Hinder • {Bill Skarsgård}

||Chapter Two||

Staring blankly into nothing, Ella saw him. She remembered the look in his eyes when he told her he was moving back to Stockholm. It had been over seven years since she had seen him face to face—seven years since she had heard his voice, other than coming from the television.

Although Ella was happy that Bill Skarsgård had become a household name and that his hard work had finally paid off, it pained her to have to see him regularly.

It all began with Allegiant—that ridiculous series that had about as much recognition as the Hunger Games.

That was when she saw her—Bill's current muse. Ella wondered if she knew of her; his secret wife.

Neither of them had approached the subject of divorce; both had been too stubborn to speak to one another to resolve the situation. Ella had blamed it on distance, knowing that requesting a dissolution of marriage would force Bill to go back California—it would also force Ella to have to do the same.

When she saw that he had taken his new love interest to the premiere of his first starring Hollywood film, it caused Ella to distance herself further. If his new lover knew nothing of her existence, it would only cause problems for Bill.

Ella refused to be the cause of his pain anymore. He had moved on, and so had she; it didn't make it hurt any less.

She was waiting on Bill to make the move—Ella decided the moment she left that apartment complex in Los Angeles that she would never marry again if given the opportunity, nor ever bare children.

Bill garnered even more success in Ella's absence. He had gone on to do three American motion pictures; two of which were major. The release of his final film had taken him to overnight stardom. He had played the notorious child eating clown by the name of Pennywise in a Stephen King adaptation. It was coincidental that Ella had told Bill once that he'd make a good Jack Torrence—another adaptation to a horrifying Stephen King novel.

"What are you thinking about?" A voice broke through Ella's thoughts, causing her eyes to water as she began to blink. She had been staring into nothing for so long she had lost track of time—there was no telling how long her eyes had been open.

"Nothing. Just got lost in a trance, I guess." Ella shrugged, wishing to erase the memory of ever meeting him.

Ella looked up to see Shay pouring herself a cup of coffee. Her long blonde hair hanging in waves past her waist.

"Mm. Weird." Shay chuckled, turning to rummage through the cabinets over the stove.

"So how's Dean getting along? I feel like I haven't talked to him in days." Ella said, crossing her legs at the marble island.

"You live with him, how have you not seen him?" Shay laughed again, this time with hidden traces of annoyance.

Shay saw Dean more than Ella ever did. She was his assistant—Ella, his girlfriend. Ella considered Shay a great friend; her only friend aside from Dean himself.

"He stays locked up in his office most nights. I'm at the firm most of the day, so-" Ella sighed.

She felt accomplished that she had gone through law school, but felt herself to be a pencil pusher. She had recently graduated; for three years she had been buried in books, memorizing ridiculous laws—all to sit behind a desk and give lawyers case files. The pay was worth it; the dream, not so much.

But then there was Dean.

They had met in a coffee shop while Ella was studying—Dean, writing a screenplay. He was older, with medium length brown hair and a beard that needed trimming. He had green eyes, but not piecing ones like that of her husband. He looked to be an unorthodox professor with full framed glasses and a mediocre nose. His lips were thin, but had a smile that was contagious.

Dean was interesting. He had written and produced many plays, but decided to venture out into the world of film. Right off the bat, Bad Robot Productions signed off on his idea. It was exciting—Ella had never seen the way films worked from the other side; it was fascinating.

"You guys should really go out. Maybe make a bi-weekly date night that neither of you can bail on, no matter what. That's what Todd and I do." Shay smiled wide, shrugging cutely.

Ella wanted to roll her eyes, but refrained. Shay was a newlywed—date nights were easy in the beginning. But then things get complicated; somewhere along the way, things change. There was simply no need for Shay and Todd to have "date nights," they were still getting used to sleeping in the same bed and sharing the same toilet.

The front door opened, causing them to look toward the hall.

"There he is! We were just talking about you." Shay gushed.

"Two women alone talking about a man, is never a good thing." Dean spoke with a smile, setting a stack of papers down on the kitchen island. "It's done. Everything... is done." Dean beamed, making prayer hands with closed eyes; the sight quite comical.

"Really? Did- did you get him?" Shay covered her mouth with her hands, looking to be holding her breath with anticipation.

"Get who?" Ella's gaze shifted between the pair; her brows kneading together as she questioned what they were talking about.

"Yes. Yes, we got him." Dean nodded as Shay grabbed a hold of him, pulling him into a tight embrace. He took a step back, handing Shay and Ella some papers that lay on top of the drafted script.

Ella read through the documents and the signatures, unsure of what she was supposed to be looking at. She saw that the handwriting looked familiar, but was incapable of figuring out where she had seen it before.

It was nearly all scribbles, except for the first letter.

"Oh, and here's the rest of the cast. But that, baby... that right there, is money." Dean smacked his hands together with a loud clap. "We got him!" Dean draped his arms across Ella's shoulders, pulling her into his side giving her an audible smooch on the temple.

"Who did you get?" Ella asked, continuing to stare at the signature. If she stared long enough, she was bound to figure out who's it was.

"Bill. Fucking. Skarsgård."

In that moment, Ella's entire world stopped. Her heart didn't know whether it wanted to leap out of her chest or fall into the pit of her stomach. A knot rose in the back of her throat; an ache that burned like no other.

She wanted to cry.

She wanted to scream.

She was sorry and yet angry.

No matter what she did, he always seemed to find her—somehow, someway Bill managed to pop into her life in one form or another.

"Wait, so... Bill is your lead, y-y-you-your main character? Why didn't you tell me that?" Ella nearly gasped in disbelief.

"Oh, because we didn't know if it would happen. He's who we wanted, but wasn't sure if it would go through. His schedule is ridiculous, but luckily he loved the script so much that he made time for it."

"When do you start filming?" Ella asked; her voice barely above a whisper. She wondered if she'd have to face him again—the thought was terrifying.

"Twelve weeks. But, he's supposed to fly in at the end of the month to meet me. God, this is so exciting." Dean exclaimed, smacking his palm down on the marble surface.

"He's flying here– to New York?" Ella's eyes widened with a vacant gaze, staring at Dean in wary astonishment.

Dean nodded with a smile, placing his hands on his hips. He was oblivious of Ella's past—he knew there had been another, but was unaware that there had ever been a marriage, or that she was technically still in one. He knew of the miscarriage and the complications she had endured, but knew nothing of whomever fathered the child—Ella never spoke of it, so Dean never asked.

Ella forced a smile, realizing that the end of the month was only two weeks away. "That's great, Dean. That's- that's so great." Ella wrapped her arms around Dean's waist, pulling him into a halfhearted hug. She was going to have to face what she had walked away from.