Comedy of Erinn by Celia Bonaduce Page A

you.
    Well, I am if he doesn’t get his ass on this plane .
    As the seconds ticked by, Erinn’s mood lifted. If he didn’t get on the plane, she was sure she could convince Cary that it only made economic sense to give Erinn a shot at directing.
    Squash those thoughts!
    â€œPassenger Raphael, last call. Passenger Raphael. Flight 260 to Philadelphia will be leaving in one minute.”
    â€œShould I call the office?” Erinn asked Carlos, trying to sound professionally concerned.
    Carlos looked up and pulled one earbud out of his ear. Erinn smoldered.
    â€œThis requires two ears.”
    Carlos grinned and good-naturedly yanked out the other earbud.
    â€œOK. What’s up?”
    â€œShould I call the office?”
    â€œWhat about?”
    â€œJude.”
    â€œOh, Erinn. Just chill.”
    Carlos nestled the earbuds back in place.
    Erinn stared at him and thought about the new words she’d picked up during the two weeks she’d been at Apple Pie. Because she was self-taught, she didn’t really know much production-speak, but every time she heard a word she didn’t know, she wrote it down.
    Now, when someone asked for a “stinger,” she knew to grab an extension cord, and if “barn doors” were called for, she knew that it was a lighting fixture with metal flaps that opened and closed. “Beefy Baby” had nearly stumped her, but it turned out to be an aluminum stand with some heft to it.
    Erinn looked around the plane. She caught Gilroi’s eye. He seemed to read her mind.
    â€œDon’t worry. He always shows up by the time we have to shoot.”
    Erinn sat back in her seat and closed her eyes. She admonished herself for her fantasy of how great it would be if he didn’t show up. A tap on her shoulder brought her back to reality. It was Jude, holding a Burger King bag. He indicated the seat next to her.
    â€œI think that’s my seat,” he said.
    Erinn got up and let him in. She was determined not to say a word, but silence was not one of her virtues.
    â€œYou almost missed the flight.”
    â€œNo, I didn’t,” he said, biting into his greasy burger. “I can’t stand getting on the plane and just sitting, so I always wait until they’re ready to close the doors before I get on. I still had a good seven minutes.”
    â€œThe flight attendant said ‘last call.’ ”
    Jude shrugged. “They call your name four times before they lock you out. I was cool.”
    She glanced over at Carlos, who was pretending to read but who was smirking. Erinn loathed being smirked at and she stewed.
    The flight attendant, a young woman in a snug uniform and a name tag that read Marla , leaned over Erinn to speak to Jude. Erinn, annoyed, flattened herself against her backrest to make room for Marla’s industrial-strength breasts. Marla and Jude flirted effortlessly over Erinn, which annoyed her even further.
    â€œGlad to see you could join us,” Marla said.
    â€œWouldn’t have missed it.”
    â€œWe almost lost out on your company for Burger King?” Marla shook her curls.
    â€œHey! Breakfast is the most important meal of the day.”
    Marla giggled and removed her breasts from Erinn’s personal space.
    Erinn pulled out her book and determinedly began reading. Jude chomped his fries noisily beside her and suddenly nudged her as Marla started her pitch to her bored, captive audience.
    â€œYou’re supposed to give her your undivided attention,” Jude said. “Since you seemed so hell-bent on following all the airline’s rules.”
    Erinn looked fleetingly at Marla, who was pretending to put the oxygen mask over her head without messing up her hair. Marla smiled hugely at Jude, who smiled back. The grease on his lower lip shone in the cabin light.
    â€œI think you can give her enough undivided attention for both of us,” Erinn said, as she returned stubbornly to her