Chapter Text
(Ashlyn pov)
“Ash!” Taylor pulls her aside, away from earshot.
It's officially their first day of filming, and everything is so stressful. This was only Ashlyn's 2nd time filming a show/movie. She isn't the type to get super anxious (like her manager Lucy), but she would be lying if she said she didn't feel something twisting in her stomach.
So it didn't help her nerves when Taylor proceeded to usher her away.
Did I do something wrong?
Ashlyn shifts her weight to one leg, “What?” She winces preparing for the worst. Maybe she's been calling someone the wrong name, or she has something on her teeth or or—
Taylor grabs onto her shoulders, rocking her back and forth and drawing Ashlyn's attention back to her, “Ben is so fine!!” she squeals.
Oh.
Well, that was anticlimactic.
“Do you know what happened, like, a second ago?” Taylor
Ashlyn raises an eyebrow, “No, what happened?”
Taylor's mouth curls up even more, “Okay so I was looking around, and I bump into something firm, I'm out here thinking oh it's a wall, but then something grabs me. It was Ben. So I turn around, and he freakin’ smiles at me!”
Taylor is known for a history of dating, literally anyone. Why? Ashlyn have no idea. She just does it on a whim. “It's like a hobby,” Taylor once said when Ashlyn asked about her dating life. It isn't hurting anyone. So Ashlyn just decide to hypes her best friend up.
“He so wants you”
“You think so?”
“Genuinely, who wouldn't want you?”
Tyler comes walking in with Aiden
“What are you guys giggling about?” He frowns.
“Nothing,” Tay dismisses quickly. Tyler isn't the fondest about her dating endeavors. She looks up at Aiden, and then a cunning smile appears on her lips, "Oh, let's go Tyler I think someone's calling us”
“What, I didn't hear any—” Tay kicks the back of Tyler's leg and whispers something that sort of sounds oddly like, "Read the damn room, love is blossoming!”
Tyler looks back at Aiden and Ashlyn and it clicks in his head, “Oh yeah we gotta go,” he announces as he scurries away with his sister.
Tyler and Taylor were gone in the next ten seconds. Leaving Ashlyn with Aiden. The same guy she embarrassed herself talking to.
The memories of her latching onto his hand and staring at his face plasters all over her brain like a live broadcast.
“Uhm my hand…” Aiden croaks.
Stop.
“Are you not Ashlyn Banner?” He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly.
Someone please kill her.
A warm hand on her shoulder reorients her back to earth, without checking she already knew whose hands it is. That same warmth she felt when she accidentally held his hands for like 15 seconds. “You good?” Aiden questions, his head tilting incuriosity.
No, I'm currently replaying the most embarrassing moment ever—that includes you in it—and seriously debating whether I should shoot this place up.
Can't really say that, can’t she? So she settles for a: “I'm fine, just a little nervous.” Which isn't really a lie because she is anxious.
“Don't worry,” Aiden reassures, “the worst thing that could happen is accidentally hitting the director in the face with your foot, and then end up giving him a bruise, so filming is delayed for a day. ”
That seems too personal to be a random scenario.
Ashlyn blinks. “Literally how?”
“Very long story.” Aiden visibly cringes at the memory.
“Don't worry I got all day.” Ashlyn teases, watching his ears grow red in embarrassment.
Aiden groans, “Just know that I highly, highly, doubt you could do worse than me.”
Their conversation continues, into a whirlwind of topics, from embarrassing stories to Aiden theory that Tyler is an alien made for the sole purpose of tormenting him.
Aiden explains his hands doing all sorts of movements to enforce his point, “I thought maybe, oh he got a crush on me because, y'know I'm hot, but nope, he's an alien”
Ashlyn snickers at the ridiculous thought of Tyler crushing on literally anybody and the sheer ego Aiden must have for thinking that.
“Back to one!” The 1st AD (Assistant Director) instructs. An orchestra of groans follows suite.
“Well talk to you later” Aiden looks back.
“Later.”
–
The first scene starts in the middle of the action. They're running away from tall, dark, uncanny monsters. They run into the school bus graveyard (hence the name) and enter a bus hurriedly. The monster manages to get in, and they huddle up together.
“What do we do!?”
“Die?”
They had to repeat that scene alone 5 times because the director didn't believe that their faces were conveying enough emotions.
Thanks to that, her jaw hurts from screaming, and her legs hurt from running.
Was that the director that Aiden kicked?
If so, that was well deserved.
By the end of filming, all she could think about was her nice warm bed awaiting her arrival. However, since life hates her, Lucy, her manager, is stuck in traffic because of the rain. (Which Lucy apologized for 100 times).
Ashlyn was seriously considering calling an Uber, but they would probably come late as well, and it would be a pain if they recognize her.
She watches as a familiar blonde walks towards her, holding a black umbrella. “Traffic?” Aiden questions.
“Yeah”
“Same”
Silence, but this time it isn't awkward it's comfortable. The sound of rainfall dripping down in a pitter patter rhythm. The hum of the AC inside, working overtime, no thanks to them.
Ashlyn feels her eyes fight the urge to sleep, it loses horribly.