When We Collided

The Tour

We'd been on the road for a few months now. This was the last stop before we had to go back home and prepare for the movie premiere.

Mom was still at home, looking after a recovering Jadiel.

We rehearsed backstage. All around us, the audience's screams could be heard. It was very overwhelming. For the first time, I felt nervous.

"Omigosh. Can you believe it? Our names. They're chanting our names!" Dee cried excitedly.

"Who could resist a face like this?" Finn joked, ponting to his face.

Onyx was silent, just looking at us with a serious expression.

"I wanna see!" Dee said.

"Uh, Miss, that's not a good idea," one of the security personnel said.

"But I want to!" Dee whined.

"Hey Dee! Check this out!" Finn was standing on a bench, looking out a high, dark window.

"Finn, get down! They might see you!" I told him.

"No. This is a one-way mirror, see? Dee, come on!"

Dee bounced to Finn. She gladly took his hand and he helped her stand on the bench with him.

"Oooh... Those banners! Just look at them! I love them." Dee sighed.

I laughed. My nervousness evaporated.

Onyx approached me and held my hand. "Ready?" He asked me.

"Yes," I answered with a smile.

We emerged with hands locked together, and the crowd went wild. We sang the duet we recorded for the movie. It was a love song, and so we did a lot of hand-holding, eye-gazing, and almost-kissing. And then, someone shouted out of the blue, "Onyx! Take your shirt off!"

Suddenly, the crowd began chanting, "Shirt off! Shirt off!" Onyx grinned wickedly and gave them a slow striptease, taking off his button down and then his inner shirt.

We weren't expecting that. I meant, we weren't really required to do that sort of stuff. But Onyx worked hard for his toned body and he was kind of proud of it.

The audience was ecstatic. But not for long.

"Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!" They demanded this time.

OMG. There was no pacifying them. They were unreasonable beings.

I was too busy blushing to notice that Onyx was already by my side, taking my hand. He pulled me in for a hug. God, he smelled amazing.

We actually had a scene in the movie where he was also topless and we embraced. But we were shivering under the fake rain at that time and so I wasn't able to appreciate the warm skin over muscles made of steel.

This time, though, I could feel it.

It was a great feeling, being contained in that gentle strength, like a blanket of protection. And did I mention how good he smelled?

He tilted my chin up with a forefinger and gazed into my eyes. All rational thought fled my mind and a sort of hunger filled its place.

And then we were kissing. It was like before, in his apartment. It was almost like I was in a bubble underwater and there were only the two of us in it. And then I heard the fans' high-pitched squeals which jarred me back to reality. I put on my actor's hat once more and responded to the kiss with as much objectivity as I could.

We broke apart and I could see the question in his eyes. I blushed. He seemed to be saying, "Later," with his eyes before we turned back to the audience and took a bow.

I was in big trouble. Rule Number 2 seemed to be flying out the window right before my very eyes.

We waved goodbye and ran backstage. Someone handed Onyx a dark blue hoodie because his top was still on the stage.

He pulled me to an empty stock room. "Are you okay? I'm sorry for surprising you like that."

He was always considerate like that. When we did the movie, he made it a point to ask me if I was comfortable with the scene we were about to do. It was touching.

"I'm okay. I wasn't really expecting you to do it. But the fans loved it. It was a smart move." I smiled.

"Are you sure you're okay with it? I think this won't be the last time they'll ask me to do it."

"I thought so too. Absolutely. I think I'm better prepared for it now. It's no different from our other romantic scenes."

He watched me closely for a moment, then shook his head. "Rina will kill me. Zach too."

"They're fine with it. Believe me." I told him. "My parents trust you more than me, remember?" I joked.

"I'm glad they do," he said in a serious tone. "How about you, Shana? Do you trust me?"

I couldn't take my eyes off him. Ever since I'd come to know him, I realised that I trusted him completely. It was myself and our situation that I didn't trust.

"Yes. I trust you," I admitted.

"You have no idea what that means to me," he said happily. "I'll do my best to always deserve your trust."

I felt the fragile wall of my resolve crack. Yes, I had unconsciously built a wall against him, but it wasn't as strong as I had hoped. Oh Onyx. What was I going to do about you?

Photo credits: http://itzel-19.deviantart.com/art/Chibi-Hug-438070624