Oh Baby, I'm a Fool For You

"Good morning!" I greeted Nikolai the next morning, plopping down next to him on the rock that he was sitting on. "Oh, Iron Man today," I commented, looking at his tight shirt and dangling earring.

"You're rather chipper this morning," he commented, slinging an arm around his shoulder and pulling me into him. "Did you get a hold of Will?"

"What can I say, I had a good night," I told him with a grin. "Wow, can you believe where we are?" We were sitting in a forest in a small clearing, with a few trees here and there. Sun was struggling to shine in from the thick leaves that covered the sky. Everything was shades of green, yellow and reds. Many of the other cast members were already walking around in their costumes, including minotaurs and dwarfs. "What scene are they shooting today?"

"Will and Ben meet for the first time and have a little sword fight, no biggie," he said, taking an apple from his back pack. "And with the added tension, it should be epic."

"Tension?"

"Your Prince got the girl that Will wanted. Hence, I called you a heart breaker, and a very attractive one at that." He took my face in between his thumb and forefinger and kissed my cheek.

"Where's Will?" I asked as I stood.

"Down the hill," he told me, pointing towards a beaten path.

I took off at a steady sprint, trying to beat the film time, and carefully picked my way down the hill. Turning sharply, I went into a small tent, where Will was sitting, inspecting his sword. "Hey Will," I greeted as I stumbled in, getting my footing on the rocky ground.

His head shot up and his eyes focused on me, his mouth set in a frown. "Hello," he greeted solemnly. He turned away from me and slid the sword back into it's sheath.

I took a few steps forward so I was standing next to him. "How are you?"

"Fine. You should probably leave, shooting will begin soon," he said monotonously.

"Are you mad at me?" I asked quietly, kicking the pebbles below my feet.

He spun around quickly. "You? Never. I'm just having issues with a cast member. He has something that I want."

"Will-"

"How did you not know that I liked you?"

I was taken aback. "You never said anything."

He threw his hands in the air and turned away, walked a few steps and came back. "I carried your bag, opened doors, walked you to set, and supported you when that prick kissed another girl! I knew you liked him, but you were supposed to see that I am a better man!" he shouted. "How dense are you, Kaya?"

My heart was beating too quickly for comfort. He was actually scary; that look in his eyes was almost animal like. "You're a good friend, Will, but you're not who I love," I explained in a quiet, shaky voice.

He chuckled and pointed towards the hill. "Get out."

"Will!"

"Out!" he yelled, his other hand tightening on the hilt of his sword.

My throat tightened when the thought that he might actually hurt me entered my head. With a squeak of utter fear, I bolted from the tent and ran up the hill, tripping and falling until I reached Nikolai.

"Oh honey," he said softly when he saw me, and opened his arms, which I willingly fell into, clinging to him and breathing heavily. He shifted so he was cross legged, and had me sitting in his lap, still squeezing him so tight that I thought he would explode. "Men are idiots," he said consolingly, stroking my back.

"You're a guy," I whispered.

"But I'm me, so..."

I laughed into his shoulder, and after a few minutes, I pulled back and wiped my nose on my shirt. "Thanks, Nik," I said, and affectionately kissed his cheek.

"Kaya, what's wrong, love?"

I looked away and locked eyes with Ben, who was in full Prince Caspian gear. "Hi, Ben," I greeted, putting on my best smile. "Nothing's wrong. Just stressed."

Nikolai elbowed me subtly, and I ignored him.

Ben took my hand and pulled me up, cupping my face in one large hand. "That's not why you're crying," he whispered, and wiped my tears with his thumb. Looking over my shoulder, he called to Nikolai, "Thanks, mate." His hand wrapped around mine as he led me over to his own tent, and sat me down on a squeaky blue stool. "What happened?"

I sighed. "Will got mad because you and I are... Well, together."

"Did he hurt you? Is that why you were crying?" he asked, his eyes darkening.

"No!" I exclaimed, standing up. "He just scared me, that's all. You see, Ben..." I lowered my head in shame at the thought of why I'd never had a boyfriend, also the reason why I ran away from being touched.

"Kaya," Ben said softly, and crouched in front of me. He tilted my head upwards with his index finger. "I love you. If you are not comfortable with telling me everything, it's okay." He tenderly kissed my forehead as a bell sounded in the distance. "I've got to go." He kissed my forehead again before leaving the tent.

I tugged my sweatshirt tighter around myself and got up, walking to the edge of the set, where Nikolai was standing.

"Look at them," he said in his thick accent, pointing at Ben and Will. "You could cut the tension with a knife." He held up his pale hand and offered me a ripe, red apple.

"Thanks," I said and took a small bite. "Apples are your favorite food, huh?"

"What gave me away?" he asked rhetorically, flashing his gorgeous smile.

"Action!"

Our heads flipped to watch the scene. Will was walking up a hill, and crouched to shush Georgie, then stood up, his hand on his hilt. He got a few steps closer to the mark, and when his foot hit the mark, Ben leaped out of the bushes with a battle cry, his sword drawn. There was unnecessary force from both Will and Ben as they engaged in exchanging a few blows with swords, until Will made Ben lose grip of his sword. Will swung the sword, barely missing Ben's head, and Ben ducked, causing the sword to get stuck in a nearby tree. Ben kicked Will in his lower stomach to the ground and attempted to get the sword out of the tree, while Will grabbed a prop rock from the ground.

Georgie leaped up and screamed, "No! Stop!"

"Cut!" the director shouted. "That was great!" He stood up and walked onto the set, putting a hand on each of their shoulders. "That anger and force was just brilliant for the scene! Just make sure you can carry it into the other scenes."

"I think I can manage that," Will said lowly, staring daggers at Ben.

"Take 5, people!"

Ben came up to me and grinned, wiping the fake blood off his lip. "I know he was a prat to you, but that anger really helped."

I chuckled. "Anytime," I said, and took a bite of my apple.

Ben leaned forward and bit into the opposite side of the fruit, and though I couldn't see his mouth, I knew he was smiling at me. He hoisted me up and held me around the waist, and brought me back to his tent. "Have I mentioned that you were gorgeous?" he asked as the apple fell to the ground.

I crossed my ankles behind his back and tightened my hold around his neck. "I like this," I mumbled.

"For someone who is squeamish about touching, you sure do give great hugs." He rubbed my back gently. "Kaya, this is nice, but it sort of is difficult."

I looked down at his chain mail and chuckled, unhooking myself from him, landing in the dirt.

"I've got a little more work to do. Why don't you just hang out in here and rest."

"You're making my job as an assistant extremely easy," I commented.

He simply smiled and kissed my cheek, and left.