Chapter Ten - Paparazzi

She watched him closely. His whole persona changing into character. He was entirely different. There was nothing of himself left as he carried the lines from the script into life. Seren sat on a chair behind the camera's, her eyes not moving from him. For the briefest of moments she thought he looked at her, but then his eyes moved downwards and he was in character again. It seemed to Seren that she was inside a bubble and the faintest of touches could burst it. Nothing here seemed real, not even Rob. He had seemed entirely ordinary in that elevator. And now here he was surrounded by this madness. She watched them filming him, how each part of the scene came together. How everyone in the crew had their part to play. It felt strange to see how they did it, how seamlessly it came together on screen but during filming it was like none of the jigsaw pieces fit together. Caught up in the madness, she found herself falling in love with it. And knew, once and for all, that this was what she wanted to do.

"So, you're Rob's girlfriend?" The woman with the clipboard asked, appearing at the catering table behind Seren.

Seren was taken aback by the question. "Umm..No."

The woman nodded with a smirk on her face and Seren decided she didn't really like her.

"You will be by the end of the day." She sniggered.

Seren wasn't entirely sure what she meant by that, and decided to smile politely without giving a verbal answer.

"There's paps all over the place. I'm sure atleast one will have managed to get a picture of you two standing together. That's the downside of shooting on location, in a public place. So you'd best be prepared for it. And every woman he's seen with is his girlfriend these days."

But she didn't care. And the woman was starting to annoy her.

"I'm sure all the relevant people know the truth." Seren replied dryly.

The woman nodded in agreement. "I'm sure they do. Just be prepared for it. Only in the tasteless magazines, obviously. Where everyone has a 'source'."

Seren wondered if that was why she asked. Because she was a 'source'. Then decided it was better if she didn't know. And suddenly she felt sorry for Rob. But then dismissed it. He didn't need pity. She could see that as he finished his scene and came back to sit with her. The woman hastily disappeared, and Seren watched her go.

"She's only here as a runner. But since they gave her that clipboard she's gone power mad." Rob said, watching where Seren's eyes went.

"No harm done." Seren replied, feeling relieved to have him back by her side.

He smiled and moved closer towards her. She felt her whole body tense up, leaning towards him but rigid with nerves. He smelled of cigarettes and a fresh scent she couldn't put her finger on. It smelled good.

"I feel bad that you're having to wait here for me, you must be bored." He said, but she shook her head in protest.

"No! No, I could never be bored this is so...amazing. It feels unreal. I've never seen anything like it. I can't thank you enough for inviting me."

His smile broadened as she spoke. " Well, in that case I'm sorry to tell you it'll all be over soon."

She was genuinely disappointed. "Oh, really? How long have I been here?"

Rob checked his watch. "It's almost 3. The crew have some other scenes to film over in Queen's with Emilie. I'm not part of them so I get the afternoon free."

He checked her face for any hint that she would know what he was about to ask. But he couldn't read her. She seemed forever content. Perhaps she truly was.

"But it doesn't have to be over." He added, and then her eyes met his. "You could come with me."

"Where will we go?" Seren asked.

"I have a car waiting to take me back to my hotel. But we don't have to go there."

The corner of Seren's mouth turned upwards. "Are you afraid of getting into an elevator with me?"

Rob laughed, and didn't even notice as his hand came up to rest on her arm. "I wouldn't mind getting stuck in any elevator, if it was with you."

They stood for a moment, neither of them moving until someone behind them made a noise. Rob's phone began to vibrate.

"That'll be the car. So...are you coming?"

Without responding she followed him out of the marquee. Dean was waiting for them outside.

"Are you sure?"He asked Rob. And Seren didn't know what he meant.

Rob nodded. "I don't care."

Dean laughed. "No, but she might."

Rob's face fell. Turning to face Seren he looked at the crowd, and then back to her.

"If you come with me now, I can't guarantee they wont take our picture and I can't guarantee it wont end up in some tabloid. They'll speculate. So if you don't want this, tell me now."

Looking over to the screaming crowd of girls she wondered how many of them had boyfriends or husbands. Rob was just a man. In a world of billions. Yet here she was, with this one that so many wanted. She didn't want to be like them. But she couldn't blame them either. He was the most handsome man she had ever seen. And even though it was overwhelming to think of the position she was in, there was no question that she would take whatever came with it. She had come to him today, at his request. She had already gone too far to turn back. None of those girls had met Rob. They only knew the men he played in movies. And safe in that knowledge that she liked him for him, she knew the crowds would not bother her.

"No, It's fine." She said, taking a deep breath. "I don't care either."

The flashes began immediately. The clicking of each camera was audible. Dean didn't let the crowds too near but they all got close enough for Seren to hear their gasps of confusion as she followed behind. She put her head down. But Rob could not. He smiled and waved, and shouted Hi to them all as they made their way to the waiting car. Heart racing like a locomotive, Seren thought the crowd would close in on them. Camera bulbs flashed into her face, blinded her. And then she felt a warm hand curl around her own and lead her into the open door of a black car. The hand was Rob's. And once they were both safely inside, still he didn't let go. Dean slipped into the driver's seat and headed into the street.

"Seren...this is Dean. Don't let the muscles fool you. He's a complete pussy."

Dean smirked into the rear view mirror. "Don't let him fool you Seren, he's not an actor he's just a drama queen!"

The two men laughed and Seren finally felt able to breathe.

"Are you ok?" Rob asked, his hand still firmly in hers.

"Yeah, that was insane." She confessed.

His hand remained in her's. And neither of them spoke directly for a while, instead sharing the conversation with Dean until they reached Rob's hotel. They managed to get from the car into the lobby without being noticed, and once inside Dean made his departure.

"I'll see you in the morning." Said Dean, as he walked back to the car.

As they approached the elevators, they gave each other an apprehensive look.