A/N: Went with their character names for simplicity's sake and for my own sanity. You'll see what I mean...enjoy!
Thorne could not believe they only had a few more episodes left of season 3 of The Lunar Chronicles, the most popular net-drama being broadcasted currently. Thorne had to admit, they had an amazing cast and plot.
When they had first all met, the girl who played Iko had kept calling everyone by their real names, so the director had declared that everyone should only call each other by their characters names. It had stuck perhaps a little too well.
"…And Cinder's on the ground- she might be unconscious. And Wolf's still under Sybil's control and I…I think he's going to…" She squeezed Thorne's arm, a horrified expression on her heart-shaped face.
Thorne suppressed a grin. Cress never really over-acted, but she had a way of adding little gestures or movements and facial expressions that was always just perfect for the character she was playing. No wonder she had won so many awards.
"That all sounds very dire," Thorne said right on cue, keeping his facial expression schooled. A few seconds later, after the camera picked up Cress pressing her back against him and shivering in fear he said the next line. "I guess it's time."
He suddenly spun her around and dipped her backward, cradling her back with a supportive arm. She yelped and caught herself on Thorne's shoulder.
Then he was kissing her.
"Cut, cut, CUT!"
The director (who happened to play Kai's father in season 1 before his character was killed off) was red in the face as he hopped off his seat and glared at Thorne and Cress. "Guys, what in the blue heavens was that?"
Thorne released Cress and the girl backed away and sighed.
"What was wrong with it?" Thorne asked, frowning as the entire cast and crew stared at him.
"It was totally unbelievable, that's what!" The director spat, rubbing his hand through his hair. Thorne knew that they didn't have much longer to get these episodes filmed, so any flub was sure to get on the director's nerves. He neared Thorne and placed a hand on his shoulder. "You're supposed to kiss her gently, coaxing a girl who's never kissed anyone before. Make it last. Make it personal."
Thorne nodded solemnly, a bit embarrassed that he was the only one in the entire episode who had needed to have a stern talking to about how to do his job. Sure, he had kissed plenty of girls in his career, but for some reason he just couldn't concentrate or make it believable when he was kissing Cress.
Thankfully, the director left it at that and clapped his hands together.
"Fifteen minute break for everyone!"
The set came back to life, except this time everyone could be their true selves. Wolf immediately got off of Cinder and helped her up, both laughing at how vicious he had managed to be when in all actuality in was actually quite the gentleman and Cinder was quite the girly-girl, unlike her character.
Thorne wished he could be like him. So sure of himself. Like the character Carswell Thorne. Even though Thorne had played so many bad boys that even his public image was widely known as that type, Thorne was actually a bit shy and awkward when it came to the opposite sex. He had made up his mind at a very young age that he wanted to pursue an acting career and had set out to do just that. Since he focused on his career so much he did not have a lot of times to socialize with anyone other than people in the business or get to know how to be with a girl other than what his lines told him to do.
Of course he could pretend he was one of his characters and say what any girl wanted to hear or make just the right move by looking them in the eyes. But that wasn't the real him. He wanted someone who would want his real personality. The real him.
"I'm going to go get some of that punch Sybil was bragging about earlier. Want to come?" Cress suddenly asked him, her blue eyes staring at him intensely.
"Oh…sure…" Thorne followed slowly behind her like a child who was about to be put in time out. They walked over to the punch bowl and when Cress began ladling some of the fruity red punch into a paper cup for him, he wanted to smack himself in the forehead. He should've made the move to pour her cup!
Cress was kind just like her character, except with a bit more flair. She was confident in the ways that her character wasn't. She was a bit quick tempered but was always fair. She looked at people straight in the eyes with an intensity that made you want to look away but found that you could not. She was like the personification of a love-spell.
He sipped at the sweet drink when she handed it to him, thanking her quietly.
They sat in silence for a few minutes before she finally spoke. "So, what happened back there, champ?" she raised an eyebrow, tilting her head to the side cutely.
Thorne resisted the urge to shrug. Swallowing his nerves, he tossed his now empty cup into the trash bin. "It was really bad, huh?"
Cress laughed and shrugged. "Not the worse I've experienced. In one role this guy kissed me so hard he hit his tooth against my lip and busted it."
Thorne grimaced. "Sounds horrible."
"Oh, it was. So trust me, yours was heaven compared to it. Yours just needed a little more…well, love, I suppose," she said. Then she looked up and hit him with that intense stare that always captivated him. "So tell me. Is it because you don't like me? I know I tease you a lot…I was just playing around, but if you don't like it I can stop. I honestly think the real you is adorable! I…"
The rest of Cress' speech was drowned out by Thorne's thoughts as her words played over and over in his head like a mantra. I honestly think the real you is adorable!
"Are you okay? You're turning red. The reason you can't kiss me right isn't because you're getting sick, is it?!" She stood on the tips of her toes and touched her hand against his forehead.
He took her hand and looked around. Luckily, everyone was busy talking amongst themselves a few feet away from them. He began to pull her out of the room and into her empty dressing room, all the while with her calling his name with a worried tone. He shut the door behind her and let out a huge sigh, ruffling his hair with both of his hands.
He was shy. He was awkward. He wasn't like Carswell Thorne at all. But this beautiful, popular, confident and amazing actress was still so kind to him. While most of the women he worked with ignored him when the cameras were off or only made pointless small-talk with him once they found out just how shy and awkward he really was, Cress always wanted to talk to him, was always by his side. Had made a point of getting the other cast members to include him and get to know him too. Now, he had an amazing cast of not just actors and actresses…but friends. True friends, for the first time in his life, whose bond was as tight as the characters they played.
"Hey! Tell me what's wrong right now or I swear I'm going to call my driver and have him take you to a hospital so we can-"
Then he was kissing her.
Really kissing her. He tried to convey every unspoken word through the kiss. Soft, slow and sensual to thank her for making him feel loved. Then as she began to respond, he ran a hand through her blond locks and pressed his hand against the small of her back, pulling her closer. She gasped and he made the kiss more passionate, hoping she could feel just as much he had come to like her, how he looked forward to seeing her every day, how even though she teased him he didn't mind because he knew it was all in good fun. She leaned into the kiss, perhaps…hopefully… understanding his unspoken words.
The sound of the door opening caused them to jump apart all too soon. Wolf stood there gawking with wide eyes.
"Um…wrong room," he said, shutting the door.
Cress slowly turned her head to Thorne. Thorne slowly turned to Cress. They burst out laughing, tears forming in her eyes. She wiped them away and took Thorne's hand in her own.
"So…you like me, huh?" she asked.
Thorne nodded, blushed, and rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. "It was really bad, huh?"
Her laughter was like little bells. "It was perfect."
"That all sounds very dire," Thorne said right on cue, keeping his facial expression schooled. A few seconds later, after the camera picked up Cress pressing her back against him and shivering in fear, he said the next line. "I guess it's time."
He suddenly spun her around and dipped her backward, cradling her back with a supportive arm. She yelped and caught herself on Thorne's shoulder.
Then he was kissing her.
Really kissing her.