Title: Behind The Scenes

Pairing: Bella/Edward

Rating: T

Chapter Twenty: Dinner On Me

[5/12/10]

Summary: Bella Swan is a young 17-year-old actress who's known for her lead roles in Indie movies. Edward Masen is a 21-year-old actor who's close to unemployed. They stumble upon the roles that would alter their acting career forever. [I suck at summaries. I can't believe I just said 'forever'.]

Disclaimer: I don't own Twilight. I'm not Stephenie Meyer. And the "movie" that they'll be in, is not mine either. If it resembles anything (the movie), it's by chance and totally coincidental. Although, this story is dedicated to Robsten. You'd probably guess who Bella is, and who Edward is, and who Jacob is— and it's not Taylor Lautner, btw. But the rest of the characters are not dedicated to the real-life people. Hehe.

Production: Month Three, Week Three, Day Seven (Last Day of Production)

BELLA

"AND CUT!" Emily said, more than relieved. "That's a wrap, you guys."

I sighed, a smile lingering on my lips. Edward, sitting in front of me, still in character, grinned and pulled me into a hug. "Congratulations, love," he muttered, dragging me up on my feet. "It's over. We're free." I laughed, stifling the tears that were on the verge of spilling.

Alice and Jasper rushed onto set with Emmett and Rose, all of them hugging—plus some tears from the girls. We were more than happy to finish production but we all knew that this moment was nothing short of bittersweet.

It was an end of an era. History transpired in our lone set in Brentwood, California. Our budget gone, our wardrobe dirtied with sweat and tears, our props fading into white and some to black, our set itself… looking almost haggard by the stress that was put into our tiny production.

Jasper and Alice shared a chaste kiss as soon as both of them were free, and everybody clapped. They were the very first couple established here and we all knew for a fact that each and every one of us was proud to have brought them together somehow. Edward scrunched his nose in distaste, not wanting to see his sister kiss another boy.

I walked over to Edward, my smile still plastered on my face. Honestly, I would call myself a goof by the way I was grinning. I tapped his shoulder playfully and he turned, somewhat surprised to see me next to him. I nodded and he smiled, drawing me into another hug.

Rosalie and Emmett looked at us peculiarly, obviously not missing the truth that people have been speculating over. Emmett laughed. Rosalie swatted him on the arm and told him to shut up. I giggled against Edward's chest, still inhaling his BVLGARI scent. I'd miss that smell; the smell of Tom Quicksilver.

He pressed his lips to my forehead and brushed my hair away from my face as he placed his hand at the small of my back, smiling down at me. Emmett wolf-whistled and Edward shook his head, turning to him and glaring afterwards.

"Just kiss her already; we all know!" Emmett said, laughing. "Kiss her! Be a man, Masen!"

The crew erupted in laughter. I pursed my lips and chuckled at the reaction. "You heard them, Masen," I said, already tiptoeing. "Should we do them the pleasure of giving them what they want?"

"Gladly," he muttered, craning his neck to reach me. He crushed his lips against mine.

My lips turned up into a smile against his mouth as he placed his hand at the nape of my neck, pulling me even closer to him.

"Okay, enough!" Emmett said, groaning. "Too many visuals. Stop it, Masen."

Edward pulled away, smiling pleasantly. I patted his sideburn and took his hand in mine. He gave it a squeeze and sighed. "If it weren't for these people, I doubt that our experience would be the same," he muttered.

"Of course it wouldn't be the same," I said. "If it weren't for them, we wouldn't even be like this right now. Mostly Alice, though."

He laughed. "Yes, we will thank Alice," he mumbled, bringing my hand to his lips to kiss it softly. "But before that day comes, we'll think of her as the unstoppable nature that she is."

Emily cleared her throat and all of us looked up to her standing on one of the stage chairs. "Alright, everybody," she said. "Who wants dinner on me?"

Everybody howled.

Post-production: Month One, Week One, Day Three (June 3)

BELLA

"When are you leaving for New York?" I asked as I watched Edward pack his stuff into a box in my apartment. "I don't want you to leave. Can't you just stay?"

"Love, you know I can't," he said, pausing to look at me. "I have my new movie. Bella, I thought we talked about this."

"Yeah, we did," I said, chewing on my nail. "But that doesn't stop me from thinking about what I have to live through for the next three months. I can't… I can't just do that. And you're going to miss my birthday. I don't want you to miss my birthday."

"Bella," he said, cutting the tape short to cover up the last box. "My birthday is on June 20th. You might miss it, too--if you forget. Forget and I would..."

"No, I won't," I said, laughing. "And I'm guessing that you're leaving after your birthday. But, either way, it'd be your birthday; you can have whatever you want."

"Same goes out for you," he said, smiling at me politely. "I doubt that the production of our projects over summer would be too long. My movie, I believe, would be over by September. I'm not going to miss your birthday, love."

I sighed. "I'm just going to miss you, Edward," she said. "This would be our first real separation. And I know that some of the girls out there would be more than pleasured to have you. New York… is way different from Brentwood—or LA. They have hookers on the streets, Edward. I just don't want you getting into that crap."

"I promise, I won't get into that crap, Bella," he said, lifting the box off the table and placing it on the floor. "I love you, Bella; I won't cheat on you with some five dollar hooker on the streets of New York. Trust me."

"I do," I said around a thumb as I nervously chew on the nail. "It's them I don't trust."

"Who don't you trust?" he asked, his eyebrows meeting in the middle. "The hookers? Bella, I promise, they won't lay a hand on me."

"Okay, I trust you with not getting a hooker off the street," I said, laughing. "But what about The Company? I know they're not very happy about us being together. I doubt that their going to keep your co-star's hands off you. I haven't even met the girl yet. When did you audition your co-stars anyway?"

Edward laughed. "Like, last year," he said. "We've all just been waiting for production to start. And she's a nice girl; I'll introduce you to her whenever I get the chance."

"What's her name?" I asked.

He walked over to me, motioning me to scoot over on the loveseat. I stuck my tongue out and he rolled his eyes. He carried me out of the seat and I squealed. He sat down and set me on his lap.

"Victoria," he said, circling his arms around my waist. "She was nice to me. I think she doesn't like me much—but she is for the sake of the movie. But overall, she's nice."

"I hope not too nice," I huffed. "I don't want her all over you or anything. The five-dollar hookers are one but Victoria is… something else. Victoria what is she?"

"Victoria Hardy," he said.

"Hardy?" I asked. He nodded. "As in, James Hardy?" Edward gave me a questioning look. "James Hardy was one of the people I auditioned. Hell, he was the top three with you and Jasper. He was pretty upset when we told him that he didn't get the job."

"Oh," he said. "I remember James. I didn't know that his last name was Hardy. Oh, well. As long as Victoria is on-board, I don't see why I couldn't get along with James again."

"If Victoria is married to James—either that or they're coincidentally namesakes of each other," I started. "Then that means that Victoria would keep her hands to herself, right?"

Edward laughed. "Are you jealous?" he asked. I looked down and blushed red. "Bella, don't be. There's nothing to be jealous about."

"How would I know? I have never met this Victoria girl," I said. "For all I know, you must have already shared something relatively special during your movies prolonged pre-production—before you even auditioned for Senior Year. How would I make sure that she isn't going to rekindle what you may and may not had last year?"

Edward laughed. "You're adorable when you're jealous," he said, kissing the tip of my nose. "Well, Victoria and I didn't have what you suspect she and I had last year. She was pleasant company but I didn't like her that way. Besides, she was a redhead."

I laughed. "What's the connection with a redhead and you liking Victoria—oh, I get it, you don't like redheads," I said, rolling my eyes. "Discrimination is frowned upon, Edward."

He laughed. "Not that I don't like redheads," he said. "Redheads are okay. But I like a particular color of hair on women, if you haven't noticed."

"Oh, well, I'm sorry I'm not blonde," I said, my voice evidently upset.

Edward chuckled. "Bella," he said, bringing his lips dangerously close to my ear. "I prefer brunettes."

I shivered as his breath caressed my ear, giving me Goosebumps from the crown of my head to the tips of my toes. "You didn't even answer my first question," I said, half-breathless, half-shuddering.

"What was the question?" he said, pulling away." Forgive me, I forgot."

"I asked when you're leaving for New York, Edward," I said, raising my eyebrow at him.

"Oh," he said, laughing. "I leave on June 22nd. You won't miss my birthday—and I won't miss yours either. You have my word. And heads up, I'm pretty sure that Felix would drop by within the week to introduce the MTV Movie awards to us. He says that the Company would very much want us to present the very first exclusive clip to Senior Year in the awards show."

"Won't it defeat the purpose of showing the clip in the MTV Movie Awards if the clip was 'exclusive'?" I said. "It won't be very exclusive anymore if everybody in the awards show and people watching at home saw it, would it?"

Edward chuckles. "Always so observant," he said, sounding like he was talking to himself. "Also so stubborn."

I snorted. "So are we going?" I asked. "It's not like we're nominated for anything, are we?"

Edward shrugged. "I don't know," he said. "That's why Felix is going to drop by within the week."

He looked down and pursed his lips. I took his hand and twined it with my own. "The cast dinner is tonight, right?" I asked.

"Ah, yes," he said. "About that… We should get dressed already. I don't think Emily would like it very much if we were late for her dinner. It's our movie, after all."

"Okay, then," I said, getting up. Edward grabbed my wrist and pulled me back onto his lap. "I thought we were supposed to get dressed. You're so stubborn, Edward." I laughed.

Edward kissed me quickly before letting me go, getting up. "Oh, wait," he said. "Are you done packing? Flight to LA is early tomorrow."

"Yes, Edward," I said, laughing. "I'm packed and ready to go; I can take care of myself, you know."

Edward rolled his eyes and smiled. "I love you, Bella," he said as I started walking to the bedroom.

I turned back and raised my eyebrows at him. "I love you too, Edward," I said. "And don't worry, I'll try to keep my eyes off nice Californian boys while you're gone."

I closed the door behind me. I faintly heard Edward call, "NICE TRY!"

EDWARD

"There they are!" Emmett said, pointing the sliding doors that Edward and I walked through. "Hell yeah, the party can start now."

I panned the venue slowly, looking and smiling at everybody there. Some of them I didn't know because they were locked up in cutting room floor, editing the movie until it looked like how Emily wanted it to be. But I bet they've seen enough of our faces as they cut, copied and rewind all the clips that the movie has managed to materialize.

Bella grasped my hand and I looked at her quickly, the smiles I have given everyone in the room still in tact. "Yeah?" I said.

She just smiled widely, reaching her eyes. She was happy.

She towed me to the seats next to Alice and Jasper. Emily smiled at both of us. The two started talking before I even got to sit. I just watched them in awe. It was nice seeing that the girl you love so dearly gets along with your sister. It shows how Bella was openly accepted. It wouldn't be long until I'd have to introduce Bella to Carlisle and Esme. Probably during my birthday.

A lot has changed ever since I stepped into Emily Uley's house in LA for the audition that I thought I'd regret and would permanently bruise my ego. My expectations from said audition brought me to possibilities I never knew I had.

For one, I have Bella Swan for a girlfriend. I would be blind not to see the number of men—and even women—who would ogle over her pictures at night. I knew for a fact that she was desirable. Of course she was. I would know.

I would know that if I broke her heart and, considering that everybody would know, my ass is fried for life. People would be after me in a second, hunting me down to break my face, as I broke her heart.

For two, Bella broke up with Jacob. Their relationship wasn't really one that people would like to watch over. Their relationship wasn't the type that tabloids fed over to get money. Their relationship was kept to themselves, but it was fine by them if people found out—and still grateful that not everybody knew. They were neutral and normal when it came to their relationship and, I started to wonder, if our relationship would ever be that way.

Ever since Bella and I were cast for the roles of Samantha Johns and Tom Quicksilver, the tabloids have wanted to get a piece on us. If they couldn't get something directly from us, they would pull out a random interview from the past and twist our words around so that it would fit the scenario that they would put us in.

The interest that gossip shows and magazines still leave me guessing why they even care. We're human beings that have private lives and public lives. We're actors and it was always an unspoken rule that you don't lay your life out on silver platter for the press because they would pounce at any chance and turn the tables directly at you. It's like being a convict: anything we say can be and will be used against us.

If you mess up and say something accidentally, they would manipulate your words by the way they state it and make you look like a complete idiot. I saw this interview of a young man who was, I believe, didn't understand the interviewer's accent. It made it look like the young man didn't know a word of the English language. It was saddening to see. And the companies had it printed and published on every material—newspapers, magazines, gossip shows—saying how much the young man was humiliated.

We're people and we make mistakes. Actors can't just be clean cut all the time. They can't just say everything perfectly and make it look like it's not big deal when journalists ask a pressuring question—or in the young man's case, when interviewers ask something in a foreign accent. It's unfair.

And the last change that was clearly apparent was that the way Bella and I acted. I always saw Bella as an awkward-type. She would be the type of girl who would prefer sitting in her bedroom reading The Divine Comedy. She was the type that would want to be around her friends most of the time than mingling with strangers at a hotshot bar downtown. She was sophisticated and unique. And impossibly down-to-earth.

Bella was still like that, only she wasn't as awkward. The way she stated her ideas and opinions were bolder, much more determined. When she would talk to you before, you wouldn't believe what she would want you to. But now, for some reason, you had no choice but. She was fierce. And I constantly ponder if it was because of me...

"Hey, Edward," Emmett said from across the table. "You're staring blankly into space, man. You alright?"

I nodded. "I'm fine," I said. "I was just thinking."

"Well whatever," Emmett said. "You listen to me, Masen. If you ever mangle my sister's heart, I will… kill you. Yeah, I'd kill you."

"Emmett," Bella said, turning away from Alice for a second. "Don't be mean."

"I'm just watching out for you, Bella," he said, throwing his hands up in surrender. "And Dad's coming over, B."

Bella's head snapped to Emmett's direction. "What? Why didn't you tell me earlier? I could've dressed decently."

I raked my eyes over Bella's apparel. She was very much decently dressed. She always dressed that way, actually. She had my hoodie on—wait, my hoodie? Clothes burglar—a grey Minor Threat shirt underneath and jeans. Not to mention black Chucks that she's been wearing for as long as I've known her.

"It must have slipped my mind," he said. "I'm sorry."

"No, it's fine," Bella said, blinking. "Edward."

I turned to her, my lips in a straight line.

"How would you like to meet my dad?"

Author's Notes:

That was so short. BOO. I wrote that in half an hour. I'm sorry. My mind was… rampant. Stick around. Oh, I'm not done yet. HAHA. -my attempt of an evil laugh

I have a brain full of new ideas and you better watch out, readers. This is going to be good. *is very vain LOL*

And yes, I'm back full-time. Expect a new chapter every week now. Hihi. And school starts soon, too. But that won't stop me. Haha. Okay, thanks for reading. Please review :D

~Age of Detour