Free Hollywood Star by Rowan Coleman

I’d have been holding on to him and at least I would have known what to do with my hands, but she said they’d banned pets on set ever since the pooping incident. So David was left behind in the dressing room, furiously trying to scratch his way out through the door. I sat down on the sofa next to Jeremy and hopedthat was all I would have to do until we left. But Carl spoke to me first.
    “So Rosie…” he began.
    “Actually, it’s Ruby,” I said with a wobbly voice and a nervous smile.
    Carl Vine pulled the corners of his mouth down and looked at the audience which seemed to make them laugh. “Not Rosie actually?” he said in a mock English accent.
    “No,” I said, making myself sound as posh as possible Just as Lisa had told me. “It actually is Ruby – Ruby Parker is my name actually.”
    The audience laughed again and so did Jeremy, and I thought, well, if it’s this easy to make them laugh, I’ll be OK.
    “Anything else I should know about?” Carl asked, still using his terrible accent. “Any titles? You’re not Lady Ruby, or Duchess Parker, or Princess anything?”
    “You may call me Miss Parker,” I told him and the audience applauded.
    “Ruby Parker,” Carl placed his hand on his chest, “I am very sorry we got your name wrong. Ed – fire the researcher!”
    There was the sound effect of a gunshot offstage and the audience applauded again.
    “So, Miss Parker,” Carl said with a smile, “what wasit like shooting your first movie role with the legendary Jeremy Fort?”
    “Well, it was amazing,” I replied, listening to the sound of my voice in my head. “He’s such a talented actor and so gifted and he really, really taught me a lot.”
    Then Carl turned to Jeremy and I listened and smiled and remembered to sit up straight and suck my tummy in as they exchanged jokes and stories. Then Jeremy told Carl about the film, what it was about and who was in it.
    “It’s a great family film, one everyone can enjoy,” he told Carl.
    “It’s interesting that you say that, Jeremy,” Carl said. “That it is a family film, because I hear it wasn’t all happy families on set.”
    “That’s rubbish,” Jeremy said with a relaxed smile.
    “What do you have to say about the rumours that Art Dubrovnik worked young Sean Rivers so hard it drove him to a breakdown, forcing him to give up his multimillion-dollar career.
    “I’d say—” Jeremy began, but before he could finish I found myself interrupting.
    “That’s not true,” I said.
    Carl looked at me and raised an eyebrow at the audience. “I know that’s not true,” I added because it seemed as if they expected me to say more.
    “Well, Ruby, I heard that you and Sean had a little romance going on, so I suppose if anybody would know, it would be you!”
    “Sean and me didn’t have a romance,” I said, forgetting my posh accent for a moment. “We were, are, good friends. There was a photo of us kissing, but it was Just a tiny kiss, over in a second, but of course the papers blew it up out of all proportion. And I suppose it didn’t help that Sean and I went straight from a film premiere to my friend’s birthday party without remembering to give back all these diamonds I had been lent, so that the police came and nearly arrested us. But we weren’t going out together at all; it was only a cover to get Sean’s dad off of his back because he wanted to go out with my friend Anne-Marie.”
    There was a shocked gasp from the audience and I got the feeling that perhaps I’d said a little more than I should have. Or a lot more. One or the other.
    “So do you know the secret location where Sean Rivers is recovering from the rigours of being a child star, burned out at only fifteen?” Carl asked me, his tone suddenly intense.
    “Yes, I mean no, no,” I stuttered, looking anxiously at Jeremy. “I…haven’t seen him in ages. I have no idea at all where he is living.”
    “Ruby and Sean were good friends on set, Carl,” Jeremy