Purposefully accidental, p.19
Purposefully Accidental, page 19
The comments.
In so many languages! Her Spanish was rusty, but there were definitely ones in Spanish. There was Portuguese, maybe? Wren seemed to have a huge Brazilian fanbase.
There were comments from other people with bright blue ticks next to their names. Playful comments from celebrities Madison had watched for years in her favorite shows and movies. An actress that had the ability to make Madison lose track of place and time when she was on screen had commented: ‘TWO sexy doctors? Tell me you’re on screen together!’ with kiss face emojis.
Madison’s heart actually stuttered.
Then there were the comments from Wren’s fanbase. Everything from a simple heart emoji to ‘We love you Wren!’ And then there were comments to Madison. ‘Loving the BTS insight, thanks @md_mads.’ A quick search online showed that ‘BTS’ meant ‘behind the scenes.’
Then there were comments that made her freeze. ‘Well, aren’t you two cute together???’ and ‘Are we going to get ACTUAL queer content with ACTUAL queer people in The Downfall season 2??’
Her heart squeezed in her chest, because she knew that want too badly herself. The answer, sadly, was there was absolutely no chance. Well, there was a background character who was gay, from what she’d seen in the script. But having Wren’s character as queer? It was shocking she wasn’t being coupled up with a cis man for the second season. Madison watched enough TV and movies to know that—leading ladies had romances, at some point or another.
And leading ladies with another woman? Very few and far between. Madison had a hunch that Wren’s team didn’t want her doing anything queer after coming out, although she didn’t know where she’d gotten that idea. Maybe she needed to investigate that a bit more.
She scrolled some more.
‘Love that this season looks like it’s going to be more medical!’
‘Wait, do we think @md_mads is on the Sapphic team?!’
‘@md_mads are you one of us?!’
‘Omg what if @wrenackertress and @md_mads are a THING?!’
How had they gotten to that so fast? It was one picture! One. One photo. In scrubs. They both looked tired.
Her phone beeped with a normal notification, and she flicked back to her messages. Trinity.
“Haha! Now it’s your turn.”
Madison scoffed, resting back into her pillows. “Which part? The hundreds of comments? The questions about my private life? The gossip?”
The answer came quickly. “All of it!”
Madison’s fingers flew over her screen as she typed her reply. “There’s so much conjecture! How do you not answer every single comment indignantly?”
She scrolled more comments as she waited for Trinity’s response.
‘More BTS pics pls! More @wrenackertress and @TrinDrayIty and more of whoever you are @md_mads’
‘Putting on my clown suit getting ready to hope for some sapphic vibes in
@TheDownfallSeason2—I mean, leading lady with no man in sight, lesbian actress—here I am, adding the red nose. Maybe we can dream?’
Trinity sent her a message. “To be honest, our PR teams handle most of ours. I usually tune it out, then anything big they leave to me, and I post whatever I want. But it’s all too much alone.”
So, Trinity had thrown her to the wolves? She even typed that out, sending it with a GIF of a wolf.
“How old are you that you use gifs? Seriously. Anyway, I tried to warn you!”
What was wrong with a GIF? They were funny!
“Did you though?”
“I mean…no. Regrets?”
“To be honest, for now it’s entertaining.”
“You love it.”
“Goodnight.”
“Niiiiight.”
Madison tried to go to sleep, staring up at the ceiling and wondering just why something like all these Twitter comments were genuinely amusing her. Maybe it was seeing how weird people could be. But there was an element she liked, seeing how many other queer people were online. Something in seeing how many rallied around Wren, how many looked up to her.
She wasn’t going to be able to sleep. So, she picked up her phone and kept scrolling.
* * *
“Someone looks sleepy.”
Madison turned from the craft table, stirring her steaming coffee, which she’d dropped way more sugar into than she would usually, since sugar did more for her than the caffeine, anyway. Wren was standing behind her, hands shoved in her back pockets, rocking back on her heels. She must have been through makeup; her hair and skin were flawless. Yesterday, Madison had noticed a line of acne on her jaw as Wren had practiced on the CPR mannequin, but realized that if you saw her on TV, you wouldn’t see a single blemish. Wren had grinned at her, then brushed her own fingers against her skin.
“I always break out when on set.” She’d put her hands back on the mannequin. “The one time they need my skin as good as it can be, but they have to pile on makeup, which makes it worse, so they pile on more.” She’d shuddered. “Stupid cycle.”
She was just so human. Which was ridiculous. Madison had always known Wren Acker was human—humans were the ones who pushed each other in the dirt, after all.
“I’ve discovered why it was probably a good thing I never really had social media until now. And now I’m regretting it.” Madison took a sip of her too-hot coffee. Which was exactly how she liked it, when she bothered with it.
Wren stepped forward, hands still jammed in her pockets. “Yeah, it’s dangerous. Was it a Twitter hole? TikTok? YouTube? Facebook? Snap?”
Madison hoped her expression was as vague as all that had made her feel. “I barely know what any of those words mean.”
Wren laughed, the sound a little too loud, even on the as-per-usual bustling set. “I’m guessing just Twitter then.”
Madison nodded. “Are those other things even real?”
“Yup. And there’s even more. Discord, Slack, Twitch, Insta—”
“Okay, okay. I got you. Are you happy to be back on set?”
Wren’s gaze roved the set in the background, where it was being adjusted; the light riggings moved, the cameras swinging around. Cables ran everywhere from the set and Charles and Erin were already in the video village, screens held up, headphones on, faces serious.
“I am. I enjoyed yesterday, though. I think it really helped. I got home and thought a lot about Riley. How she’d move in the ER. How that would be different outside in the middle of a storm. I kept going over the procedures you showed me.” Wren was lit up, bouncing on her toes. “I can’t wait to film them, now. Block out how to do them and really get into it.”
Her eyes were bright, shining. It was oddly endearing.
“I’m looking forward to seeing how it all comes together,” Madison said before she’d even thought about it.
“You are?”
“I am.”
She really was, too.
Wren stepped a bit closer, leaning in as if she had a secret to share. “Know what I didn’t miss about set, though?”
“What?” Madison moved a bit closer herself, their heads almost together, Wren’s hair falling around her face. It smelled like hairspray and mango.
“These stupid jeans with no pockets. Those scrubs have ruined me forever.”
Madison gave a surprised laugh, and Wren’s eyes lit up even more. “Don’t your costume scrubs have them?”
“I’m not allowed to put my hands in them in case I stretch them out. And they’re still not as good as the ones in the hospital, anyway.” She lowered her voice. “I know because I stick my hands in the pockets when wardrobe isn’t looking, even though I shouldn’t.”
Madison couldn’t help it; she chuckled again.
“Well, aren’t you two ladies snug.”
Dan was standing nearby, those sunglasses on even though, once again, they were inside. He pushed them onto the top of his head, his ice blue eyes appraising them. There was something in the look that Madison didn’t like, something she couldn’t put her finger on.
The fact that Wren had stiffened slightly next to her could be part of that reason.
“Morning, Dan,” Wren said with a smile.
She sounded normal. But she was also the perfect actor. Because something had changed about her posture. She’d been relaxed, loose-limbed and easy, leaning forward into Madison’s space in a way Madison wasn’t minding so much. All Wren and her animosity had gone, even if that had been what Madison had kind of wanted back, and what had been left behind was something mixed with ease and almost…fun.
Now the only way Madison could think to describe Wren was ‘tense.’ Even as her face stayed light, her tone breezy.
Something was off.
“Good morning, Dan,” Madison added.
“Madison, how are you settling in? All comfortable on set now?” His eyes stayed on them, cool and measured.
The comments he’d made in that first meeting, the last time she’d really seen him, had been clear as day. He was a full-blown homophobe living in a world in which he knew he couldn’t be a full-blown homophobe. So, he made snide little comments and said he was joking. Probably Wren had had a hard time with him since coming out.
Madison did not like him.
“Yeah, I’ve finally got my bearings now it’s been a couple weeks. Getting to observe it all helped me figure out what was going on.”
He nodded, eyes darting back to Wren, still standing so close to Madison. His phone was in his hand. He was probably glued to it most of the time, judging by her past experiences with the man.
Had he seen the tweets? The same comments that Madison had?
How had Wren been able to continue on a project that seemed controlled by a guy so uncomfortable with queer people? Wouldn’t he have shut her out of it? Or maybe he wasn’t as in control as he wanted people to think, and removing the A-list star from the second season was actually impossible? That first season had all been about Wren. Trinity had her moments in it, but the essence? The star? Wren, for sure. No Wren would have meant no second season—or, at least, no viable second season.
He must hate that Wren was here. He must really hate that Madison and Wren had sparked interest in fans.
“I’ve just swung by for a meeting with Charles. I wanted to have a word with you, too, actually.” He stepped a little closer. He was still several feet away, but Madison almost stepped back, such was her instinct to not be near him.
His focus on Madison was absolute, as if Wren weren’t there. “Be careful with your image on Twitter, Doctor Taylor.”
Her gaze darted to Wren, whose eyes were filled with fury. That furious look caught Madison’s attention, and she raised an eyebrow at Wren, then turned her attention back to Dan.
She inclined her head toward him. “I was cleared to use it; I spoke to someone here in PR about all the dos and don’ts.”
He waved a hand. “Yes, it’s all great PR, behind the scenes and all that. They eat it up. I’d be careful what image you’re putting out there, though.”
“Image?” she repeated slowly.
“Yes. Your image.”
She didn’t really care about her image. Obviously, she maintained professionalism at work, but her image didn’t come into play much, there. Especially in the way he was implying.
Wren stepped a little closer toward Dan, as if to put herself between Madison and him. It brought her closer to Madison. She was throwing off heat.
“Also,” he continued, intense eyes on her own, still acting as if Wren weren’t there, “the image of this show.” There it was: what he was really trying to say. “We are already having to work very hard to keep unsavory theories away from this season.” His lip twitched. “We don’t want to have to tackle that on too many fronts.” He stepped back, shoulders relaxing and arms dropping to his sides, posture open. He smiled, crow’s feet exploding around his eyes, and he could be mistaken for someone charming and lovely.
Madison wouldn’t make that mistake.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Madison murmured.
“Knew I could count on you,” he said, grin wide. “Keep working hard, Wren. This show loves you.”
He didn’t even throw a glance at Wren as he turned and walked toward Charles in the video village.
Madison relaxed her hands, only now realizing they’d been balled into fists at her sides. There was a prick of pain where her fingernails had dug into her palms.
“What,” she hissed, so only Wren could hear, “an absolute dick.”
Wren let out a long breath, as if she’d been holding one and counting to calm herself down. “That’s one thing to call him.” Her brows were pressed hard together, a line deep between them. “I have a few more choice words.”
“I bet you do. Has he always been like that?”
Wren glanced around, people not really paying much attention to them as they went about their business. She casually grabbed a bagel, then walked toward a far wall with even fewer people. Madison grabbed her coffee and joined her, leaning against the wall, their heads close together.
It would look like they were conferring. Hopefully about medicine and acting.
Wren picked seeds off her bagel, putting them individually into her mouth as she spoke. It was distracting, but Madison tried to ignore it. “He wasn’t always like that, at all. He actually has been a huge part of my career. Always talking to me at events, handing out advice, making connections. He’s produced about five of the projects I’ve been on.” Wren popped the tip of her finger in her mouth again, brow furrowed as she stared out at the people running around getting prepared for the day. Stand-ins were on set, lighting being adjusted. Wren would be called on set soon.
“Did that all change after you came out?”
Wren turned her head, and Madison was trapped in her gaze. “Complete 180. I mean, he’s professional—he’s nothing if not that, even with the snide comments. The attitude about being out now is…changing. People get publicly ripped to shreds for homophobia. For the most part. It’s a bigger risk for him to show exactly how homophobic he is than anything. I think he misses the good old days when it was riskier to be out rather than riskier to be a massive bigot.”
Wren winced at her own words, glancing about again. She plastered a smile on her face, even if it was a little fake. “Smile,” she demanded.
Madison smiled. Nodded. “I see. And he let you back on the project?”
Wren’s smile faltered, but stayed on. She picked at another sesame seed. “He tried to get me off it. Argued the show didn’t need me. Thankfully, the studio overruled him. My mom went in swinging too. Charles wouldn’t hear of it. He threatened to walk out if I wasn’t in it. My contract was pretty airtight about being included in a second season, but they could have paid it out easily. But the show wouldn’t have worked without me.” She shrugged, and it was a modest statement. None of the arrogance Madison had insisted to herself she’d seen before was there. It was true, too. The Downfall had been Wren’s series, no doubt about it.
“How does all this stay quiet? This is huge, a major producer of a major studio trying to fire someone after coming out.”
Wren gave a dry laugh. “This has been going on forever. There’s so much that goes on that never gets out. We’re all under NDAs, for one. But also, it may seem like everyone out there gets a lot of gossip, but they only know about five percent of what’s going on when we’re on set and behind the scenes of all this.”
“Shit,” was all Madison could think to say. She bit her lip. “I’m… I’m sorry I accused you of coming out for attention. I know I said that already. But I really get now that that was a shitty thing to say.”
Wren gave her a small smile. She had a sesame seed on her lip. It was oddly endearing, even if Madison wanted to wipe it away. Give a simple brush of her fingers over the plumpness of Wren’s lip. Her belly tightened—where on Earth had that thought come from? She pushed that far away. “Thanks.”
“You coming out was really brave.”
Wren groaned.
“No! I mean it.” Madison gave a small laugh as Wren turned bashful. “I know it sounds corny and all. But knowing all this—and seeing how Dan is acting. I get that coming out was a big risk. And I’m guessing it’s done a lot of good.”
Wren gave an awkward little shrug. “I just couldn’t hang out in the closet anymore.” She glanced past Madison and nodded at someone behind her. Madison twisted to see a woman she’d spoken to a couple of times, who had given her a bit of a lecture on how to use her Twitter for PR for the show and what not to do and made her sign things about it. What was her name? Serene?
“Hi, Rhianna,” Wren said.
Well, Madison had been way off. Once, she’d tried writing down people’s names in the hopes it’d help her retain them, but she’d only done it for about two days, then had lost the notebook.
Her organizational abilities stretched to work and not much further.
“Wren, hey. Hi, Madison.” Rhianna stood near them, gaze half on them, but also on the phone in her hand. She had another phone gripped under the first, and a tablet under her arm. Merely the sight of all the devices gave Madison anxiety.
Rhianna finally looked up properly and engaged completely. “Wren, don’t forget today we have fans on set. We’re filming a pretty spoiler-free scene and it’s all been approved. If you can come with me for the autographs and the meet and greet in a minute, that would be great.”
“Oh, that’s today! Right.” Wren pushed off the wall, entire demeanor changing from a moment before. “I’m all set, been through hair and makeup. I don’t have a pen, though.”
Rhianna held a black Sharpie out. “Got you covered. They’re allowed selfies if you’re up for it but have been told no other photos during the day. Here’s hoping they follow that.” She rolled her eyes, and Madison got the feeling that that was not always adhered to. “Meet me in a few minutes, I just want to remind Charles about it.”
