Chapter 14: That’s Not How the Force Works!

Thursday March 3

After several rounds of negotiations, my dad won the trip to London with me. I was going to test for the Han Solo role in the yet to be titled Star Wars prequel. They were doing the casting now because of the new movie, Rogue One, which was filming now. The Han Solo character would make an appearance as a cameo. Marvel used the same strategy for their new Spider-Man by casting Tom Holland early in order for him to cameo in Captain America: Civil War before appearing in his own film.

The young Han Solo movie’s release date was at least two years out. Early buzz had Chris Pratt as a shoo-in for the role with his recent successes in Guardians of the Galaxy and Jurassic World, and his upcoming sci-fi movie Passengers. Even I thought he would be perfect. He was funny and came across as a likable cad, perfect for Han Solo. The only—but ultimately insuperable—problem with him was that he was already two years older than Harrison Ford was when he did the first Star Wars movie.

Ari told me that thousands of actors tested for the role. Once Chris Pratt was out, Disney and Lucasfilm seemed to target actors between the ages of 20 to 25. The only exceptions were Scott Eastwood at 29 and me at 17. The studio execs had cut the list down to about a dozen actors with Miles Teller, Ansel Elgort, Dave Franco, Jack Reynor, Scott Eastwood, Logan Lerman, Emory Cohen and Blake Jenner among the released names of those who had made the cut with me.

We had to sign an NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) and test deals before we could be flown to London for the second round of auditions. Ari told me that I was one of the last to meet with the producers. He said they would probably cut the list to a final three or four.

I think this was an adventure for Dad, because he took it all in. When we boarded the plane, I was the wide-eyed one. I’d flown domestic first class where it was two seats to a side, instead of the three seats in coach. This was completely different. We were on a Boeing 777 that American Airlines had configured to their international first class. Instead of side-by-side seating, you had what can best be described as a cubicle. They’d laid it out so there were single mini-suites on the outside rows and then two in the center. Dad and I had seats a couple of rows back and next to each other.

The seats were designed so they would actually lie down and turn into a bed, which was good because we were taking the red-eye to London. Our flight would take eight hours. We were scheduled to take off from Chicago at 10 p.m. (4 a.m. London time), and we would land in London around noon the next day with the six-hour time difference.

I would miss a day of school, but Lincoln High was supportive of my acting. Moose wasn’t as forgiving, but he realized that this was important to me.

I’d been on the run all week and hadn’t had a chance to talk to my dad about the NCAA letter. I knew that Caryn, Kendal, Ms. Dixon and he had had several calls with Mr. Morris. I waited until we were airborne and settled in before I asked him about it.

“What did the NCAA have a problem with?” I asked.

“A lot of the things Mr. Morris warned us about. The big ones were the booster flight to Kentucky, which you paid for, and the car Devin gave you. Mr. Morris had the information ready and sent it over. They’re going to review it, but it sounded like they would be okay.

“They seem to be hung up on your acting and some of the interviews you gave. They specifically pointed to your interview on Live with Kelly and Michael. You talked about both football and your movie. Specifically, how you met Ashley Judd on a recruiting trip to Kentucky, and that was how you eventually got your role in Star Academy.

“Mr. Morris said that the NCAA can’t really deny you your amateurism status for something like that. The distinction is you’re not currently in college. They could cause you problems if you received pay based on football or baseball. He said you dodged a bullet when you didn’t actually get the role as the baseball player in Secret Circle. He said that it would have been fine for you to talk about baseball, but as soon as they had a scene where you were shown on the field doing baseball-related things, you would have had a problem.

“He said that because you pose a unique situation for them, they want to look at everything. We talked more about our strategy with dealing with the NCAA. We want to get you certified so you can play ball first. Then we’ll go after them about you doing advertising and movies in college. We don’t want you to not be able to promote the movies. Ari said it would be a problem if that happened. They might even have to remove your name from the credits while you’re playing ball in college,” Dad said.

“And we all know that if someone wants me to do a sunglasses commercial, I’ll need the walking-around money,” I said.

Sunglasses money had become a joke in our family. None of us could believe they’d paid me what they had for the commercial. Whenever I told Caryn or my grandma ‘no’ about spending money on something, they pointed out that we always had that money lying around to use. I knew they did it just to yank my chain, but I would be crazy not to take it if they wanted to give it to me. Ari actually told me that if I could find time to go to Japan, he could line up several similar deals. It seems I was a star there.

“The problem is that the NCAA keeps a tight rein on their athletes. They contend that college athletes’ fame comes from their opportunity to play for a college team. There’s big money to be made for the universities, and in turn the NCAA, to have that amateurism requirement in place. Mr. Morris said that he suspects that we’ll end up in court over it,” Dad said.

I’d suspected that would be the case. In the back of my mind, I worried that if something big came up, I’d have to choose between playing ball and acting. I might have to decide on one or the other, but if I could get the NCAA to give me a waiver, it would make everything easier.

Then Dad changed the subject.

“I received a call from Detective Kitchens. I think you’ll like this.”

“I hope it’s finally good news.”

“He told me that I could tell only you, and you have to promise not to say anything,” Dad said.

“I promise.”

“They think they have Brandon’s DNA.”

“How?”

Dad got a big smile on his face.

“Detective Kitchens contacted the garbage company. Brandon rents a house close to where the new tiny homes for the homeless are going in. Kitchens dressed up as a garbage collector and picked up Brandon’s garbage this morning. They found takeout containers and utensils that they hope he used. They’re getting them tested.”

“Can you see Detective Kitchens dressed up in those overalls?” I asked with a smile.

Every time I’d seen him, he had been dressed in a suit. If what Dad said was true, Brandon was about to have karma balance out for everything I suspected he’d done.

I thanked Dad for telling me, and then told him we better try to get some sleep. The next few days would be bad enough without the time change playing havoc with us.

Friday March 4

At the airport, we were met by a driver for the studio, who’d been sent to take us to Hertfordshire. This was where they were filming Rogue One, the first stand-alone movie in the Star Wars franchise. The plan was for us to get settled in and have dinner with some of the studio people. Ari and his wife would join us.

We were dropped off at the Tewin Bury Farm Hotel. When we drove up, it looked like it had been a farm at one point. It was actually quite nice. Dad and I went to the dining room and talked them into making us breakfast, even though it was mid-afternoon. He decided to go for the traditional English breakfast. I knew we’d be eating dinner soon, so I just had tea and scones.

We were almost done when Ari and his wife found us.

“I can’t believe they hid us away in this dump,” Ari complained.

“Hi, I’m David and this is my dad,” I said to Mrs. Gould.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Kelly,” she said to my dad.

“This can’t be right,” Dad said, and then turned to Ari. “You said you were married to an evil woman who was the bane of your existance.”

“You just met her,” Ari said, deadpan. “She’s on her best behavior this weekend.”

“You better settle down or I’ll run off with David and we’ll spend all your money,” Kelly threatened.

She knew exactly how to get Ari in line. I smiled when he made nice. He was a completely different person when he was around her. I think I could like this Ari. He looked at his watch.

“We have to go,” he announced.

“Where to?” I asked.

“Elstree Studios, where they’re filming Rogue One.”

We met Mark Underwood at the studio. He was in charge of casting the yet-to-be-named Han Solo movie.

“Welcome. Tonight you’ll meet the team who will make the selection for Han Solo, but Garret Johnson, the director for Rogue One, wanted to meet you first. He has some say in who gets the role because you’ll also be in his movie if you’re selected.”

Mark took us through the different areas at the studio. This was a completely different scale of production from anything I’d ever seen. Disney and Lucasfilm had made a commitment to expanding the Star Wars franchise, and this movie was its first installment. Most of the studio work for the most recent movie had been shot here. Mark explained that would be the same for the Han Solo movie.

We were able to watch them shoot a scene. It was interesting to watch Garret work. He had an improvisational style. I watched as he actually held one of the cameras as they filmed the scene. When they were done, Mark let him know we were here.

“This must be the next Han Solo,” Garret said as he shook my hand.

“If they’ll let me.”

The woman in the current scene came over.

“Hi, I’m Joy. I hear we’ll be shooting a scene today.”

I’d not been told that, but why not?

“Sure. Do I need to get dressed for it?” I asked.

“No. No, we just want to see the two of you on camera together,” Garret said.

I spent the next hour reading lines with Joy Holmes. She’d started acting when she was twelve, over twenty years ago. She had a knack for putting me at ease and getting a good performance out of me. Garret figured out that I was an athlete and had some training for fights. Joy had been learning kung fu for her role. He had us do some things on camera at three-quarter speed to see how I moved.

He brought out his stunt coordinator, Edric Hurley, to stand in for Joy.

“Have you ever trained with swords?” Edric asked.

“Yes, and I’ve used batons as well. I’m actually better with a Bo staff.”

Edric grabbed a couple of training swords and we sparred while Garret filmed us. He then had one of his people bring me a Bo staff so I could show him some of my flashier moves.

“Can you shoot?” Edric asked.

“You mean like Han Solo, or for real?” I asked.

“What do you mean by that?” Garret asked.

“Harrison Ford has an awkward way that he moves when he runs and fires a weapon. I’d be surprised if he could actually hit anything in real life.”

“Show me what you mean,” Garret said.

Edric gave me a prop they used in the movie. It was a handgun of some kind. I just acted like it was the real thing.

They had me run across the room like I was Harrison Ford, and fire my gun. I imitated his way of rolling his shoulders when he ran, and I skidded to a stop and shot it like I was him. I then turned and ran away, like he always seemed to do, and fired behind me like I was being chased.

I then did it like I would in real life. I used a two-hand grip and killed several imaginary villains. When they were all dead, I blew across the barrel as if I were blowing away smoke and sauntered off.

Garret loved it.

“I see exactly what you mean. That’s the best Harrison Ford impression we’ve seen. Thanks for spending time with us today,” Garret said, and we were done.

We’d just gotten back to the hotel when my phone rang.

“Hello,” I answered.

“You thought you could sneak back into the UK and not call me?”

I thought about who I knew in the UK. She didn’t have a Russian accent, so it wasn’t Kat. I smiled.

“I feel bad, Aubrey. I should have made it a point to call. I’m only in town for a couple of days. Can you get free and see me?” I asked.

I’d met Aubrey in Miami when I did a photo shoot with Adrienne. The Ford execs had challenged me to see if I could pick up a woman in a nightclub before they could. I’d chosen Aubrey and assumed my pick-up skills were good enough to get the job done. Turned out she and Adrienne were friends from the modeling world. Aubrey had retired from modeling and was now working for Ford here in Europe.

The one thing I would always remember about her was that she gave the best head I’d ever had. If I were ten years older, I would have seriously considered marrying her.

“Where are you?” she asked.

“I’m in Hertfordshire staying at the Tewin Bury Farm Hotel. Can you make it here soon? I have a dinner party to go to and I would love for you to join me.”

“Actually, I’m just finishing up with a photo shoot not that far from you. Send me the address and I’ll meet you there,” she said.

I gave her the information and hung up. I sent Ari a text to tell him that I’d bring a date to dinner. I received a rude one back about actors, and I think he called me a slut. I couldn’t wait to see his face when I showed up with someone in their late 20s.

I’d just gotten out of the shower when there was a knock at my door. I had just a towel on. I was disappointed to see my dad there. He looked good in what must have been a new suit. At least, I’d never seen it before. I’d brought my Armani suit for tonight. I’d picked it for two reasons. The first was I loved it and never got to wear it. The second was Dakora, while very nice, wasn’t Armani, and they weren’t paying me to wear them tonight.

“You look good,” I said.

“You look a little underdressed.”

“Just give me a few more minutes,” I said, and went back into the bathroom to shave and brush my teeth.

There was a knock on the door. I smiled when Dad called out that he would get it.

“Hello, Gorgeous ... Oh, sorry, I must have the wrong room,” Aubrey said.

I stuck my head out of the bathroom.

“Aubrey, my dad. Dad, my date tonight, Aubrey.”

“Well, I ... uh ... come in,” Dad said.

“Not that you’re not gorgeous,” Aubrey stammered.

I laughed.

“Bloody Hell, David. You could warn a girl she’s meeting the parents.”

“You’re just lucky my mom’s not here,” I called from the bathroom.

“He’s right,” Dad said. “Have a seat. I need to know your intentions towards my son.”

“Completely impure, I’m afraid,” Aubrey shot back.

I heard Dad laugh. Aubrey was no shrinking violet, and it sounded like they were getting along. I slipped in and grabbed my boxers and put them on under my towel, a nifty trick I’d learned in LA, surfing. I got dressed and brought out three ties.

“Which one?” I asked.

“The red one,” Aubrey said without hesitation.

I put it on and then my jacket. I smiled when I saw Aubrey had on a little black dress. She looked stunning. She stood and gave me a chaste kiss.

“How did you know I was in town?” I asked.

“One of the rags said you were here to audition for the new Star Wars movie.”

“Frank,” Dad said.

Frank Ingram was my publicist. I would bet Ari called him and had him leak it. I wasn’t sure the Star Wars people would be happy about that. They seemed to take secrets seriously.

“Let’s hope not. Ari also signed the NDA. You read it—I’m sure we would get both sued and kicked off the movie,” I said.

“Joy Holmes was the one that they quoted,” Aubrey said.

I was relieved.

We met Ari and Kelly downstairs. I was shocked when Ari didn’t perv out over Aubrey. Having Kelly around turned him into a human and not a caricature of an LA agent.

There was a limo waiting for us. I assumed we would go to a restaurant for dinner. I was wrong. We drove through the country until we came to something right out of Downton Abbey. Our driver told us we were dining at an English country house called Ayot Place.

We drove up a quiet country lane. I was impressed with the wrought-iron gates with magnificent brick pillars, which welcomed you to a lengthy, tree-lined carriageway that led you to the front of the house. The carriageway passed an ornamental lake and boathouse before it curved into a circular drive in front of the entrance.

The driver told us that Ayot Place was built on the site of an earlier monastery, but the origins of the present house probably date to the 15th century. He said that much of what we saw was from the 17th century when a large wing was added. He pointed out a gardener’s cottage and impressive courtyard buildings, that dated from about 1890, which were arranged on three sides around a graveled yard with a charming small dovecote and clock tower in the middle. Part of the western side of the courtyard had been converted into a large home gym.

When we came to a stop, the driver insisted that we wait until he could let us out. The front door opened and a butler waited for us.

“Good evening. Welcome to Ayot Place. Please follow me,” he said.

Unlike Downton Abbey, everything had been modernized. Mark Underwood, the man in charge of casting, saw us and took us around to meet everyone. The director was Phil Nobel, who had also co-directed the Lego Movie. The producer was Joyce Heart.

I’d thought I was the only one auditioning this weekend, but Aden Reich was there with Tilly Abbott. Aden had been acting for the past ten years, and his most recent movie, Maze Runner, was his first big film. Tilly was an actress with red hair and striking blue eyes. Aden was one of the few actors who kept to himself and didn’t have any social media. It wasn’t clear if Tilly was his girlfriend or just a friend.

Tonight was intended to be just a social event. Business would be talked about tomorrow when I auditioned.

Mark and Phil had Aden cornered and were plying him with alcohol. Joyce joined our group.

“Ari,” she said with disdain, and then turned to me. “You must be David. I’m Joyce Heart.”

I introduced her to everyone and then Ari explained who I was talking to. Joyce wasn’t just the producer, she was the president of Lucasfilm. In the early ‘80s she’d co-founded a company with none other than Stephen Spielberg. Their first movie had been E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Overall, she’d worked on over 50 films, which had garnered 85 Academy Award nominations and over $9 billion worldwide, and included some of the highest-grossing films in motion picture history.

She’d recently become involved in the Star Wars franchise. She was soon my idol when she regaled us with stories of working with Spielberg and George Lucas and films in the Indiana Jones and Jurassic Park franchises.

“I saw your impersonation of Harrison Ford. I about peed myself laughing. You were spot on,” Joyce told me.

“I didn’t do it to make fun of him. I just wanted to show that I could do his mannerisms,” I defended myself.

“I was actually against having you make the final cut. I felt you were too tall and didn’t have the breadth of work experience this role deserves,” she said.

Ari tried to jump in, but I could tell he irritated her. I held up my hand and smiled at her.

“Harrison Ford is six-one. I’m only three inches taller, while Aden is only five-ten. Mr. Ford did three movies over a twelve-year period before he did Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope. I just released my first movie, which did over $500 million. By the time I film your picture, I could have five or six movies made, including a possible recurring role in the James Bond franchise.”

She smiled.

“Yes, I found all that out and I’ve become a convert. I don’t waste people’s time, hence you are here. I just wanted to see what you’re made of. I’m impressed you didn’t hide behind your agent and let him fight your battles.”

“I agree, let’s not waste time. I brought Ari along so we could sign contracts,” I stated.

That made her laugh and Ari cringe. Mom always said you had to ask for the sale.

“I like you. While I can’t tell you the odds of you getting this role, you’ll find I have a long memory. For you, that’s a good thing, because if you hadn’t noticed, our group likes to use the same actors for our movies. If you do well tomorrow, you might not get the role, but that doesn’t mean things won’t come up later that you will get. Just make sure you keep a smile on my face,” she said.

She had to be in her sixties, and I blushed as I took her comment straight to the gutter.

“I think that’s Ari’s job,” I said.

She gave Ari a look, and I think he suddenly had a migraine. Joyce began to laugh and we all joined in.

Dinner was nice, if a bit too formal for my taste. They had a waitperson for each of us. You couldn’t set a glass down without it being refilled. I lost count of the number of courses, and liked that not everything we ate was fancy. With so many courses, if there was something you didn’t like, there was always something new coming out shortly.

A couple of dishes I’d never had before. Scotch Eggs with a curry mayo was a surprise. It’s a boiled egg wrapped in sausage and breading. Another was pork pie. It was similar to a potpie in that it was in a crust, but it didn’t have a gravy. The pork and bacon mixture had apples and onions mixed in it with seasonings. I also liked the dessert called Eton Mess. It was served in a glass bowl so you could see it was layered. The layers were strawberries and raspberries, followed with a meringue and then toasted almonds. It wasn’t overly sweet.

We ‘retired’ to a sitting room for after-dinner drinks or coffee.

It seemed that Aden had continued to drink through dinner. I could tell that everyone who’d had the wine or alcohol that was offered with each course was feeling no pain. My dad had a persistent smile on his face. Aubrey cuddled up to me on the couch and kept letting her hand wander up my thigh.

The thing was, Aden was obviously drunk, while everyone else was pleasantly buzzed. I could see Tilly had become irritated with him. She dragged him into another room and you could hear voices raised. He said something and there was the sound of a slap, which was soon followed by the front door slamming. This was great. It was better than dinner theater. Everyone sat in stunned silence until I got the giggles, which turned out to be infectious.

“Should someone go check on them?” I asked.

I think it was a case of ‘he who smelt it ... dealt it;’ or better yet, ‘not me.’ I grabbed Aubrey’s hand and made her go with me to see what had happened. We could see Tilly sitting on the front steps, crying. I would have assumed that a crying girl would fall into the purview of another girl. I would have assumed wrong, as Aubrey told me she would tell everyone that I was taking care of it.

I sat down next to Tilly and did what Dawsons do, went quiet.

“I just don’t understand him sometimes. He’s at a formal dinner party with a job on the line, and he acts like he’s at an open bar at his cousin’s wedding. He’s 26, for Christ’s sake, not 21...”

... and she was off. I did a lot of head nodding. From what she told me, they were best friends and not romantically linked. My gaydar hadn’t gone off, but I guess that really didn’t matter. I just couldn’t figure out why he wasn’t interested in Tilly. Then I remembered Tami, and I felt bad about even going there. I had no idea what their relationship entailed, and quite frankly, I didn’t exactly care.

She finally wound down and stopped crying. I put my arm around her and she needed a hug. What surprised me was when she kissed me. Mr. Happy convinced me that if a girl kissed me, she wasn’t crying. In my defense, it made total sense at the time. I heard the door open and someone clear their throat.

It was Aubrey. I pulled away from Tilly and smiled.

“I got her to stop crying,” I said.

“I see that. Just know, while that is a good way to do that, it isn’t the best way when you have a date with you.”

“I’ll remember that, but you bailed on me,” I complained.

She sat down next to Tilly.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah. David gave me some great advice and then I kissed him.”

I was puzzled because I hadn’t said a word. I wanted to know what advice I gave, because it seemed to work.

“He’s a good kisser,” Aubrey offered.

“I hope you don’t mind. I kind of ambushed him,” Tilly admitted.

Aubrey cocked her head and then smiled. I went back into Dawson mode when she leaned in and kissed Tilly. The gears in my brain came to a grinding halt as their kiss intensified. Then something clicked. While Aubrey gave me the best head of my life, we never had full-on sex. She and Adrienne were ‘good friends.’ I really was a ‘stupid boy’ sometimes. When Aubrey and Tilly stopped kissing, I had a huge smile on my face.

“Oh, oh. I think someone thinks he’s going to get lucky,” Aubrey said.

“Would that be so bad?” Tilly asked.

“From what my friend Adrienne says, ‘no.’ She said he’s the best she’s ever had who was a man.”

I’d take that.

The front door opened and my crew was ready to go. We said goodbye to everyone, and Tilly joined us in our limo back to the hotel.

On the ride back to the hotel, Dad kept looking at me and then he would look at Tilly and Aubrey as they had their heads together, whispering. Ari and Kelly ignored the whole thing. Dad leaned over so only I could hear him.

“Are you sure you know what you’re getting into?”

“Any advice?” I asked.

“I just do what I’m told,” he admitted.

I just shrugged. It really wasn’t bad advice. I trusted that Tilly and Aubrey would figure things out. When we arrived at the hotel, Aubrey pulled me aside.

“Give me your room key and wait fifteen minutes before coming up. I want to do something special.”

I followed my dad’s advice and just went with the flow. Aubrey giggled when she saw me set the timer on my watch.

I think the timer was broken. After what seemed like half a day, it chimed to tell me to head up to the room. I knocked and heard Aubrey tell me to hang on. When she finally opened the door, I found Aubrey in her bra and panties.

Tilly was on the bed, naked. She’d been tied up and blindfolded with my ties. Tilly had a nice body, but it didn’t compare to Aubrey’s. Even at her age, 27, she could easily still be a model. Tilly was shorter but had more curves. She was on the edge of being pudgy. Her skin was china white with little freckles all over. She had the pinkish nipples you only find on redheads, and she had a full bush of blazing red hair.

“Want to play connect the dots with her freckles?” Aubrey asked.

I just smiled and pulled Aubrey into a kiss. She helped me get undressed. I really should have hung up such an expensive suit, but I had other things on my mind. For example, Aubrey had grabbed Mr. Happy.

“I love your cock,” she said as she pushed me back against the bed and had me sit down.

She crawled between my legs and began her master class on a proper blowjob. If I’d been smart, I would have videoed it so I could share it with the women I spent time with. The only problem with that plan was I would’ve had to stop her from lavishing Mr. Happy with pleasure.

While Aubrey did what she was born to do, I leaned back and kissed Tilly, which startled her. When Aubrey had me so hard I could drive nails, she stopped. I looked down and she smiled.

“Help me play with her.”

I don’t know how Aubrey figured out that Tilly was into girls. She seemed to also know that Tilly liked to be tied up and made helpless. We attacked the poor girl and began to play ‘I can do it better.’ Tilly had no idea who would do what next, and all of it brought her pleasure. She seemed to have had four big orgasms when the game changed. It was our turn for pleasure, and we used Tilly to get it.

I straddled Tilly’s chest, pushed her soft tits together and pushed my hard-on between them. As I slowly fucked her chest, she tilted her head down so she could capture the head of my cock between her lips. Aubrey scissored her legs between Tilly’s and mashed their sexes together. The sound of sex would have made great background noise for a porn video. Both women were vocal sex partners.

“I’m going to cum!” I called out.

Aubrey physically pulled me out of Tilly’s mouth and deep-throated me. I felt my balls tighten.

“Aubrey ... AUbrey ... AUBREY!” I cried as I shot deep in her throat.

As she swallowed, it just brought more pleasure to me.

When I finally caught my breath, I was still rock-hard. I could tell it was going to be one of those nights I could go forever. I found a condom and put it on. I used my dick-slap move that Raven, the hooker in Georgia, had taught me on Tilly. I smiled when the direct stimulation to her clit caused her to cum before I entered her.