He was introduced to Charlotte, as well as to others in the crowd of people she did not know very well. Apart from filming, she led the quietest life that people could imagine, working in this field. In other words, she did not participate in any social events, so she stayed in her room and had time to focus on her job. Sometimes she read scripts or reviewed the classical films that she took everywhere with her. However, there were also days when she played scenes that she considered the most difficult or recorded her voice on a tape recorder. Thus, separating one life from another, she simultaneously managed to do what she liked, namely to act in films, but at the same time to avoid all other excesses and to live that other quiet life that began immediately after the camera was turned off.
Sam first saw her on a film set...
Having finally got out of the background roles and now also from the supporting roles, he spent as much time as possible on the set and, at all parties, people could find him if they wanted to. The filming took longer than the film crew expected...
Somewhere around this time, when she was taking the book back to his room, she knocked on the door and found that the door was open. This didn't surprise her much, since she knew that he often left the door open when he was expecting guests... Thoughtfully she tapped her fingers on the spine of the book, remembering how they danced yesterday on this very floor. She replayed the sound of her laughter over and over again in her head, wondering how only he could make her laugh. She never expected herself to have so much fun. Moreover, she did not remember the last time she laughed like that. At this thought, she stopped and saw her reflection in the windowpane and just for a moment, a serious expression appeared on her face.
A porter entered through the doorway with suitcases... Charlotte turned to him in amazement.
“I'm sorry, you must be wrong. Here..."
But she never finished the sentence until the end. She seemed to be frozen for a moment in her thoughts. The porter was laconic.
"I'm afraid everything is right... This is room 315. The family..." He swallowed nervously, cutting himself off at the last word.
"The family? You mean the parents?" she asked in amazement.
The porter hesitated in indecision, but nevertheless decided to answer, as two bright and kind eyes looked at him in confusion and expectation.
“The family. Ahem! His wife and kids.”
The porter literally muttered these words looking at the floor, deliberately decided not to meet Charlotte's eyes, put down the suitcases and quickly left the room.
That minute the children entered the room. The resemblance between them and Sam was evident. They laughed and ran, not paying any attention to the unfamiliar woman, who could not make up her mind. Sam entered the room confused, but smiling... At once, his smile disappeared when he saw Charlotte near the window.
The children continued to run and laugh this time playing catch-up. The air trembled with their cheers.
“You have two children.”
“Not for long.”
“What does that mean?”
“We are expecting the third one.”
“A boy or a girl?”
“Why do you want to know?”
“Tell me… A boy or a girl?” she repeated her question with a voice slightly trembling and whispering and so quiet, as if she were asking herself, not listening to his answer.
“This is a simple question, isn't it? You already have a boy and a girl. Do you want a girl?"
She as usual noticed his long eyelashes but now she looked at them in another way.
His face seemed to her as a face of a stranger.
“No. A boy.”
“You didn't say you had a family.”
“You never asked.”
She looked back to the window. There was drizzle hardly noticeable. Her trembling hands placed his book on the windowsill. She was surprised that she had nearly forgotten why she had come here, and then she moved to the exit, looking down at her feet. She heard the hem of her dress rustling as it touched the carpet under her feet. Sam was saying something, actively gesturing, but she no longer heard him. She recalled in her memory how sitting on his bed several days ago, they had laughed at the comedy, which they had watched, throwing popcorn at each other from time to time. Going out into the corridor today, she moved practically exhausted towards the elevator. A tall woman got out of the elevator. She seemed to recognize Charlotte at once. The woman greeted her with a shining smile and held out her hand. Charlotte automatically extended her hand to her interlocutor, in a polite handshake. Charlotte did not listen to what the woman said. She seemed to be somewhere else, in room 315 near the window, surrounded by laughter and joy with pain and fear.
“Nice to meet you,” Charlotte muttered uncertainly and got into the elevator pressed the button of the first floor.
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