Scurrying back in my room, I spotted my sketchbook on the floor and instantly remembered what my plan was yesterday. Quickly snatching my colored pencils and my sketchbook, I headed back out to the loft’s balcony. I settled against the outside wall and set my colored pencils beside me as I took my regular pencil, sharpened it to a fine point, and then began sketching.

The initial skyline is always fairly easy. Just copy what you see. My tongue remained wedged between my lips as I carefully outlined the city and the park and the random dog tied to a tree across the road. Feeling satisfied with my sketch, I picked up the blue and began shading in the sky. I was happy with the weather today. Mild, with a clear blue sky. Not difficult to draw at all. Now storms, those were difficult to capture in a drawing. Clouds and rain and lightening took forever to get a grasp on and I typically ended up pulling out my Monster and snapping a few quick pictures instead. But not today. Today everything was perfect as I filled my outline with colors and watched it come to life.

The thing about my artwork, was that no one really knew about it. Sure, my family knew I liked doing it and did it all the time, but they didn’t really know how much I wanted to pursue it. Of course my family would say, “Cam, it’s so good! Wow!” but family members say that without really meaning it sometimes. When I saw my artwork, I thought it was pretty incredible. Not to sound conceited, I’m just confident in my work. But that’s just the thing. I’m confident in my own opinion, but I was absolutely terrified to get anyone else’s thoughts.

“Cam!” My head whipped to the side, seeing James standing above me with a quizzical look crossing his face.

“What?”

“Are you deaf or something? We’ve been calling you for the past ten minutes.” James said, pointing inside.

“What time is it?” It barely felt like I had been out here ten minutes. James pulled out his phone and squinted at the time.

“Almost five.” My eyes widened.

“Five?” I asked incredulously. “Are your friends still here?”

“Nah, they left awhile ago. Speaking of which,” James sat down next to me, pushing my pencils aside, “you weren’t very social earlier.”

“I have nothing to discuss with them. Ava seemed nice, but after Gemma made that joke, I just knew I wouldn’t quite fit in with your group. Also! Carson. Did you hear what he said? He wants to go out for coffee and a movie with me. He just asked me out, James.”

“Don’t pay him any attention, he’s a flirt.” He told me. 

“He needs a haircut. He looks pubescent with his long hair.” James snorted, a bad habit we picked up from our dad.

“I know, he may have to cut it for the movie, we’ll see. But Ava and Gemma are really nice. I think you’ll like them. Hopefully. Because chances are, we’ll all be hanging out a lot.”

“Are you saying you’re going to drag me along?”

“Not drag you, you’ll want to come. Not all my friends are going to shun you just because you’ve never been in a movie.”

“Most of your friends in LA did.”

“No, you just didn’t trust yourself acting normal around them.” James reminded me and I opened my mouth to protest when I realized that’s exactly how it was.

“Fine.” I said in defeat, pretending to suddenly be very occupied in putting my colored pencils back in their box.

“Oh, by the way! Here is your all access pass.” He dangled a lanyard with an ID tag in front of me. “You won’t really need it until next week. I mean, the majority of this week is going to be costumes and run throughs and making sure the lights don’t wash us out.” I nodded, pretending that I understood what he had to go through. In reality, I had no idea.

“So this week is mainly just Mom and I doing whatever we want?” James merely nodded and then got to his feet.

“Come on, supper time.” I grabbed his hand as he pulled me up. Trudging down the stairs, Mom had a basic supper all laid out and we all loaded our plates in silence and sat at the island. No use sitting at the giant dining room table when there was only three of us. 

“So, James, I don’t think I ever asked you, but what is this movie even about?” Mom inquired, catching James mid bite. 

“It’s an action movie.” He mumbled, mouth full. 

“Swallow your food, then tell me.” James took his dear, sweet time chewing his chicken, smirking as he saw Mom start getting impatient.

“Dude, swallow your food!” I said, exasperated and James, feeling satisfied with our annoyed expressions, swallowed his food and began.

“It’s an action film. We’re a bunch of young spies, there’s a bad guy, there’s a bit of romance for Cam,” I smiled. James was always mocking me because I was such a hopeless romantic. Not my fault I was raised on Disney films and period romances. “There’s a bit of everything, so it’s a movie for everyone. Like Avengers. Just, we’re not superheroes.” James stated simply.

“There was not romance in Avengers!” I said. The only romance in that movie was me falling in love with Hawkeye. But my brother merely shrugged off my comment.

“That’s because action movies won’t focus on that, Cammie baby. Sorry, but no.”

“Well, it sounds like a good movie and I can’t wait to see it. Even if I have to see it in pieces.” Mom said, finishing up her food and taking it to the sink. “Remember to rinse your dishes and put them in the dishwasher. Not the sink.” She emphasized, knowing my and James’ bad habit.

“Yes, mother.” We mumbled in response.

“Oh, and Cam. We’re going touring tomorrow, so we are leaving at nine.”

“Mommy!” I dragged the word.

“James, do you think you could get us a car or something?”

“You don’t know how to drive in England.” He said, looking terrified.

“I could always learn. I’m a very good driver.” James and I looked at each other.

“Maybe you could hire us a driver or something.” I whispered across the table.

“That’s what I was thinking. I’ll go call George.” He got up from the table to call, while Mom stood there looking offended.

“Fine. But he’s dropping us off in the city and then we’re walking everywhere or taking the Tube.” Mom said, emphasizing that that was the end of the discussion. She then left the dining room to her office just as James came back.

“Alright, so George will be here tomorrow morning. As for right now, movie?” I shrugged.

“Yeah, sure.” We started moving away from the dining room, when Mom called, “Dishes!” Both of us groaned and returned to our dishes, quickly rinsing them and placing them in the dishwasher.

James picked out a movie as I settled on the couch. He pushed the movie in and flopped down beside me, draping his arm around my shoulder and pulling me in to his shoulder.

“You just have to be related to me, don’t you?” I said as he raised an eyebrow.

“What do you mean?”

“This would be so cute if we weren’t related and you were my boyfriend. But no. You’re my brother.”

“You’re weird, Cam.” James said, chuckling.

“Maybe that’s why I’m inevitably single.”

“Probably.”

“Jerk.”

“I love you.”

“Suck up.” James started laughing as the beginning of the movie started to play.

“You’ll find someone, Cammie. Don’t worry.” He spoke words of reassurance, maybe, but he was just being the great older brother that he was. And what if I didn’t find anyone? What if I was doomed to the life of an old maid? I didn’t think I was entirely bad looking or unpleasant. My hair was a basic dark brown and my eyes were green. I wasn’t too tall or too short. In all honesty, I was probably straight up average. And maybe that’s why the eyes of wandering teenage and young adult males flew right on by me. James had always been attractive. I’m not even kidding. He was an adorable little child and he seemed to completely skip over the awkward puberty stage and went straight into his current stage of heartthrob.

Sighing, I gave up on the thoughts of the chances of me getting a boyfriend anytime soon. I was in Europe! Boyfriends could come later.

The next week passed quickly. Mom and I toured all over the surrounding area and James continued to bring Carter, Gemma, and Ava over. Ava only came once after the initial meet, but I was beginning to think Gemma was glued to James. Almost every day after work, she would be trailing after James into our house and I’m not entirely positive James invited her over every single time. Carter continued to be a flirt whenever he got the chance, but I just found him funny. He flirted with Ava and Gemma, too, and I’m pretty sure at one point he may or may not have flirted with Mom. James gave him a little talking to after that.

It was Sunday evening when James came knocking at my door. He peered inside to find me editing photos on my computer, music blasting through my headphones.

“Yo. Cam.” He shook my shoulder, scaring me half to death. I clutched my chest, my eyes wide. James caught sight of my face and started laughing hysterically.

“Your face!” He managed to half-yell-half-laugh. 

“Jeez, James. You gave me a heart attack.” 

“Oh my gosh, that was priceless.” He wiped a tear from the corner of his eyes. “I’m sorry, but that was fantastic.” 

“You here for a reason?” I tried to glare at him, but it was funny. Even if I could still feel my heart racing inside my chest.

“Yeah, sorry. Tomorrow morning we’re filming. Proper, real, not boring filming. You can come, if you want?”

“Ooh! Yes! I want to come!” It wasn’t like I was bored. Mom and I have seen Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Big Ben, Tower of London, pretty much every attraction in London, but that’s just the thing. I have seen everything. I even went to the park near our house five times already to draw and take pictures.

“Alright, well, you have to get up early. You know that right?”

“How early we talking here?” James bit his lip, meaning he knew I wasn’t going to be too pleased with the answer.

“I have to be there at six. So we have to leave at five.”

“So I have to be up at four?” I asked, incredulously.

“How long does it take you to get ready?”

“Well, I’m going to be surrounded by movie stars, I have to look at least half decent. Do you want me showing up in sweats?”

“Ok, fine. But don’t worry about eating. There’ll be food and coffee there for you.” My face brightened at the sound of that.

“Sounds good.”

“Rick is always on time, so be ready to go.” I nodded my head and replied, “I will.”

“Great, night Cam.” James left my room, shutting the door behind him as I resumed my photo editing.

The next morning, I woke up to blasting music coming from James’ room. I rolled over on to my side and blinked my eyes open to catch a glimpse at my clock. Four-ten. Groaning, I sat up and rubbed the sleepies out of my eyes.

“Cammie! Cammie baby! Get up, rise and shine!” James burst into my room, doing ballerina twirls and leaps. Despite my lack of sleep, I started giggling.

“How on earth are you so awake?”

“Redbull.” He stated simply. Yeah. That would do it. He exited my room, still dancing, as I slipped out of bed and started getting ready. My hair was magically cooperating today, so all I had to do was smooth it out and put a ponytail holder around my wrist. I pulled a white v-neck over my head, adding some basic necklaces while slipping into my jeans. It had been pretty chilly for the past few days, so I added an open denim shirt and carmel leather jacket. Nothing special, but nothing too casual or lazy looking. After swabbing on some mascara, I called it good and headed to the bathroom to brush my teeth.

“Cam! You ready yet?” James called up the stairs. My mouth was full of toothpaste, so I merely made a weird sound that sounded like an “almost.”

“What?” I heard him call back. I spat out my toothpaste and rinsed out my mouth.

“Almost!”

“Hurry up!” I glanced down at my watch.

“We have ten minutes!” James didn’t reply, so I headed back into my room to grab my bag.

“Cam, it’s chilly out, so remember your jacket! And maybe wear a scarf. You could even wear a hat.” I heard Mom rattle off from downstairs.

“Way ahead of you!” Snatching my scarf out of my drawer, I called it good and headed downstairs. 

Mom was completely ready, wearing her coat and shoes, sitting in the chair, tapping away on her phone, while James sat there, head resting on his bicep, looking complete disheveled in sweatpants and his hair sticking up all over the place.

“Wow, James. You look so good this morning.” 

“The Redbull is dying and I get my hair and costume when I arrive. No need to look good.” He mumbled into arm. His phone then beeped loudly. “Rick’s here. Let’s go.” Mom was the first out the door while James and I stumbled about, yanking on our shoes.

“I hate laces.” I said as I knotted my Converse onto my feet. James muttered something in reply as he slipped on his shoes on with ease.

“Ready for a day on set? It can get a little boring at times.”

“I got my Monster, my sketch pad, and my iPod. Not to mention there’s food and coffee there. I’ll live.” I reassured him as we exited the house.

We greeted Rick as we climbed into the car, Mom already in the front seat. The drive was long, dark, and silent as we passed through London in the wee hours of the morning. Barely any cars in the street, mostly just cabs taking the Sunday night partiers. James had already fallen asleep in the corner, while Mom and Rick talked quietly in the front. My head rested on the window, watching trees whiz past us as we left the city and started back out into the countryside. I hadn’t been out of the city since we first arrived and I forgot how much I liked it. The sun was beginning to rise and I couldn’t sustain my eyes widening in awe.

“Oh.” I whispered, not wanting anyone to hear. It was the most beautiful thing I think I’ve ever seen. The light hues of pink and purple melded into the dark night sky, stars vanishing out of sight. Slowly, the bright reds and oranges took over the sky, pushing the clouds farther back. Then I remembered my Monster. Shuffling through my bag, I eventually found it, rolled down the window, and instantly began snapping away.

“James. James. James.” I hissed, not taking my eyes off the sunrise.

“What, Cam? Gosh, I am sleeping.”

“You were sleeping. Look at the sunrise.” I heard his body shift.

“Wow.”

“I know. And I got pictures!” I squealed, pulling my camera away from the window as the sun took over the sky.

“Good job. Now, I’m going to go back to sleep.” Just as he said that, the car pulled up to man in a security uniform.

“Sorry James. Time for work.” Rick said as he flashed his ID card. “I need your IDs.” We all handed up our passes as the security man checked all our faces and then waved us through. The moment we parked the car, James was ushered away to hair and make-up, while Rick walked towards a large tent while he chattered away on his phone. A busy body type lady fluttered over to where my mom and I stood. 

“Good morning. I’m Lisa Finch. You must be James’ family.” Her accent was strong and British as she shook our hands overly enthusiastically. Her fluttery-ness was carried through her voice. 

“Yes, I’m his mother, Carol, and this is his sister, Camille.” Lisa beamed as if this was the best news she’s ever heard.

“We’re so glad you could join us today! The filming just began, but I’m sure you’ll enjoy it. Now, if you’ll follow me, I’ll take you to where you’ll be watching.” Lisa turned sharp on her heels and we started heading for the mass of trailers and tents. I trailed along behind, in dire need of coffee. Mom remained alive, making small talk with the fluttering Finch. I noticed she was wearing feathers and even her sharp nose and coral lips made for an excellent beak. Now entertained by her likeness to a bird, I tried to find other people who resembled animals. A man was pretty close to a pig, another woman looked like a mouse whenever she was smiling. I was so humored by this, I didn’t even realize that I had wandered away from my mom and Lisa. All of a sudden I was in the middle of people rushing back and forth, brushing me aside, trying to get where they needed to be.

“Excuse me, miss.” I turned to find a giant of a man standing there. He looked like he was ready to kill me, which judging by his size, he was definitely capable of doing.

“Yes?” I asked, not sure why my voice seemed to falter. I wasn’t doing anything wrong. I was just lost.

“This is a closed set. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.” He began guiding me back to the gate.

“Oh, no! I’m allowed to be here, see?” I reached down for my pass when I realized I didn’t have it. Mom must have been still holding it from when the security man gave them back to us. “I have a pass, I promise. My mom must have it.”

“Miss, I’m sorry, but -”

“No, my brother is James Everett. I’m allowed to be here.”

“I’ve heard that before. Let’s go.” He started ushering me out, winding me through a bunch of trailers that I somehow got lost in.

“No, really! I’m Camille Everett. My mom is Carol.” I pleaded.

“Public information. The internet has loads of once personal facts.” He started pushing me out.

“What do I have to say?” I huffed, pushing his arm off of mine. “That he wet his bed until he was ten or that he was scared of the dark until he was twelve?” Ok, that was really personal and if James ever figured out that I told one of his security guards that, he would probably kill me. The security guard seemed a bit taken aback at that reveal of information, but shook it off and continued in a tired tone.

“You fangirls are ruthless. Move. Or I’ll call back up.” 

“Well, of course I’m ruthless. I’m his sister. And I’m not going to tell you his life story to prove that.” I told him sternly. 

“You are crossing the line.”

“So are you!” I was tired of being pushed around. This guy wasn’t even trying to believe me.

“Hey Ian, what’s the problem?” The voice came from behind me and I recognized it instantly. I turned to see my brother standing in the doorway of one of the trailers.

“James!” I started moving toward him, when “Ian” grabbed hold of my arm.

“This girl thinks she’s your sister.” Ian said.

“I am.” I urged.

“James?” Ian looked between the two of us doubtfully. I couldn’t blame him. We looked nothing alike, really.

“Cam, why aren’t you with mom?” The guard looked stunned.

“You mean she is your sister?”

“Of course she is.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I guess I couldn’t see the resemblance.” Thought so.

“No problem, Ian. I got her.” Ian released my arm as James came to where I was being held as Ian took off. “So, Cam. What do you think?” He extended his arms, addressing the entire set, but I merely looked at his outfit. He was clad in black and a leather biker jacket and I could tell his boots didn’t quite fit him right because of how he kept on shifting in them. Looking up at his face, I noticed his scar from where he cut his eyebrow on his bike when he was younger was ten times larger.

“Whoa. What happened to your eye?” I poked it, wondering if it would hurt.

“Hey, don’t mess the make up. They enhanced it to make me look bigger and tougher.”

“You have to wear make up.” I smiled smugly. “Now you know how much it sucks.”

“I don’t have to put it on though. That’s what Nicole is for.”

“Ooh, who’s Nicole?”

“My make up artist.” James said, disapproving my chance to make fun of him and a girl together.

“Mhm, sure she is.” He shook his head.

Seeing James in his full glory was interesting, to say the least. He was always a happy, excited person, but here with all the lights and cameras and busy-bodies, I could tell James looked right at home.

“You’re staring at me funny.” James said, pulling me out of my trance.

“Sorry, just thinking about how weird it is to see you like this. All the lights and make up.” I grinned, pointing at the visible cover up coating his minor acne on his forehead.

“It’s just so the lights don’t wash me out. And besides, no one wants to see my ugly acne.”

“Aw, I liked your acne! It made me feel better about myself.”

“Cammie! You’re gorgeous, don’t worry about your looks.” My heart swelled.

“James! You’re going to make me cry.” He enveloped me in a hug. He always gave the best hugs.

“James, you need to finish hair. Mel’s going to lose it.” I heard a voice call from behind me. It was deep and the accent sounded British.

“I’ll be right there.” James called back, practically in my ear.

“What are you doing?” The voice called again, this time sounding closer.

“My sister needs some loving. She’s feeling neglected.”

“Am not.” I said.

“Sh.” James hushed me.

“So this is the mystery sister!” The voice was right behind me. I could practically feel his body heat.

“You haven’t met her! I forgot!” James released me and spun me around to face the mystery guy. “Cam. This is Liam Hawthorne.”