"I'm not here, I'm not listening. I'm in my head and I'm spinning." -30STM
"Daphne, hey!" Jared said in surprise when he spotted her at the airport in Toronto. His flight had landed and he was waiting to pass through customs. He tried to keep a low profile to avoid being mobbed. Immediately after he said her name, he winced and looked around, expecting people to come running. Fortunately everyone was too busy with their own business to focus on him. His assistant was busily typing away on her iPhone and barely looked up when he spoke.
"Hey," she said with a smile. She walked over, her assistant in tow. "How was the tour?"
He smiled at her. "It was great. By the way, I loved those teases you sent me." He gave her a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "And Shannon." He stuck his tongue out at her and smiled.
Daphne laughed. "So you caught onto that one, did you?"
"Yeah, it was pretty easy to figure out," he laughed. They moved slowly through the customs line. "So you can get upset or whatever with me, but I have to ask. The photos I saw of you with that Jake Gyllenhaal guy. What's happening there?" He glanced back at his assistant. The girl was new and seemed to be having a hard time keeping everything organized for him.
She stopped in her tracks and blinked. "I wasn't aware you were following me that closely."
He shook his head. "Shannon showed them to me. I just want to know so I know what the limits are between us and all of that."
"Well, the limits are that we are costars and coworkers and nothing more," she said slowly.
"Not even friends?" he gave her a mock gasp and his flirtatious smile.
She laughed again. "Well, friends, fine. But that's it. You know my rule."
"So you two are definitely dating then?" he asked, handing his passport to the customs officer and sliding his sunglasses off.
"I don't know what it is," she replied softly, aware that the officers had recognized them both.
Jared perked up a bit. "But you're exclusive, right?"
She gave him a confused look. "This isn't high school. Not to mention, I barely think I'll have time for one guy, so I don't think I'll be 'playing the field', as it were," she made air quotes as she picked up her passport and other documents after being waved through by the officer.
"How did you two meet?" he asked, walking next to her and Kelly as they hurried through the busy airport.
"We've been friends for a while," she said. "Sorry, can we continue the interview later? This isn't the time or place?"
Jared nodded and braced himself for the swarm of photographers that had gathered outside. They all shouted their names and it was an absolute melee. Flashes blinded him and he was glad he had put his sunglasses back on. They decided to share a car because neither one of them liked the idea of having to wait for another to show up. Kelly took the front seat, leaving Jared, his assistant Mara, and Daphne to slide into the back. Their driver did the best he could to get away from the photographers quickly.
"When we get to the hotel, you have a meeting with David, Daphne," Kelly called. "Oh, and Oprah is coming by tomorrow to film that interview."
Daphne nodded, acutely aware of Jared's leg pressing into hers. They'd squeezed in tightly and Jared had lucked out for the middle seat. He didn't seem to mind because he made no effort to move his leg from next to hers.
"What time is that?" she asked Kelly.
"One in the afternoon tomorrow at the hotel," Kelly informed her.
Daphne sighed. This interview was one she'd been working on with Oprah and her team for several months. Oprah wanted to interview her for her network because the entire world had so many answers about her. It was designed to be the most in-depth interview Daphne had ever given, covering many topics that she had previously refused to talk about with reporters and the media. Daphne was notorious in Hollywood for being fiercely protective of her private life as a child. She rarely spoke about it, and when she did it was usually only in passing. She almost never spoke about her grandfather or her parents.
"Alright. When do I have costume fittings?" Daphne asked.
"David wants to meet with you both first before doing costumes and then they want to run screen tests," she replied. "And then in a week you two are doing publicity photos."
Daphne nodded in silence, checking her cell phone as is buzzed. Jake had sent her a message and she smiled. Jared casually looked over out of the corner of his eye and saw what it was about.
"So Daphne, your birthday is coming up," he said casually. "Any plans?"
"Probably not. Jake might come and see me, but I think he's got to do press. So I'll probably just spend it with Kelly," Daphne said, looking out the window as they passed city buildings.
"Hey, you say that like it's a bad thing," Kelly pouted from the front seat.
Daphne laughed. "You know it's not, Kell. You're my best friend. I can't imagine spending it with anyone else."
"But a hot guy wouldn't be sent away, though right?" Kelly laughed.
Jared looked around at the women surrounding him. "Am I invisible?"
Daphne laughed. "Jared, you're hot, but I'm not dating you. Besides you're going to be busy that day, right?"
"He'll be in Paris for a show," Mara added, breaking her silence.
"That's right," Jared said, remembering. "But listen. You should totally come see us if you're free. I could get you backstage passes. I know a guy." He winked and Daphne laughed.
"You'd have to talk to Kelly about that one. I don't know if I could fly to Paris for a night and then come back," Daphne said.
"If you can, I can take care of everything," Mara said, glancing back down at her phone.
"Mara, take a breather. It will still be there when we get to the hotel. Relax," Jared said, patting the younger woman's shoulder.
She blushed slightly and Daphne got the feeling that Mara had a tiny crush on Jared. Not that she could blame him. Gone was Jesus-Jared and in his place was a newer, sexier one. He had chopped off his long hair a few weeks prior and gone peroxide blonde to cover his dark brown roots. He was supposed to get it dyed green soon, but Daphne was definitely a fan of the short-haired, clean-shaven Jared. The car pulled up to the hotel and they got out, luckily managing to avoid fans and photographers. The studio was putting all the actors up in the same hotel because it was close to the set. They went inside and Jared left Mara and Kelly to take care of checking them both in.
"So you and Jake, huh?" he asked.
"We've already gone over that, Jared. What's really going on?" she asked, unmoved by his attempt at casual conversation.
"Is he going to be here?" Jared asked, sinking into a plush sofa in the lobby.
"Why?" she asked suspiciously.
"Well," he said, sitting up. "We're going to be filming some pretty steamy scenes and I just wanted to know how we're going to handle that."
"I already talked to him about it," she said, leaning against the tall sofa back. "He won't come in when we're filming those scenes. He doesn't want to."
Jared fought the urge to smile. "Shame."
She rolled her eyes and sat next to him. "Try not to look so excited."
"It's just hard to take him seriously with you. You don't seem like the type of girl he'd go for," he replied, taking a sip from his water bottle.
She gave him an incredulous look. "Why do you say that?"
"Because he's the type of guy who goes for sweet, down-home, girl-next-door types. And you're definitely not that type," he answered, looking at her. That electricity from their audition together months ago was returning.
"And what type of girl am I then?" she asked, a slight smile spreading across her face as she met his intense gaze.
"You're darker, sexier, much more of an international girl. Like a Bond Girl," he said with a hint of a growl in his voice. His hand came up to brush her hair from her face. "You don't belong with All-America. You belong with someone who is more worldly and can show you everything it has to offer."
She kept her eyes on his as he inched closer and closer to her face, his gaze unwavering. Just as he was centimeters from her lips, she spoke.
"I think he's Swedish, actually," she said softly. "Oh, and if I wanted to see the world, I wouldn't need a man to show it to me. But I'll keep you in mind."
With that, she got up and breezed away, leaving Jared tingling all over in anticipation of something that would never come. He chuckled to himself as he watched her walk away.
Later that afternoon, Jared and Daphne were in a meeting with David Ayer. They were discussing the scenes they would be filming exclusively, including the pole dancing scene.
"I'm really seeking spontaneity here," David said. "I want you both to be free with one another because in essence you're really just one person."
"I get that," Daphne responded. "I mean, I don't have any issues with Jared doing whatever he wants. I trust him and his judgment so I feel like he could handle things however he wants."
"That's exactly what I was referring to. I don't want any limits between you two," David said with a nod. "I really want the sex appeal to be there between you two. Like what we felt in the audition, times a million."
Jared nodded and smiled as he gazed at Daphne over the table between them. "Something tells me you'll get that-and then some."
"Alright, just keep in mind I want you both to spend as much time together as possible," David replied, shuffling papers around in front of him. "I don't want anything to seem forced. Just make sure it doesn't become awkward or anything either. Keep it professional please."
She smiled at both of them and left the room, leaving Jared and David alone.
"Jared I can see it in your eyes. Put whatever idea you have that involves getting into her pants out of your head. I don't want drama like that on my set," David said without looking up from his paperwork.
"Have you seen her, David?" Jared asked, gesturing to the door behind him.
"Yes, I have. That's why we cast her. Because she's hot. But we also cast her because you both have excellent chemistry-something that will be ruined if things get awkward between you two. Keep it in your pants," David replied. Jared sighed and rolled his eyes. "Besides, she's way out of your league anyways."