4 - You're a Model

Mathias came into the studio first thing that morning per Ludwig's request. In the lobby, chatting quietly with Mona, stood Lukas.

"Luke! I'm here!" Mathias dashed over to his coworker, waving excitedly.

Lukas turned around. "Yes. You are." He turned back to Mona, nodding. "I'll see you later, Mona." Then, without a backwards glance, he walked out of the lobby. Mathias followed at his heels.

"So, Luke, are ya gonna train me?" he asked, the cheer obnoxiously evident in his voice. Lukas did all he could to avoid eye contact with the man.

"Yes." He focused his gaze straight ahead.

"Where are we going?" asked Mathias, walking ahead to try to get a glimpse of Lukas's face.

"Studio B. It's where I'll train you." Lukas sped up.

Mathias grinned. "So... How will you be training me, eh?"

He asks too many questions, Lukas ignored the lewd undertone of Mathias's suggestion and kept walking. We're almost there. This will be over in three hours. Just another three hours. He approached the door of studio B, opened it, and brusquely led Mathias inside. "This is where we'll be working," he said.

Mathias looked around. Lukas noted with amusement the awestruck face of his trainee. It was just another room in this big building, well-lit, bare, with windows facing the streets of Berlin, and shiny wooden floors which he could see his reflection in. It was almost a carbon copy of any other room in the building, simply with less furniture.

"Wow, this place is amazing!" Mathias exclaimed.

Lukas shrugged. Each to their own. "Right," he answered tersely, "let's get started."

Mathias let out a loud whoop. Lukas groaned. This was going to be a long five hours.

XxX

"No, no, no." Lukas clapped his hands, the noise echoing in the empty room. "You're doing it entirely wrong. You're too stiff." Barely two hours had passed and he was already exhausted and frustrated beyond belief.

"Really?" Mathias whined, "I thought I was pretty awesome." He switched poses, sticking one leg out and flexing his biceps over his head in a horrible imitation of Johnny Bravo. "Hey, Luke, check this out. Don't I look epic?"

"No. Absolutely not," came the blunt reply.

"How about now?" Mathias switched poses again.

"No, Mathias." Lukas answered, "You are not Superman. Do what I tell you."

"C'mon, Luke. You know I look great."

Lukas stopped in his tracks and spun on his heel to face his obnoxious trainee, his features contorted in fury. "Look," he seethed, "you are quite possibly the most annoying, obnoxious, irritating man on the planet. In this universe, even. Will you stop fucking around?"

Mathias laughed.

"What's so fucking funny?" Lukas grabbed Mathias by the collar of his striped dress shirt. Mathias quieted down. Even thought Lukas was much shorter than him, he was still an intimidating character.

"Nothing," Mathias answered, a smirk remaining on his face, "It's just that you got mad at me."

"What?" Lukas's eyes narrowed, refusing to lessen his grip on Mathias's shirt.

"You're so frigid, I mean, self-control is great and all, but seriously, show us some emotion so you don't seem like a dead robot all the time."

Lukas released his trainee, dark eyes widening. "What? I... I'm not unemotional..." He quickly regained his composure, glaring daggers at the Dane. "Look. Mathias. What my feelings do is besides the point. I need this job and I need to succeed, and you are going to damn well listen to me or else."

"Or else what?" Mathias asked.

Lukas wanted to scream. Instead, he took a deep breath and answered, "Or else. Let's take a break. You stay here. Don't leave the room."

"Not even to pee?"

"Fuck no!" Lukas yelled as he stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

Mathias sat down on the floor, cradling his head in his hands. Way to go, Mat, you dickface. Way to fucking go.

XxX

Lukas made a beeline for the vending machine in the lounge. Why. Why am I stuck with this... This idiot? he thought angrily, plunging his hand into his pocket and fishing for some change. My career is on the line and he's...

"Arrrgh!" Lukas jabbed a one Euro coin into the machine.

"Luke? Was that you?"

Lukas looked around. Tino lay sprawled on the couch next to the machine, closing a magazine. "Tino? What are you doing here?"

Tino sat up. "Waiting for Berwald. He's finishing up a shoot and we're going out for drinks. Want to come with?"

Lukas shook his head. "No. Can't. Training an idiot."

Tino chuckled. "Oh, is that what that noise was for?"

Lukas jabbed a combination of buttons on the vending machine, watching his snack fall into the lower compartment. "Yeah. It's tough work."

"He can't be that bad," Tino said, "I talked to him yesterday and he seemed like a nice enough guy."

Lukas snorted. "Yeah, right. If you think that way, you train him."

"Hey, that's not nice." Tino shot his friend a hard glare.

"Look, Tino, I'm on my way to becoming the world's top model, not some stupid personal trainer for an idiot who can't walk straight." He retrieved his snack from the machine. "Have fun with Berwald. I'll talk to you later." He walked off before Tino could say another word.

XxX

Meanwhile, Mathias stood alone in Studio B. He examined his reflection in the glass window. Too stiff, huh, he thought. He stood with his feet shoulder-width apart, angling his hips, resting a hand on one of them, the other one tangled in his wild hair. Still a little too stiff.

What would Lukas say? he wondered. Aside from blowing up. Jeez, who knew he'd react like that? I was just trying to find out what made him tick. Maybe he's just really serious. I shouldn't piss him off like that. He relaxed his shoulders, puffing out his chest. Like this...?

He could see the door opening in the reflection of the window. Lukas trudged back in, licking his fingers. He must have had a snack, Mathias thought, holding his pose. Maybe if I step forward like this...

His eyes met Lukas's in the reflective surface. His trainer's eyes widened. "So, Lukas, what do you think?" Mathias asked quietly.

Lukas nodded. "Better," he muttered, "but don't bend backwards too much. Stand up straight."

Mathias adjusted his pose as Lukas directed him to. Each piece of advice was taken without complaint, each pose they practiced was done without any of Mathias's tomfoolery or assholery. The next three hours passed by quickly and quietly, and when the time was up, Lukas just had to ask what the hell was happening.

"Mathias, you've been really quiet. Not that I'm complaining, but what's going on?" He asked as they walked out of the studio.

Mathias sighed. "I was just thinking, you know, about how I was a dick to you earlier." He combed a hand through his hair. "I mean, you're taking all this time to teach me, and... Yeah. So... I'm sorry for being a dick, I guess?"

Lukas was taken aback. "You're apologizing to me?"

"Well, yeah. Because I was a dick and all." Mathias bit his lip. This apology was not going as planned.

"Oh." Came the simple reply. "Thanks. Apology accepted."

"Thanks. Aside from that dick bit, it was great working with you today." Hey, while I'm still on his good side, why not butter him up a little. Mathias thought. See if he could get those cute lips to give him something other than a scowl.

"You're pushing it." Lukas scowled.

"Oop, sorry." They walked outside. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow," Mathias said, turning to leave.

"Wait, Mathias. One more bit of advice."

"Yeah?"

Lukas smiled. It was a small smile, tinted with shades of mystery, but one that speared through Mathias's heart and made him do a double take. "Don't forget to smile," he said, "no one likes a model who frowns all the time."

And with that, he disappeared into the crowd of people on the busy Berlin street, leaving Mathias to wonder what the hell had just happened.

AN: Eyyyyyy.

Can I just say thank you for all the wonderful reviews, each time I got a new one I started waving my arms around like a crazy idiot going, "EEEEEEEEOMGOMGOMGAJFDA;SFJ I LOVE YOU" and that I think you all are awesome.

Also I love it when these two interact, it's the funniest stuff to write. Actually I think I adore writing Norway now and I've probably said it about a million times but "EEEEEEEEOMGOMGOMGAJFDA;SFJ I LOVE YOU". Mathias is a fun character to write, too. Makes me wonder why I haven't written any DenNor before.