Frida would say this was a sign, I thought. So I didn’t bolt. In fact, I thought of Frida and how she would act if she were here. She’d be totally confident. If Frida could channel Amazon warriors and fairy princesses on the soccer field, maybe I could channel Frida on the set today! I took a deep breath. I’d give it a try.

“Sit,”  Tenshi instructed, and I sat in a chair at the makeup table, trying to tap into Frida’s self-assured energy. I had worn my lucky pink headband that I wore to all my soccer games to the shoot to give me an extra boost of security. Tenshi pulled it out before she sprayed some stuff into my hair then brushed it.

“Gotta tame those fly-aways,” Tenshi said. “You should really use conditioner.”

“I do,” I said. “I use that two-in-one stuff.”

Tenshi rolled her eyes. “That doesn’t count!”

It didn’t feel like we were off to a great start, and any trace of Frida slid right out of me, along with my lucky pink headband. Tenshi pulled my hair into a long ponytail that wasn’t much different than my usual look, just less messy, and then she put some makeup on me. It felt like she was putting on a ton of stuff, but when I looked in the mirror after, it didn’t seem like I had a bunch of makeup on at all.

“Awesome, right?” Tenshi said.

I stared at myself. I wasn’t sure what she did, exactly. But my lips looked smooth and shiny. My eyes looked brighter. And my skin looked absolutely perfect. Not blotchy at all. But I still looked like me.

“Wow,” I said.

Tenshi grinned. “You look great, Devin. Now get changed. There are some sneakers in there for you too.”

I quickly got changed behind the privacy screen. The sneakers were Nikes, white with a blue swoosh. I slipped them on and looked in the mirror. I had to admit that it was a pretty cute workout outfit, something I’d actually wear, so that made me feel even better about taking the job selling it.

When I came out from behind the screen, Tenshi took me back out to the studio area. There was a guy with wavy brown hair carrying a camera, and he smiled when he saw me.

“You must be Devin,” he said, coming over. “I’m Zane. Ashanta tells me you’re a soccer player.”

I nodded. “That’s right.”

“Great!” he said. “We’re going to try some soccer-themed active shots today. The clothing company wants to get in on World Cup fever with their campaign. So maybe you and Sabine can do some soccer moves.”

“Sure,” I said.

Sabine walked up to us, smiling. “I’ve never played soccer before, so you’ll have to show me the ropes, Devin.”