𝐣𝐨𝐤𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫. | 𝐛𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐛𝐲 𝐛.

chapter one.

a wave of warmth contrasted the cold  as she stepped into the building. the winter air was freezing outside, but inside the nice studio, it was much warmer. kai lenore had recently put an application in there to act as some new 'neighbor' in their soon to be christmas special. she'd only recently moved nearby, and needed a job desperately. she had rent to pay and multiple mouths to feed.

her blonde hair fell in loose waves around her face and shoulders. her brown eyes were glued to the script in her hand as she stood just inside the door. her brown fur jacket and red turtleneck kept her warm in the winter weather, just as her flared jeans did. obviously, the heels didn't help much, but everything else did. she walked up to the front desk, script still held in her hands with the neatly painted nails. she looked anxiously at the receptionist, her red lips giving a smile as she waited. she was nervous as all hell to start this job. she knew nobody and nothing about this program.

finally, the receptionist sent her back to the set where everyone would rehearse for the broadcast later on. she walked down the hall and moved into the green room to hang her coat up. she set her script down on the chair below her as she hung the jacket up on one of the hooks. as she stepped back a bit, she felt a tap on her shoulder. the unexpected tap startled her, causing a little yelp to leave her lips as she turned around.
" oh my! sorry to frighten you! "
the voice almost startled her too, she took in a deep breath as she looked at the man in front of her.

he had a larger build with blue-ish hair. he had darker skin and lidded eyes that made him look relaxed at almost every second. oh god, she'd already embarrassed herself in front of someone she might be working with! a nervous smile formed on her lips.
" oh, no, you don't have to apologize! i'm new, and i just got here, so i'm pretty easily startled, heh- "
she explained immediately, shaking her head aimlessly. a warm smile spread on the face in front of her.
" oh, don't you worry! sorry to spook you on your first day, miss. "
his voice was something she honestly wanted to listen to forever. there was a pause of silence.
" wait, you said you're new? are you perhaps workin' on the show with us? "
he asked, a bigger smile showing up on his face. she smiled, nodding.
" yeah, i uh- yeah. i signed up to be here for the christmas special y'all are putting on. i'm glad i got accepted. " 
she explained quietly, looking away. a small blush dusted her cheeks as she smiled bashfully. she never got like this, why now?

soon, they both got back to the set. kai curled the ends of her hair nervously around her finger. there were so many people, so many things she had to say. there were a million things she could mess up. but there was no pressure, she could tell. the people around her all seemed so friendly. but that was okay. she'd be okay. but looking over her script, she realized that she only really had a little scene with the blue-haired man from earlier. a smile crossed her lips as she looked over the lines that she had. she hoped she could keep the job as something long-term.

after two hours of rehearsing, the time came. she felt anxiety wash over her, this would be her first time on tv! especially live, too! the blonde calmed her nerves, biting her lip to keep the peace. she hadn't messed up much during the rehearsal, now she just needed to do the same thing. 'pretend there's no camera,' she thought, giving herself a reassuring pep talk in her head. she could do it. she had to do it.

she watched everyone performing their scenes, her eyes wide with an impressed expression. they were good at this. so much better than she was, just some newbie on her first day. she was destined to mess up. she sucked in a deep breath as they cut to commercials, calling her forward. in the moment, she learned that the man was named barnaby. alright.. at least she could call him by his name now. the countdown began, the people behind the camera shouting. 5.. 4.. 3.. 2.. 1.. action!

her breath caught in her throat as the scene began. a simple bump into barnaby.
" oh! sorry i didn't see you there! hm.. you don't look like one of our neighbors! are you new? "
he spoke, giving his voice the slightest exaggeration. she smiled.
" yes, i'm new to the neighborhood. my name's kai. "
" well, welcome home, neighbor! "