I'm crazy for starting another new story but this idea has been in my mind for almost two years and I'm tired of waiting to write it, so I did it anyway. I know I have two other stories that I'm still working on, but I didn't want to keep ignoring this in case I never get the chance to write it or completely forget about it.
I have the whole story planned out, and it should be on the shorter side, meaning that there will probably be less than 15 chapters.
This story is a bit different than my usual fics, but I'm excited to write it.
Thanks for checking it out, and I'd love to know what you think. If you love it, then I'll continue, but if not, then I'll just finish my other stories and scrap this idea, but I'm hoping you'll like it!
"Haley James?" An abnormally tall, blonde haired, busty bimbo called out. "Mr. Swan is ready for you."
Haley looked up from her iPhone and was met with a disgustingly white smile which belonged to the human Barbie herself.
"Thank you." Haley nodded with appreciation as she hastily stood up from the leather chair, almost tripping in the process. She could hear 'Barbie' snicker from behind her, but chose to ignore it. She wouldn't dare risk her chances of landing her dream job by engaging in a petty cat fight. Instead, Haley held her head high and confidently strolled into Mike Swan's office with a boisterous smile.
"Hello Mr. Swan." Haley greeted.
"Miss. James! Please, have a seat. I'm eager to work with you." A friendly man with a fit of unruly black curls atop his head, smiled warmly at the renowned actress infront of him.
"It's a pleasure to meet you." Haley beamed, sticking out her perfectly manicured hand for a polite handshake with the famous director.
"Likewise." Mike grinned enthusiastically. "So, let's get straight to business, shall we?"
"Sounds good." Haley nodded, shifting slightly in the leather chair across from Mike's chocolate colored desk, as she desperately tried to hide her over anxious nerves.
Mike shuffled several papers around the table until he found the one he needed, holding it up and quickly read it over. "So, I watched your audition tape and I think you'd be perfect for the part-"
Haley's brown orbs lit with a bright sparkle. "Really?"
"Yes. You fit the exact image I had conjured for the character, 'Beth', and your acting skills are truly impeccable." He complimented as he swiveled in his office chair.
Haley blew out a deep breath in disbelief. Slowly, the corners of her lips turned upwards forming a magnificent smile. "Wow, thank you."
Mike mirrored her smile, as he clasped his hands over his slightly rounded beer belly and cleared his throat. "Now, I am ninety-nine percent sure you're going to be officially casted as Beth, but I just need to run a chemistry screening with an actor who I felt portrayed the best Jimmy in his audition tape…" Mike explained, glancing down at his gold watch to check the time. "He should actually be coming any minute. If you don't mind I'd like to run a few lines with you two in order to see if you have good chemistry together, and if not, I'll move to the next guy on this list, but I'm pretty confident this will be the guy."
Haley nodded, "Sure, that sounds great."
"Okay, perfect!" Mike clapped his hands together, quickly standing from his chair and gathered various papers into a folder. "I'll be right back, but feel free to make yourself at home, and if you want to practice reading your lines, I have a script on the back table." He directed with a friendly smile, then walked out of his office leaving Haley seated alone with an excited expression upon her face.
She silently wondered who she would be working with on this film. Through the years she had the pleasure of working with astonishing actors varying from Channing Tatum, Ryan Gosling, and Orlando Bloom. Being America's Sweetheart, and an A-list actor definitely had its perks from time to time. Some would argue that Haley was one of the greatest actresses in the entertainment industry, which landed her several Oscar awards as well as roles in major motion pictures. Many fellow actresses were typical A-list snobs who treated money as an absolute figure in this world, and more than half of them were pretty much made up of silicone and plastic; but not Haley. Haley James was the good girl. Always keeps her nose clean, and away from the obnoxious drama of Hollywood. She's classy, simple, and a role model to girls and women everywhere.
Of course there were two sides of every story, and the same rich, fake, 'Plastics' of the world would argue that Haley was 'plain and grungy' or a 'suck-up'. Normally Haley would sweep those insults under her rug, ignoring the hate, but in reality, those words hurt. She tries to put on a brave face in front of the camera's but at the end of the day, she's just like everyone else: human.
Looking around the room, Haley's eyes fell upon the various plaques and awards surrounding Mike Swan's office. Being obviously in the entertainment business, Haley has heard his name a great deal of times, and it had been on her wish-list to act for one of his films. Mike's movies have won several awards over the years, and he himself was quite a popular producer. When Haley had heard that he was in the works of creating a new movie, she had instantly called her agent and requested a script. She spent almost an entire week in her Beverly Hills home locked in her room studying her lines until they were perfectly memorized. She had become enthralled with the plot, as well as the character she had planned on trying out for, and so she booked an audition a few weeks ago, and prayed she landed the gig.
Only being 25, Haley had worked on several genres of movies, but her favorite was always romantic tragedies. She liked to consider herself a hopeless romantic, and her strongest skills in acting were always angst as well as romance. Mike Swan was basically the Nicholas Sparks of the movie industry, considering almost every one of his movies always involved a modern-day tragic love story with a unique twist.
Reading the manuscript for the first time, Haley remembered tears trickling down her pink cheeks, clearly picturing the story in her mind. The romance between her character and the romantic interest was unbelievably raw, but perfectly beautiful- the kind of romance any girl could ever dream of. She had a strong feeling this would be one of her favorite characters to play, considering she found so many similarities between her and the character 'Beth'.
Beth Camara was written as the small town waitress who was struggling to make ends meet in order to provide for her and her three year old daughter Emma as she desperately tries to escape from her past; an abusive boyfriend who left her after finding out she was pregnant at only age 20. She's portrayed as a strong female lead who puts on a brave face to the world, acting as if she doesn't care what anyone thinks when inwardly she is struggling with her overbearing emotions; something Haley secretly relates to.
Then there is 'Jimmy Loffer' the sweet, caring, and charming Children's Attorney who was born into generations of money. Like any typical chick-flick, Jimmy quickly falls for Beth, who is afraid of becoming vulnerable again. After much convincing, and moving past her blatant denial, Beth admits that she too, has more than friendly feelings toward Jimmy, finally agreeing to going out with him.
Haley's thoughts began to slow, as another question rekindled into her mind. She glanced at her iPhone in order to check the time and sighed. She desperately wondered who would be playing Jimmy, and prayed he wasn't another stuck-up starlet. After all, she would be kissing him for almost six months, and to lessen the awkwardness of the situation, she prayed they would have a professional relationship. There was nothing Haley hated more than working with perverted, egotistical jerks on a movie where they'd have to play love interests. It was so much easier when she actually got along with her co-stars.
Letting out another impatient sight, Haley tapped her foot nervously against the hardwood floor, wondering where everyone was. Time seemed to stand still, until finally, she could hear to be what sounded like Mike's strong Chicago accent muffled behind the closed door, shouting at something, or rather someone.
Less than a minute later, he stormed back into his office, dragging a hand over his exhausted face which was enhanced by the fine lines sketched over the tough skin.
"I'm sorry for the wait. The actor I'm expecting is running late. Figures." He mumbled frustratedly, inhaling a deep gust of air in order to calm his frayed nerves.
Haley gave a sympathetic smile, "That's okay."
Mike leaned his palms against his desk, exhaling a hard breath as he squeezed his eyes tightly together. "He's already a half an hour late. I don't have time to sit around and wait for him… but for some reason my instincts are telling me that you two are going to have great chemistry together, and that's the only thing saving his ass right now-" He rambled partially to himself as Haley nervously shuffled in her seat, still not knowing who he even was talking about.
"Don't get your grannie panties in a twist, Swan. I'm here." The six-foot two, raven haired, blue eyed actor casually strolled into the office with his hands thrown in his pockets, a cocky smirk plastered on his strongly set face, making Haley's stomach twist in a disgusted knot, desperately wanting to roll her eyes.
"It's about damn time, Scott." Mike grumbled, falling back into his leather chair, rubbing his temples faintly. "We have a lot of work to do, so take a seat and grab a script."
Nathan fell back into the seat next to Haley, his smirk only widening when he took in the appearance of her, praying her blush wasn't evident upon her cheeks.
"You're the chick I'll be making out with for six months?" His gaze swept over her body appreciatively. "Nice! You're pretty hot-" He smirked cockily.
Haley's brown eyes widened in shock, suddenly feeling extremely objectified. Who did this guy think he was?
"Excuse me?" Haley fired back, crossing her arms protectively over her chest.
Nathan's eyes lingered on her cleavage, his smirk only growing. "I mean, I've been with hotter girls, but you'll do just fine-"
Haley outwardly scoffed in disgust. "You've got to be kidding me!" Her hands were thrown up into the air as she swiftly turned toward Mike who was clearly just as annoyed as she was.
Mike let out another sigh and turned closer to the actors. "Nathan, meet Haley James, Haley meet Na-"
"I'm sure she already knows who I am." Nathan grinned, propping his feet up onto Mike's desk.
Haley let out an annoyed breath. "Of course I've heard about you. You're the man-whore of America." She mocked in a high-voice.
Nathan nodded proudly, "And you're Little Miss Perfect, am I right?"
Haley rolled her eyes, ignoring the way her heart ached from the harshness of his words.
"Low blow, sweetheart?" Nathan mocked.
Haley's eyes peeled at him, "God, you're such a...a… jerk!"
Nathan chuckled loudly, "Cute."
Mike pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. "Please, will you two quit acting like children and be professional? I mean, do you want these roles or not?"
"Yes." Nathan and Haley answered at the same time, this time in the most serious tone they could muster.
"Then please cut the sexual tension and use it towards acting, okay? I really think you're both perfect for these parts and if you don't get along then we're going to have serious problems-"
Mike lectured lightly, his eyes glaring at Nathan condescendingly.
"Okay, fine, I'm sorry." Haley straightened her posture as she sincerely apologized, only this time earning an eyeroll from Nathan.
"Yeah, sorry." Nathan mumbled meekly in response.
Mike clapped his palms together and gave a satisfied smile. "Fabulous, now let's get straight to it. Nathan, I need you to take your shirt off, and Haley you too-"
"What?" Haley screeched, "Why? I wasn't aware of this-"
"Because you'll be almost naked on screen, and in order to relieve any awkward tension I always have actors open up to each other right away-"
Haley blushed, "I think I'll wait until the actual scene."
Nathan smirked at the thought, "That's too bad." He feigned sadness as he whipped his grey t-shirt above his head exposing his chiseled abs with a cocky smile.
Haley's eyes enlarged at the sight, and even she had to admit that it was incredibly sexy. She could feel her drool salivating at the end of her tongue, but quickly dismissed those tantalizing thoughts when she remembered how much of a jerk he was.
"Like what you see?" Nathan smirked, his blue eyes sparkling in the light.
Haley laughed sarcastically, "I've seen better." She could have sworn a look of hurt flashed through his piercing blue eyes, but once again dismissed the unlikely thought.
"Okay Nathan, you can put the shirt back on. We'll save the nudity for a later date, right now let's just run the lines from the top of page thirteen. I want to get a feel for how you act together…" Mike directed as both Nathan and Haley stood up with scripts in their hands, preparing themselves for the scene.
Haley mentally got into character, closing her eyes and becoming 'Beth Camara'.
"Before we begin, do you guys have any questions?" Mike questioned before taking a long swig of his coffee.
"Actually, yes." Haley answered. "Do you know who will be playing as Emma?"
Mike stroked his chin gently, "Not yet. It's hard to find cute three year olds who actually know how to act… I have a few ideas though. The relationship between Jimmy and Emma is just as important as with Jimmy and Beth, so Nathan, how good are you with kids?"
Nathan almost began choking on air, "I'm not really… I mean kids don't really … I don't have much experience with them, but for the sake of the movie, I'll try to act as best as I can-"
"Okay great." Mike gave a pleased smile. "Once I finish the screening between you and Haley, I'll call in a few kids I think will play a good Emma, and see how you two work with them. Like I said, the on-screen relationships need to look effortless and palpable. Audience's go crazy over cute relationships, and that all starts with good chemistry-"
"Wait, I have a question-" Nathan began.
"Yes?" Mike sighed.
"Will we be french kissing at all?" Nathan smirked.
Mike knit his eyebrows together, "Well I guess it would work better for the steamy scenes, but it's up to you and Haley-"
"I'd prefer not to." Haley spoke up. "It wouldn't be fair to my boyfriend-"
Nathan rolled his eyes, "It's not like you'd be cheating on him-"
"Well unlike you, I actually value love and long term relationships-" Haley spat.
"You don't know anything about me." Nathan snarled, crossing his arms over his chest defiantly.
"And you know nothing about me." Haley protested.
Mike sucked down a harsh breath, slamming his fists against his desk. "Here's a thought…" He suggested with a tight smile, "Why don't you actually get to know each other, and stop acting like children?"
Nathan rolled his eyes, "I don't need to get to know her. I'm an actor, and I'll pretend to like her until this movie is over."
If it wasn't for Nathan's manager and best friend, Clay Evans, he probably wouldn't even be here right now. Romantic movies was not Nathan's forte. He'd much rather portray James Bond in a voluptuous action movie, than some charming lowlife loser who give girls false hope that there are actually guys like that in the world. Nathan was nothing like the character in this movie, and couldn't care less about love. He was more of a no strings attached, love 'em and leave 'em, kind of guy.
In fact, Nathan had no desire to be in this film, but it was basically forced upon him. Clay complained that Nathan needed to get out of the bad tabloids for a while, considering lately he had been on every sleazy magazine cover pictured drunk, and leaving with a random bimbo draped on his arm. So, in order to gain positive press, Clay had suggested that Nathan try out for a movie alongside, none-other-than America's Sweetheart herself, Haley freaking James.
Of course Nathan heard of her before. She was America's Sweetheart, after all.
She was prim-and-proper. Little Miss Perfect. Classy and flawless. Beautiful, and so out of his league, but of course, she presented herself as if she was above everyone, and Nathan couldn't stand that. He hated girls who were 'goody-goodies', who thought they were better than everyone, and who had absolutely nothing wrong with them. It irked Nathan more than anything, especially how Haley doesn't give into his bullshit.
He thought for sure she'd fall for his charming smirk, or even act like a crazy fan girl, like most people do when they see him. But no, like always, she had to act as if she was better than him, and frown upon his attitude. He was completely thrown off guard by her feisty comebacks, for no girl had ever spoken to him like that... but in some weird way, Nathan liked the challenge. It was refreshing, and totally hot.
The thought of corrupting America's Sweetheart was utterly delicious.
"Let's just get started, okay?" Haley suggested with a tired sigh. She was tired of arguing, and wouldn't let Nathan Scott destroy her chances of landing her dream movie role.
Nathan nodded, preparing himself for character as he flipped to the page in the script.
"Okay, take it from the top. Action." Mike called loudly as Haley stepped closer to Nathan, ready to begin the scene.
Nathan took a deep breath, placing a gentle hand on Haley's waist as directed in the script and smiled charmingly.
"You're the best thing that ever happened to me, Beth Camara."
Haley forced a blush on her cheeks and smiled giddily as directed in the script. "And you're the best thing that's ever happened to me, and Emma."
Nathan chuckled softly, "Oh yeah, I may like her better than you."
Haley playfully punched him in the arm and giggled, "You better not."
"Hmm, no you're right. That would be kind of creepy." Nathan read with a playful grin.
Haley threw her inhabitants into the wind, as she ignored the tension between her and Nathan, and decided to ram up the chemistry between their characters. She smiled warmly at him, throwing her arms around his lower midsection and rested her head upon his shoulder.
"You're so tall." She mused out loud before she could even stop herself… that part was not written in the script.
Nathan looked down, slightly confused as if he missed something.
Mike laughed from his spot, clearly enthralled by the chemistry between the actors. "That wasn't in the script, but I may have to add it." He grinned. "Keep going."
Haley cleared her throat, as Nathan began to shake slightly.
"What's wrong, Jimmy?"
Nathan gulped, it was in the script, but this time, he actually needed to swallow back the nervous lump residing in his throat. He didn't understand what was happening. He never got nervous during scenes. Especially those that involved women; and now all of a sudden, Haley threw her arms around him and a strange sensation wielded through his veins. Never having felt like this before, Nathan decided to act as if it was completely natural, only adding to their palpable chemistry. That's all it was, he told himself. Acting.
"N-nothing." He stuttered.
Haley's brown eyes bore closer into Nathan's light blue ones, and for the first time she could clearly make out the brightness of those beautiful oceanic orbs.
"Talk to me." She urged, ignoring the awkwardness of touching a stranger and running her palm over his stubbled cheek. Like any scene she had ever acted in similar to this, she simply imagined herself with her boyfriend, Wyatt Lancaster, a wealthy socialite and prestigious business man, who she has been dating for over a year and a half.
"I just… I need to tell you something that I've never told anyone before, and I don't know how to say it..." Nathan read with a scratchy throat.
Haley simply smiled, urging him to continue, pretending to be confused, even though she knew exactly what his character was about to say.
Nathan grabbed Haley's petite hand, and inhaled a reassuring breath. "I love you, Beth."
Before Haley was able to continue reading the script, Mike abruptly jumped up and began to clap loudly.
"That was marvelous. Seriously, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you're lovers." He joked with a cheshire grin.
Haley almost laughed out loud, "Yeah, right."
"It normally takes a while for actors to develop the kind of chemistry you two just possessed during that short scene." Mike said seriously. "I'm blown away by this."
"The script is just beautifully written." Haley credited.
"Kiss ass." Nathan mumbled under his breath, pretending to cover it up with an obnoxious cough.
Haley turned towards him, her eyes narrowed into thin slits, "What was that?"
"Nothing." Nathan grumbled, causing Haley to feistily roll her eyes.
Mike shook his head with dismay. "I don't get it. You hate eachother, but have better chemistry than most real-life couples… how is that even possible?"
"Sexual tension." Nathan smirked, earning yet another eye-roll from Haley.
"No, like I said, we're just good actors who utilize your romantic script. I don't like Nathan, but I love this story and I don't care who plays Jimmy, I will act better than I ever have. I love playing Beth, and I won't let anything get in the way of that." Haley swore.
"You're determined. I like that." Mike stated. "But it's not only your determination that makes you perfect for this part. It's the two of you together. I guarantee that anyone else who plays Jimmy won't have half as much chemistry as you and Nathan do. If it's really a problem, I can bring in new actors, but let's face it, Nathan is the best Jimmy, and you're the best Beth. When I wrote this I had a picture in my head of how I wanted Beth and Jimmy to be like, and you two are exactly it. And for some reason, you have some of the best chemistry I've ever seen. I don't care how you feel personally about each other, just please all I ask for is when you play your characters, just forget your personal problems, and give your all. Can you do that for me, please?"
"Yes." Haley promised immediately.
"Yeah." Nathan said with a shrug. "I'm an actor, I can pretend anything."
"Great, because there's one more thing I need you to do-" Mike announced with a pleading smile.
"If you're going to tell us to pretend to be in a relationship, I can't do that because I already-"
"Have a boyfriend." Nathan finished Haley's sentence with an annoyed tone. "We know."
Mike chuckled, "You even finish each other's sentence's. That's cute, but no. I'm not going to ask you to be in a relationship for publicity, but I do need you to get along as much as possible. Especially at press events. I can't have my two stars hating each other." He desperately pleaded.
"So you want us to act like friends?" Haley clarified.
"Yeah, and who knows, maybe if you get to know each other, and stop hating each other for whatever reason, maybe you'll actually be friends, or I don't know, maybe even fall in love..."
"Yeah, right." Nathan scoffed. "Like that could ever happen-"
"For the first time, I actually agree with Nathan. I don't think we can be friends, but for the sake of the movie, I'll try my best to tolerate him." Haley spoke professionally.
"Whatever. I'm just in this for the money, and publicity." Nathan griped.
"Figures." Haley spat sardonically.
Mike blew out a long breath, "This is going to be a long six months…"
So what do you think, should I continue?
Thanks for reading!
I've also been working on two other one-shots which I hope will be up sometime this week, and for those of you who read "Give Your Heart a Break" I'm finally working on the next chapter for that, and I'll get "Story of Us" updated as soon as I can.