Norman Reedus Imagines

An unconvential affair (Norman)

The morning sun has you squinting as you cross the street to the convention center, passing the lines of people, some sporting elaborate costumes, that are already eager to get in, and head along the side of the building to a less populated entrance. Showing your credentials to the security guard manning the door, you make your way through the back corridors to the staging area for guests and scan the already crowded room. As you suspected, your charge hasn't arrived yet so you make your way over to the heavily-laden breakfast buffet and help yourself to a pastry and a cup of strong coffee, knowing you're going to need it to get through the day. You talk to a few people you know in passing, catching up on events since the last convention and then you take up a position on one of the over-stuffed sofas from where you can watch the door for new arrivals, enjoying the rest while you can in the face of the crazy day ahead of you.

You watch as other guests come and go, taking a quick breakfast before meeting up with their handlers and heading out to their appointed spots. Checking the time on your phone, you sigh, thinking you could have taken an extra hour in bed this morning but knowing if you had, he would have probably been early for once and you would have been in trouble. Your head shoots up at the sound of a commotion by the door and finally you see him, his smile wide, as he makes his way into the room throwing out handshakes, back slaps and kisses to nearly everyone he passes until he spots you and makes a beeline in your direction. You stand up to meet him, unable to stop the smile that's splitting your own face as he pushes his sunglasses up onto the top of his head and wraps his arms around your waist to lift you up in a crushing hug.

"MEL!" he yells before kissing your cheek and lowering you back to the floor.

"Hi Norman," you reply, feeling his hands resting intimately on your hips, letting you know exactly what type of weekend you're in for. "You ready for this?"

"Hell yeah!" he exclaims. "But first, coffee."

You laugh as he releases you and turns to the breakfast table, giving you the opportunity to say hello to Clark who greets you with a warm hug.

"Okay, what say we go set up while the diva gets his breakfast?" Clark asks, ignoring the finger Norman flips him from the other end of the table where he's trying to decide what to eat first.

"Sure," you tell him, gathering up your purse.

"You," Clark says, pointing an authoritative finger at Norman, "stay right here, I'll be back for you in 15 minutes. "

"Yes, mom," Norman mumbles around a mouthful of food, winking at you as you follow Clark out of the room and into the bustling convention hall.

The entire space is a riot of noise and color already, everywhere you look you see zombies staring back at you and Norman's alter-ego emblazoned on everything from t-shirts to shot glasses. There's already a sizeable crowd at his booth, mostly women, chattering animatedly among themselves and giving a small cheer as Clark moves behind the table. You work efficiently together as a team, setting out the piles of photos for fans to have signed, making sure Norman has an ample supply of Sharpies in all colors and lining up the promo pieces for him to sign for various vendors at the show. As you work, you try to avoid eye contact with any of the fans at the front of the line, knowing that inevitably one or more of them will approach you with requests for special treatment – extra time with Norman, more than one photo and so on. You keep your head down and let the event staff deal with them as you get everything set up the way you know Norman likes it.

With everything laid out to his satisfaction, Clark gives you a nod and heads out to collect Norman and bring him back, leaving you to finish prepping. Your mind wanders a little and you find yourself thinking about Norman, naturally, surprised to realize that it's been a year already since you first met, actually at the very same convention that you're at now. You'd been working for his management company for some time but your paths had never crossed until his regular handler had quit on short notice and you were the only one available to step in. That first weekend had been insane, you had worked the convention circuit before but never for a celebrity with such a large following or who was quite as unique as Norman. What started off as a fairly sedate crowd of people, nicely paced and not too demanding on the Friday evening had degenerated into utter chaos by the time Saturday had rolled around, the number of people easily tripling as Norman entertained each and every one of them who lined up to see him. You weren't sure you had ever laughed so hard or been so frustrated in a single day so, when he had invited you out for drinks when it was all over, you felt that you absolutely deserved to go. The fun didn't stop when you reached the hotel bar, a large group of the cast and their friends gathering to let their hair down, until you were way drunker than you intended and Norman was glued to your side like a Koala. Not sure if it was just the alcohol clouding your mind or if it was actually happening, you felt quite certain that Norman was flirting with you, had been all day in fact as you thought back over it and you had found that you were enjoying it probably a little more than you should have been, given that he was technically your boss for the weekend.