Hide and Seek [A Shartney Fanfic]

I: Shayne, Where Are We?

"So, it's just us, huh?" Shayne asks Courtney. It was settled in the meeting that they'd be representing Smosh in the Largest Creator Hide and Seek.
"Yeah. Wouldn't that be fun?" She beams,
"Hell, yeah." He lightly chuckles.
Shayne was ecstatic. Though it wasn't really plastered on his face, mentally, he was in celebration. Courtney, too was feeling the same way. And she couldn't help but smirk at the news. They were always up for any Squad Vlog shoot. It was one of the shows they love filming. And who isn't excited to leave Los Angeles even for just a few days? It's like a little getaway vacation, with a side of work.

"Ohh, seems like an awesome shipper move." They heard Saige say to Ian when they were almost out of the door of the pitch meeting room.
"Duh, of course." Ian replied smugly.

Damn. Shayne thought. Of course Ian was teasing enough to send him instead of somebody else. He clearly could tell.

Oh. Courtney had turned an awful red. Suddenly embarrassed. She walks away in very big and fast strides in attempt to shrug it all off.
Shayne plays it all calmly and pretends not to hear, diving his head downward to his phone.

But without knowing it, they both liked the idea of just them in Texas. Courtney couldn't complain about being alone with Shayne. And as she stood in the mirror of their office restroom, the crimson of her face had turned move visible than ever. Middle school crush. Fuck that.
Shayne had never had a video with just Courtney in forever. And so, this wasn't really bad news. He knows, inside himself, shamelessly, he was happy about this. And that he couldn't seem to wait any longer.

•••
A week had past. And all seemed to have just hit them. They were unloading their baggages, parked just by the unloading area of the hotel they were staying in for the next few days.
Finally. Dallas, Texas! Courtney thought as she looks up to the high buildings across from her. She breathes in relief and astonishment. And suddenly, Josh Mattingly stands besides her. He too was staring at the same direction she was.
"So, you and Shayne, huh?" He asks. Taking her by surprise by his question,
"Oh, god, no." She shakes her head and laughs nervously in reply.
"Really? Doesn't seem like it." He shrugs,
"Yeah, no. Absolutely nothing there." This had truth to it. Nothing was there. Of course. How could there be? Crazy, even he anticipated that Shartney would be endgame.
"We're all set now," Shayne appears. Backpack strapped on his left shoulder and swinging along Courtney's carry on bag on his hand. Standing awkwardly meters away from the hotel's front door.
"You two should go up now. Get some rest and I will see you guys tomorrow." Josh Mattingly pats both Shayne and Courtney's shoulder before stepping back to his car. The duo watched him as he drove off before getting inside the lobby. Taking their hotel key and rode on the elevator to the third floor. Courtney's mind was still thinking back on what Josh had said earlier. God, was I that obvious? Her mind was caught up to it too much that she's forgotten to pay attention to the things around her and her body was switched to autopilot control. Shayne was overthinking as well, getting giddy by the minute, and scared shitless about how tomorrow would go. They've gotten to their room without a word, but with multitude of thoughts swirling around their heads.

They shared a room with separate beds and Courtney decided to go for a quick shower while Shayne informed Ian that they had landed and had gotten to the hotel already.
"How's the flight?" Ian asked him,
"It was pretty okay. I slept the whole way, and so did Courtney." Shayne replied finding himself leaning out of the window.
"Where's Courtney?" Lisa, who was in front of Ian, spoke behind the phone.
"In the shower," Shayne replied, looking behind him and pointing towards the bathroom door.
"Are you all settled for tomorrow?" Shayne wasn't sure how to answer. He knew he had to be, because they were here and there's for sure no turning back now. But something inside of him wasn't ready. He'd never been to any event like this, and it so surreal and overwhelming that for once he had been invited to take part of this. For the first time he knew he had to act like the YouTuber that he is. That he should feel like a Youtuber even.
"Yeah, of course, we're settled." He replied with little a choice, and hated that he said we instead of I. What if Courtney wasn't ready? He thought. But realized soon enough that Courtney may as well be tough enough to take on the challenge. Excited even.
"Well, I should leave you both to rest now. Call me if you need anything. We also need to shoot one last scene." Ian says. Shayne tells him goodbye and puts his phone down for a while. Taking a deep breath as he took a place on the couch and stared at the static of the television in front of him.
"Who was that?" Courtney asks, exiting the bathroom, fully clothed.
"Just updated Ian that we're already in our hotel room." Shayne replies.
"Oh, okay." She nods. Sitting on the couch just a bit away from him to his right. Even though there were no signs to show it, Courtney felt Shayne's clouding fear. It was hidden behind his eyes that hesitated every time she looks at them. "Are you scared about tomorrow, Shania?"
Shit. This was the exact question. Shayne knows Courtney already had an idea of what the answer would be. He was glad Courtney could read him. Unable to vocalise his fear for himself.
"Yes," he replied, "I mean, definitely," He tried to sound casual. He didn't want to send fear to her, too. Somebody had to be confident tomorrow.
"Me too, man." Crap. Now they're both anxious. "But hey, I'm sure it's gonna be fun." Shayne draws a breathe of relief. Good thing Courtney had a bit of optimism with her, and also her contagious smile.
"For sure, it will be." With her everything's fun and he knows it. Maybe things would turn out better than he thinks. Courtney was relieved to see a smile formed in Shayne's face. It's kinda excruciating to see him freaking out.
•••
"Hey, I saw a grill just outside the hotel. I just feel like we have to go there, plus, we still hadn't have dinner yet...so what do you say?" Courtney cuts the silence between them as they animatedly watched the early evening news.
"Yeah, let's head down." Shayne said, yawning and helping himself up. Courtney was instantly on her feet, walking to the bathroom to take a quick glimpse of herself.

They were out again. The hotel's main lobby was busier than ever. People coming in and out and hotel crews running around.
When they got into the grill house that Courtney was talking about, almost all the tables were occupied. But somehow, they found a place in the corner. A table for two against the wall.
Around them were mostly a family of four, probably from the hotel, too. The whole place was warm-lighted, and the atmosphere smelled like grill, of course. Just meaty and mouth-watering.
"You we're so right about bring us here. Judging by the way it smells, must be good food." Shayne says.

Courtney takes a picture of the place, and proceeds to take a selfie, then another picture with Shayne on it. And lastly a snap of the food.
•••
Courtney insisted of walking around for a bit. And because Shayne couldn't find anything good to do back in the hotel, he tags along. It was windy, and Courtney kept on pushing her hair away from her face. Shayne laughs at her as she struggled. Though deep inside he'd found it endearing. They were striding ahead instinctively. No direction to follow, or a certain destination to reach. They just kept walking away from the hotel. And as they did this, Shayne felt as if he weren't breathing anymore. Courtney was laughing and chattering off, and her hair was flying away, and would casually get inside her mouth, and she'd laugh even louder. She looks so careless. And he was there, mesmerized. The scenery around him was marvellous and bright, but it was nothing compared to how she was under the light of the traffic. Natural. This made him glad that he were here. Despite the nervousness he had felt when they had landed.
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Hello!
You've just finished the first chapter! How was it? Hope ya had fun! Second chapter will be posted soon!<33