Wednesday, March 1, 2023
Owen arrived at Los Angeles Airport around nine in the morning.
Larry, his manager, had been waiting for nearly twenty minutes in the arrivals area and drove him to his apartment.
Larry had accompanied Owen to Boston at the beginning of the Good Will Hunting shoot, not to interfere with the acting, but simply to stay nearby in case any kind of problem arose and Owen needed help.
When the shoot was nearly finished and it was clear everything was progressing smoothly, he had returned to Los Angeles a week earlier.
Morning traffic in the city was already fully awake by the time they reached the building.
Owen got out of the car with his two suitcases, thanked Larry for everything, and watched him drive off toward the street again. Then he entered the building lobby.
The place was quiet at that hour. He crossed the lobby with steady steps, dragging the luggage behind him, and took the elevator up to his floor.
The doors opened with a soft metallic sound, and he walked down the hallway toward his apartment. He pulled out the key, opened the door, and stepped inside. The suitcases rolled across the living room floor. He let them drop there without much ceremony.
He didn't stay. Instead, he stepped back out of the apartment, closing the door behind him, and began walking down the hallway again.
He walked a few meters before stopping in front of a particular door. He stood still for a second, then raised his hand and knocked softly.
Knock
Knock
The door opened in less than five seconds.
And there Owen saw her.
Jenna.
Owen was about to say something, but he stopped. His gaze immediately dropped to what she was wearing.
She wore a black dress made of a glossy fabric, with a subtle texture that reflected the hallway light. The design had a pronounced V-shaped neckline and fit closely around her torso, outlining her silhouette.
As accessories she wore a thin necklace around her neck and a delicate bracelet on her wrist. Her hair, which had grown a bit since the last time Owen had seen her in person, was carefully styled, not natural or messy, but clearly intentional. The makeup was soft, but enough to highlight her features.
"Wow," Owen said simply.
Then he looked back up at her eyes.
Jenna smiled, satisfied. That was exactly the reaction she had expected.
"Is there some premiere or red carpet I don't know about?" Owen added, which made Jenna laugh softly.
"No, it's the—"
But before she could finish the sentence, Owen spoke.
"The dress you wore at the SAG Awards."
The Screen Actors Guild Awards, organized by the SAG-AFTRA union, are one of the most important awards during Hollywood's awards season. Unlike other ceremonies, the winners are voted on by thousands of actors from the union itself, that is, by colleagues from the same profession, and the categories focus exclusively on acting performances.
Within awards season, the hierarchy of importance is usually fairly clear.
The Oscars are the most prestigious awards in cinema.
Then come the BAFTAs, highly respected, especially in Europe, and often considered the British equivalent of the Oscars.
The Golden Globes are more media-driven and recognize both film and television.
And then come the SAG Awards.
Even if they don't carry the same historical weight as the Oscars, the SAG Awards are closely watched in the industry because they are voted on by actors and often signal who might go on to win the Oscar in the acting categories.
Jenna had attended the ceremony just a few days earlier, on February 26.
She had been nominated in the category Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series for her role as Wednesday Addams in the Netflix series Wednesday.
She didn't win the award, Jean Smart ultimately took it for Hacks, but Jenna had also appeared during the ceremony as a presenter alongside Aubrey Plaza, announcing one of the night's awards.
"That's the one," Jenna said, nodding. "When we did the video call a few days ago and I was wearing this dress, it was pretty obvious you liked it."
"I wasn't very discreet," Owen commented.
Jenna laughed, "Yeah. I thought it would be a good way to welcome you back."
Owen looked at her for another second.
Then another.
It was too much.
He took a step forward without saying anything.
Jenna understood immediately and stepped back, giving him space to enter. Owen crossed the threshold of the apartment and closed the door behind him almost without looking.
And the next instant he was already kissing her.
He took her by the waist and leaned into her, capturing her lips with his after days of not seeing each other in person.
Jenna didn't seem surprised at all.
In fact, she responded to the kiss immediately, placing one hand on his chest while the other arm slid around his neck.
Some time later, they were both in Jenna's bedroom.
Lying on the bed, wrapped in each other's arms beneath the white sheets. The black dress was lying on the floor beside the bed. Owen's clothes too, his shirt, his pants, everything had been left in disarray along the way.
The room was filled with a comfortable silence.
"I missed you," Jenna finally said, breaking that soft quiet. Her head was resting against Owen's chest.
Owen didn't respond immediately.
'Have we reached that point already?' he thought, with a thoughtful expression as he looked at the ceiling.
Though, if he thought about it, it wasn't that strange.
They had been getting to know each other more clearly for two months. Not just going out, but trying to see if they could build something serious. But in reality, they had known each other longer than that.
They had met during the rehearsals for The Spectacular Now, and then during the filming of the movie, back in late September.
About five months since the first day they had seen each other.
And especially the last two months had been different, since that's when the romantic interest had begun. Before that, they had considered themselves friends.
And although during the past month Owen had been in Boston and they hadn't been able to see each other in person, they had talked almost every day.
In some way, that distance had actually brought them closer.
They had talked more than they probably would have during a normal month. They had gotten to know each other better.
"Owen? Normally when someone tells you they missed you, you say it back. Either out of courtesy or because you actually feel it," Jenna said in a slightly ironic tone, more playful than annoyed.
Owen snapped back from his thoughts and lowered his head slightly toward her, smiling.
"Sorry. I was thinking about when we first met," he said calmly. "I missed you too."
"Mm… I don't know," Jenna replied with a small skeptical smile. "Now it feels like you're saying it out of obligation."
Owen laughed softly. He knew perfectly well she was just teasing him.
"Hey, the first thing I did when I got to my apartment was drop my suitcases inside and come straight here. I didn't unpack, I didn't call my mother, I didn't do any of that," he said.
He paused briefly, then added in a questioning tone, "Do you think I would've done that if I hadn't missed you?"
"Good argument," Jenna admitted. "But you're good at making arguments… are you sure you didn't come straight here for the sex? You jumped at me with a lot of urgency the moment you saw me."
"Hey," Owen replied in a slightly offended tone, "I didn't know you had dressed like that."
He made a small gesture toward the floor, where the black dress was still lying.
"And if you dressed like that, it must've been for a reason, right?" he continued. "Or did you expect that when I saw you we'd calmly sit down and have tea?"
Jenna couldn't help laughing, "Wow, that sentence sounded very cancelable."
Owen laughed too, "Yeah, right? That was dangerously close to those comments about how if someone gets assaulted it's because of how they're dressed."
"Not that extreme, but a little."
Owen stopped laughing. He kissed her again and, in a more serious tone, added, "I really did miss you."
Jenna smiled faintly, "I believe you…" she whispered as their lips parted.
For a few seconds they stayed close, looking at each other.
Then Jenna spoke again, as if she had just remembered something.
"By the way, that dress you ripped off so brutally and tossed aside like it was nothing," she said, pointing toward the floor, "is very expensive."
Owen raised an eyebrow and looked at the dress, now slightly wrinkled and twisted on the floor.
"How much does it cost?"
"Twenty-two thousand dollars."
Owen's eyes widened.
"Seriously?" he murmured in disbelief. "How can a simple piece of fabric cost that much? That's more expensive than producing Paranormal Activity."
"It's a vintage Versace from 1994. A pretty rare runway piece," Jenna explained. "That's why it's worth so much. It's actually not even for sale. Normally brands lend them for events and then you have to return them. Though sometimes they gift them, like they did with me."
Owen nodded slowly, understanding, "So you didn't actually spend that much on clothes…"
"Of course not," Jenna replied, almost offended by the idea. "No way I'd pay twenty-two thousand dollars for a dress."
She leaned slightly toward him with an amused smile. "Wednesday's fame is actually useful for something. If a brand wants me to wear it on a red carpet, they're more than happy to lend it or even give it to you. I just show up, take photos, and that's it."
She looked again at the dress lying on the floor and then back at Owen.
"But that doesn't mean you have to treat it like it's an old T-shirt."
"I'll tell the dress I'm sorry," Owen said, looking at the garment on the floor as if he genuinely felt guilty.
Jenna shook her head, amused, and changed the subject naturally.
"This month is going to be pretty busy."
"Yeah, pretty busy," Owen nodded. "You have the Scream 6 premiere on the sixth, right?"
"Yeah. In New York, kind of far," Jenna replied. "But I'll be back the next day. I'm not staying."
She said it almost as if she wanted to make that clear.
"At the Lincoln Square Theater," Owen commented curiously.
The AMC Lincoln Square 13 in Manhattan was one of the most famous movie theaters in the United States. It had one of the largest IMAX screens in the world, advanced laser projection, and huge reclining leather seats. It was the kind of place where major premieres took place.
Owen had watched the entire Scream saga in this new life, something he hadn't done in the previous one. Partly because now Jenna was part of that franchise, acting in two of the Scream films.
"Do you want to go to the premiere?" Jenna suddenly asked, noticing Owen's expression when he mentioned the theater. "I could get you some tickets. It might be fun if you came with me."
She said it with a smile, more like an idea thrown into the air than something truly likely.
"Yeah, it would be fun," Owen admitted. "Can you imagine the headlines the next day?"
Jenna looked at him with a crooked smile, "Owen Ashford and Jenna Ortega, stars of the upcoming A24 film The Spectacular Now, fuel rumors after arriving together at the Scream 6 premiere."
She made a theatrical pause and added another one:
"New couple in Hollywood? Owen Ashford and Jenna Ortega spark rumors after appearing together in New York."
Owen laughed.
"Not bad. Or this one…" he continued, playing along. "The indie genius nominated for an Oscar for his short film Paperman and the star of Wednesday are spotted together again."
"That one's good," Jenna said, amused.
"Yeah, and some people are already a little suspicious. Between the Sundance vlog, The Spectacular Now, and the chemistry people say we have," Owen said.
Jenna nodded. They had talked about that before.
"The internet lives off that kind of thing," she commented.
Owen looked at her for another moment, as if he had just had another idea, "Although if we really wanted to feed the narrative…"
Jenna narrowed her eyes playfully, waiting for the proposal.
"The Oscars are on March twelfth," Owen continued. "I have a few tickets. I could give you one."
Jenna burst out laughing, "That wouldn't be feeding rumors," she said. "That would basically be announcing it to the world."
The Academy Awards would be held on March 12 at the iconic Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, six days after the Scream 6 premiere. It was, by far, the most important night in cinema.
The theater had around 3,300 seats, but in practice very few of them were actually available. The vast majority belonged to nominees, presenters, studio executives, producers, Academy members, and major industry figures. Getting a ticket without being directly part of that circle was almost impossible.
Owen, however, already had his seat secured.
His short film Paperman was nominated for an Oscar, which automatically guaranteed him a ticket as the project's producer.
Normally, in the short film category, the Academy was quite strict. The team usually received two or three tickets in total: one for the main producer, another for the director, and sometimes an additional one for a guest.
But Paperman had been a slightly unusual case.
The short had a very small team, essentially a group of friends who had managed to bring the project to life. And Owen, meanwhile, had become one of the most talked-about names in independent cinema over the past few months.
It was an extremely indie short film that had gone remarkably far, and its creator had a very compelling narrative behind him.
Because of that, in an unusual move, the Academy had sent Owen an email granting him five tickets in total.
It was just enough for everyone involved in the short film to be there that night.
If Owen decided to use one of those tickets to invite Jenna, no one at the Academy would say a word. Technically, it was entirely within his rights.
But in practice, the message would be quite clear.
Appearing together on the Oscars red carpet was not the same as running into each other at Sundance or at a movie premiere.
That would basically confirm it in front of all of Hollywood, and the world.
"Besides, who wouldn't you give the ticket to?" Jenna asked, more out of curiosity than anything else. She knew perfectly well neither of them was seriously considering doing something like that.
Owen thought for a second.
"Sophie?"
For a moment, they simply looked at each other.
The silence lasted barely a second before both of them burst out laughing.
"That would be the most controversial option of all…" Jenna said, still laughing.
Sophie had been the co-star of Paperman alongside Owen. And for months she had also been his girlfriend. Their relationship had been public on social media, though never quite at the level of tabloids. But they had broken up in the first days of January, and people already knew.
If Owen appeared at the Oscars, the most high-profile night in cinema, and didn't invite the lead actress of the nominated short film, someone who had also been his girlfriend, but instead brought Jenna Ortega, one of the most talked-about young actresses of the moment...
The headlines would practically write themselves.
It wouldn't just be rumors of a new Hollywood couple.
There would be theories about infidelity, speculation about when the relationship had actually started, endless Twitter threads reconstructing every appearance of Jenna and Owen.
For the internet, it would be the perfect kind of story: drama, romance, and rising young celebrities.
"You're going to invite her, right?" Jenna asked, almost taking it for granted. It was the right thing to do.
"Of course," Owen replied. "She acted great in Paperman. She deserves to be there."
Technically, Owen could choose to give the invitation to whoever he wanted. The Academy didn't force him to invite anyone from the short film's team. But in practice, not doing so would be very strange.
In the end, the four invitations would go to the people who deserved them.
Matt, Sophie, Tyler, and Eric.
The entire team that had made Paperman possible.
"Do you think she'll accept?" Jenna asked.
She said that because when Paperman premiered at Sundance, Owen had also invited Sophie, and she had turned him down.
"Mm, the Oscars are different from Sundance," Owen said.
Sundance was an open festival. If you traveled to Park City, Utah, you could experience the festival atmosphere, run into directors, and attend some screenings if you managed to get tickets.
The Oscars, on the other hand, were something else entirely.
The ceremony was extremely exclusive. Getting inside the Dolby Theatre that night was almost entirely reserved for nominees, stars, studio executives, and members of the Academy. Even many famous actors didn't manage to get inside because they didn't have any films among the nominees.
Because of that, rejecting an invitation to the Oscars as an actor or actress was very uncommon, even if the person inviting you was your ex.
Owen stayed thoughtful for a moment.
"Eighty–twenty," he finally said.
Jenna raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"Eighty percent chance she says yes, twenty that she turns it down."
For Owen, those were the odds.
They stayed silent for a moment. Jenna seemed thoughtful until she spoke again, "And on top of all that, the Lights Out casting starts this month."
"Yes," Owen said with a faint smile. "Matt is very excited about that."
"In fact, everything's ready already. The script is finished, the technical script too. We have the shooting schedule planned and the budget locked," he added.
Jenna looked at him curiously, "I haven't seen a single headline about that."
"I mean…" she continued, "if you're about to start casting, normally someone would already be following the story. Especially since it's your movie and you two have a mega viral short film behind."
It wasn't an exaggeration. Owen had just finished filming Good Will Hunting, had a short film nominated for an Oscar, and now apparently was about to finance another multi-million-dollar movie.
And at an unusually fast pace.
That alone would be news.
Owen smiled, "That was exactly Matt's plan. Keep everything quiet," he replied. "It's just the two of us working on it. We haven't hired anyone yet, so everything stayed pretty invisible."
Jenna nodded. The only reason she knew anything about it was because she talked with Owen. She knew they had almost everything ready and that casting would start in the next few days through Backstage and similar sites. But she hadn't known Matt wanted to keep everything secret.
After that, the conversation relaxed.
They stayed in the apartment. They cooked something simple for lunch and kept talking for quite a while. In truth, there wasn't much to catch up on. Talking every day during the past month meant they both already knew almost everything happening in each other's lives.
It was more about the physical company. Being in the same place.
Later they started watching a series and stayed on the couch until, around three in the afternoon, Owen stood up.
"I have to go," he said, getting to his feet. "I'm going to pick Sarah up from school."
He made a small face. Having to babysit his grumpy little sister wasn't exactly his favorite activity, although in reality he had volunteered himself, since he wanted to see her.
He just wanted to complain a little.
"Good luck," Jenna said, walking him to the door.
"After that I'll take her home and stay for tea with my mother," Owen added while putting on his jacket.
Before he could continue speaking, Jenna said, "Your mother seems very refined. She seemed great."
She said it remembering Sundance. She hadn't personally spoken with Elizabeth, but she had seemed like a very kind and elegant woman.
"Indeed," Owen replied with a crooked smile. "And today I'll offer both of them a role."
Jenna looked at him, amused, "Can you go a single day without turning something into a project?"
Owen shrugged slightly, "It's in my nature to bring entertainment to the people," he said with exaggerated solemnity.
"How noble of you, Owen Ashford," Jenna replied, imitating his dramatic tone.
Then she spoke normally again, "By the way, I'm free tonight. We could have dinner and keep watching the series."
Owen raised a finger, "I was just about to say the same thing. Count me in, at your apartment?"
Jenna nodded, "Yes. Six-thirty?"
"Sure," Owen replied.
But before he could leave, Jenna gestured for him to wait. She walked to the table, grabbed a piece of paper, and began writing quickly.
"Stop by the supermarket and buy all of this."
She handed him the sheet.
Owen took it and glanced over it. The list was quite long.
He let out a sigh, "So I go from being the man who brings entertainment to the world to your personal errand boy."
Jenna smiled and stepped closer to give him a quick kiss, "Exactly."
Owen slipped the list into his pocket as he opened the door.
"I'd better go," he said. "I don't want to keep a teenager waiting. They get angry very quickly, especially Sarah."
Jenna laughed as she watched him step out into the hallway.
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