Oh Baby, I'm a Fool For You

Someone was poking my feet.
I groaned and snuggled against my bed.
The poking finger disappeared for a moment, then the person started pulling on my toes.
"Stop," I moaned, rolling onto my back.
"You have got to be the laziest person I have ever met."
I opened my eyes to see Nikolai crouching at my feet. Looking to my left, I realized that the bed was empty. "Where's Ben?"
Nikolai shrugged and continued tugging on my big toes. "I may have kicked him out. I can't believe we didn't wake you."
"Why did you kick him out?"
Nikolai crawled up the bed and laid down next to me, crossing his arms over his chest. "Maybe I might have been a little jealous," he murmured.
"Aw," I cooed, rolling onto my stomach. I pushed his messy dark hair from his eyes and beamed down at my closest friend. "My boyfriend does take up a lot of time."
"Yeah," he agreed, "but I've hardly seen you at all this past week! Someone is too busy making out with her prince." He pursed his lips and started pouting.
"Nik-"
"What are you wearing tonight?"
I knew he was referring to the cast party. Filming had wrapped up, being marked officially by the cast party. After the party, we had one night left in New Zealand before we had to return home. "Jeans and-"
"Nope," he interrupted. "Didn't you bring anything except jeans?"
I wrinkled my nose and hid my face against his shoulder.
"I'll take that as a yes!" He sat straight up and clapped his hands together. "I'm going to dress you."
"What time is it?" I asked, pushing myself up into a sitting position.
"Eleven."
"In the morning?" I squeaked, leaning over to grab the alarm clock. Sure enough, it was just past eleven in the morning. "Crap," I murmured.
"Get your butt into the shower," Nik said, taking the clock from my hands and setting it on the nightstand. He wrapped his arms around my waist and lifted me off of the bed, setting me on the floor.
"What are you doing?" I laughed, allowing him to pull me across the carpet.
"I'm helping," he said simply, and pushed me into the bathroom, shutting the door firmly behind me. "Now, get all squeaky clean and pretty so I can beautify you!"
I just shook my head and hopped into the shower, nervously awaiting Nikolai's overenthusiastic makeover.

"I hope you realize how much work I put into this."
I wrinkled my nose at Nikolai and shifted awkwardly on my feet.
Nikolai sat me down and worked on beautifying me for nearly three hours. He straightened my dark brown hair and pulled back my hair on the right side of my face to my ear, keeping it in place with a large black flower-shaped clip. He had me put on my only dress in my bag; a short dark green dress that went down to just above my knees. It had thick straps and a sweetheart neckline, clinging embarrassingly to every inch of my body. I was allowed to wear my plain black flats, and Nikolai finished the outfit with dark make-up and dark jewelry.
"I realize it, and I appreciate it," I said, and kissed his cheek. "What time is the cast party?"
"It starts at five, so... we should leave in an hour. Stay here and don't touch your hair, I'll be back." Nikolai jumped up from the bed and went out the door, presumably to get himself ready.
I sat on the edge of the bed and turned on the television, watching a cartoon until I heard a knock at the door. I got to my feet and swung open the door.
"Wow."
I beamed up at Ben. He was wearing a white button down shirt that was tucked into his dark jeans. The top two buttons of his shirt were undone, showing off his smooth chest. "Right back at you," I said happily. I reached forward and took his hand, pulling him into the room and shutting the door behind him.
"Nikolai?" he asked, gesturing at my outfit.
I blushed slightly and nodded. "I hear he kicked you out this morning."
"He really did!" Ben exclaimed, sitting down on the edge of the large bed. "He told me that it was his job to make you beautiful, which is ridiculous because you're already perfect," he said, smiling at me.
"Shut up," I laughed, sitting down next to him. "He spent the whole time complaining that I never spend any time with him because I'm too busy with you."
"Aw, let him complain," Ben said, putting an arm around my shoulder. "You're all mine now." He leaned down and pressed his lips gently against mine.
I sighed into the kiss and leaned into him, perfectly content.
Then the door slammed open.
"Okay, okay, break it up!" Nikolai yelled, clapping his hands together loudly. He grabbed me underneath the arms and pulled me to my feet. "I told you not to do anything," he murmured, smoothing my dress and hair.
"You're such a perfectionist," I laughed.
Ben stood up in front of me and easily pulled me to his side. "Shall we?"
Nikolai stuck out his bottom lip in a pout, then walked to my side, linking arms with me. "We shall."
The three of us walked down to the large dining room that was housed in the center of the hotel. The room was so crowded with people, it was like some sort of fair. There was hardly any room to move, and nearly all of the chairs were occupied.
As soon as we entered the room, Nikolai detached himself from me and disappeared into the crowds.
Ben somehow found a few chairs around an empty table, and we sat down. "I've been thinking," he started slowly.
"About?" I prompted.
"After filming is done and everything... Do you want to move in with me?" he asked quickly.
I was taken aback; touched, but still shocked. "I... I don't know," I answered truthfully.
His beautiful face fell.
Quickly, I grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "It's just that I have Veronica and Jonah at home, and they're my only family. Spending time here for 9 months was hard enough. I don't know if I'll be able to do it for longer than that."
Ben nodded, and leaned back in his chair.
"I'm really sorry," I said quietly. I released his hand and moved my chair closer to his so I could lean my head against his shoulder. "You know I love you, right?"
Ben laced our fingers together and brought my hand to his mouth, kissing my knuckles. "I know."
"We'll figure something out, I promise." I didn't quite believe myself.
We sat together in silence for a few minutes before Ben turned to me and said, "Do you want to dance?"
I laughed out loud before I realized he was serious. "Oh, okay," I said, my face flushed.
Ben pulled me to my feet and to the dance floor, then put one hand on my waist, his other holding mine.
I placed my hand on his shoulder just in time for him to dip me low to the ground. "Don't drop me!" I squeaked.
He laughed and stood us back up. "Way to ruin the romance," he teased, turning us in a slow circle.
I just rolled my eyes as Ben spun me in a circle.
Ben pulled me close to him, dropping my hand to put his hand on my waist.
I leaned my head against his shoulder and inhaled his scent before nuzzling my head against his neck.
A short moment later, someone tapped my shoulder. I turned around and locked eyes with Nikolai.
"May I?" he asked Ben, extending his hand toward me.
Ben nodded and smiled at me before stepping out of my embrace. He turned and disappeared into the throngs of people.
"Man," I said as Nikolai placed his hands on my waist, "I'm a total jerk."
"What do you mean?" he asked, rocking us back and forth to the beat of the current song.
"Ben asked me to move in with him."
"And?"
I wrinkled my nose and looked down at my feet.
"Let me guess; you told him that you didn't want to be away from your family."
I looked back up at him, my eyes narrowed. "How did you know?"
"Because I know you, sweetheart," he murmured. "You know, you can always live in London and visit your family, or vice-versa."
"Yeah," I agreed, dejected, "but plane tickets are expensive."
"Well how do you think he would feel if he had to live across the ocean from his family?"
I sighed and stepped out of Nikolai's grasp as the song switched to something more upbeat. "You're right," I murmured. "I'm being selfish."
"Aw, stop moping," Nikolai said, poking my cheek with his index finger. "Let's go get something to eat, okay?"
Nik and I grabbed some food and met Ben back at our table. Shortly after we started eating, people began making speeches on the large stage at the head of the room. The crew spoke, and a few of the cast members spoke as well.
"And now," Anna said, glancing down at us, "Ben would like to say a few words."
People applauded as my boyfriend stood up and walked up the stairs to the stage. He stood in front of the microphone and shoved his hands into his front pockets. "Hi," he greeted, waving to us. "It's been amazing filming this with such an amazing cast and crew. I've made so many new friends, and I've even met the girl of my dreams." He locked eyes at me and winked.
I blushed but beamed up at him, touched.
"This has been such an incredible experience," he continued. "I wouldn't trade this for anything in the world." He looked up at me and bit his lip briefly. "There's something I've been dying to do for the last few months, and now I think is as good of a time as any." He took his hands out of his pockets and angled himself towards me, locking eyes with me. "Kaya, come here."
I raised my eyebrows and shook my head fervently.
"Come on!" he said with a grin.
Nikolai leaned over and hissed, "Go, girly!"
"But I-"
"Nikolai, help me out, here," Ben said loudly.
The room began applauding enthusiastically as I reluctantly got to my feet. Keeping my eyes on the floor in front of me, I walked to the stairs leading up to the stage. "What?" I whispered.
"That doesn't count," Ben laughed.
"Ben-"
"Up you go, sweetie," Nikolai said from behind me, and lifted me, walking us up the stairs. He set me next to Ben before running back to his seat.
Ben took my hand and squeezed it, looking at me with reassurance in his eyes. "The best thing about filming this movie was meeting you," he said quietly, though the microphone was picking up his every word. "Every morning I would wake up excited to see you, and every night I could wait for the next day to begin. Even though we've had our problems, I never once stopped loving you."
"What are you doing?" I asked quietly, my eyes darting towards the large audience.
"I never stopped loving you, and I never will." His smile grew larger, and then he did something that almost made me faint; he got down on one knee. "Kaya-"
"Ben," I said slowly, eyeing him. My heart was beating so quickly that I was convinced it was going to pop out of my chest.
His hands came forward, revealing a small, black box.
I could feel my jaw drop.
He opened the box, revealing a bright, glittering silver diamond ring. "Kaya Martin, will you marry me?"
I just stared at the ring, my heart racing but my breathing shallow. "Really?" I whispered.
He laughed and pushed some hair behind his ear. "Yes, Kaya, really."
I looked behind me. "Me?"
He nodded, his smile growing.
"Are you sure?"
By this time, the audience was chuckling softly.
"Kaya, I've never been so sure of anything in my life."
Before I knew it, tears were spilling down my cheeks and I was on my knees in front of Ben. My arms were around his shoulders and I was squeezing him close to me.
One arm wrapped around my waist as the audience erupted in applause. "Is that a yes?" Ben whispered.
I pulled back, my hands shaking, and took his face in my hands. "Of course it is," I whispered.
Ben pulled away from me slightly to take the ring out of the box. Taking my left hand, he slid the ring onto my ring finger; it fit perfectly. He stood up and pulled me up with him. "She said yes!" he yelled, punching his fist in the air.
Everyone started applauding and cheering all over again.
I didn't even care about the people watching us anymore. I stepped forward and planted a big, wet kiss on my boyfriend's- I mean, fiance's- lips. "I love you," I murmured against his lips. "I love you so much!"
"You better," he murmured, "because I'm never going to let you go again."