Starcrossed

The North end of Gower street was as close as the cab could take her. Hundreds of fangirls were pushed across the street with multiple officers around. How the devil was she going to get to him? He was nowhere in sight. Perhaps her newly acquired skills of sneaking around would prove adequate. She was only a few steps away from the yellow tape and police. If she could keep calm she had a chance.

"Everyone behind the line," a burly officer ordered, clearly tired of repeating this line.

"I'm here to see Ben. He's expecting me," she stated in the most professional voice she could manage among the hysteria.

"Ha! You and every other girl here," the man laughed in her face before pushing her into the female mob.

"No, you don't understand!"

"He'll be out to sign things later, miss. Be a good girl or we'll have to remove you from the set."

"Brilliant," she muttered after the officer walked off. "Now what?"

She pulled out her mobile and sent a text, hoping he would notice her urgent pleas.

- Officer won't let me in. I'm right in front of the door behind your mob. -MD

Naturally he wasn't going to answer right away. He was filming a bloody show, and not just any show but the very show that sent him from actor to international celebrity. Makenzie was still trying to figure out what course of action she could take when her ears suddenly felt as if they were going to bleed. She looked up from her panicked thoughts and saw Ben and Martin walking out of 221B. A smile came to her face with the knowledge that she was the only fan in the entire mob that had been up there. Her heart fluttered at the thought of being the only fan Benedict would be looking for in the ridiculous crowd.

The cameras exited the building and everyone was told to be silent. It was her first time watching anything be filmed. There was a thrill at watching the duo at work in real life. The experience was much different than she imagined but in the best of ways. One thing was for certain, she would never forget her day at setlock.

Nearly thirty minutes later, the actors were released to mingle with the excited crowd. Martin walked towards a group of women shouting his name while Ben fiddled with his mobile. He looked at the crowd with bright curious eyes, obviously humbled before he met his first fan of the day. His first steps were taken toward the screaming girls. Makenzie could barely see him through the tightly packed crowd. She caught glimpses of his hair every once and a while, thank goodness he was so tall.

Her pocket buzzed making her lips turn up into the widest of smiles.

- Walk up the street a ways. Mark is waiting for you between the buildings to your right. See you soon ;) -BC

She returned the device to her pocket as if it itself was the secret. Not a soul noticed when she slipped away from the crowd and ventured further down the street. The barriers ended almost another block down where the buildings gapped a bit. Standing in his Mycroft attire, Mark Gatiss motioned for her to cross the street as quickly as possible. His finger covered his lips to remind her to keep silent. Once she was a matter of steps away, he gave her a genuinely friendly grin.

"So you are Makenzie Daniels," he half chuckled with delight, completely out of character.

"And it is a pleasure to meet you, sir." A brief worried pause. "Sorry about the tea stain in your sitting room."

"It's nothing, child. Benedict took care of it in time. Please, come in."

They walked into the back of the building. Cameras, papers, and jackets were everywhere. Nothing was as tidy as she had predicted and she could feel pure excitement buzzing from her toes curled deep in her sneakers to her eyes wide with wonder. She took in every detail she could and locked the memory tight in her mind.

"I'm wanted elsewhere but do mingle. Ben will return shortly."

"Thank you, Mr. Gatiss," Makenzie managed without sounding like the thirteen year old she felt screaming inside herself.

A small hand was placed on her shoulder before she had time to take a step in any direction. The student turned on her heels to face the body to which the hand belonged.

"It's Makenzie, yeah?" This was more than she ever imagined.

Louise Brealey was even more stunning in person. Though Molly Hooper was just a character, Louise was just as sweet and more comical- the same only different.

"Yeah. It's so wonderful to meet you."

"You too. Ben has been waiting for you all morning," she sang in a teasing voice, all but winking. "He'll be so happy you're here." The actress then took a good look at the girl before her. "You're much more beautiful than he let on, and that’s saying something."

"Oh, don't, really," Makenzie nervously giggled with a blush. "This is such an honor, meeting everyone and all."

"Well any friend of Ben is a friend to all of us." The beautiful redhead gave Makenzie's shoulder a fond squeeze before leaving her.

Makenzie tried her best to not wander too far. There were already too many persons walking around for such a small space. Another loud shriek from the female fans startled her. It wasn't until then that her wits were at their end. Large crowds always made her a bit nervous but walking from one fangirl crowd to meeting multiple celebrities and filming crew was entirely different from anything the student knew how to process. The light of the front door stretched across the floor sending the relaxed mass of workers back to work.

Looking for a standing space to stay out of anyone's way, she heard "Steven" being called. Without a doubt, she knew who she wanted to answer. Yes, the Scottish accent filled the room when announcing "five minutes". Makenzie's curiosity wasn't quite enough to tear her from the safety of her safe spot on set. She looked from the right, to the left, then back again in a matter of seconds as the set became its own little city, more like an ant farm.

Her anxieties ended the moment their eyes met.

"Makenzie!" Benedict pushed through the crowd and excitedly made his way over to her,
as if it had been weeks since they were last together.

Speech was not possible. Try as she did, she couldn't even manage his name from her lips. He looked even better than she imagined. The coat fit him much better in person. His suit was dashing, more details than the cameras allowed. Those curls, the ones she had become so well acquainted with, were a bit frazzled and looked as if someone had just given him a good snogging- a blush crept through her cheeks at the thought. The oceanic eyes she adored were warm and welcoming despite their tired and anxious appearance. But not one detail of him was more spectacular than the full expression on his face, the one that was the stunning effect of her simple presence.

Once he was a step away, without permission even from herself, Makenzie threw her arms around him with a deep sigh of contentment. She immediately regretted doing so, such a childish thing to do, but then melted deeper into him when his arms pulled her even closer to his chest. The moment didn't last long but was long enough to convey the silent messages each were trying to send to the other. Such a precious unexpected moment. Ben pulled back, removed his hold on her, then cupped her face between his slightly shaking hands. Her full attention was on him, just the way he wanted.

"Hello," he smiled with such admiration.

"Hello," Makenzie whispered mirroring the blissful look on his face. They each made a small low laughing noise, each for different reasons. "You're hands are trembling," she sweetly noted with a trace of concern.

"Quite a large group out there," he sighed, a bit relieved to be back on this side of the door. He loved his fans but there was always so much that could go wrong with such a group- and the majority were there just for him, just Ben.

His hands slid down her neck then rested on her shoulders before he confessed, "I'm so pleased you came."

How could she not? He wanted her here, even asked for her. Yet it wasn't until that moment that she had the feeling he possibly needed her on set with him today.

"It's not like I was on holiday or anything of importance," she teased, bringing that low chuckle from him she loved a bit more each time he allowed her the pleasure of hearing it.

Someone called his name, tearing his attention from her momentarily.

"On my way," Benedict yelled back into the thickening hysteria on the inside. Turning his eyes back down to Makenzie he couldn't help another smile. "Time to get back into character."

"A brilliant heartless asexual bugger. Shouldn't be much of a stretch for you," she giggled, both knowing the exact opposite to be true- except the brilliant part. "Make your fangirls proud," she encouraged as all contact faded between them.

Sherlock's entire posture changed as he turned to walk away. Half a step was taken before he turned back around. Without warning, he took her hand and placed a kiss into her palm. Their eyes locked for two seconds that made her completely weak at the knees. Without another word, he winked at her then dashed off to where he was needed.

"The game is on," she hazily whispered to herself with glowing eyes and a pounding heart.