Sometimes life has a habit of creeping up on you and sending you careering down a different and unexpected trajectory. Nicola – the stand-in Chapter 19 by Louise Anne Smithson Copyright © 2021 Louise Anne Smithson All Rights Reserved.

Chapter 19

Both Amy and I took Geoffrey Kelly at his word over the next two and a half days that we remained in London, since neither of us had any great wish to be reminded of the events of the Wednesday evening. I wasn’t sure what role Amy had played in either causing my arrest or subsequently securing my release from police custody, and in some respects, I did not want to know. She certainly appeared to have been chastened by the events of the previous week and something appeared to be worrying her as she now looked carefully at the caller display before answering any incoming telephone calls and restricted the ones that she did answer to those from her parents or her manager. Also, she didn’t venture out further than the local supermarket. For my part, I carried on with my voice and deportment lessons in my room, dealt with Amy’s fan-mail which was now virtually up to date and cooked us some more ambitious evening meals.

The arrival of a fat envelope containing Amy’s scripts for the coming fortnight and the shooting schedules for the two of us provided me with the opportunity to ask questions.

‘Why exactly have they gone to the trouble of transferring all the equipment and accommodation for the crew more than one hundred miles from Wilton to Hatfield?’ I asked. ‘It must be quite costly.’

‘That’s the way films work,’ said Amy with a shrug. ‘Wilton was fine for the exterior shots of the house and for the hunting scenes, but the interiors were not suitable. Hatfield is only ten miles north of Elstree Studios where the company is based and some other internal scenes will be shot. Most of the technical crew will be commuting from Elstree to Hatfield each day. I thought about doing so myself as it is only twenty-four miles away but was persuaded that this would be impractical given the very early starts involved and the need to get into costume each morning.’

‘So we will be sharing the same caravan again.’

‘Yes and it seems that we are both going to be needed for a costume fitting on Sunday morning, as they are planning to duplicate another of my costumes so that we can work independently using two film crews when necessary.’

‘Also, I promised to see Sue Evans to have my hair, nail and eyelash extensions renewed sometime on Sunday,’ I replied.

‘In that case, I’ll arrange with Geoffrey to have Julie drive us both to Hatfield tomorrow afternoon, so can you make sure you are packed in time?'

‘Of course, but I will need to go out and buy another suitcase as I’ve acquired quite a few more clothes over the last fortnight.’

‘Don’t worry, I have a large suitcase in the store-room in the basement, which I no longer use. You are welcome to have it if you want.’

‘That’s very generous of you, Amy.’

‘Not really, I was given a matching set of luggage by a manufacturer who wanted me to be seen with their products.'

Having Julie as our driver, who knew everything about my background at least enabled us to speak more freely during the journey, although the events of last Wednesday evening still appeared to be off-limits and we tended to stick to matters relating to the filming. No one referred to Nick during the journey, which was a relief as I’d been doing my best to forget about him for the time being and concentrate on Nicola. We also discussed Amy’s next job, which would be appearing in a television advertisement soon after we finished the present production. At one point, Amy received a phone call. She looked at the caller display, sighed and sent a busy signal. She then appeared to work through the various menus and it appeared that she had blocked the number in question, but she made no further comment and I didn’t feel in a position to ask who it was.

Eventually we arrived at the field where the equipment and the staff caravans were being parked for the duration of the shoot. Since we had arrived the day before filming was due to begin, there were no security guards to check us in, but there were plenty of the crew around installing lights or other equipment. After a little bit of searching we found where Amy’s caravan was parked.
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‘Good luck to you both and I hope the filming goes well,’ said Julie as she helped us to unload our luggage.

‘Thanks for your help,’ said Amy.

‘Unless I hear to the contrary, I’ll collect you here in a fortnight’s time, Amy. What will your plans be Nicola?’

At the moment, I have absolutely no idea,’ I replied.

‘Oh, I forgot to mention, Frank will want to talk to you tomorrow evening,’ said Amy.

‘What about?’ I asked.

‘You’ll find out, but make sure you look smart when you go to see him.’

The following morning, after our costume fitting, I kept my appointment to see Sue Evans at the makeup caravan.

‘Hi Nicola, you look very nice again today.’

‘Thanks, I am gradually getting used to living as a girl,’ I replied

‘So how does it compare with living as a guy?’

‘I’m expected to spend a lot more time on my appearance each day, but I don’t really mind that and there are also many advantages.’

‘Really?’

‘Apart from anything else, people tend to be nicer to you.’

I wasn’t going to mention my incident with the police last week in case it got back to Frank.

‘So have you had a nice restful time over the last fortnight?’ she asked.

‘Yes thanks,’ I lied. ‘What about yourself?’

‘No rest for me, I’m afraid, I have been working at Elstree preparing for the next fortnight’s shoot. So there were no incidents involving Amy this time?’

‘Well you know Amy,’ I said with a non-commital smile.

She smiled in response and changed the subject.

‘Your voice seems to have changed, it now sounds lighter and more feminine than before.’

It was nice that she’d noticed.

‘I have been taking lessons and practising every day.’

‘Amy will have to watch her step or you will be taking over from her.’

‘I don’t think so,’ I replied. ‘There is only two weeks of filming still to do.’

‘OK, so now let’s get down to business. First of all, how are your boobs?’

‘They’re fine, I take them off to check that they are not harming me once a week, and then stick them back in place. So far they have given me no problems. In fact, I quite enjoy creating a cleavage with them.’

‘Well I must say they do look quite convincing on you.

She then proceeded to examine my micro-ring hair extensions.

‘Actually, these haven’t yet begun to show and so should be alright for the next two weeks without any further attention.’

‘Actually, Sue I was wondering whether I might keep the hair extensions after the filming is finished and look for a job as Nicola. I could probably pay for them to be kept in place

She didn’t seem particularly surprised.

‘So that is why you have been having the voice lessons.’

‘Yes, I have also acquired a reasonable female wardrobe over the last few weeks, so I should be able to manage for a while.’

‘As the hair extensions will have been used for the duration of the filming, I don’t think there will be too much problem with your keeping them. However, the breast forms that you are wearing were quite expensive, so I’ll have to check with my boss.'

‘Thank you, if necessary, I will be happy to pay you for them.’

‘I’ll tell you what, rather than me do anything to the extensions straight away, I’ll renew them in a fortnight’s time instead of removing them, so they should be good for another six weeks or so.’

‘Alright.’

‘Now I’d better check your eyelashes as I see you have lost a couple and then do the infills for your nails.

By the time I eventually got to see Frank in his temporary office it was late afternoon. Sue had finished my hair and makeup. I had a full set of eyelashes and newly polished nails. I was wearing one of the dresses that Amy had given to me and felt that I looked smart and business-like rather than glamorous, as I’d done on the last occasion I’d met Frank.

‘Come in Nicola and take a seat.’

I did as he instructed.

‘I understand from Amy that I unjustly accused you of being involved in her last escapade, and I am sorry if I jumped to the wrong conclusion.’

‘That’s ok, you weren’t to know.’

‘Amy has assured me that you weren’t involved and that neither she, nor you, will have anything to do with illegal drugs in future. We really don’t need that kind of publicity.’

‘Of course, I understand.’

‘Good, Amy also keeps nagging me to give you a trial as a Production Assistant when we have finished the current film, but it is not entirely my decision.’

‘I would love to try if you think I could do the job,’ I said.

‘Although you’ve only been employed as a stand-in, I’ve been quite impressed with everything you have done over the last few weeks. You are flexible and willing “to go the extra mile” when necessary. I know that you can ride and look after a horse, but what other relevant skills do you have?’

‘I have a driving licence although I don’t own a car.’

‘That’s not a problem. Can you work office equipment such as word processors or copiers?’

‘Yes, I have good keyboard skills. I have also helped Sandra check through the day’s rushes.’

‘It isn’t entirely my decision, but I have spoken to the Producers and they may be willing to take you on for a trial period. Sandra will be leaving us to work on another project in a fortnight’s time. I’m sure that you’ve seen the many and various duties she has to do.'

‘I believe so.’

‘As you will realise, almost everyone in the film industry works on short-term contracts and there are always plenty of candidates looking for such jobs. The company will offer you a three-month contract to be able to demonstrate what you can do. They will then decide whether or not to offer you an extension or a new contract depending upon how you get on.'

‘Yes, of course, I promise to do my best. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to show you what I can do.’

‘Well I suppose the next question I must ask you is whether we will be employing Nicola or Nicholas?’

‘Everyone on the set knows and accepts me as Nicola.’

‘I know, but remember you’ll only be working here for the next three weeks and then you will be based at Elstree or else working on other projects with people who don’t know you.’

‘I’d still like to stay as Nicola, if I may. I’ve been practising and find that I can pass as a girl quite easily and I’ve now got enough clothes to wear.’

‘Alright, if you are sure that’s what you want to do, I suppose most of the other P.A.s that we employ are girls. However, if you begin your contract working as a girl they wouldn’t want you changing back half way.'

‘I promise not to do so. In fact, I’m planning to go full-time as Nicola and regularise my position with the Department of Work and Pensions. I hope to get a new national insurance number as a transgendered woman.’

‘That would certainly make life simpler for the administrative staff if we do decide to take you on full-time, but make sure you know what you are doing before taking any irrevocable steps. Come and see my secretary after filming tomorrow and she’ll organise a new contract beginning mid-July and some new ID for you.’

‘One other thing, if I am going to be working as a Production Assistant, would there be a problem with me retaining the breast forms that were bought for me to use for the film.’

‘I don’t see why not.’

I ran over to Amy’s caravan to break the news to her.

‘Not only do I get three months working as a Production Assistant but I also get to continue living as Nicola.’

‘That’s brilliant, I’m so pleased for you,’ she said giving me a hug. ‘I might have been able to find you part-time work as my assistant, but this is going to be a much better opportunity for you. In any event, he owes you the chance to show what you can do.’

We were happily discussing the implications of my new job, and Amy assured me that I'd be welcome to come and stay with her if we both had free time.

'Let's take a selfie of the two of us,' suggested Amy.

'Alright, I'll take it and send you a copy,' I replied.

I was just in process of doing so when we heard a sports car drew up outside the caravan. It was followed by an urgent banging on the door. Amy opened it to find Rob Singleton there, looking very agitated.

‘What the hell are you doing here?’ asked Amy angrily ‘I thought I’d made it clear that I wanted nothing more to do with you.’

‘Amy, you are going to have to help me,’ he replied, ignoring my presence.

Louise