Chapter 38 THE START PART 3
Tears ran down her cheeks as Vivienne fell to her knees again. She was sobbing so hard that her breath caught.
It had nothing to do with Athena and everything to do with how she felt like she had failed.
The crew had stopped whispering. They were watching now in disbelief. Was she acting? Was this real?
Victor even stood up from his camera, worried.
"That's better," Alexander said, his voice softer but still harsh. "But the change from sadness to anger isn't working. You have to"
"Again?" Vivienne's voice broke. She was still on her knees, and her whole body was shaking.
"Yes. One more time. You're almost there."
"Mr. Hunt," the assistant director, a quiet man named David who hadn't said much all morning, stepped forward. "Maybe we should"
"When I want your opinion, I'll ask for it," Alexander said sharply, never taking his eyes off Vivienne.
David stepped back and clenched his jaw.
Eliza walked up to Alexander from the side and spoke in a low, urgent voice. "Mr. Hunt, she needs a break. We all need a break. We've spent three hours on this one scene"
"We stop when we get this right."
"Mr. Hunt."
"Eliza." He finally turned to look at her, and the look on his face made her stop talking. "I know what I'm doing."
Eliza looked at him for a long time, then nodded and stepped back.
People in the studio looked at each other. Priya leaned over and said something to Marcus, who shook his head a little. Sam and Alex, the twins who were in charge of processing data, had stopped working and were watching the scene with wide eyes.
Riley, who still had her water bottle in her hand, looked like she wanted to step in but didn't know how.
"Ms. Cross," Alexander said, looking back at Vivienne. "From the top. And this time, let yourself go all the way. Stop holding back."
Vivienne slowly stood up. Her legs felt like they were made of jelly. The mocap suit, which had felt too tight this morning, now felt like the only thing keeping her together.
She walked back to where she started, her vision still blurry from the tears.
Take sixteen.
She fell to her knees again and let the tears flow. This time, she didn't try to fake anger or sadness. She just let herself go, even though she knew she was failing in front of people she had just met.
"Cut. It's better, but the physicality is off. When you reach out, you're being too cautious. Don't be careful. Athena doesn't mind hurting herself."
Take seventeen.
Vivienne threw herself into it. She reached out violently, and her nails scraped against the concrete floor under the green screen mat. One of the sensors on her wrist came off.
"Hold on!" Priya yelled. "Lost a marker. Need to put it back on."
Vivienne stayed where she was, on her hands and knees, breathing hard while Priya rushed over with a new sensor. The technical director worked quickly, but her hands were soft.
"Are you okay?" Priya whispered so softly that no one else could hear.
Vivienne couldn't say anything. She couldn't even look at her.
Priya finished putting the sensor back on and gave Vivienne's shoulder a squeeze before stepping back. "All set."
"From the top," Alexander yelled.
Take eighteen.
Vivienne didn't know where she got the strength from. But she got up one more time, walked back to her mark, and when Eliza said, "Action," she let herself fall apart.
Her tears were real. It was real that she fell to the ground. The way her whole body shook and the tears that ran down her face were all real.
She wasn't playing Athena. She was just a woman who had been pushed too far and was falling apart.
"Cut. Almost perfect!" Alexander's voice broke through her breakdown. "But not quite."
Vivienne was done.
She reached up and ripped off the mocap helmet, not caring that it pulled some of her hair out. She was in the middle of the green screen, crying and breathing heavily, with her chest heaving.
The studio was completely quiet.
"I can't do this," she said, her voice shaking but loud enough for everyone to hear.
She turned around and walked toward the exit, which was at the end of the green screen area.
"Where are you going?" Alexander went after her. "Ms. Cross, we are so close"
She turned to face him, and the look on her face must have been something because he actually took a step back.
Everyone in the studio stopped. Victor's hand was still on the camera. Priya had stopped typing on her keyboard. Riley was halfway to drinking from her water bottle.
Everyone else turned around in their chairs, watching.