Believe in This

When the sound of my alarm broke me from my sleep the next morning I almost ignored it and pulling the covers over my head until I remembered Benedict would be arriving in an hour to pick me up. Grabbing the annoying electronic I switched off my alarm and begrudgingly left the comfort and warmth of my bed. Slightly faster than usual I went through my morning routine: I made the bed, had a shower, and got [url=http://www.polyvore.com/paddington_station/set?id=111975640
]dressed[/url]. Thankfully, I had packed the night before but unfortunately I had somehow ended up with two suitcases. Amy had assured me it was perfectly acceptable since I would be gone for three weeks but I still felt like I was bringing a bit much.I didn’t even bother looking to see if it was Benedict when the doorbell rang since he had texted me earlier telling me he was on his way.

“I’m just going to grab a drink but otherwise I’m ready.”

“It’s fine, no need to rush. We’re earlier as it is. I’ll just put these in the car.”

Glancing down at my two suitcases, I looked back up at Benedict, “It’s not too much is it?”

“No, I brought two as well and I’m notorious for packing more than I need. Better make sure you have it than not bring it and need it later is my motto.”

I poured myself a large glass of orange juice and did a once over to make sure everything was off and unplugged before locking up and joining Ben at the curb. It was hard not to notice the Jaguar, a white one that was most certainly not Ben’s parked in front of my life but it was even harder not to notice Tom Hiddleston getting out of the driver’s seat.

“Charlotte this is Tom, Tom Charlotte.”

“Benedict’s told me loads about you. It’s nice to have a face to put with the name.”

“I hope he’s only shared the good bits because I can be quite mischievous.”

Opening the passenger door for me Tom smirked, “My dear Charlotte, I think we’ll get along just splendidly.”

“That was my seat.” Ben protested.

“Ladies sit in the front. You have been relegated to the back.”

The three of us conversed the entire trip to Paddington Station and by the time we arrived I could more than vouch that Tom was just as darling as he seemed in interviews. After helping us get our bags out of the boot and load them onto a trolley he said his goodbyes.

“It was a pleasure Charlotte. We’ll have to all have dinner when filming finishes.”

“Of course, I’m not sure why Benedict’s been hiding you but he’s going to get a stern talking about it.”

Receiving a hug from Tom I waited while he and Benedict spoke before he headed back home.

“A warning would have been nice. It’s not every day you get to meet the God of Mischief.”

“It would have spoiled my fun. I didn’t fail to notice the Loki keychain on your key ring the other night.”

Shooting a playful glare at Ben, I lightly elbowed him as he pushed our trolley into the station. Once we had picked up our tickets and had our luggage stowed we headed towards our platform. The station had become quite crowded due to the time of day, Benedict taking my hand in his as we fought our way through the crowd. When we were finally seated, I pulled my iPad out ready to settle down for the two and a half hour ride. Benedict had given up his window seat to me so I could watch the scenery rush by as we slowly began our journey out of the city right on schedule.

Thirty minutes into the ride we were competitively passing Flappy Bird back and forth, doing a rubbish job of keeping our voices down as we teased and sabotaged each other.

“This is simply not fair! It is absolutely impossible to get to forty!”

Just looking smug I responded, “Just face it Benny, you’ll never be able to beat me. I am the Flappy Bird champion.”

“I beg to differ.”

Handing over my iPad I let him have the game back, “Do your worst.”

It didn’t take long after plugging my headphones in for my eyes to close of their own accord and
coupled with the slow rocking of the train I was asleep within minutes. The feel of the train coming to a halt is what woke me from my nap and I slowly became aware of my surroundings.
With a look to my left shoulder, I found Benedict’s head resting there, his perfect cupids bow slightly parted and an errant curl resting on his forehead as he slept. Brushing the hair out of his face, my finger had a mind of its own as it lightly ran down his cheek causing his eyes to flutter open.

“We’re here.”

Rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, Benedict let out a yawn as he stood from his seat, stretching in the middle of the aisle.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you.” He apologized sheepishly.

“No worries, I fell asleep before you. I hope I didn’t disappoint as a pillow.”

“One of the best naps I’ve had in a while.”

Once we disembarked from the train and collected our luggage, Benedict hailed the two of us a taxi and within ten minutes we were arriving at his flat. Unlocking his door, he motioned for me to enter first and I stepped into a flat that rivaled my own back in London. A quick tour through the flat later and I was settling down in my room, taking the time out to actually unpack my suitcase instead of living out of it as I was prone to do when on shoots. I had plugged my iHome into an outlet, dancing around to the latest Beyonce album and mentally concocting plans for the show Emily and I were still waiting to hear about. Either it didn’t take long for me to empty my suitcases and hide them under the bed or I lost track of time dancing about the guest room because when I took a seat on the bed I realized it had been nearly two hours since Benedict and I had arrived in Cardiff. Just as I made a move to grab my Kindle out of the nightstand there was a knock on my door and knowing it was Benedict I told him to just let himself in.

“Do you like the room?”

“Oh yes, it’s fantastic. I can only imagine how large yours is if mine is this large.”

“This is actually the main bedroom. I took the guest one.”

Finding it overly kind and unimaginable I questioned his reasons, “You didn’t have to give up your room. I would have been perfectly fine in the guest.”

“You’re my guest and I’ve stayed in this room for nearly an entire year between the filming of all three seasons. It was time for a change in scenery. And if it makes you feel any better the guest room isn’t all that much smaller.”

“I just wasn’t you expecting to give up your own room, no one’s ever been nice enough to do such a thing. Matt usually just leaves me asleep on the couch during our movie marathons when I crash at his flat.”

“You’ll have to tell Matt that he’s expected to give up his own bed from now on.”

“I’m sure he’ll adore that.” I laughed imagining the look on my friend’s face when the time came.

“Martin called and wanted to know if we would like to join him and Amanda for dinner.”

“Sure, I’m actually rather hungry.”

“I’m going to grab my coat and I’ll meet you at the door.”

Once Benedict had left the room I jumped up from the bed and rushed into the bathroom. Applying a layer of lip gloss, I ran my brush through my hair deciding nothing could be done to tame it at the moment and opting to put it into a tasteful ponytail. I didn’t want to keep Ben waiting so I grabbed my jacket and headed to meet him at the front door. A quick cab ride later we were pulling up outside of the restaurant Martin had texted Ben the directions to. Eyeing us up as soon as we walked in the door, the hostess stepped back from her podium and smiled provocatively at Benedict.

“How many will it be?”

“We’re actually meeting someone.”

Motioning for us to proceed into the restaurant I ignored the glare she sent my way as Benedict placed a hand on my back to guide me through the tables and booths. Spotting Martin and Amanda we finally made our way towards them and sat across from them at a table directly in front of the windows causing me to question how we had missed them in the first place. Almost immediately Benedict and Martin took up their playful banter leaving Amanda and I to our own devices.

“So do you like Cardiff?”

“I haven’t seen much besides the train station and Benedict’s flat but it looks nice. He’s promised to show me around when we have some free time. I slept nearly the entire ride here so I missed all of the scenery.”

“You’ll have to get him to take you to the antiques market. I absolutely adore it. Martin has to keep me from popping in daily otherwise our flat would be overrun. There’s loads of great places to eat as well. I’ve found all sorts of spots just from walking around.”

“That’s how I usually happen upon my favorite places. Matt and I would just wander aimlessly around Los Angeles until we found something that intrigued us.”

“Oh, Benedict mentioned something about your burlesque show. Tell me more.”

Feeling embarrassed not just because of Amanda’s questioning but because apparently my words had had enough of an influence on Benedict for him to feel the need to tell others it took me a second to actually give her the details.

“Nothing’s set in stone yet but my friend Melanie from RADA and I just sat down one night and came up with the idea for a show. We haven’t choreographed the entire show or the set but the nightclub owners seemed intrigued by what we presented them with. If only my parents knew what the actual show was going to entail they’d probably wish they had never placed me in my first ballet class at three. All I can say is that it’s quite risqué and definitely not for children. We’ve actually been taking poll dancing classes in our spare time which is something I never imagined myself doing.” I admitted blushing profusely.

“More power to you then. Whatever man you decide to show those moves to will greatly appreciate it.” As Amanda uttered those words I noticed the subtle wink she sent Benedict who seemed to be listening in to our conversation.

“You’ll have to let us know if you get the gig. I’d love to see it, I could never dream of having the nerve to get up on stage in front of people and dance. Goodness knows no one would actually want to see it. And I’m sure this rotten bastard would love to see it as well, it’ll give him some more material for his ‘alone time.’”

Letting out a laugh at Amanda’s words, I promised to let her know if Melanie and I got the job. I was hoping to hear from the club owner by the end of the week so I would know if I needed to kick myself into shape soon.

“So tell me, are you nervous about filming?”

“Goodness yes, though according to the schedule I’m not due to be on camera for at least three days. I’m still extremely nervous. I’m not sure whether it’s from everything being so new or if it’s just first day on set nerves but I still have them.”

“They’ll wear off sooner than you think. Everyone’s a joy to work with and even though the shoots can seem to run on forever everyone just takes it in stride.”

“Well just so you know if I’m a nervous wreck tomorrow just ignore me. It takes me a while to warm up to new people so I’ll probably be extremely shy. Maybe I should have rethought the whole acting as a profession thing.”

“I’m the same way but once I get to know people they have trouble shutting me up.”

“Are you two going to actually speak to us or gossip for the rest of the night?” Martin piped up.

“Well excuse me, we were letting you two shut yourselves off to the rest of the world. We didn’t want to interrupt your bonding time but if you two are quite done Amanda and I would love to include you in our conversation.”

“Martin wanted me to let you know that you are now invited to our annual movie night and must bring the best movie you have to offer.”

“Well tell Martin that I accept his invitation and that I shall do my best.”

Even though we had to be on set at nine the next morning the four of us stayed in the restaurant until they closed, talking and sharing stories of ourselves. It was nearing midnight when Benedict and I finally arrived back at his flat and as the events of the day began to take their toll on me I bid him goodnight and retreated to my room. I barely managed a shower and didn’t even bother with pajamas opting to fall asleep in my robe.

My first day on set thankfully didn’t involve me being forced to step in front of the camera, though I did get to meet most of the crew, introducing myself to the wardrobe stylist and assistants as well as the makeup department. Our first day didn’t involve a lot of filming, Benedict and Martin only shooting at the very end of the day for a few minutes. Even though I had rehearsed with Benedict and seen him rehearse with others it was a completely different situation seeing him in front of the character.

I actually had to remind myself that he wasn’t really Sherlock Holmes though he did a damn good job of convincing everyone around him that he was. There was a complete metamorphosis from the Benedict behind the scenes to the actor that appeared on screen. Watching him work made me not only extremely anger to interact with him on screen but also extremely nervous.