Starcrossed

Benedict took her small trembling hands in his then sat on the bed with her standing in front of him. The way she stared down at him made him wish for supernatural powers to read her mind. Couldn't she see that all he wanted was to give her all of his love? He could make her a princess if only she'd accept his offer, the one he knew without a doubt that she wanted for herself. But what was keeping her from going along with this dream? What gave her the strength to fight tooth and nail against something she obviously wanted?

"Won't you let me in even a little?" he breathed. Those light eyes were full of confusion and filled to the brim with the pain only a man truly in love could feel.

"I don't know. Complete trust has never came easily to me." It was only half the truth and he knew it.

Ben released a sigh similar to the ones she gave her father after they had one of their adult arguments. It was going to hurt him to speak what he knew had to be said. This beautiful passionate woman had bravely called him out on several occasions; it was those memorable times when she made him see the obvious.

"To already be hurt to this extent at such a young age," he began, genuinely trying to make sense of her walls he still hadn't been able to break through.

"Don't," she whispered. If he said what she predicted, she wasn't sure how much her heart could take.

"Someone hurt you very badly. The first time you really let someone in you were burned. Devastated even. It was long ago but you can still fell the sting, your reminder not to let anyone that close that quickly again. And it's made you emotionally self reliant. So now your guards are up. I'm so very sorry, Makenzie." He paused, taking in the sight of his lovely crying angel. Her tears only confirmed his harsh words. "I'm sorry for what they both did to you- your mother and that foolish boy."

"You're only sorry my defenses are up, even with you," she hissed.

For a moment, she made herself believe he had other motives for wanting to break her walls of safety. If she let him in, he would finally have her the way he probably took all those other little fangirls. Kenzie immediately hated herself for the very thought. If he was that kind of man, he would have forced himself on her last night. He had taken special care to only go as far as they had in front of the fireplace all those weeks ago- letting her lead the way.

Benedict could hear her next thoughts now as if she were speaking them aloud.

"Yes, actually. I could be the one to help you. The one to-"

"Forget me in a few weeks when your schedule gets busy? Drop me the moment one of your model friends give you a better off than I could possibly match? Let me become the little girl that you charmed for one week in London who-"

"Stop it," he shouted in torment. "Listen to yourself." Ben rose to his feet and began to angrily pace his bedroom, a thick London accent growing with his furry. "I'll never-"

"Oh, give it up, . You're a celebrity. I just graduated uni."

"Yet here we are," he suddenly challenged, his eyes pouring into her. "And not because you are amusing or good for a laugh." Makenzie turned away, unable to keep his intense passionate gaze. "No. You're so much more than that. You're the first woman to ever make me think…"

"What?" He wouldn't dare, she hoped. If he did, she would no longer be able to maintain the convincing performance she was giving. The tears were all real and her heart felt as if it was being ripped from her chest. Yet her heart was also screaming the exact opposite of every vicious word spilling from her lips.

She could tell that he was doing everything he knew to keep her by his side. Not just for the night, and certainly not just to sleep with. He loved her and that fact alone was precisely the thing that kept her crying. But she had to push him away. Not for her sake but for his.

"Makenzie Daniels." Ben paused to give her physical evidence that his words were genuine and his unspoken love was true. "You are the first woman to ever make me believe that I could ever have a family-"

"I have to leave," she cried while rushing to his loo.

When he knocked on the door several times, to get her to come out, Makenzie only begged him to understand. But how could he? She knew that she asked the impossible. Yet she couldn't tell him. Not now. The best course of action was to force him to give up on her. Maybe then at least one of them would be spared the burden of love.

It was at that moment, removing herself from his arms one last time, that she knew it was true. The tortured spirit walked out of his flat with a single revelation.

She had unmistakably, undoubtedly, and full heartedly fallen in love with BenedictCumberbatch. Her only regret was not being able to return the words he spoke as she walked out of his front door.

---

"You bloody did what?!" Sophie hissed before another round of curses. "Go back to him, Kenz. He loves you. Did you hear me? The man you've fancied for half your life loves you!"

"I had to," she began to cry again. "I couldn't see him go through all that pain. And I absolutely don't want him to see me when-"

"You don't know what's going to happen. Miracles happen, you know."

"Not for girls like me," the young woman breathed. She had given up on miracles long ago. "He saw me and knew me at my very best. Fell in love with me. That's enough for me."

"Liar," Sophie snapped back at her ridiculous friend. "A day, not too long from now, is going to come and you're going to regret your pride, Makenzie. You'll be lying in some bed somewhere wanting to see him again. You won't say it out loud but I know that you love him back. And this is only going to kill you both. It's not fair to you or to him."

"You don't know anything about 'not fair'. The only man who has ever loved me is the only one-"

"You would be doing the same thing to any other bloke you fell in love with- that fell in love with you. This entire time, you've somehow treated him as anything but a celebrity. Why can't you-"

"That enough," Kenzie shouted. "We're not talking anymore about him. He's gone- out of our lives. Out of my life. Please. If you ever do another thing for me, do this. Forget about it, all of it."

When Sophie finally gathered the courage, she argued, "But you've been happier than I ever remember you being. You've finally found the kind of love you've always dreamt about. And with the bloke from your-"

"No more," Makenzie demanded.

Sophie knew that look all too well. When Makenzie dug her heels in and demanded that be the end of whatever argument she was in with anyone, that was the end. No questions asked. But never before had she done it to her best friend, her soul sister. The two had shared everything for the last several years. Now, it killed the tender hearted blonde to see her friend in such agony. Yes, she understood the reasoning behind the drastic measures being taken. But Sophie couldn't shake the feeling that if any couple could withstand this test, it would be Makenzie and Benedict.

The next several days, Makenzie ignored his many calls and texts. It was as if she didn't know him. The name seemed to hold no meaning to her, just another name in the media. The young woman dove into her career going to several job interviews, reading endless articles for first year teachers, and even joined several forums on the topic. To everyone else, including her father, she was simply being strong willed and sensible Makenzie. Everyone accepted that celebrities couldn't be with normal people. Everyone but Sophie.

She would never tell anyone but Sophie often caught Kenzie staring at a rather intimate photo of her and Ben on her mobile. They were wrapped in eachother's arms in the very image of perfection. Every so often, Kenzie would even sneak a few glances at the London photos including Ben and Martin. If only the two girls knew then what all their week of magic would lead to.

Months went on, as did their lives. Makenzie was finally put on staff at a private school. Sophie began her own employment writing articles for an up-and-coming magazine in London, working from home with some help from her housemate. The girls had found a cozy little house in Sussex, only a train ride or short drive to their beloved Brighton.

Both were surprised with the various changes that were made in their lives that summer. Everything was lovely until September. That was when something had to give.

---

His mother teasingly called it "Cumberfever". Benedict had been everywhere and had done everything a human could possibly want to do. After years of hard work and connections Benedict was on top and at the height of his career- or so he assumed. Thirty-seven felt no different than thirty-six. He still found himself with far more success with his acting than in his home life, it was all the same comforting faces, and his fashion sense hadn't changed. But there was one single aspect of his life that was different from last year.

He was in love.

Though he suffered in silence and only a few knew, Ben still couldn't bring himself to date the long legged stars of his new celebrity circles. It wasn't as if he had time to date but if he did, he knew exactly would be on the top of his list. Since Makenzie had broken his heart that morning at his flat, the man kept himself ridiculously busy, sometimes beyond his mental and physical capabilities. Yet he carried on as if the world had suddenly become his.

The smiles he gave on all the interviews were genuine. He still had a good time on his many adventures. He had even quit his heartbroken drinking binges, much to the delight of everyone who knew. To them, she was the mad uni student that didn't know a good thing standing in front of her. But Ben knew different.

To this day he still wondered what his chestnut haired angel couldn't tell him. Somehow, beyond anything he could understand or explain, he still thought of her. Every day. Something she had said would cross his mind, he would find himself at a place they had been or talked about going to in the future, and every once in a while he would still find one of her curly pieces of hair in his luggage.

For several weeks he tired to text and ring her without a single response. It was the night he added more to his already chaotic schedule that decided not to try again. If she ever wanted to chat, she had his number. If she ever cared the way her eyes promised she did, she would make her move. But she never did. It was amazing to him how well she had ignored him. Any other fangirl would have broken down by now, especially with his face everywhere- something he still wasn't entirely comfortable with.

Then again, this wasn't every other girl. This wasn't any other girl. MakenzieDaniels had become a part of him in a way he sometimes loathed and occasionally questioned. Was there really only one person out there for everyone? Once someone met their match, were they doomed to life thinking of them unless they joined for life? Was Kenzie his someone? Sometimes he prayed so; other times he prayed that her very memory be taken from his mind.

After a seemingly endless summer of appointments and filming, Ben finally had two weeks to himself. A personal holiday of sorts where he stayed in London. This holiday seemed like a blessing at first, alone time away from everything and everyone. But after the first three days, he started going a bit mad. Thoughts of her invaded the quiet comforts of his flat. A shirt on the top of his hamper still faintly held her scent from months ago. She had left a charm bracelet in his bathroom, probably in her mysterious nervous rush to leave him.

Everyone else seemed to be busy, it only being August and all. His acting mates were all in the middle of productions. His family were only comfort for so long, usually right up until they started calling Makenzie cruel names. One or two of his exes had even attempted to rekindle the flames of passion that once burned between them- only because of his recent success and their lack thereof he knew.

It was a hatefully calm Monday night when the text came in. Seeing the name on his screen was enough to send an electric shock through his body. The message was brief but told him all he needed to know. He wouldn't respond until Friday morning when he caught his flight.