CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN

eyes on lips



"for the millionth time, we're still rolling," grumbled maeve behind the camera. her impatience stemmed from walker and i who, in front of the camera, couldn't stop feeding the blooper reel material. i kept slipping up on one word as if i was joey tribbiani in season five, and walker kept on laughing at it, leading to me laughing at him laughing at me.

"i'm sorry. blame it on aurora, not me," i said, gathering myself. we were about to finish the static shot of caleb's close up dialogue as aurora and him talked outside after the party. the back of her head was supposed to be to the viewer, so editing this accidentally elongated clip would be easy to cut. a majority of it was just of us chuckling and looking at maeve apologetically.

eventually, we allowed our poor characters to talk to each other in a full conversation and could go inside. inside to where? my house, actually. mom and dad offered to give dear generous connor a break before the party scene in two days. they also wanted to properly meet their daughter's first boyfriend.

mom, walker and i sat on barstools in the kitchen as dad cooked dinner, and maeve went home to have her own. "wait, don't tell me." mom tried to guess walker's last name for five minutes before it got more concerning than entertaining to watch her fail so miserably. "you're telling me it's not school-bell? i don't believe you."

"i get that a lot, but i never get why," he said, shaking his head. "anyway, me and my fellow scobell's are very appreciative of you letting me stay for dinner."

"ah, that's it!" mom whispered to herself. then, louder, "and you're very welcome."

dad was fully aware of walker's surname, since after he cooked the night prior, i filled him in on just who he was letting me use the door for. at first, the fact that he had a wikipedia page and body guards unnerved him, but i assured dad that walker's fame could be a way to open new doors too. he simply gave me a rub on the back in response, but i took it as a good thing.

my father and boyfriend seemed to be getting along at the dinner table, to my pleasant surprise. after these months of their indirect hatred towards each other, face to face, they made cheesy dad jokes as if it was their own language. from across the table, mom and i laughed to each other, at the absurdity of the sight, not at the actual jokes, of course.

once the night wound down, we were finally relieved of parental embarrassment and able to sit on my living room couch alone. we settled down tightly next to each other and talked about how the winter was coming to an end very soon. sure, the temperature rose at its leisure, but i hadn't paid mind to the cold weather in a while. winter didn't exist when i was with walker.

"wait... we've only known each other for a season?" i realized.

"seriously? there's no way," he said, his eyebrows raised. "i feel like i've known you forever."

i chuckled softly. "forever? you're that lucky, huh?"

"yep. i got so lucky because i have that charm."

i rolled my eyes at his attempt at a joke, but i couldn't fight a smile. maybe that one dream prophesied him being a leprechaun. "well, aren't you smooth tonight?"

"you know it," walker said, running his fingers through his hair.

i shook my head and decided to test this self-assuredness. "you think you can channel that charm into friday's scene?"

"the kiss scene?" he said, considering it for a moment. then that playfulness returned. "actually, it's coming up pretty quickly, and i don't feel so prepared for it. maybe we could, i dunno, practice a bit."

"oh yeah?" i said, smirking and knowing exactly where this was headed.

"yeah." he inched closer with a gleam in his eye. "so what were you thinking for that scene? something like this?"

before i knew it he closed the space between us, his lips meeting mine in a kiss i'd come to know quite well, and dearly. it wasn't prolonged, but it was purposeful, like he was making sure he had the moment right.

"uh, yeah. it could be better," i fibbed once we pulled apart.

"better?" walker repeated, clearly amused by the challenge i'd thrown down.

i nodded slowly. "yeah. y'know, the kind of kiss that makes the audience believe it. really sells it."

"i could do that," he said, his voice full of confidence, then kept to his word. he leaned in again, this time with more intention. his hand found its way to my waist, pulling me a little closer as his lips met mine. and this time wasn't just our usual kiss -- it felt like a movie kiss, the kind where the world pauses for a moment, and music swells and flourishes.

when we finally pulled back, i tapped my chin as if i was really thinking it over, though, in reality, my mind had completely blanked except for one thought: i just wanted to keep kissing him. "hmm... i think you could still use a little more practice."

"more? i guess we'll just have to keep rehearsing."

"yeah. we can't risk not perfecting the kiss scene!" i giggled.

"alright, one more," walker said, pulling me closer again. "just to make sure we really get it."

i laughed, knowing full well that this wasn't really about practicing a scene anymore. but i didn't mind at all.



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thank you for reading chapter 57!