Title: To Be or Not To Be
Written for: Cruiz107
Written By: MarieCarro
Beta/Pre-Readers: Alice's White Rabbit/LaMomo
Rating: NC-17
Summary/Prompt used: Enemies to Lovers. Two people with a common passion should get along fine, right? Unfortunately, classically trained actor Edward Cullen and self-taught actress Bella Swan didn't get that memo, and the two are notorious enemies. But what happens when they're both cast in the same stage production as lovers?
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CHAPTER 4
1 year earlier
I yawned so big I thought my jaw would dislocate as I carried my bike through my door. It was early. Very early, and I hadn't slept very well.
My agent gave me the news the night before. Yet another job I'd lost out on. Apparently, according to the casting director of the TV show I'd auditioned for, I looked too much like a leading man, and they were looking for a character actor.
Translation: my appearance didn't stand out, and I wasn't interesting enough.
It was just more of the same non-feedback I'd received for years.
"Morning, Edward."
I glanced over my shoulder and saw Bella standing outside her own door. Despite the early hour, she looked bright-eyed and awake even without a trace of makeup on.
"Bella," I greeted quietly.
"You're up early," she conversed.
"Work."
My one-worded replies were intentional, but she didn't seem to get the hint.
"Yeah, me too. It's my first time on a TV set today, and I'm so excited!"
I froze and my stomach clenched. She'd gotten an acting job already? She'd been in New York for less than a month, and she'd already landed a role in a TV show. All thanks to that uncle of hers, no doubt.
"Wow," I said, barely trying to keep the venom out of my voice. "Your first acting job already? That's impressive." Even a toddler would've picked up on the sarcasm, and Bella certainly did as well.
She looked at me with sad confusion. "Uh, yeah, I guess." She swallowed and directed her eyes away from me toward her feet instead. "It's not a big part or anything. But it's a start." Her back turned to me as she locked her door, but she could probably feel my stare burning the back of her head.
"Congratulations," I spat before hiking my bike up on my shoulder to leave.
"Did I offend you in some way?" Bella called softly behind me.
I groaned and turned to her again. "Why do you ask?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. It's just a feeling."
"I'm not responsible for those, am I?"
Bella blanched in response to my harsh words. Then she set her jaw and shook her head. "You're right. You're not."
I huffed and headed for the stairs again. "Glad we could sort that out."
{(=((¤))=)}
Extra.
Featured.
Commercials.
Co-star.
Recurring.
Supporting.
In less than a year, Bella Swan's resume had grown exponentially faster than my own, and she'd almost achieved a full house at this point. She was yet to get cast as a show regular or lead in a movie. And no theater roles whatsoever. That was my one solace.
I snapped my laptop shut where her acting website was taunting me.
How had she managed to get all those jobs? I didn't know who her uncle was, but according to her profile, not one of the productions had a name that kept popping up to explain it as if he was just simply giving them to her. How was she supporting herself in-between the jobs? The roles weren't the ones that paid huge amounts, and her name wasn't that recognizable. At least, not yet.
I wanted to know her secret. Unless it was pure nepotism. But I didn't want to believe the business I loved so much could possibly value familial ties over talent. She had to have something.
Unfortunately, none of the productions she'd been involved in—except the commercials—had been released yet, so I couldn't snoop either.
The display on my phone lit up, and I saw an incoming call from one of my closest friends from school.
"Jamie! What's up?"
"Step away from the computer and get your ass out here right now!"
I held the phone away and looked at it as if James would somehow step out of it and explain what he was talking about. "What?" I asked when I put it back to my ear.
"I've been calling you for ten minutes straight! I know you're obsessing over that Bella girl, so I'm telling you right now to come outside, or I'll climb this rusty fire escape just to beat you up."
An amused snort left me, and I shook my head. "Always nice to receive threats of violence from your best friend. My phone was on mute."
"Uh-huh. So you're saying you weren't just cyber-stalking your hot neighbor?"
"I plead the fifth."
"Of course, you do. Now get moving. I'm starving."
Shaking my head, I ended the call and grabbed my jacket before heading out to the hall. And of course, Bella was there.
Her neutral expression tightened into one of disdain as soon as she saw me. "Edward," she said curtly.
"Bella," I replied and passed her without another word.
Almost a full year as neighbors, what had started as the potential for some flirtatious encounters had quickly soured into what it now was, which was less than the bare minimum of neighborly etiquette. But I would never deny that a part of me wished I'd never found that book on her counter. James had called her hot, and yet, the two of them had never met, nor had I shown him a picture of her or given him her last name. It didn't take a genius to figure out who had given him the mental image of her.
"Let me guess, you ran into her in the hallway again, didn't you?" James asked as soon as I stepped outside the building. "You don't even have to confirm it. I can see it written all over your face."
"I don't know what you're talking about," I said. It was a sore attempt at brushing off his observations, and I knew that. James knew me better than anyone. He'd been right next to me during some of my most vulnerable moments at school. He was my best friend. "I'm not obsessed with Bella. I can't stand her or anything she represents."
James guffawed. "Says the man who is one step away from hate-masturbating to her head shots."
I shoved his shoulder with my hand, not even dignifying his statement with a reply. Mostly because I didn't want him to find out how close he was to the truth.
Not that I was looking at her head shots while jerking off, but rather how Bella had a habit of popping into my head when I was already in the middle of it. And the most shameful part was how much it turned me on.
"Jealousy does not become you, my friend," James continued. "What happened to the cool, laid-back guy in school who applauded other people's success?"
A deep sigh of regret left me. "He was doused with a bucket of ice-cold reality."
We walked down the street toward one of our favorite takeout places, but Jamie wasn't done with the psychoanalysis.
"You knew the business was tough long before you moved here. Are you really surprised that some take the fast lane when they're offered a ticket?"
I narrowed my eyes in annoyance. "You don't have to remind me how tough the business is. I live it every day. And I'm not saying people can't take the chances given to them. What I don't like is the unfairness of how people more deserving of those chances are overlooked because someone possessed the cheat code."
"Then you should hate the game that allows that cheat code. Not the player."
My blood boiled at the truth of his words. I hated that he was right. But it didn't matter because I wasn't planning to ever knock on Bella's door and ask for a fresh start.
I decided to change the subject. "By the way, my agent got me an audition for a Broadway play."
James immediately looked excited for me. "Yeah? Is it a known play or … ?"
"You know the playwright Rosalie Hale?"
He nodded. "Of course. I did several scenes from her plays at school."
"She's written a new play, and apparently, it did very well off-Broadway. So now, she's getting her debut on the big stage."
"That's cool. What's it about?"
"It's basically a story about star-crossed lovers. Norah, the female lead, has made a promise to herself to never fall in love because of past experiences, and when she catches feelings for Dennis, the male lead I'm auditioning for, she fights it with everything she's got. At the same time, Dennis is head over heels for Norah and wants to settle down."
"Wow," James breathed out. "In other words, if you get the part, prepare yourself to fall in love with your co-star."
I snorted. "I'm a professional. I can act in love without actually falling in love, thank you very much."
"Ha! You've got all of Hollywood history betting against you. I could name at least fifty couples who fell in love on set while working together!"
