I read the script on that very same night. I had no intention of acting on it, whatsoever. That was no Lord of the Rings and I was no Paul McCartney.

But the story was so moving. Beautiful and sad and romantic, but not in the lovey-dovey sort of way. Those feelings of loss, and sorrow and despair… It had such a grip on me that, when I sat down in front of the piano, I could not focus. I tried shaking it off, but it hung on to me, begging for a little bit more of my time.

I grabbed the card that Blake had left along with the script and called the hotel where he was staying. I said my name was Rose Vaughn.

- I’m assuming this is the call where you will tell me you’ll do it – he said, his voice yearning for the answer I could not yet give him.

- You shouldn’t assume, Mr. Blake. I am just intrigued.

- And here I was, thinking I was talking to Rose – he laughed.

I needed to understand Rose’s motivations, her story, what had led her there. And he was more than happy to oblige and answer every single one of my questions and elaborate on every detail I needed to highlight. It was like having a direct hotline to the author of your favourite book, and being able to just extract every bit of information, no matter how minute it might seem.

We ended the talk with it still hanging, no answer from me. But Felix Blake did encourage me to, at least, try my hand at some acting lessons. There was nothing to lose from it. And he was willing to wait.

And so I did. Through some mutual connections, I managed to find a good professor who taught me everything, from using the space, to making your body an extension of the dialogue, not acting with your eyebrows (very important!) and the power of silence. This last one, I already knew, but in my own professional context. Silences are valuable and a magnificent tool, when used correctly.

In between our several outings, I managed to still squeeze in a dialect coach, that would teach me how to shed my very distinct accent as Rose was, herself, American. My consonants kept on transpiring, and I kept on practising until I got it right.

When I felt ready to say that I would be Blake’s Rose, I asked Peter for him to negotiate the contract for me. Marla only knew there was to be a space on my schedule that she could not touch.

She only realised what was going on, when some gossip magazine speculated I was to be in a movie and she let me know about it. Very, very loudly.

Marla yelled that I had gone behind her back and, as she was still my agent, her commission was still valid. Mr. Mason did the rest of the talk for me, explaining to her how her commission worked and, as she had had no hand in the deal and seeing how Mr Blake was completely oblivious to her existence, her due part was not due at all. If I had to pay anyone for the job, I would much rather pay Peter, who truly deserved it.

The filming was to start in June but, seeing as my Summer schedule was already cramped with shows and festivals, Blake allocated the last two weeks of August only for my part in the film. He would try and work around it the rest of the time, filming every other scene where I would not be present, and the only thing I had to do was to get there and deliver everything without fail because, otherwise, I was costing the studio a lot of money. No pressure.

The wardrobe and image tests had come to meet me and so, that was out of the way. Before heading out to Florida, where we would be shooting, I flew in Clara and Tommy and we spent some days at Disneyland, in Paris, and I felt young and free, not tethered to an askew notion of myself, even if I was in sunglasses and hats most of the time.

- My muse! - Blake ran to me, when I came in, with both Jools and Holly – You’re finally here.

He told me that we would just do a little chemistry test, to put the investor’s minds at ease.

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- What’s a chemistry test? - I asked, as he took me to the middle of a set, not bothering to change anything about how I was dressed or had my hair done.

A producer passed by and handed him the script, already opened.

- Do you remember this scene, where Rose finally understands what Murphy is asking of her? When Henry and Rose are both about to go on stage?

I nodded. I had that script back-to-back in my mind.

- You’re just going to act this scene with Adam. I’m just trying to prove a point to those very sceptic people in fancy suits, alright? - he pointed out to a group of people that stood still, amidst the buzz of a working set. - Stay here, sweetheart.

That was the most vulnerable I had felt in a long time. Even more than when I went up on stage, because this almost grazed on voyeurism and it made me nervous. There were a lot of cameras and people looking at me and I gulped, as I thought to myself what in Heaven’s name had I gotten myself into.

- Quiet in the studio – someone shouted.

I closed my eyes. You agreed to this, you dimwit. Now work your way out of it, I said to myself. I heard some soft footsteps and I opened my eyes to see the most gorgeous boy walking towards me. He was not very tall, but his presence was so magnetic that you would think he would stand out in a crowd, either way. While my features were soft and round, his were angular and sharp, with dark, deep-set eyes and full lips that smiled at me. It was like looking at the sun, really. So much that I had to look away.

From the corner of my eye, I could see Felix Blake gesturing at me, as if saying come on, go ahead.

I turned my eyes again to the boy, who was now just a couple of feet away from me – Hi, I’m Adam – he said, as he reached out his hand.

I gave him my best warm and welcoming smile – Eleanora. Nice to meet you – I felt the warmth of his hand against the ice from my very own.

- Are you, like, cold or something? It’s 95 degrees out there.

It wasn’t even like I was underdressed, but I had grown used to my cold hands – They’re always cold. It’s my natural state. - I said, rubbing them against one another – The perks of being a vampire – I chuckled awkwardly.

- Sorry – he laughed as well – I didn’t mean to point it out, I just wasn’t expecting that.

- Nobody expects the Spanish Inquisition.

Yes, those were the words that came out of my mouth. I panicked, for a quick second, and prayed that a sinkhole would open up under my feet and the Earth would have me falling until I plopped right at the centre of it, melting quickly into nothingness, such was the embarrassment I was feeling.

Adam pursed his lips, trying not to laugh. I could see he really was doing his best not to burst out.

- I’m sorry. It’s from a sketch… - I started.

- Monty Python, yeah, I know.

- Oh. It’s nice to meet a fan from the other side of the pond – Having a touchstone was a great way to start this. And Python was one of the best touchstones there could ever be, so I could not help but smile at him.

- Favourite movie? – he fired.

- The life of Brian, of course. Yours?

- Oh, blasphemy – he laughed loudly – For me, it’s The Holy Grail.

We both mimicked the coconut hooves and burst out laughing.

Time really was of the essence and, as soon as the introductions were out of the way and the proverbial ice was broken, Blake told us what he expected of us. There were no lines in this scene, but it was one of the most visually powerful and emotionally charged moments in the film.

- Action – Blake said softly, a few feet away.

I thought to myself how I should not have taken that challenge, that I was not qualified and that I would only end up wasting people’s time and money. I looked Adam in the eyes and my hopelessness, in that chemistry test, is genuine, as if Rose and I had fused together. What I saw in his eyes surprised me. There was this shyness that I truly felt was real as well.

I held out my hand and he took it so delicately, it was almost as if the touch was not there at all. My brain was telling me to drop everything and go, but I was forcing my own body to obey what I wanted it to do, and not what the primal instinct was shouting from the background.

I lowered my eyes, as I felt my breathing picking up. I closed them and told myself to just be Rose. Not me, just Rose. Eleanora was to be wiped from the map, for the time being.

I opened my eyes again and locked them on his, as I placed my left hand over his heart, my own just beating like mad, threatening to burst out of my chest. I felt my eyes starting to water. Rose or not, that was just too much for me. A tear ran down my cheek and, thankfully there was a – Cut! - and I was able to take a deep breath, take three steps back and quickly wipe the tears away. Another second and I would have ran away in a panic.

- That was perfect! Perfect, perfect, perfect! - Blake was trotting our way – I knew I’d found Rose. - he beamed at Adam – That was the most beautiful chemistry test I’ve ever seen. Good job, both of you.

I wiped the rest of the tears from my eyes and just gave him a slight nod.

- Miss Vaughn – he said – Be here tomorrow at 7 and bring all that raw emotion with you.

I nodded again, still unable to speak.

- You OK? - Adam had a tight smile on his face – Acting can pull a lot that you don’t know you had in here – he touched his chest.

- I know just what I have in here – I said to him, as I took a tissue Holly was handing me, trying to steady my voice – I just wasn’t expecting it to come out all at once.

Adam laughed, softly – Come with me, I’ll show you around the studio.