"Miss! Miss!" Someone called from behind you, making you start and turn on your heels. "Are you okay?" The student sitting on one of the chairs in your office asked you.

You had drifted off, again. And at work of all places! It was already awkward enough when it happened yesterday morning at the local coffee shop, resulting in the barista practically shouting your name before you woke up from your trance-like state, but in front of a student! That was unacceptable and your professionalism took a blow.

"Sorry, I'm fine, just thinking," you told your sick student. "You can go home, I'll let the school office know."

Your sick student seemed to regain some colors just by hearing this, and you shook your head, a smile on your lips as he walked out. He was probably heading home to play xbox all day long and eat pizza, but you were never one to tell a student to suck it up and go back to class, unless they were clearly faking. A girl once tried to skip PE by faking a nosebleed – with actual fake blood, that nasty stuff you could buy everywhere on Halloween.

Not the best example since you still let her go home. But in your own defense, it had nothing to do with the actual sickness, it was because she had Robert as teacher, and you took pity on her for having to deal with him on a weekly basis.

You sighed loudly and let your tired body fall limply on your chair. It was uncomfortable and your back hated you for sitting on this poor excuse of a chair three days a week, but it paid your bills and your masseur, therefore you dealt with it.

That's when your phone rang, which made you almost jump to the ceiling. What was it with your jumpiness lately? After quickly checking who it was calling you at office hours, you picked up, a smile on your face.

"Hey hot stuff," you greeted Sebastian whose laughter filled your ears as soon as he heard your nickname for him. Every time he called you he got a new one. "What's up?"

"I just finished a scene and I wanted to check on you before going back," he said, sounding tired but still enthusiastic to be speaking with you. "Anything thrilling happened today?"

"Oh, you wouldn't believe the day I just had!" You made sure to sound extra sarcastic and when you heard him laugh again, you felt like it was a win. "This kid came in earlier, said he felt like throwing up or something and even fake coughed a few times. You should have seen him practically running out of my office when I told him to go home," you told him, rolling your eyes at how obnoxiously dramatic teenagers were, even if he couldn't see you.

"Wish I had a nurse like you when I was in high school," Sebastian chuckled.

"Well," you stretched the syllable to no end. "You have me now," you teased playfully, bringing your feet on your desk and slowly twirling on your desk chair.

"Don't intend to let you go," he assured you. "Hey, I was wondering... Halloween's coming up, planning on going as a zombie nurse?"

"A zombie nurse, seriously?" You questioned, baffled. "Well, I'm sure it'd be funny going back to work with my blouse covered in fake blood to greet my students, but that's not what I had in mind."

You heard him scoff amusingly and just when he was about to say something you cut him off.

"And no I'm not telling you what it is! You'll have to wait and see." You just enjoyed it a little bit too much torturing him like that.

"Oh please, doll!" He tried softening you with his favorite nickname for you.

It was something he had picked up from his latest character, Bucky Barnes. After having to talk like a ninety year old dude for months, it had rubbed off him. His 40's slang wasn't half bad though. You both laughed and teased each other some more while Sebastian updated you on his filming schedule and told you about his day, although there wasn't much he was allowed to say since he was under strict confidential rules – no telling your girlfriend what happens in the movie.

"I miss you," you finally said, mentally facepalming yourself because it sounded lame and cheesy, but also feeling your heart swell a bit.

You did miss him. He had been gone for three weeks, filming in Romania and Germany – that was all you knew, you didn't even know in what city he stayed. The upcoming Captain America movie was a big deal and you were over the moon happy for him, but going three weeks without seeing him started to get old. You wanted him home, back in New York and preferably in your arms.

"Ditto," he said softly under his breath, and you'd swear you could picture the smile on his face as clear as daylight. "I'll be back soon, I promise."

"I know."

As soon as the words left your mouth, you heard shy knocks against your door, undoubtedly signaling that another student was feeling sick.

"I have to hang up, duty calls," you informed him. "Go save the world, Sergeant Barnes," you playfully told him. You knew that he was rolling his eyes at you, and it made you smile.

"You go save yet another student from a potentially fatal nosebleed," he mocked you teasingly. You laughed and quickly said your goodbyes and biding him a good night since it was already past ten in Germany.

"Come in!" You shouted so whoever was standing behind your door could hear you. One hour to go before going home.

000

The glass of white wine sitting on the side table next to your sofa had been your best friend for the past four weeks, and the sheer thought was depressing. You were never one to make a fuss out of the man you dated, but this one made you feel like you were sixteen all over again. You blushed, stuttered, made a fool out of yourself and got flustered around him, like a virginal schoolgirl. A virginal schoolgirl with a drinking problem at that.

Or maybe it was just that you still weren't over him being famous. When he told you about his 'business trip' in Europe, your eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. He was so sure that you knew – after all, he did tell you him full name the first time you met – but you had no idea. Not once in your life have you considered the fact that your current boyfriend might be a celebrity, that was too Rom-Com to happen in real life.

Right?

"Damn it," you grumbled, taking the bottle of wine and putting it away.

It was real though, you weren't in a bad movie or a Stephenie Meyer book. After he broke the news to you, you went home in an altered state of mind, walking back to your apartment like a zombie. For the first time in your life, you sat down at your desk and googled the name of your boyfriend. That was probably something quite frequent among teenagers – to look up their crush on facebook, or twitter, or instagram – but so far you avoided doing it. You were a twenty-nine year old grown ass woman goddammit! You were supposed to be an adult.

Did Cinderella google Prince Charming? You didn't think so.

And when hundreds of thousands of HD pictures of Sebastian appeared in front of your eyes, along with a long Wikipedia page, your felt your eyes roll back in your head. You fanned yourself with your left hand, feeling a bit hot suddenly and why was the room spinning like that?

No need to say that the following night you didn't get much rest, you were too busy catching up on all the movies Sebastian starred in, binge watching his entire filmography from sundown to sunrise in chronological order. By the time your alarm clock rang – pointlessly really, because you hadn't slept – your eyes were dry and bloodshot and your head a bit fuzzy, but you felt like you weren't doing that bad given the circumstances.

Every now and then – especially since he was away – you replayed in your head the three months you spent with him before finding out, searching for clues, hint drops. But honestly, three months. The amount of time it took you to find out was absolutely ridiculous, and it had you staring off into the distance every time you thought about it, as if contemplating your own obliviousness and stupidity. Like, let's be honest, for someone who successfully finished medical school, you'd think you would notice sooner that people stared at your boyfriend in the street and remember that he basically appeared in one of your favorite TV Series when you were young. You'll never let him live down the fact that he played a part in Gossip Girl.

Now, one night wasn't enough to go through all the movies and series he played in, but you took advantage of his time in Europe and watched them all – it was a way to see him even when he wasn't sitting on the couch beside you, his strong arms draped over your shoulders, making you feel smaller and more fragile than you are. Watching in chronological order had the massive perk of you getting to see him grow up – you'll have to ask him later what the fuck happened to his hair in Hot Tub Time Machine because it was truly hilarious.

But back to your current distracted state of mind – you really had to talk to him about it when he comes back - you couldn't fathom not seeing it. How could you convince yourself that people started at him only because he was tall, and thick with muscle and handsome, and-

Yeah, how could you? Having a couple girls drooling over themselves when he walked past them wasn't too weird but once you reach ten it's odd. But you gotta be honest with yourself, you did drool a little bit too that night at the bar. Although you had no idea he was a famous actor, you had perfectly functioning eyes and you very much appreciated the view of his button up shirt struggling under the pressure of his thick arms stretching it and-

Yeah, you could understand that people stared, but there was a difference between not realizing and burying your head in the sand.

When you considered the fact that it barely took you two dates to reach third base and score – you hit the first two in the taxi back to your place – it was astounding to think that you were so slow to find out who he really was. Nothing about his behavior hinted toward it – Sebastian was natural and dorky and like any other man his age, only a thousand times kinder - and hotter, which doesn't hurt, we'll all agree on that.

That night you fell asleep with the remote control in your hand while Once Upon A Time still played on TV, laying across your couch, your hair spread over a cushion and your blanket on the floor where it fell earlier.

When you woke up, the blanket was not on the floor anymore.

000

Your cozy little neighborhood in the North of the Upper West Side wasn't exactly the typical burglar infested area of Manhattan, and you highly doubted that a thief would take the time to gently draped your blanket back over you. Which only left two options: either your grandma broke into your apartment last night and thought you were cold, or-

"Sleepy head awake?" A low, raspy voice you had grown to adore asked from the little kitchen.

You rose from your spot and let the blanket slip down your body again before you made your way to Sebastian's opened arms, jumping in his arms and greeting him with a proper kiss. Gosh, that was something you had always dreamed to do – and now that he got all beefy and gained thirty pounds of muscle for Civil War, you weren't going to deny yourself this little pleasure.

"You're home!" You cheered in excitement, forgetting about your tiredness and focusing on showering Sebastian in kisses to show him just how much you were happy to see him.

"Told you I would be back soon," he reminded you, shooting a bright smile your way. "I came home late last time – or was it early this morning? - either way I didn't have the heart ot wake you up," he explained, pecking your lips and grinning wide.

That was the kind of smile that reached his eyes and caused little crinkles to appear at the corner of his eyes. His unshaven stubble grew into a short beard and his hair was even longer than when he left. He let it grow specifically for the role, just like he gained weight and muscle for it. A large grin appeared on your face in response to his, and you felt his strong hands squeeze your thighs in an affectionate way.

"The others are still over there, but I jumped in the first plane as soon as I finished my last scene – they don't need me for all of them anyway," he informed you. "I really do hope you didn't replace me with Bob while I was gone," he chuckled, gently reminding you yet again of that fail of a date you endured the day you met Sebastian.

"It was hard but I resisted to his charms," you snickered playfully, amused by his failing attempt to not sound jealous. Although there was literally zero reason for him to ever feel jealous - of Robert of all men! -, you found it cute that he was. You knew Sebastian didn't like the fact that you were exposed to your co-worker's prying eyes three days a week, but he tried not to show it. He was just being wary of him and he didn't like his lack of manners. "Don't leave me for so long a time again," you uttered softly, leaning against his ear and burying your nose in the crook of his neck.

Oh, how you had missed his scent. He smelled like a warm summer day, wood and musk. You thrived on this smell. God, what a school girl you were!

"I wouldn't leave if I didn't have to," he sighed, knowing where this was headed.

People tend to only see the bright side of being 'famous', they see the money, the designer clothes, the red carpet, but not the countless hours of plane trip, the makeup, the several shoots before a scene is deemed perfect. They don't see the chaotic schedule that nips in the bud all of your relationships or attempts to have one.

"I'll give you a doctor's note," you replied, taking him aback.

You smirked and wiggled your way out of his grip, only stopping when your feet hit the cold tiles of your kitchen floor. Sebastian scoffed lightly, unable to hold back the smile he tried to conceal. He gave your backside a little squeeze before gently reminding you that you weren't a doctor, but you shrugged it off.

Your hands moved up from his shoulders to the back of his neck, fiddling with his hair. It was held back in a bun, leaving his face exposed and not hidden behind rebellious strands of hair. He still wore the sneakers and sweat pants he wore for long flights and lazy days, along with one of the shirts he had left at your place a few weeks ago – just in case. He didn't know that you had been sleeping with it the whole time he was away from New York.

"What are you smiling for?" He asked upon seeing your cheeky smile, indisputable proof that you were thinking of some unspeakable thing.

"Nothing. I'm just glad to have you back. Life's oddly dull without you around," you admitted.

It's only when the words left your mouth that you realized how true it was. A long time ago you vowed to never let a man become the gravitational center of your life, and here you were, spending a whole month watching all the movies and series in which Sebastian played because he was far away, on another continent and you didn't know how else to distract yourself from how much you wanted to be in his arms, much in the way you were right now.

He fake coughed, "Lame!" and your mouth fell agape. The audacity! Slapping his shoulder to scold him was about as useless as trying to punch a wall and expect it to hurt, but at least you tried.

"You're just lucky I'm so happy to see you, otherwise there would be payback for that!" You warned him, fake biting his nose and kissing him again, more deeply this time.

Sebastian answered to your eager lips with equal force, his hands resting in the hollow of your back to press you up against his chest, and you noticed he had been working out even more since he left. You weren't going to deny that it pleased you. The two of you hadn't reached the point of your relationship where you introduced each other to your friends and family, but you'll be happy to show him off at your arm when the time comes.

A sneaky hand of his slipped under the hem of your jeans and you gasps into his mouth, causing him to smile into the kiss. He was about to break your embrace, but you pulled him back in the kiss by grabbing his collar and forcefully bringing him down to your height.

"(Y/N)," he finally uttered when you left his swollen lips and started nipping and biting on his jaw – the man had a jaw so sharp you could cut yourself! "Now?" He asked and you knew what he meant.

"Of course now! When is it not the time?" You giggled. "Were you going out for a run?" You questioned.

"Uh- yeah, actually," he answered, hands fumbling with your shirt as yours messily yanked off his own.

"I have a much for fun fat-burning activity in mind."

000

You leaned over, strewing a path of hot kisses down Sebastian's chest to his stomach and then back up until you reached his lips.

"(Y/N), it's past midday," he groaned when you started giving light bite to his neck. "How can you not be tired?"

"Tired?" You huffed, amused. "How old are you again?" You teased him, earning a pinch on the butt. "Aouch!"

"Earned it!" Seb rose from the bed and engulfed you in his arms. "I only slept, like, four hours," he reminded you. "And I'm famished."

"Mmh, now that you mention it, I'm kind of hungry too," you admit, letting your fingers run down his shoulders. "You know-" you started, biting your lip. "No, never mind."

You let go of him and started shuffling the sheets to untangle your legs and get up, but his grip on your wrist had you falling back down right in his lap.

"Wait, wait, wait, not so fast!" He pulled you up. "What was that? You wanted to say something."

"It's nothing worth saying out loud," you said, trying to get up again. This time he let you do but he also followed right after you, joining you in the kitchen.

"I'm not letting this go," he warned you, stealing the cookie you were holding from your hands.

"Hey!" You protested. "That was mine!"

"And now it's mine," he said, shoving your cookie in his mouth to prove his point. His eyes went wide. "Wow, those are delicious!"

"Thanks, I made them myself. To eat with my wine as I waited for you," you shot him a smirk and opened your fridge to dig out something to eat.

Sebastian walked up behind you and pushed himself flush against your back.

"Tell me what you were going to say," he insisted, his hands traveling south of your body.

"I was going to say-" you started, already cursing yourself and your inner schoolgirl. "That I could definitely get used to your new physique," you admitted. "Jeez, I'm starting to talk like your character!" You snickered in a self-mockery. He made you spin around to meet your eyes.

"Really?" He smirked cockily, unable to hold back his large smile from spreading wider.

"I didn't mean to say this out loud, it was supposed to stay in my head," you tried to explain, laughing at the ridiculous situation. "Sorry."

"Sorry for what? At least now I know that my physique pleases my girlfriend," he playfully replied, emphasizing on the old-fashioned word. "Didn't take you to be the kind of woman attracted to beefy guys," he commented.

"I'm not," you assured him, your face dead serious. "Just to you."

"Oh, now I feel better," he said.

"Stop mocking me!" You shoved him when you saw his cheeky smile that couldn't mean anything good. You put a point of never letting a man know he had you in the palm of his hand. For a brief moment you wondered how much you had failed on a scale of one to ten when you saw Sebastian's expression.

"Then I suggest you enjoy these guns as long as they are there," he then said, reaching out to take two cup of coffee out of the cupboard. Your horrified expression had him cackling. "Don't give me those puppy eyes, (Y/N)! Do you know how many calories I have to eat everyday to maintain this stature? I have five meals a day!"

"Oh I know," you said, shrugging. "I'm the one cooking them," you reminded him.

"Right! But it's exhausting and I'd feel better if I could go back to eating like a regular person," he confessed, bringing his hand up to your chin so he could wipe away your sulking expression with a kiss.

"As long as you feel good and promise to keep that handsome face, I can deal with everything," you assured him, making Seb laugh. "I'm kidding, of course," you quickly added. "For the face thing, I don't love you for you looks- I mean, I love your looks but I don't love you only for that- I just- shit, I should shut up now," you blushed fiercely and mimicked to zip close your mouth when you realized how many times you accidentally used the word' love' when neither of you had said the thing yet.

A pounding alarm in your head was drowning out any other sound, blasting an 'abort mission' siren over and over again. If you could, you'd hide in a mouse hole. But despite being only five foot four, you still weren't small enough to do that.

"Let's just act as if I wasn't a complete dork and forget what I just said, yeah?" You suggested, hoping for the best even though it was highly unlikely.

"I don't think I can forget that," Sebastian said, shaking his head and grinning even wider than you thought was possible. At this point, you seriously considered jumping out the window of your kitchen - even if you doubted that you'd fit through it – just to avoid that conversation.

"You don't have to say anything," you said to give him a safe conduct, looking panicked and flustered.

You could only guess how red your face was, but you'd bet it was too dark to stay unnoticed. Being the gentleman he was, Sebastian didn't point it out, but you knew that he saw it and you cursed yourself for blushing so easily. There was a deeply humiliating dimension to this situation. You shook your head.

"I'm sorry if I-"

"Stop rambling, (Y/N)," Seb cut short to your inner self-flagellation by putting his hands on your shoulders. "I love you, too."

Your mouth fell open. You closed it and opened it again to say something but nothing came out and you closed it again. You probably looked like a fish, so you stopped.

"Really?" Your eyebrows shot up.

Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! That's the stupidest reaction possible (Y/N)!

"Is it that surprising?" Sebastian frowned and shook his head, confused.

"No! I mean, yes! I mean- I'm sorry, but I can't English anymore," you stuttered out, blushing even more – if it was possible, that is.

He chuckled, "I can see that."

"I just didn't expect to hear you say this," you explained.

"I've wanted to say it as soon as I realized that you didn't know who I was. But, I didn't want to tell you right before leaving, I thought it wouldn't be very... delicate," he smirked, looking down to your now joined hands.

"I don't doubt my capacity to answer you with a full sentence but you're still shirtless and it's difficult for me to concentrate right now," you said, glancing down to his bare chest. "But I'll make an effort for you, and I- I love you. I really do. Beefy or not," you managed to croak out, still very much hot and bothered by the proximity of his statuesque body and the embarrassment of having spilled out your feelings just like that, while coffee was brewing next to you.

"As long as I keep my handsome face?" He asked, smiling.

"Yes and, also, never do that Hot Tub Time Machine haircut ever again," you giggled, feeling better already now that it was out there and that he didn't seem to make a big deal out of it.

Your hands found their way up to his neck and you stood on your tip toes to put your lips on his and kiss him like there was no tomorrow.