L. A. Candy by Lauren Conrad Page B

The back was open and a younger-looking guy was sitting on the bumper. He had a large pack of sound equipment strapped to the front of him by a padded harness. He unhooked the equipment and set it in the back of the van. Jane watched him as he reached in and pulled out two small microphones. They were smaller than the ones she and Scarlett had worn during their interviews. They were only a half an inch thick and silver. He unwound the thin black cord from around the first silver pack.
    “Scarlett?” He looked at both of them.
    “Present.” Scarlett stepped toward him.
    He eyed her outfit for a moment. “You’re wearing a bra, right?”
    She looked only a little taken aback. “Um, yeah.”
    “Okay.” He took out a piece of double-sided tape and began peeling the paper off one side. “Well, I’m gonna have you tape this microphone to the inside of the front of your bra and run the wire around your side, then I’ll clip the mike pack on the back of your bra.”
    He pressed the tape down, securing it against the tiny mike, and handed it to her. Then he pushed both his thumbs against the tiny mike pack, holding down two buttons at once. After a couple seconds, a small green light glowed on the top.
    “You can go in the van if you want.” He glanced back up at Scarlett. She had her shirt pulled up over her bra as she tried to get the tape to stick to the inside of her lacy black cup. “Oh…Or you could do it out here.”
    A couple of guys passed them. One in a trucker hat yelled out at Scarlett.
    Jane laughed, amused at her friend’s total disregard for acceptable parking lot etiquette. “Don’t be shy or anything, Scar,” she joked.
    Scarlett turned to the sound guy, holding up the round metal piece at the end of the wire. He clipped it into the pack, wrapped the extra wire around the silver pack, and hooked it to the back of her bra. Scarlett pulled her shirt back down and turned her back to Jane.
    “Hunchback?” she asked as she attempted to look over her own shoulder.
    “Actually…” Jane examined the back of Scarlett’s shirt. “You can barely see it.”
    “Okay, then, you must be Jane,” the sound guy said. She noticed a white piece of what looked like surgical tape on the bottom of the second pack. Her name had been written across it with a black Sharpie.
    “Yes, but, um…” Jane turned around, revealing her exposed back. “No bra. I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”
    “It’s cool.” He shrugged. “What are you wearing under the dress?”
    “Underwear.”
    “What kind?”
    “Shit, buy the girl a drink first.” Scarlett laughed.
    “What do you mean? Like what brand of underwear?” Jane asked, slightly flustered.
    “No.” The guy laughed. “I need to know if it can supportthe pack. I can always use a leg strap, but they’re just a little uncomfortable and tend to fall off.”
    “Well.” Jane looked a little embarrassed. “They’re actually bathing suit bottoms. It was laundry day.”
    “That should be fine. I’m just gonna have you tape the mike onto your skin.” He touched the center of her chest with his index finger, indicating the placement. “You wanna hop in the van to put it on?”
    “Yes, please.” Jane opened the door to the van and stepped in, closing it behind her. She moved a stack of notebooks and folders to the side and sat down. She looked around as she reached down the front of her dress and stuck the mike to her skin in the spot he had indicated. The van smelled like smoke and cheap vanilla-scented air freshener. The carpeted floors were stained. She noticed the key was still in the ignition and had a round white keychain hanging from it that said “Enterprise.” On the seat behind her was a red ice chest and a clear plastic storage bin containing bags of chips, crackers, and different kinds of snack bars. It looked like it had been stocked at the corner gas station.
    She opened the door and reached for the mike pack. The sound guy attached it to the wire