Behind The Scenes

108. Hero

As soon as I got on the plane I collapsed right away. When I woke up just before landing, Jo teased me because she says I snored a little. Well, I haven't slept since eight the morning before, will you give me that? Now we are in a taxi and we are going to a new hotel; this time Jo and I will have the same room.

"Look," Jo tells Anna giving her a light nudge, "he's falling asleep again."

I raise my head from the headrest and frown at her. "What do you want, I'm tired," I say and chuckle so as not to sound really annoyed, because I'm not.

"Okay, I'm so sorry, Sir Hero," she tells me jokingly and makes a little bow with her head.

I shake my head, amused. "Stupid."

Anna laughs with her and they enjoy making fun of me, that I haven't done anything wrong.

"It's times like this that I don't wish I was born in England." When I find myself in the same car with an American and an Australian. Poor me.

"'Cause I think you owe me a dare..." Jo says my line from the film with my accent, failing miserably, and Anna bursts out laughing.

I have to admit it's fun, but now it's my turn. "Do you enjoy taking the piss out of me? Okay, okay," I say defiantly and think of something Jo often says or a line from Tessa to imitate her. "Wait... how do you say? I'm done playing this game."

She opens her eyes wide and bursts out laughing. "Oh God! Is this me?" she says with tears in her eyes from her laughter.

"Yup! Or when you say... 'No, I don't know!'" I say with a high-pitched voice, to imitate the female voice.

"My God! You're insane!" she exclaims and I laugh with her. I hadn't heard her laugh like that in too long and I had missed it.

I put two fingers under her chin and we look at each other smiling. She is beautiful, I will never stop saying it. I put my hand gently around her neck and when I do it she turns her head and closes her eyes giggling nervously. "What are you doing?" I ask, laughing, a little confused; I can't understand why she turned away.

She goes back to look me in the eyes. "I don't know... Your hand..." and she moves her hands strangely. Oh, she means she feels butterflies in her stomach.

I smile at her and this time she lets herself be kissed, my hand still where it was. She smiles between my lips and when I try to open hers with my tongue, she lets me and gets carried away by the sweetness of the moment. But then she backs away, reminding me that we are in a taxi.

I love that she still feels butterflies in her stomach. I still feel them too and I think I will feel them even in a few years, I will always feel them. The flame in a relationship doesn't have to go out even after an eternity; if that happens, it was destined to die from the start. That's what I think.

She rests her head on my shoulder and intertwines her fingers with mine, her little hand disappearing into mine. She is so small next to me, 5 ft 4 in next to my 6 ft 2 in. To kiss her I always have to bend my head and she has to get up on tiptoes; she is the cutest thing in the world.

                                  * * *

"Hero!" she calls me from the bathroom and her voice echoes in the hotel room.

"Yeah!" I answer her still sprawled on the bed. She calls me again and I snort. I don't really want to go out for lunch, completely. "Yes, Christ. I'm getting up." Reluctantly and still half asleep, I join her in the bathroom.

She looks up and down at me, with a weird expression on her face. "Who's back!" she exclaims.

I frown my brows. "It doesn't make sense, you know?" I tell her, my voice hoarse.

She laughs and kisses me on the lips, taking me by surprise. "I know."

She is too cheerful and happy this morning, something must have happened. "Jo?"

"Yes?" she chirps as she combs her hair.

"What happened? You're very... happy, I don't know. Too much. Everything good? Have you received any good news...?" I start guessing but she cuts me off.

"Oh, no. I forgot to tell you." She puts a hand on my shoulder and runs the other through my hair, messing it up more than it already is. "We are alone all day."

This is good news, great news.

"Really?" I ask surprised.

She smiles and nods slowly.

"Finally!" I take her from her waist and lift her into the air, the skirt of her red dress with white dots fluttering. I put her down and give her a simple kiss.

Jo is doing some braids and I need to shave; not that much but you can see it up close and the photos they will take of us tomorrow during the red carpet and the interviews have a very high resolution, you can see every little imperfection. I go to get the foam from the suitcase and when I go back to the bathroom I rinse my face and immediately start to spread it.

"Cute," Jo says suddenly and she giggles looking at me from the reflection in the mirror.

I make a face at her and she sticks her tongue out. She takes two thin transparent rubber bands and uses them to stop the two braids that come just below her shoulders.

"Cute," I tell her in the same tone she used a little while ago.

She smiles at me biting her lower lip. "What's cute?" Oh, how much we see that she is a Leo...

"I like your hair," I confess.

She makes a sad face when she says to me, "Well, thanks. But do you like only this?"

I sigh and roll my eyes. "The fucking Leo you are. You want to hear everything in your face."

"Mhm... listen who's talking, a Scorpio," she says complaining, but then bursts out laughing. She walks up to me and runs a finger down my cheek and smears my nose with the shaving cream on purpose. I look like a fool.

"Jo, come on!" I push her gently and tear off a piece of toilet paper to clean myself.

She laughs out loud, then she gets serious. "So, you just like my hair?" My God. "Tell me."

"Otherwise?" I tell her defiantly as I smile at her toothy.

She licks her lip and then bites it, thinking of a consequence. "Otherwise I'll shave you."

Oh no, there's no way.

"Well, then I'd tell you that I like everything about you, every tiny detail and every inch of your..." I start, but I notice that she looks at me amused and tries to hold back a laugh. "Why are you looking at me like that?" I ask confused.

She sarcastically replies with a chuckle, "Um, I must say that... I can take you very seriously while you look like Santa Claus."

Fuck, that's right.

"Fuck you, Jo," and I push her again, laughing. "You're a bitch, you know."

She sticks her tongue out at me again and comes out of the bathroom saying, all proud, "Do you think I don't know?"

Holy fuck, do you believe me when I say that she's out of her mind but attractive as hell?