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"And action!" Stan yelled.
Eddie's eyes shot up as his co-star appeared in front of him, ready to shoot part of the fight scene their characters were going to have at the climax of the film they were working on. Eddie cocked his head slightly, as his character was known to do before his co-star smiled rather evilly and swung a kick at Eddie. As if on cue, Eddie ducked his head back slightly to avoid being hit before he blocked two more kicks. He then started blocking his co-star's punches with ease, making it look like he did this regularly, which was somewhat true because Eddie usually preferred to perform his own stunts.
It wasn't until Eddie went to do a counter punch that his shoulder reacted in pain. Eddie grimaced as he threw a punch, but Stan didn't yell for them to stop, so Eddie kept moving forward, getting ready to throw more punches. Just as he lunged forward to land a punch on his co-star, Eddie's shoulder tensed and he froze in his tracks.
"Fuck!" Eddie shouted as Stan yelled, "Cut!"
Eddie's co-star straightened up and looked at Eddie in concern.
"You all right, Eddie?"
"Yeah, John, I'm fine," Eddie said as he massaged his shoulder. "Just some shoulder pain is all."
"You've been having a lot of that lately, maybe you should get it looked at by someone."
"Nah, I'll be fine."
John shrugged before he walked away to get a sip of water off set. Eddie remained in place, rubbing his shoulder and trying to stretch it out. The stretching caused him a little bit of pain and he winced as he did. Stan walked up to him, looking both concerned and a little annoyed.
"Your shoulder still giving you trouble, Eddie?" Stan asked.
Eddie nodded and Stan sighed.
"Listen, I really think you should go and see my friend Richie. He's a chiropractor who works in your neighborhood. He's one of the best, Eddie. I really think you should go and see him to get your shoulder looked at."
"I don't know, Stan. Can we really afford to lose me for a few hours?"
"We'll be fine, Eddie," Stan insisted. "We're ahead on our shooting schedule and we can lose a day or two so you can recuperate."
Eddie sighed deeply.
"Do I have a choice?"
"Listen, Eddie, if the union catches word of you working through your pain like this, they're gonna try shutting us down. So, you can either get your shoulder checked out and take it easy for a little bit while filming." Eddie scoffed and Stan raised his eyebrows. "Or, we can hire a stuntman to do all of the legwork and you'll just be shooting the scenes where you have dialogue. It's really up to you, Eddie."
Eddie sighed as he resisted the urge to roll his eyes.
"Look, Eddie, I'm not saying this to be an asshole or anything, I just want you to be at your best while we're filming this movie," Stan said in a gentle voice. "I know how dedicated you are to your work, but you can take a break every now and then."
"Fine," Eddie said with a final sigh. "I will go and see your friend the chiropractor. But that doesn't mean I'm gonna be happy about it."
Eddie glanced up from the magazine he was reading when he heard his name get called. A man wearing a dark blue dress shirt and black rimmed glasses had walked into the waiting room, carrying a clipboard. He was grinning at Eddie, who was taken aback by the man's sudden appearance. Eddie looked the man up and down and found himself immediately attracted to him and started to worry about getting treatment from him. But Stan did tell Eddie that Richie was the best, so Eddie decided to suck it up and just go with the flow.
"I'm Eddie," Eddie said as he stood up nervously.
"Hi, Eddie, I'm Richie," Richie said, extending a hand. Eddie shook his hand nervously and grinned at Richie, whose smile seemed to grow. "I've heard a lot about you from Stan the Man, Eds. You seem like a pretty cool guy. I'm glad he recommended you come and see me. But he didn't tell me how handsome you are."
Eddie felt his face heat up and knew he was blushing.
"You always say stuff like that to celebrities?" Eddie asked.
Richie chuckled.
"Only the ones who I actually think are good looking. Most of the Hollywood folk who come through here have had a little too much plastic surgery done on them. You're all natural, Eddie Spaghetti."
"Eddie Spaghetti?" Eddie asked exasperated. "I've never had anyone call me that before."
"Well, then I'd love to be the first," Richie said before he suddenly looked serious. "We'd better get you back to the exam room so I can have a look at you and see what I can do for you, Eds."
"You don't have to call me Eds, you know," Eddie said as he started to follow Richie out of the waiting room. "It's just Eddie."
"I know, but I like to give my patients nicknames. I hope you don't mind."
Eddie shrugged his shoulders and grimaced slightly as Richie opened a door and motioned for him to enter. They walked into the room and Richie shut the door behind him. Eddie sat down on the chair where patients usually got massages and looked around the room nervously as Richie pulled an office chair close to Eddie and sat down, looking at his clipboard.
"I see from your application for an exam that you've been having shoulder pains?" Richie asked. Eddie nodded. "Okay, that's not uncommon with actors and actresses who like to perform their own stunts. How much of your own stunt work do you do, Eds?"
"Most of it. I usually do all of the action sequences that involve hand-to-hand combat, but for like helicopter shots and stuff like that, I usually let a stuntman perform it."
"I like an actor who performs a lot of his own stunts," Richie said with a wink. Eddie grinned at him nervously. "Well, which shoulder is it that's bothering you, Eds?"
"It's my right one," Eddie said as he gestured to it with his left hand. "It's been sore here and there while filming, but it didn't get too bad until I was trying to drive some punches yesterday while filming. It hurt like a bitch."
Richie made a note on his clipboard.
"Anything else bothering you, Eds?" Eddie shook his head. "All right, well how about I have a look at your shoulder and we'll see if I can release some of the tension."
"Okay," Eddie said nervously. "Um, do I need to take off my shirt or anything?"
"Not yet and you don't have to be bashful about it," Richie said with a grin. "I've seen plenty of shirtless guys in my time, Eds. And I'm sure you look incredible anyway."
Eddie chuckled nervously as Richie stood up and walked over to him, rolling up his sleeves.
"Okay, I'm just going to feel your shoulder and the area around it to see how you're doing. You don't have to be nervous, Eddie." Eddie nodded. "Just take a deep breath and know that you're safe."
Eddie nodded and closed his eyes. He took a deep inhale of breath before he let it out. Eddie felt Richie's hands touch his shoulder and he was surprised at how soft Richie's skin was.
"Wow," Richie whispered. "You are incredibly tense up here, Eds."
"How bad is it?"
"Frankly, I'm surprised you haven't been bothered by your shoulder more than you've told me. It's been tense up here for a while, it seems."
"Is there anything you can do?" Eddie asked.
"I can try to loosen the tension, but I think the best solution would be some long term care and for you to take it easy while you're filming."
Eddie groaned.
"I was afraid you'd say that."
"What? You don't want to receive long term care from me?"
Eddie's eyes shot open and he nearly sat up before he remembered that Richie's hands were on his shoulders.
"No, no, you're great," Eddie said hurriedly, causing Richie to chuckle. "I just wish you hadn't said I should take it easy. I prefer doing my own stunt work."
"Let me ask you something, Eddie," said Richie as he took his hands off Eddie's shoulder. Eddie looked up and saw that Richie had a serious expression on his face. "Is it so bad if someone else does your stunt work for you? I mean, isn't that safer?"
Eddie opened his mouth to respond, but nothing came out. Instead, he heard Richie's question and he had to give it some thought. It was true that having a stunt double was safer, but Eddie had always thought of himself as a performer and that part of his role was to do his own stunts. As if reading his mind, Richie spoke up.
"Listen, I get wanting to do most of the leg work," Richie said, giving Eddie a smile. "But you're allowed to take it easy and let someone else do the heavy lifting, Eds. I'm not saying you have to, but I am saying that it's not a bad idea."
Eddie couldn't think of a response so he just nodded.
"Now then, how about you take your shirt off, Eds, and I'll give your shoulder a good rubdown to see if I can relieve some of the pain, all right?"
Eddie nodded nervously as he wordlessly removed his shirt. Richie was busying himself with rubbing some lotion on his hand that Eddie thought smelled like a product he had used as a teenager when he had a sore muscle. It smelled spicy and Eddie knew that it would provide heat on his shoulder.
"All right, Eds, are you ready?" Eddie nodded. "Okay. You can just shut your eyes and relax while I work on your shoulder. You can talk to me if you want or you can just stay quiet. The choice is up to you."
"Okay," Eddie said, taking a deep breath before he felt Richie's hands on his bare shoulder. Eddie gasped quietly, but Richie ignored it as he started to massage Eddie's shoulder. Eddie had to resist the urge to moan out in relief and bit his lip slightly to prevent it.
"I can feel the tension leaving your shoulder," Richie said softly. "Can you feel it, Eds?"
"Yes," Eddie whispered. "You've got the magic hands, Chee."
Richie chuckled as he continued to massage Eddie's shoulder.
"Chee? I like the sound of that, Eds. Maybe we'll be Eds and Chee, the chiropractor and patient crime fighting duo."
Eddie laughed at this and tensed slightly when he felt Richie's hands leave his shoulder.
"Shit, did I do something wrong?" Eddie asked as he raised his head.
"No, no, it's just not a good idea for me to massage your shoulder if you laugh, Eds. It can interfere with the tension."
"Okay, sorry," Eddie said sheepishly as he rested his head again.
"It's okay, Eds. Just relax. I'm almost done with your shoulder. I've got most of the tension out, but you'll definitely be sore for a few days."
Eddie nodded, but didn't say anything, afraid that he would start laughing again. He couldn't explain it, but he knew that Richie had some sort of effect on him where he found everything just a little bit funnier than he should. He couldn't explain it, but he knew he liked it.
"You know, I'd love to come see you filming sometime, Eds," Richie said thoughtfully.
"Come by the set tomorrow," Eddie replied. "We won't be filming much, but they might try and have me reshoot one of the punches. It wouldn't do too much to my shoulder, I don't think. Plus, I'd love to have you there."
"Really?" Richie asked as he stopped massaging Eddie's shoulder again. "I would love to, Eds, but I really don't think you should try reshooting the punch so soon after getting a massage."
"I'll live," Eddie said. "A little pain never hurt me too badly."
Richie sighed.
"I can see I'm not going to be able to talk you out of this," he said as he sighed. "All right. I'll come by the set tomorrow. Goodness knows you might need me to help heal your shoulder if you try to reshoot that punch."
"I'd love for you to come, Chee," Eddie repeated. "You seem like a really cool guy."
"So do you, Eds," Richie said as he started washing his hands. "We're done, by the way. You can sit up if you'd like."
Eddie sat up and reached for his shirt and hurriedly pulled it over his chest before Richie was done washing his hands and looked at him with a smile.
"How do you feel?"
"Much better, thank you. I knew Stan said you were good, but he didn't tell me you were this good."
Richie beamed.
"Aw, shucks, Eds. You slay me with your kind words!" he said, miming being stabbed in the chest.
Eddie rolled his eyes.
"You're a dork. But I really like you, Chee. I hope we can continue to be friends, even after you're done treating me."
"I'd like that, too, Eds."
Eddie grimaced as he lunged forward to throw a punch at John. He tried to ignore the pain, but he felt his shoulder tensing up and it was nearly impossible to ignore. His discomfort must've shown on his face because Stan yelled, "Cut!" before Eddie could do anything else. Eddie grabbed his shoulder and started to rub it when he saw Richie hurrying over to him.
"I told you that you shouldn't have tried this," Richie said in a disapproving tone.
"I know, I know," Eddie replied. "I just couldn't help it, Chee. I wanted to show you something other than me just talking."
"Eds, I would've been fine just watching you talk," Richie chastised. "You don't have to show off for me. I'm already impressed with you. Now, listen, I talked to Stan the Man right when he yelled "Cut!" and I told him that I ought to take you back to your trailer and give you another massage. He said that was a good idea."
Eddie sighed.
"All right, I'll show you where it is."
Eddie turned and led Richie off the set and outside. His trailer was the closest one to the set and it was the largest of the bunch. As the primary star of the film, Eddie tended to have luxuries the others did not. He opened the door and led Richie inside his trailer.
"Wow, you've got a nice place here, Eds," Richie said, impressed. "You could almost live here full-time if you really wanted to."
"I basically do when we're filming," Eddie replied as he sat down on a barstool. "So, what do you think?"
"I think you should get the same massage as yesterday. Luckily for you, I brought the same stuff with me because I had a feeling I would need it."
"You're the best, Chee," Eddie said as he took his shirt off and threw it onto the bar.
"Yes, I know, darling, I know" Richie replied in a voice that perfectly mimicked Edna from The Incredibles . Eddie giggled at Richie's accent as Richie applied the stuff to his hands.
Richie put his hands on Eddie, who groaned slightly at the contact. Richie's face heated up and he was grateful Eddie couldn't see. Instead, he focused on massaging Eddie's shoulder, which seemed to have more tension than it did the day before.
"You know, I've never met anyone quite like you, Chee," Eddie said softly.
"What do you mean, Eds?"
"Well, I don't know how to explain it, but I feel a connection to you. I usually don't make friends as easily as I have with you."
"You think of me as a friend?" Richie interrupted.
"Of course," Eddie said. "You treated me just like a normal person yesterday. I'm not used to that, Chee. So thank you."
"Well you deserve it, Eds," Richie said slowly as his face heated up again. He suddenly found he wasn't at all focused on massaging Eddie's shoulder. "You deserve to have all of the friends you want. You're incredible, Eds."
Richie stopped massaging Eddie as Eddie sat up and looked deep into his eyes. Suddenly, Richie felt nervous, but he couldn't help but stare right back at Eddie.
"You're such a nice person, Eds, I could see that right away," Richie continued, unsure where this conversation was heading. "And you were so nice to me, unlike some people in Hollywood I've worked with. And I just...I just..."
In his mind, Richie said, "Fuck it!" before he leaned forward. Eddie's eyes widened but he didn't stop Richie before Richie's lips were locked with his own. Richie cupped Eddie's cheeks and Eddie got a whiff of the material Richie had been using to soothe his shoulder. It smelled minty and warm and Eddie knew he would always associate it with Richie. They kissed deeply for several seconds, with Eddie grabbing onto Richie's neck and deepening the kiss before they both broke from it, gasping for air.
"I just wanted you to know how amazing you are," Richie finished, chuckling nervously.
Eddie smiled at him.
"You are too, Chee," he whispered. "I can't believe we just did that."
"Me neither. You know, this probably means you'll need to find a new chiropractor. You know, since it's frowned upon for me to date one of my patients."
"Maybe you can just give me private massages," Eddie teased.
"Private massages? Now, Eds, you'd better not be thinking dirty..."
"Shut up and kiss me again, you fool."
Richie giggled as he leaned forward and obeyed Eddie. They kissed each other for hours that afternoon. And although Eddie's shoulder was prickling from tension still, he found that his mind was too focused on Richie. He knew his shoulder could wait. He had all the time in the world to get massages from Richie to make it feel better.