bed chem | drew starkey

CHAPTER 16

EARLY DECEMBER 2023

The set was alive with the sound of crew members bustling around, preparing for the next take. Aurora and Drew were in position, ready to film a pivotal scene between their characters, Amelia and Rafe.

Drew's character, Rafe, looked at her with intense eyes, his voice filled with urgency. "Lia, I couldn't let them win."

Amelia, her character, stood her ground, frustration and concern in her voice as she faced him. "Is it always going to be Kooks vs. Pogues rafe? We're all human, can we get past that? Can we—"

Before she could finish her sentence, Rafe (Drew) took a bold step forward, his hand reaching up to gently touch her cheek, cutting her off as he pulled her into a deep, unexpected kiss.

Aurora's mind raced. That wasn't part of the script, she thought, momentarily caught off guard. But as Rafe picked her up and deepened the kiss, she couldn't help but follow his lead, feeling a rush of electricity between them.

Then, Jonas's voice rang out, cutting the moment short. "Cut!" he shouted with a grin. "That was amazing, you two. Great improvisation, Drew!"

Drew pulled away, clearly pleased with himself, and gave Jonas a wink. "Thanks," he said, his voice light and playful.

Aurora blinked, still processing what had just happened. "That wasn't in the script," she said softly, a little dazed.

Drew shrugged, his grin never leaving his face. "Sometimes, you've just got to improvise, baby" he said, his eyes gleaming.

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Aurora kicked back on her trailer's couch, dialing Mia's number with one hand while the other ran through her hair. She still couldn't shake the feeling of Drew's kiss, and she knew she had to tell Mia immediately.

"Mia, you won't believe what just happened," Aurora said as soon as Mia picked up.

Mia's voice was full of excitement. "what?"

Aurora let out a big breath. "so, we were filming this scene, right? all normal. everything was going like usual—until drew kissed me."

Mia let out an exaggerated gasp. "wait, what? in the scene? or... out of nowhere?"

Aurora flopped back on the couch. "out of nowhere, mia! we were doing the scene, and i was talking about, you know, the whole 'kooks vs. pogues' thing, and next thing i know, he just kisses me."

There was a long pause on the other end of the line before Mia burst out laughing. "no. freaking. way. was that in the script?"

Aurora shook her head, still in disbelief. "nope, not at all. i mean, my brain totally short-circuited. i wasn't expecting it. he pulled me in, picked me up, and—deepened the kiss. it was... intense, mia. i didn't even know what to do."

Mia was practically squealing on the other end of the line. "did you kiss him back?"

Aurora ran a hand over her face. "i—yeah, i guess. i mean, what else was i supposed to do? it was so sudden. it felt... good, but also confusing. and then jonas yelled 'cut,' like nothing happened, and drew just says 'sometimes you gotta improvise, baby'"

Mia let out a dramatic sigh. "oh my god, i'm living for this. this is what i signed up for. but seriously, you have to admit, it's been obvious since season 2 that drew has a thing for you. everyone's been waiting for this."

Aurora groaned, covering her face with her hands. "i know, but i've always been oblivious to it! like, i thought it was just friendly banter or whatever. but now? i'm like... what the hell is going on?"