Behind The Scenes

“Ms. Luciela, we’ve got ten minutes until you must arrive on stage, please make sure you are prepared to receive your award before then!” One of the award show managers said briskly as she ran inside the dressing room with a clipboard on hand. She had been frantically running about to ensure that the event would run smoothly, especially with one of the artists being unable to show up due to a personal family emergency, and the sound equipment malfunctioning only half an hour before the awards show began.

Thus, at this point, she had effectively exhausted nearly all her energy, and she was waiting for the minute Luciela got on stage so that she could finally take her break, get a moment of peace to relax, and have the sandwiches and lemonade she had been saving for an early dinner.

Despite the clear urgency in the tone of her voice however, Luciela somehow had still not snapped out of her train of thought, her mind clearly preoccupied by something else entirely.

It wasn’t until her hair stylist Sydney waved her hand in front of Luciela’s face and called her name out loud several times for Luciela to finally snap out of her thoughts.

“Oh, oh right, of course! I’ll be sure to be ready, sorry I spaced out.” Luciela apologized to the manager, who waved it off, reassuring her, “Don’t even worry about it, I understand how hard it is to focus after two hours of preparation, I’m having a hard time focusing on anything now myself. Geez, I really need a coffee…” She said this with a sigh and a look of longing, and with that, the manager made her exit, leaving Luciela, Sydney, and a few other prep team members in the dressing room to finish their preparations.

‘Just how long was I lost in thought?’  Luciela wondered to herself, rubbing her forehead from the slight headache she felt after thinking so deeply about old memories. The raw emotions from back then felt somewhat fresh in her mind as she recalled those moments, so much so that she could not help but be absorbed in her thoughts, forgetting everything around her.

Everything being the Annual Paris Acting Award Ceremony she was currently attending, the piece of paper with her speech written on it for when she received the ‘Best Young Actress Award’, and the few stylists whose eyes were silently begging her to focus so that they could get her ready in time.

“Before you say anything, I know it’s almost time to go, and I promise I’ll do my best to get ready quickly.” Luciela reassured the staff, who collectively released a sigh of relief and laughed at her comment, before getting back to making the final arrangements. Luciela’s hair stylist, for the fifth time that evening, checked over the bobby pins holding up Luciela’s hair to ensure they were securely in place. One of the prep staff checked the bottom of her gown to make sure it reached just above her feet, so that she wouldn’t trip over the hem on stage, and another staff member put on some simple pearl earrings on each of Luciela’s ears.

“You must’ve been feeling nervous huh?” Sydney asked Luciela as she put away some of the hair products she had used, looking at Luciela with a sympathetic smile.

“Oh, I…” Luciela began answering her before trailing off. She realized that Sydney mistook Luciela’s wandering mind for nervousness about going on stage. Luciela was definitely feeling something, and while nerves were part of it, it was more so a feeling of longing… not exactly loneliness, but similar to it all the same.

“I am a little nervous at least… but I’ve practiced my speech at least three dozen times, and I’ll only be up there for no more than five minutes, so I think I’ll be fine.” Luciela reassured Sydney, giving her a smile in return. “Although, I would have liked for my aunt and family to have come and attended in person, but with my cousins’ entrance exams coming up, there was just no way they could make it.” Luciela admitted, to which Sydney had a look of understanding and nodded.

“Ahh yes! I see, exams do require a lot of study and focus huh? Oh, but they did chat with you earlier on the phone didn’t they?” Sydney mentioned, to which Luciela smiled and responded, “Oh yes, they all said they were sorry they couldn’t make it, but that they had the livestream opened on their television, and would be cheering me on from home.”

“Ahh, that’s wonderful! It’s so nice that you have your family cheering for you isn’t it? Even if they couldn’t be here in person, what matters is that they’re thinking of you, and I’m sure they’re very proud of you for winning the award. I mean, there were over a hundred candidates right?” Sydney remarked enthusiastically, making Luciela blush in embarrassment before admitting, “Oh yes, but honestly I wasn’t sure I’d win, I mean Clarisse has been all over the news with the success of her last two films.”

“Nonsense! I mean she did incredible as well, but I know you’ve worked very hard on that historical drama you were filming back in Japan. Travelling that far for work at your age, I can’t tell whether I should be amazed or concerned.” Sydney remarked, putting a hand to her face as she made a worried expression. That was enough to get a good laugh out of Luciela.

“Oh, it was a long flight for sure! But I was able to stay at my grandmother’s house, so it all worked out. After all, my dad was from Japan, and most of his family live in Kyoto.” Luciela’s father, who was Japanese, met her mother in university, who was an exchange student from France. They had gotten married and stayed in Japan a few more years and had Luciela, but after Luciela’s grandfather became ill, her family moved to France permanently so her mother could take care of her father.

He had been kind, gentle, and hilarious, Luciela recalled, but after experiencing illness for around two years, he had passed on, and his last gift to Luciela was a bracelet with a silver flower on it.

She still had that same bracelet, safely stored in her jewellery box. It was a precious treasure to her after all.

“Oh yes, I do remember you mentioning that some time ago! Well, it must’ve been nice to get some time with your grandmother. How is she doing?” Sydney asked, to which Luciela nodded and replied, “She’s well, thank you! Although she wouldn’t stop worrying over me, what with the action scenes I had to film for the drama and all.” And with that they both shared a laugh.

“Haha, but you were taking those fencing lessons for half a year, and I could tell the practice paid off! Honestly, I think you’re quite the hard worker Luciela,” Sydney responded with a hint of pride in her eyes, before she gently took Luciela’s hands, paused, and then continued, “But, I hope that you’re able to see yourself for more than just your acting. You’re still young, and there’s so much you have yet to see and experience. Work hard, but be open minded as well, and take care of yourself okay?”

Luciela’s eyes widened a bit in surprise. Where in the world was this coming from? She was about to ask Sydney to clarify, when suddenly her manager Clara Sparks almost broke the door when she swung it open, panting to catch her breath. This startled everyone in the room, who dropped what they were doing to turn their attention to the sudden visitor.

Clara immediately apologized for scaring them, before recollecting herself and frantically saying, “L-Luciela! What are you still doing here?! You’re on in three minutes sharp!” Luciela suddenly stood up in surprise, checking the clock on the time frantically and realizing that she lost track of time. She was indeed scheduled to go up soon, and would only make it if she ran like her life depended on it.

“Oh dear, I’m sorry for keeping you here with our chatter! Go to your show.” Sydney fervently apologized to Luciela, who shook her head and responded, “N-no Sydney! Please don’t apologize, I should’ve checked the time myself! Ms. Clara, I’ll head straight over!”

Clara however raced across the room, grabbed Luciela’s arm, and with a tone of urgency, quickly replied with, “There’s no time to talk! Come on come on, we’ve got to move right this second if we’re gonna make it!” And with that, Luciela was effectively dragged out of the room, only managing to wave to the staff and shout a quick ‘thank you!’ before being pulled down the hallway.

Luciela was able to barely see the smiles and waves of the staff as she left the room, their silent encouragement creating a sense of warmth in her chest as she raced alongside Clara to the backstage.