink, but my aunt told him how old I was."

This was such a humiliating thing to admit that it sounded credible. There was a bit of a stunned silence .

"God, how embarrassing," Amanda said.

We all stood there, basking in my cringe.

"Did she actually tell him you were fifteen?" Milly asked.

"I don't know." We were still all absorbing the horror of it. They were, anyway. They didn't know he had remade the suggestion.

Then we were interrupted by the strident voice of Mrs Padstow. "Girls! To the coach, now! I warned you not to dawdle."

I couldn't help feeling an extra sense of resentment at being herded back onto the coach like a load of naughty schoolgirls. Which I suppose we were. Except I was now someone who had been asked out by a handsome and famous man. I could only imagine what Mrs Padstow would think if she knew.