When Worlds Collide
She didn't think much more about the interview, barely mentioning it to her man. But once the exclusive interview aired on Entertainment Weekly, public opinion once again shifted in her favor. Right after the interview, people started gathering to interview her after her shifts on the set instead of ambushing her first thing in the morning and she was much more receptive to the questions and scrutiny with the time change. In the month since the episode aired, Dennins had been called out for spreading rumors and trying to discredit her coworker.
Jenna Spidal from was currently asking questions after yet another hard day of filming. "Have you petitioned Villeneuve to fire Dennins based on-"
"Of course not," Raina gasped in horror. "Ms Dennins is an excellent hairdresser! Just because we don't get along is no reason to oust her from her position in the crew. Our unspoken arrangement of me doing my own hair and staying out of her way is working out just fine. I don't have to be BFFs with everyone on the set to be effective at my job."
"You still refer to acting as your 'job'. Any chance of that changing in the future?" The reporter asked smoothly. Lorraine flinched from the woman, seeming to be formulating an answer, when a familiar voice interrupted her musings.
"I see that you are doing better with the media, Sunshine. Mind if I steal you away for the night?"
"Jaguar!" Raina gasped excitedly, whipping around to throw herself into her boyfriend's waiting arms. Tyr, used to these little displays, caught her easily enough, laughing as he covered her eager lips with his. This caught the attention of the many camera crews packing up for the night as all of the stars were heading into the hotel.
"Ms. Rutherford! Ms. Rutherford!" But the girl was no longer paying attention to anyone around her. She grabbed her boyfriend's hand and silently led him into the hotel like an innocent child. She was beaming as she did and no one had the heart to interrupt her. Anasazi, more aware of the public, merely smirked at her behavior and shrugged for the cameras. Once they were in the hotel, Lorraine hugged him warmly as they boarded the elevator.
"So, this is the infamous boyfriend that did not give you that black eye you had when we first met."
Raina looked up with a bright smile on her face. She was snuggling against her boyfriend happily. "Yes. Tyr, this is Keanu Reeves, my co-star. Keanu, this is my man, Tyr Anasazi." The two shook hands cordially, but Raina was barely paying attention to the interaction. She was too busy humming against her boyfriend. Both men chuckled at her single-minded determination to have him all to herself. "See ya tomorrow, Keanu," the actress called absently as the elevator dinged for their floor. She was still leading him as she had been since he'd shown up, and Tyr's heart was put at ease that she hadn't cheated on him since they'd been apart.
Once behind closed doors, the girl demanded more kisses and her man happily obliged her. It was only when she felt him undressing her, that she got self conscious.
"Tyr! I was… I don't want…"
"It's alright, my love," Tyr soothed her. "You usually eat and then go for a swim, right? I want to join you tonight, that's all." This calmed the girl and she allowed him to undress her. Once she was in her underclothes, though, she tensed once again.
"I've never been naked in front of a man before," she admitted shyly. "Even my doctor is a woman and she brings another woman in during my pap smears just to be on the safe side."
"Well, considering that I intend to suckle you after we shower the chlorine out of our hair, you ought to get used to the idea of me watching and touching your naked body." He then laughed as the shy girl gave a squeak and ran away from him. He chased her around the large room, removing an article of clothing from her whenever he caught her, starting with her socks. It didn't take long to get her completely naked, at which point he cornered her against the wall. The innocent girl closed her eyes and turned her face away from him, covering her breasts self-consciously, but Tyr wasn't having it. He lifted her chin and brought her face back to his gently.
"Sunshine… My beautiful, alluring Sunshine… You have nothing to be ashamed of. This body belongs to me and it is perfect. I love these tight curves and this hard body. You've been working so hard to keep up with your stunt work and it shows. I intend to enjoy you to the fullest without making love to you tonight. I love how responsive you are to me. Just relax, Sunshine. Let me look at your amazing body." Without another word, the actor smoothed his calloused hands over her shaking shoulders, smoothing her arms away from her chest as he did. He touched her everywhere, murmuring more reassurances to her as he turned her to face the wall. Wrapping her sensitive breasts in his arm, he used his other hand to ease open her wet thighs. Tyr was fascinated by how wet she was from his simple touch. Looking forward to tasting her tonight, he slid his wet fingers up into her dripping vagina. His woman shrieked, trying to clamp her thighs shut, but was unable to with his thigh shoved between her legs. She moaned and whimpered as he gently explored her, never delving too deep, but collecting her hot juices on his drenched digits. After a few minutes of this, he pulled his fingers out of her and stuck them in his mouth, locking eyes on her as he cleaned his fingers. "Delicious."
Raina whimpered at the intense look on his face. "I-I… I'm supposed to be swimming," she said shakily. "I always swim, wash my hair, and then eat before I go to bed."
"Very well, Sunshine. Let me get my backpack from the car and I'll happily join you in the pool." The man left the room to get his things, leaving her naked and quaking against the far wall. Once she was reasonably sure that he was gone and that her legs would cooperate, Raina crossed the room and quickly pulled on her swimsuit. It was a tight purple and white one-piece with polka dots on it. Tyr returned quickly, carrying a backpack which he immediately sat in a chair in the back of the room. He wasted no time ripping off his clothes revealing his attractive body to her embarrassed gaze. The girl turned around completely, rosy undertones in her honey-gold complexion. The man chuckled and pressed his unclothed body against her back.
"I'm going to be inside of you completely very soon, little one. You might as well get used to my nudity. I rarely wear clothes once I'm alone in my house."
"T-Tyr, please. I'm supposed to be swimming," she pleaded. Her boyfriend decided to take pity on her and went to put on his swim trunks. After that, the two went downstairs and did laps in the pool for an hour. It was the way the actress usually spent her evenings.
"Ms. Rutherford, can I have an autograph?" one of the teenage cleaners in the hotel asked excitedly as she was headed for the elevator.
"Huh? Why?" The girl asked in confusion. The boy colored.
"Well, because you're famous and I collect autographs of famous people."
"Um… Okay, Ralph," she said, reading his name tag. "But just so you know, I'm not really that famous. I only worked on that one project that one time." Despite her argument, the teen still thrust a pen and his autograph book in her face. She signed it without thinking, accidentally using her nursing signature instead of her true name.
"Oh thank you, Ms. Rutherford! I'll treasure this forever," Ralph said ecstatically before running off to continue his hotel duties.
"Weird. I would have thought old Ralph would have been falling all over himself to collect your signature, Jaguar. You're a lot more famous than I could ever hope to be."
"Your signature is a lot rarer than mine. Come, Sunshine, let's clean the chlorine out of your hair before ordering some dinner for you." The girl's stomach growled at the mere mention of food. The couple laughed as they made it back up to her hotel room. Raina's laughter was a lot more subdued when her boyfriend laughingly demanded that they shower together to save time and water. Shyly the girl scrubbed herself down before attacking her hair with the shampoo. Tyr refused to be ignored though, touching her constantly between tasks. He cleaned his own dreadlocks with her shampoo and conditioner, teasingly caressing her soapy body as he did. Once he was done, he molded his body to hers and 'helped' her clean her hair. And if his cleaning technique included a light frontal massage that left her trembling, well, that was neither here nor there. The man pressed his advantage, covering her mouth with his the minute the last soap sud was off her body and out of her hair.
"Mmmmm… Oh, Tyr…"
Tyr grinned, his smile full of masculine pride, and proceeded to dry her off, only interrupting his efforts to rile her up because her stomach was growling near constantly. The two dressed in night clothes, ordered room service and ate heartily, their hair tied up in towels to dry. After the meal, the man pulled the towel out of his hair and knelt before his nervous woman, pulling the towel out of her damp hair.
"Do you trust me, my love?" he asked point blank. Raina blinked, her eyes filling with tears.
"I've never… You're my first… everything, Tyr. I'd never even been kissed before I met you," she admitted, hanging her head. Tyr once again lifted her head, his chocolate brown eyes full of compassion for his poor, confused love.
"I didn't ask if I was your first, Sweetness," he said gently as he caressed her cheek. "I asked if you trust me." He stared deep into her frightened eyes and waited for an answer.
"I… I do," she whispered at last, taking a deep shuddering breath. It was hard to admit because it was true. She trusted this strong yet gentle male. She trusted him to take care of her, to never lie to her. To love her no matter what and eventually father her children. While she was mired in these thoughts, Tyr hugged her close, wrapping her in his strength. And wrapped in that strength, Lorraine suddenly felt very safe. She pulled him closer and was surprised when he resisted.
"No, my love. You'll be very sore after and everyone will know. This is a very athletic shoot for you, I don't want to break your stride. After it's over we can discuss making love, okay?" The girl stared deep into his eyes before smiling like dawn breaking and hugging him with a squeal. The actor hugged her back and chuckled, picking her up and carrying her to the bed. Once again, he slowly removed her clothes, watching her reactions as he undressed her. Raina let him take her clothes off this time without protest. She did whimper when he settled himself on her naked thighs and breathed in her feminine aroma, looking enraptured as he lifted up and parted her legs. As soon as her legs were open, he stuffed his face in her nether regions, taking a decadent lick of her. He covered her mouth when she squealed.
"Wait right here," he said, pulling away from his shaking lady. He returned very quickly, slipping an ornate necklace over her head and pressing the button on the back that activated the sound suppressor built into it. To test it, he inserted his ring finger inside of her, caressing her mound as he did. The girl yelled out in ecstasy, but no one heard her. He grinned and inserted his earbud. "You're muted, darling. No one's going to hear your shrieks of pleasure, so feel free to be as loud as you want. I'm going to have my fill of your glorious body tonight." That was the only warning he gave her before digging in with his mouth and hands. Lorraine screamed her desire and approval half the evening until she was too tired to do even that. As she lay exhausted under him, the girl shuddered yet another release before collapsing into sleep.
Tyr looked up at his drained woman with a smirk before going back to tasting her juices. He licked her thoroughly before cleaning her up, unmuting her, and settling her naked body over top of his to sleep.
The next morning, he felt it immediately when she stirred to the sound of her alarm. "Good morning, Sunshine," he grinned, hugging her tighter. His woman grumbled at being unable to turn off the music playing on her phone. He chuckled when she pushed away from him with no success. "Good morning, my love," he tried again.
"Good morning. Can I go turn that noise off now?" Raina grumbled angrily, still attempting to get out of his embrace.
"I thought you were working on being less grouchy in the morning, Sweetness?" he said as he laughingly released her.
"I just woke up," she glared at him. "I have to get to work, and I intentionally picked an obnoxiously cheerful song for my alarm so that I would be compelled to shut that noise off. You're interrupting my day." She ran to turn off her now blaring alarm to the annoyingly cheerful laughter of her boyfriend. He waited until she turned off the music before turning on the TV to an innocuous home decorating show and sweeping his love into his arms.
"I don't mean to interrupt your day, Sunshine. Allow me to make it up to you." He then carried his woman to the bathroom and showered the two of them. The two were dressed in a matter of minutes and Raina was just about to order breakfast when a knock sounded on the door.
"Who in the world…" She opened the door to a very concerned and upset Keanu.
"Lorraine, I know that you don't usually watch the news. But I thought that you should be aware of this before you head to work today." With that, the actor switched the channel to what had obviously been a live interview with Greg. The supposedly transgendered man looked worse than he had the night Tyr had thrown him out, sporting another of those inappropriately tight leather bodysuits and enough makeup over his bearded face for it to cake up at the edges. His mascara and eye shadow were running where he was crying for the cameras. Keanu turned up the volume for the couple.
"...so, you're claiming that Tyr Anasazi is your boyfriend?"
"He is! That no-good hussy stole him from me! I'm not even sure why that tramp, Lorraine, is pretending to be his. She obviously can't match up to me! She even punched me in the face two months ago before she flitted off to Canada of all places to be with that Reeves fellow. She'll spread her legs for anyone it seems." This he said with a coy toss of his wig of soft curls. "It also seems that old Leslie can't pick a profession and be done with it." The male batted his eyelashes at the reporter interviewing him, making the man noticeably uncomfortable.
"Um…" Jackson cleared his throat. "Who's Leslie?"
"Oh, haven't you heard?" The man leaned in coyly, trying to touch the back of the reporter's hand with his meaty fingers. He frowned when Jackson backed off. "Lorraine Rutherford goes by Leslie Pince when she's not acting. I believe she works as a nurse in one of those state thingies they have up there in Canada."
"You mean 'provinces'?"
"Yeah, whatever they're called. It's not like it matters. They're not the United States after all. Anyway, I was livid when she punched me. Thought about suing that tramp, but who's got the money for that? Well, it doesn't matter. I'm convinced that she'll get hers eventually. She may act like a sweet little angel for the rest of the world, but I have seen the sour under all that sweet." He reached over to touch Jackson's hand, smiling for the camera.
The reporter once again shifted uncomfortably at Greg's advances, backing away from him. "You'll have a hard time convincing the world that Ms. Rutherford is anything but on the side of the angels, Mr. Gordon. She-"
"Chantelle, please. Call me Chantelle, Jackson. And I must say that you are twice as handsome in person as you are on the television." The man placed a hand on the reporter's arm as he said it.
"My wife agrees," Jackson said flatly, peeling Greg's sweaty hand off of him. "You know, for someone who claims to belong to Anasazi, you sure are laying it on thick with me right now."
Greg looked embarrassed at being called out. He straightened his clothes as best as he could and immediately stopped flirting with the married man. "Well, Tyr obviously thinks that we have an open relationship. I think that I need to show him how it feels so he'll get rid of that floozy and make us exclusive. I can play the field too, you know." Jackson actually shuddered at this announcement before turning to the camera to wrap things up.
"This is Jackson Williams of KKTV News, with a startling revelation about Lorraine Rutherford - or should I say Leslie Pince. Back to you in the studio."
"Thank you, Jack. We'll be reaching out to our sister stations to try and get some confirmation on Mr. Gordon's claims. It seems that Ms. Rutherford has a lot to answer for. And now for the weather-" Reeves turned the TV off, staring at his co-star with a worried look. The girl was still staring blankly at the TV. She hadn't moved or spoken since the report began.
"Lorraine?" Keanu asked tentatively. "Lorraine, are you okay?"
"Son of a BITCH!" she screamed suddenly. The girl whipped around to her boyfriend desperately. "That selfish, delusional asshole just destroyed my old life! I can never go back to Calgary again. My boss is going to kill me! My friends are going to-" Tyr cut off her rant with a forceful kiss. The girl gasped and tried to back away, but Tyr was persistent and soon the actress was a moaning pile of complacency in his arms.
"Now that I have your attention," he whispered against her lips, nuzzling her cheek, "let us review the plan. You were going to move in with me after this production anyway, so you don't have to worry about returning to Calgary. You can just hire movers to pack up your house and someone else to drive your car and everything to Colorado. Your friends will enjoy the notoriety of being your friends for so long. You've already resigned your position at the hospital the week before you came here, so you don't have a boss to 'kill you'. Your life in that little corner of the world is over anyway. You don't have to worry about a thing."
"But I can never use that alias again, don't you see, Jaguar? That… that awful man has shut me out of my-"
"Lorraine, most people were going to put two and two together anyway. We're dating exclusively, just like we were in New Zealand, and you went by Leslie Pince there too. The minute I showed up here, your old life was over. It's okay," he was quick to reassure his lady when she stiffened in his arms. "We will find a way to make this all work out. It's okay, my love..." he kissed her thoroughly to prove the point. They kept at it until a throat cleared, bringing the young actress back to her surroundings. When she turned to face her smirking co-star, her face was on fire.
"I'm sorry, Keanu! I didn't mean to-"
"Don't worry about it, Raina. I'm glad that you're taking this so well. So… you're a nurse in that other life of yours?" Raina nodded sadly.
"I was a Registered Nurse. UPenn class of 2010. I've spent the last five years working in the Medical Cardiology department at the Calgary General Hospital, less the one and a half years I took at the University of Calgary to get certified to practice in Canada. All that work and effort… All for nothing."
Keanu looked over the dejected girl and leaned down to lift her chin. "It wasn't for nothing, Raina. Cheer up. Nursing is a forever type of profession. Acting has a time limit on it. You can always pick it up again once the acting bug is out of your system. It's going to be okay, just like your boyfriend said it would be." Lorraine looked decidedly happier with this consolation. She ordered room service and the three ate ravenously, knowing that today was going to be a hard day for all of them. Once breakfast was done, Keanu and Raina drove in separate cars to the movie shoot so that Tyr could travel with his woman. The whole cast and crew were buzzing about this revelation.
"Lorraine, you're really a nurse?" Adam Westler, one of her other co-stars, asked with wide-eyed enthusiasm as things were wrapping up for the day. "My mom is a nurse. Do you enjoy it?" The girl relaxed at this line of questioning after 11 hours of non-stop talk about her career between takes. Some thought it was cute, others thought it was a waste of time and talent, and still others felt that she was settling. This was a refreshing change.
"Not always," she answered honestly. "My coworkers are the best part of the job. Just like any job, there are good and bad points about it. But… I don't know… I've always been led to nursing. Even as a kid, it's what I wanted to do. It broke my heart when I was forced to leave nursing after Sunshine. It's been so wonderful to nurse again and my friends are amazing."
"I'll just bet they are," Westler laughed. "Mom used to say that it takes a certain type of insanity to be a successful nurse."
"Oh yeah! We all nuts up in this piece," Raina giggled. "You should have seen the collection of characters in my unit. We weren't insane, we were on sane. We rode sane to work like a sandworm in Dune!" Adam laughed hard at that.
"I'm sure you've got stories."
"But of course," the girl said in a passable French accent. "I've seen things, man. And truth is definitely stranger than fiction when it comes to nursing." The two laughed, blissfully unaware that Villeneuve was filming their interaction. By the time everyone was back at the hotel, that particular video was going viral on YouTube. There were crowds of people at the hotel, all begging for an interview. The noise was deafening. Raina actually recoiled from it, looking scared. Tyr only wrapped his arms around her from behind and whispered in her ear. The crowd quieted down some to try and hear what he was saying to her. Many watched when her eyes widened and she splayed her hand to look at it before turning to face her man. The noise picked up once again when people noticed the beautiful engagement ring on her finger.
"Ms. Rutherford! Ms. Rutherford!" Her name was suddenly sounding out from all around her.
"So, I take it from this little display that Mr. Gordon was lying about your attachment as a couple, Tyr?" Kelly Winters of Entertainment Tonight roared over the noise. Everyone quieted down to hear the man's answer.
"Gentleman's choice," Raina said with a shrug. Instead of answering, Tyr covered her plump lips with his own. The cameras ate it up. When they finally came up for air, Raina had a goofy smile on her face and was leaning on her fiancé for support.
"I have never been romantically involved with Greg Gordon. I am not a gay man," Tyr said while staring into his woman's enchanting brown eyes. "We were only ever friends after I saved him from drowning two years ago, a drowning that he staged to get closer to me. When he attempted to push for more after meeting my fiancée, I ended that friendship."
"Was ending the friendship hard?" Daniel Grimmin from asked. Tyr only shrugged.
"It wasn't hard at all. Greg is a strange man that only wanted to be a woman so that I would date him. That was never an option and I found his unwanted advances irritating. The truth is that I was very close to ending our friendship before my Sunshine even came back into my life. I have no time and even less patience for fools who can't see what's right in front of their faces. And after he punched my woman in the face, I was glad to have him out of my life for good."
"Wait, wait, wait. Greg was the one that gave Lorraine her black eye?" Henry Alfods from demanded.
"Why do you think I punched him in the first place?" Raina asked. "I was always taught the art of the verbal spar. Luckily for me, I grew up with four brothers and we were all taught how to defend ourselves. He hit me and I laid his nastily dressed butt out on the floor, just like I promised him I would if he put his hands on me. Hell, the real reason that his chicken butt hasn't sued me is because I have the whole thing on film and if I decided to sue, he knows that I would win."
"Any chance of us getting a hold of that footage?" Henry asked quickly. "Any coward that would hit a woman-"
"Sorry, sir, but I'm waiting for Greg's next move," Raina grinned cheekily. "Trust me though, I have a whole library of Greg being a grade A 'witch with a b' to me during my visit to my Jag- I mean, Tyr's house. They're all unedited and ready to be submitted to the proper authorities if he ever comes at me or my man again." The smile she gave the cameras was not comforting.
"May we see the ring, Lorraine?" Whitney Salada from asked, trying to change the subject. The girl shyly displayed her engagement ring. The white gold ring was an eye-catching design with fourteen pave set round diamonds up the sides to accent the large 24K center diamond. It fit her slender fingers perfectly and the sparkle matched her bright smile.
"Oh my, that must have cost you a pretty penny, Tyr," Kelly laughed.
"I came to Montréal to claim my lady for my own," he grinned. "I'm just surprised that I had to point out the ring at all. I put it on her finger back after shooting wrapped for the night."
"I wasn't expecting it," the girl protested with a pout. Everyone around her chuckled at that, Tyr caressing her cheek. "No, I'm serious. This is a complete surprise to me. We've only been dating a few months."
"Does that mean that you're going to have a long engagement period?" Monica Winslow from Entertainment Weekly asked. She grinned at the girl's wide-eyed shrug. "Evidently, you two are interested in getting to the sex," the woman laughed. A few of the other reporters started throwing out lewd suggestions and comments and Lorraine immediately started pushing through the crowd to get into her hotel.
"No, please don't leave," Daniel yelled when he noticed her embarrassed retreat. "My colleagues are being idiots."
"If your comrades want to gossip like a bunch of middle-schoolers about my personal life, then I see no reason to stay," Raina said angrily. "I just found out the happiest news of my life since I graduated college the second time, and this is how you want to treat my good news?" This shamed the guffawing crowd.
"You've been to college twice?" Daniel asked quietly.
"Once to be a nurse, and once to be a nurse in Alberta," she said impatiently, still looking for an exit.
"If I may ask, why nursing? You were right in Lisa Crete's interview that it's not where people would expect you to end up. No wonder people didn't recognize you," Mario Lopez from Access Hollywood stated.
"Why reporting?" the nurse asked back cheekily. "When you find your calling, the path that the Lord has laid out for you, you just go for it. I love what I do for a living. It's brutally hard, messy work, but mentally and emotionally, it's the cleanest out there. My nursing buddies are the best in the business and they make the hard times worth it. Now, if you'll excuse me - and even if you won't - I've been working non-stop since eight this morning. I'm tired and I'm starving." With that, the crowd of reporters and ordinary people looking for answers dispersed, allowing the subject of their stares and questions to go into her hotel. Opting to skip swimming for the night, she decided to order room service and watch a movie with her fiancé. After the movie, the two made out before they settled down to sleep.