“Oh, God,” I mutter in disbelief, shaking my head. “No, no, no.”

     Haidi is still twirling and jumping and squealing but her age is starting to slow her down.

     “This can’t be. This... Kissing scene? Already?” I ask myself. I reread the script once more, just to make sure that Haidi and I aren’t imagining things. But it's still there, still third to the last line. Loud and clear, it's there, even if it's only written on a lousy piece of paper.

     It’s a confrontation scene. Ellie’s fed up with Aries’ games and just wants to get it over with him... but Aries kisses Ellie, thinking that it’d be his saving glory. Aries kisses Ellie. Gerald kisses me.

     Haidi walks over to me, finally stopping her fanatic feat. She grabs my face in between her hands and stares at me with furrowed eyebrows before breaking into a smile. “Oh, Kimmy, Kimmy. Breathe in, breathe out...”

     I do as she says. Breathe in, breathe out.

     “Remember professionalism?” she asks questioningly. “Kim Chiu, are you professional?

     “Yes, uh, I’m professional.”

     “What? What? I can’t understand what you’re saying.”

     “I am professional.”

     “Kim,” Haidi sighs. “Kimmy. Kimberly. Kimberly Sue Yap Chiu. Are you or... are you not professional?”

     “I, Kim, Kimmy, Kimberly, Kimberly Sue Yap Chiu,” I answer decidedly, “am professional.”

     “Nothing personal?”

     “Never personal,” I answer. I could feel the adrenaline rush starting to pulse throughout me.

     “Good.” She winks at me, patting my cheek.

     After I finish memorizing my lines, Jose calls us out for the scene blocking. I walk out to the set, which is a green patch of land set high to overlook the vast city below. A car is sitting by the side as a prop; Aries’ car.

     I look up to the sky and the sun is starting to dip low but its light still dominates the atmosphere. As I look back to the set, Gerald is standing next to Jose. He’s watching me. The corners of his lips are upturned yet his expression is passive. As I near them, Gerald remains the same—watching and passive. I smile to him, all nervousness gone. It must’ve been the wind blowing in our hair or the sun kissed atmosphere or maybe, it's just the overwhelming view below but calm seem to fall over us like a peaceful drapery.

     Even Jose seems to be under the spell when he speaks, “Ah, so beautiful.” He sighs. “But we’re not here to be under awe... Lines are memorized, I believe?”

     Gerald and I nod.

     “Alright. Good. So... this scene starts out calm. Blend in the atmosphere’s peace. You hop out the car. Kim walks over the edge, facing the view below and just stares at the wonderful view. Take it all in, Kim,” Jose nods towards me.

     I nod back.

     “While, you, Gerald,” says Jose, turning to Gerald, “once you hop out, just lean against the hood of the car. You’re watching Kim. You may be at peace but show menace. You’re a bad boy—you can’t be goody-goody even if you’re at peace. So, yeah, both of you hang in there, just like that for, at least, ten seconds. Get that?”

     “Yeah,” Gerald responds as I nod.

     “Good, good. Now, after those ten seconds, Kim, you slowly turn around to face Gerald. Walk a little closer to him... just a tad bit closer. And start speaking as you walk. Speak softly. Soften your blow. Gerald will contradict you and when he does that, you will have to show that you have the authority in this confrontation so don’t let him overpower you.”

     “I won’t,” I assure him.

     “Now, about the kissing scene,” Jose announces, taking a pause.

     I look over to Gerald. He is intently listening to Jose—still passive.

     “Gerald, she’s arguing with you, breaking up with you,” says Jose dramatically. “You don’t want her to go. You’re down to your last resort which is to make her stop talking. And you do that by grabbing her face in your hands and abruptly kissing her. This isn’t a peck, okay? Full-on but don’t be coarse! Arrest her lips, Gerald!”

     Now, I’m starting to get scared. I look down.

     “Kim,” Jose speaks.

     I look back up to Jose and let myself take a peek at Gerald. He is now looking at the view ahead of us.

     “Like I said,” Jose continues, “you own the authority here so you try to break free from his grasp and his kiss... but your strength fails you and you submit yourself.”

     “I submit myself?” I ask him.

     “Yes.”

     “To who?”

     “Not exactly to ‘who’ but more of to ‘what.’”

     “Okay—then to what?”

     “I don’t know,” responds Jose dully.

     “You don’t know?” I'm taken aback. “You’re the director, you’re supposed to know.”

     “Kim, I don’t play the character." He puts his hand on my shoulder. “You do. It’ll come to you. Just wait.”

     “Okay, fine,” I shrug.

     “Okay! I think we’re ready,” Jose proclaims. “Are you getting this, Gerald?”

     Gerald turns from the view and nods. He looks at me but his eyes are sad.

     “Okay, let’s practice! Hop in the car. Now, go,” yells Jose, giving me and Gerald a shove. “The cameras will roll, just in case!”

     Gerald and I silently walk over to the car. “Is something wrong?” I ask him.

     To my surprise, he laughs. “No. Does something look wrong with me?” he asks, keeping his eyes ahead.

     “Um, I guess not. Just thought you, uh, looked sad.”

     “I’m alright, Kim.” He turns to smile at me. “Must be the peaceful and woozy atmosphere.”

     “Oh.”

     Once we reach the car, we hop in. And as we wait for them to shout 'action,' my legs start shaking. I'm still not ready for the kissing scene. Oh, God. Breathe in, breathe out.

     A few seconds later, “Action!” and the world drops silent.

     I hop out the car and walk over to the edge of the land. The wind washes the destructions of the moment. It's just me, Gerald, and the stillness. The motion of the city below is like a blurry painting with its faraway noise humming in the background. The beginning of the sun’s goodbye is a burning fire, kissing the skyline a streak of bright orange. It's implausible, really.

     I hear Gerald’s door open and close behind me. I slowly turn to him. He is leaning against the hood of the car with his arms crossed against his broad chest. He's squinting against the sun but his bright eyes are alarming on me. “I’m so tired,” I whisper to him. But my whisper is loud compared to the air.

     “We all are,” he replies, a corner of his lips turning up.

     The moment is so intoxicating. “I was expecting more of a ‘sorry’ from you,” I say, taking a step towards him while he remains unmoving.

     “Are you tired because of me?” he asks insipidly.

     “Wasn’t that your plan all along?” I respond, now speaking loudly. I take more steps closer to him. “Let the girl join the game. Let her have her fun so you can have your fun, too.” I scoff and look up. “But when the light burns out, don’t kick the girl out yet. The best part’s just coming up. Step on her heart. Tell her she’ll never win. Watch her cry, watch her fade. Have fun and then, that’s when you kick her out.”

     He, now, stands up. “Are we going over this, again?” Gerald demands, shaking his head in disgust.

     “You tell me!” I yell to him. “Are you going to play games with me again?”

     “Goddamit, Ellie!” He walks over to me. “Can’t you see that you’re the one who’s causing all the pain here? You’re so scared of getting hurt that you’re already blaming me and giving me no chance when I haven’t even done anything wrong yet.”

     “But, you see, you will do something wrong soon,” my voice softens. His face is a foot away from me.

     “You can’t guarantee that.”

     “Or maybe, you’ve already actually done something wrong and you’re just not telling me. It’s what you do, Aries. I’m not your toy. I’m not something you can just toss around,” my voice softens. “I’m not in this for your games.” I shake my head, “I find relief in your company. I’m not in this just for the fun. And what scares me the most is the fact that you are.”

     “You think I’m just playing with you?”

     “Of course, you are—just like with the other girls.” Tears are starting to fall and betray my power. “I can’t risk it with you, Aries. It’s too dangerous, too painful. Too heartbre—”

     Gerald suddenly grabs my face and holds it in his hands. His eyes are wild and raging before they close as the anxious space between our lips closes along. The warmth comes first and then the feel of his lips. They are bittersweet, both happy and sad. His lips against mine are not rough but only passionate. I try to break free but Jose is right, my strength is failing me so I submit myself and let him take control. I could feel the authority slipping from my hand now that Gerald has fully arrested my lips. I merely surrender myself to the feel of his lips against mine because they feel so right. And my surrender is as sweet as his kiss—as sweet as the sun’s surrender to the night.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

You must hate me for taking this long to update but here you go, a post-valentine treat made especially for you. This story is starting to be hard to write because now, I have another plot within a plot--another story within a story but I'll prevail. And I have a poll. Please vote in it. It will help me continue and define the plot of my story. Click this for the poll. Thanks a lot! Comment and subscribe!