Chapter 32 PRACTICE SESSION PART 1
Hunt Enterprises looked different on a Sunday. It was quieter and less busy than it had been on her last visit. There was almost no one in the lobby. There was only one security guard at the desk who checked her ID and told her where to find the elevators.
"North wing, Level B," he said as he gave her a temporary access card. "You'll need this for the restricted floors."
Vivienne took the card with numb fingers. Restricted floors. Of course, Alexander's motion capture studio would be in a private area, out of sight, where corporate secrets could be kept safe.
The elevator went down instead of up, taking her to the lower levels of the building. The doors opened into a hallway with bare white walls and industrial lighting. This was very different from the sleek executive floors above.
A lit sign at the end of the hall pointed to Studio 3. Vivienne stood outside for a moment, getting ready to go in.
The inside was huge. A big open space with matte green walls, cameras on rigs that ran along tracks on the ceiling, and a wall of computers and monitors. It looked like a cross between a movie set and a lab.
There were already a few people there, setting up gear and talking over tablets. When she walked in, they all looked up. A woman in her thirties with a clipboard came right over.
"Ms. Cross? I'm Eliza, and I am in charge of motion capture. Thanks for coming in today." She shook Vivienne's hand quickly and efficiently. "Let's get started because we have a lot to talk about. We'll start by scanning your body to get your baseline metrics. Then we'll fit you for your costume, and finally, we'll go over the technical details of the mocap process."
Vivienne nodded and let herself be led further into the studio. The team was friendly and professional, and they explained the process at each step. The body scan required her to stand on a platform while dozens of cameras took pictures of her from all sides. Even though she was fully clothed, this process felt intrusive.
Next was the fitting for the costume. Eliza said that these were not the final costumes, but the base suits and markers that would keep track of her movement.
Eliza gave Vivienne what looked like a black bodysuit with white dots on it and said, "The suit needs to fit perfectly. Any loose fabric will mess up the motion capture. There is a changing room right there."
Vivienne took the suit and went to the small changing room, happy to have a moment to herself. She leaned against the wall and took deep breaths to calm down.
You can do this. It's just technical stuff. You might not even see Alexander until the end.
She put on the mocap suit, which fit her like a second skin, and then went back into the studio.
The team quickly gathered around her, moving markers, checking placements, and taking notes. Vivienne stood still and let them work, feeling like a mannequin getting dressed.
"Perfect," Eliza said as she stepped back to look. "Now we'll take some test pictures. Just basic movements like walking, sitting, and reaching. We need to set the system up so that it works with your body."
They did the tests, and Vivienne followed the instructions without thinking about them. Her mind was half somewhere else.
"Go across the green screen area. Get in a chair. Try to grab something imaginary. Go around in a circle."
It felt absurd and clinical, nothing like the creative work she had in mind.
She was in the middle of reaching for something when she heard the door open behind her.
"How are you?"
Alexander's voice.
Vivienne stopped in the middle of her act, her arm awkwardly extended, and her heart started racing so fast she was sure everyone could hear it.
As she turned slowly, she saw him standing just inside the door in dark jeans and a gray sweater. He looked younger and more approachable without his usual suit, which made everything worse in some way.
"Mr. Hunt," Eliza said with a smile. "Just the right time. We just finished the tests to check the calibration. Ms. Cross is a natural. Her movement is great."
"I can see that." Vivienne felt pinned under his gaze, and she was very aware of how the tight mocap suit left nothing to the imagination.
"Ms. Cross, how do you feel about all of this?"
"Fine," she was able to say. "It's... interesting."
He smiled. "That's one way to put it. At first, the technology may seem too much, but you'll quickly get used to it." He walked deeper into the studio, and a few of his coworkers looked up and straightened a bit when they saw their boss. "I wanted to stop by and check on the prep work. And to personally thank you for coming in on a Sunday. I know that's a pain."
"It's fine," Vivienne said again. She couldn't think of anything else to say.
They stood there in an awkward silence for a moment, while the studio was busy with people. Vivienne was very aware of everyone in the room, every camera, and every possible witness to how uncomfortable she was.
Alexander took out his phone and said, "We should go over this week's schedule. Jane sent you the details, but I want to make sure we all know what to expect."
He got closer and held his phone up so she could see the screen. Too close. She could smell his cologne again, that cedar scent that kept bringing back those unwanted memories.