Oh Baby, I'm a Fool For You

I returned to the set the same day I had been discharged. The sun was just beginning to go down when a courtier came to me and informed me that the director wanted to see me. I instantly stood and went to his hotel.

"Welcome back," the director said as I walked into his hotel room.

"Thank you," I said quietly.

"I am going to temporarily reassign your position, due to your recent accident," he told me, handing me a large envelope.

"That's not necessary," I replied, unconsciously touching the bandage on my head. "I'm feeling fine now."

"I insist. We don't know how the cart malfunctioned, but I can't send you back to doing your regular work until I'm completely satisfied that you'll be fine."

I grudgingly nodded and accepted. Reaching the cafeteria, I sat and opened the envelope. I had been removed from makeup and was now Ben Barnes' personal assistant. I was flattered, but disappointed at the same time. I had gotten the job to fulfill my passion for makeup, but now... Now I was just another assistant. I sighed and pulled my cell phone from my pocket, immediately dialing Veronica's number.

"Kaya!" she yelled as a greeting. "Are you okay?"

"What? Yeah, I'm fine, how did you know?" I asked, thoroughly confused.

She sighed angrily. "Your friend Ben called me. He told me all about what happened. Talk to me, Ky!"

"I'm completely and totally fine. Relax, Veronica. It was just a concussion. The only bad part is that I lost my job."

"What?" she screamed. "Are you serious?"

"The director has me temporarily Ben's personal assistant. I don't get to go back to makeup until the director is satisfied that I'm completely well again."

"But that's a good thing, right?" she asked. "I mean, you seem pretty into Ben. You could take this opportunity to get closer to him."

"So you heard the good news?"

I looked up from the ground to see Nikolai standing above me, grinning with a large red apple in his hand. "Hello, Nikolai."

"Nikolai? Who's that?" Veronica asked.

"Oh, sorry my lady, didn't know you were on the phone." He took a large bite out of his apple.

"It's fine," I told him, "just give me a minute."

He saluted me, and walked away, sticking a hand into his back pocket as he did so, exaggerating the movement of his hips.

"You were watching that guy walk away, weren't you?"

"It's hard not to, all he does is make jokes and do stupid stuff for everyone's benefit besides his own," I told her.

"So who do you like better, Ben or Nikolai?"

I flushed and looked at my hand that was gripping the envelope. "Can't I have a relationship with a guy that doesn't have to be romantic?"

You didn't answer the question."

"Ben," I whispered. "I don't get the same feelings from Nikolai that I get when I'm around Ben. Besides, I think that Nikolai is gay."

"You have a gay best friend!" she squealed. "This is so an episode of Degrassi!"

I rolled my eyes. "Believe it or not, there are more gay guys out there than Marco," I teased her. "And we're not best friends. We just met earlier today. He was assigned to watch over me when I was in the hospital."

"Mommy!"

"Crap," Veronica mumbled. "Jonah is up from his nap. I'll call you back. Love you!"

"Bye," I said quickly, but got disconnected nearly instantly.

I stood up and pocketed the phone again. Turning, I made eye contact with Nikolai, who blew a kiss at me. Rolling my eyes and waving with a laugh, I turned and left, walking briskly to the hotel. I reached Ben's room, one of the suites on the top floor, and knocked gently.

The door swung open silently, revealing a slightly sleepy Ben. He had obviously just been in the shower, since all he wore were pajama pants and a while towel hung around his neck. "Hey!" he said enthusiastically when he saw me, stepping forward for a hug.

I stepped back and put my hand out, which made contact with his still damp chest. "Uh, no hugs yet, you're all wet," I said, looking at my hand and rubbing it on my jeans.

"Aw, you hurt my feelings," he said. "I don't care." He launched himself forward and folded me into one of the biggest hugs I'd ever had.

"Ben!" I squeaked out. "I can't breathe!"

His head drew back and his warm lips pressed gently against my forehead. "I was worried about you!" he exclaimed. "Are you okay?" He put his hands on my shoulders and held me back. He gently probed the bandage that still covered half of my forehead.

"I'm fine now," I promised, gleaming up at him with a grin.

"Come on, come in," he said, pulling me into his room and closing the door. He led me to his bed and gestured for me to sit. "I'm really sorry about what happened."

"Why?" I asked as he sat next to me. "It wasn't your fault."

"But now you get to be my personal assistant. We can spend more time together." He put his arm around my shoulders and pulled me into him. His other arm came around and gripped my waist, leaving me in a comforting embrace.

I nuzzled my head into his shoulder and breathed him in. Hesitantly, I put both of my arms around him, and shifted so that I was on my knees and better able to hold onto him. I felt his lips stretch into a smile against my neck.

His head moved back and one of his hands cupped my cheek. His face moved closer to mine.

My whole body heated up as I turned my head. Ben's warm lips landed against my ear lobe, sending shivers down my spine.

He gripped my waist and pushed me away from him, causing me to sit on the bed once more. "I'm proud of you," he said softly. "You didn't freak out."

"I'm sorry. I really just wanted a hug," I said with a blush.

He laughed and turned to face me, putting a hand on my knee. "Don't ever apologize for that," he told me, "as long as it's only me."

"Isn't that a little weird?" I asked, looking just past his face. "We're not really dating."
In an instant, his hands were on either side of me and his face was extremely close to mine.

"Do you want to be?" he asked, his warm breath hitting my face.

I gulped and looked down, incidentally staring at his bare chest. "I..."

He hung his head and stood up, walking to the opposite side of the room. "Sorry." He turned his head and shot a weak smile at me. "Maybe you should go."

"Oh Ben, I'm sorry, please don't be mad at me," I said softly, standing.

"No! No, I'm not mad. It's just..." He turned his head back to stare at the wall. "You do realize that I'm a man, right?"

It took me a few seconds to put the pieces together. "Oh!" I exclaimed, turning around and shielding my eyes. "I... Bye!" I dashed out of his hotel room, trying furiously to clear my head.