VALENTINA - dylan kingwell

CH1 "unbelievable"

Valentina De Luca hated mornings, especially when she had to wake up early for her part-time job at the local café before heading to school. At 17, senior year was supposed to be all fun and freedom. Instead, it felt like every morning was a race against the clock. She threw on her favorite oversized hoodie, grabbed her bag, and jogged downstairs.

"Morning, Val!" her mom called out from the kitchen."Hey, mom. I'm late, love you!" Valentina responded, barely managing to stuff a piece of toast in her mouth before heading out. The walk to school wasn't long, but today, something felt different. There were whispers among the students, hushed conversations that stopped when Valentina passed by.

"What's going on?" she asked her best friend, Kelly, who was waiting for her by the entrance."Dylan Kingwell's back," Kelly replied, her eyes wide with excitement. "You know, that actor? He's been gone filming for months in LA, but now he's back in town. I heard he's hanging around more, maybe even at some of the school events."

Valentina rolled her eyes. "Oh, great. Another white boy to feed everyone's obsession." Kelly laughed. "Come on, you have to admit, he's fucking fine. But I heard he's kind of a bitch—won't even talk to most people unless he has to."

Valentina shrugged. She couldn't care less. It wasn't like she'd run into him anyway. She had more important things to think about—like surviving another week of school drama, Jake constantly trying to get with her, from the football team, and getting through her shift later.

Dylan hated being back in Vancouver, mostly because he knew people here never saw him as just Dylan. It was always "Dylan Kingwell, the actor." The guy who was on TV. The one who made everyone stare when he walked into a room. It got old fast.

He adjusted the strap of his hockey bag as he headed toward the rink, deciding to skate a bit before his day got busier. Skating was the one thing that cleared his mind, away from the cameras and the pressure.

That, and his friends—his real friends who didn't care about his fame. As he rounded the corner to the rink, he spotted a girl walking toward him, lost in thought and on her phone. She had dark brown hair tucked into her hoodie, and there was something about her stride that caught his eye.

Without thinking, he walked straight into her path. Valentina didn't notice the guy until it was too late. She bumped into him hard, stumbling slightly. "Watch it," she muttered, looking up to find herself staring into the face of none other than Dylan Kingwell. Great. Just her luck.

Dylan barely blinked. "You're the one not paying attention." His voice had a casual coldness to it that rubbed her the wrong way. Valentina crossed her arms, matching his energy. "Maybe you should look where you're going next time."

He raised an eyebrow but said nothing, just looked her over once, sizing her up, before walking past her like nothing had happened."Unbelievable," she muttered under her breath as she walked away, but she couldn't ignore the slight flutter in her stomach from meeting a celebrity.

The day was dragging on, and by the time Valentina made it to lunch, her mind was still on the weird encounter. She tried to push it aside, but Kelly wasn't helping."So, did you see him yet?" Kelly asked, nudging her excitedly."Who? Dylan? Yeah, I ran into him—literally." Valentina took a bite of her sandwich, acting nonchalant. Val is everything but nonchalant.

"And? What's he like in person? Does he talk like he does in interviews ?" Kelly was practically bouncing in her seat. Valentina shrugged. "He's... whatever. Kind of a cunt, actually." Kelly laughed.

"That's what I've heard. Guess fame does that to people." Valentina glanced around the cafeteria, spotting Jake, the ever-persistent football player, making his way over to her. She groaned internally."Hey, Val," Jake said with a cocky grin.

"You going to the game this weekend? We could chill at mine after." Before she could respond, Sam, her closest guy friend, swooped in, sliding into the seat next to her. "Sorry, Jake. We've already got plans," he said, giving her a wink.

Jake's expression darkened slightly, but he masked it with a smile. "Yeah, sure. See you around, Val." "Thanks for the save," Valentina said with a laugh as Jake walked off."No problem," Sam replied, his tone light. "That guy needs to quit bro, he's been trying to get with you for months."

Dylan had ended up at the same café where Valentina worked, mostly by accident. He was waiting for his friends, scrolling through his phone when he spotted her behind the counter.

She looked different than she had earlier—more in control of her space, as if this was her domain."Small world," he muttered to himself as she walked over to take his order.

Valentina didn't even acknowledge him at first, her eyes fixed on the notepad in her hand. "What can I get for you?" she asked, her tone professional.Dylan raised an eyebrow, intrigued by how different she seemed. "I'll take a black coffee.""Sure," she replied, scribbling it down.

There was no recognition in her eyes, no flustered reaction like he was used to from people when they realized who he was. She treated him like just another customer.For some reason, that bugged him more than it should have.

NOTE:
This story is set in the same universe as my other fanfiction "Vera - Walker scobell" where my OC is a Hollywood actress and just finished filming a Sci-fi movie starring Dylan.
So there will be a few mentions of that here, but it's not necessary to read it of course.