A Few Weeks

Chapter 10

Y/N stared in silence but quickly regained her composure. She could do this. She would let all the emotions out when she got done with the meeting. But, for right now, she needed to stay professional. Luckily most of the meeting was her taking notes setting meetings, or keeping track of information. When the meeting ended, Y/N quickly left the zoom and focused on work.

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A month and a half later, Y/N was happily walking to the sound stage. Production had decided to work on other areas of the film and go back to what was being shot in the UK later on. After the first zoom, Tom had sent her a text message saying he was sorry again and would like to talk about what happened. Y/N wrote backing, saying there was no need and no hard feelings. She had a job to do first and foremost and wasn't going to let anyone stop her from doing it to the best of her ability. She had prepared for today. She knew Tom would be on set. She had two lists on her portfolio binder she carried around. The first, although not titled as such, were Things to Talk About w/ Tom. This list was in case Tom tried to start anything other than a professional conversation with her. The second list was Things To Do If With Tom, which had all sorts of tasks that could either distract her or altogether remove her from the situation.

The day had been lovely. Tom had been working with lines and makeup and directors, so he never had a free moment, and if he did, luckily, Y/N didn't. She got home feel better than she had in weeks. An excellent first day had fanned the flames of being on set.

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Three weeks later, Y/N had been having a string of bad luck. Sophie had found a job in New York a few weeks ago and was leaving tomorrow. Filming had ramped up in hopes of trying to make up for lost time, and she arrived home every day dead tired. Plus, Tom had a new assistant who happened to look just like her, and as much as she told herself, it didn't hurt or matter - it did.

"Hey, you almost ready?" Y/N called to Sophie.

"Yes, but like I said, we don't have to go out. I know work is exhausting for you right now." Sophie tried to reason.

"ARE YOU KIDDING?! My best friend has gotten a job in New York. There isn't a chance in the world that I wouldn't be celebrating and going out with her one last time before she leaves. Now let's go!" Y/N exclaimed

They went to dinner at their favorite restaurant then went to several bars and clubs, meeting up with friends and colleagues along the way. One of the writers they had become friends with suggested they go to Daz, a very high-end club a few blocks from where they had been. The club was nice. It had lots of seating tucked into all sorts of corners, and although it still had a dance floor, it was a calmer, more seductive feel to the entire place. Y/N sat with Sophie and company around a table and got a drink enjoying spending time away from work and life. A new song came on over the sound system, and Sophie grabbed Y/N had and pulled her to the floor. They danced and laughed for the rest of the evening. Eventually, the night came to an end, though, and Sophie had enjoyed one or two drinks more than she should've and was keeping Y/N busy in trying to round up their things to leave. Right as they were walking out, Y/N spotted him out of the corner of her eye. Sitting in a corner booth by himself was Tom. He already had his eyes on her because the second he had noticed her, he hadn't been able to tear them away. Something inside Y/N started aching. She could see the pain in his eyes. She recognized it from what she saw in the mirror. He had seemed just fine on set and in meetings, but she realized he must have been hiding it just like she had. She hadn't truly gotten over everything. She had just learned to live with it. Sophie started to gag, pulling Y/N out of her stare and caused her to rush outside, barely making it in time for Sophie to get sick in the plants.

"Come on, Soph let's get you home," Y/N said more to herself than Sophie.

The following day Sophie was packing the last of her stuff into her suitcase for the plane. Y/N was standing at the door trying to be excited for her best friend and trying to hid how lonely she knew she would be without her. Sophie's phone dinged with the notification of the arrival of her uber taking her to the airport. They hurried to pick up the last of her things, and Y/N promised she would either mail anything she had left or give it to her when she came to visit. They hugged and got teary-eyed saying goodbye, and Y/N watched from the front step as Sophie rode towards the airport.

A hand on her shoulder startled her. She quickly turned around and was surprised to see Tom.

"Jesus Christ! What the fuck! You scared the shit out of me." Y/N explained as she clutched her chest.

"I'm sorry su-" He had started to say sunflower but stopped. Y/N noticed, and him not saying it killed her. But Tom continued before she could say anything. "I'm sorry, and I know I am not the person you probably want to see, but I knew Sophie was leaving today, and I just wanted to stop by and see if you were doing okay and give you this." He extended his hand with a book in it. Chicken Soup for the Sisters Soul. Y/N laughed at the ridiculous book in his hands, and Tom smiled. Silence fell between them, and both their smiles faded with the weight that hung in the air. Tom broke the silence first, saying, "I guess I will go - if you need anything, I am always here for you." Y/N grabbed his hand and paused as she tried to figure out what to say. She wanted him back in her life. She wanted to smile with him and share books and thoughts with him. " I ... you .... I'm sorry. I made mistakes too. And it wasn't fair of me to not let you clarify or talk about it. Everybody makes mistakes, and I can't expect someone to not make them. If you'd be willing, I would like you to stay. And maybe if you do, you can forgive me, and we can try this thing over again. But for real and just the two of us." She didn't know how to stop talking now that she had started. "Because you know I love Seb and everything but not like you, and he is more of a friend or big brother anyway. I think this could be really good, but I am bad at relation -." She was cut off by Tom pulling her into a deep and passionate kiss. He had heard everything he needed to. She had said she loved him without even realizing that's what she had said. The kiss seemed to tell the rest, and as they came up for air, Y/N, "So, you caught the I love you part then." Tom chuckled to himself and placed a soft kiss on her nose, whispering, "Yeah, Sunflower, I did. I love you too."