Forget-Me-Not (A Tom Hiddleston Fanfiction)

(33) Left Alone

After waiting for ten minutes on his own, Tom decided to go after Nina. He needed to reassure her, if not himself, that she would be okay. But on his way across the set he was intercepted by Annie, and by the determined look on her face he knew he had the Spanish Inquisition heading straight for him.

"Why was Nina crying earlier, Tom?" She cocked her head to the side slightly, her bright red hair almost blinding in the light, and Tom began to answer before he was interrupted. "What have you said to her, Tom? What did you do? Where did she go? I saw her running away from you earlier looking quite ill. Don't tell me you broke up with her?"

"I didn't break up with her." Tom began almost tentatively, as if Annie were a minefield that he was walking across. "We were never an item, Annie." Annie went to speak but Tom held up a finger, stopping her. "Shush. Please hear me out. She had some...news for me, and it was rather upsetting for her. I did my best to comfort her but I believe she felt ill, and she didn't want to ruin my uniform."

Annie looked somewhat relieved but she still showed concern, looking around and furrowing her brow as if Nina might appear at any moment, jumping down from a tree or sprouting up from the ground like the weed that Kyle treated her as.

"So what did she say? If it wasn't you, then who was i-" Annie stopped dead and her jaw went a little slack. "Kyle. It was Kyle." Nina had obviously confided in Annie, too, but Tom didn't know how much she had. "Oh my god, what did he say?"

"That's not my information to divulge, Annie." Tom took off his hat and fiddled with his hair, a habit he'd picked up when he was nervous or worried. He glanced over Annie's shoulder and caught sight of a makeup-free Nina. "I'll be back in a second, alright?"

He jogged away, his long legs carrying him quickly over to Nina who looked up at him with red eyes, her cheeks damp, before she looked away and made a poor effort to hide her face.

"Don't...don't l...look...look at m...me..." She stuttered, and Tom moved to prise her hands gently away from her face.

"Why shouldn't I?" Tom held her small hands between them with one of his own, looking at her with utmost sincerity, but Nina tried to pull away.

"Don't...no, leave...leave me alone..." Nina refused to make eye contact with Tom.

"I want to help you, Nina." Tom said gently, picking up the hand with his hat and placing it onto her head. "You're a soldier, I know that. You're a trooper. But everyone needs a little help sometimes."

"No...no..." Nina's arms went slack. "Because then...then, you'll be nice...and, and...you'll look at me with those...those eyes and...you'll...you'll...k...k..."

"I'll what, darling?" Tom reached up and brushed away one of her tears.

"You'll...you'll kiss-"

"No! No, Nina, I..." Tom was at a slight loss for words now. "I won't, Nina, I-"

"But...but the thing is, you...you already have, Tom." Nina looked up at him, her eyes still red. "And if...if you do again, I...I might get...attached to you, and I'm not...not..."

"Not what?" Tom glanced around quickly, subconsciously checking to see if anyone was in earshot.

"Not...not good enough..."

Tom sighed, closing his eyes and shaking his head. "No, Nina, I said this before. Don't listen to Kyle."

"No, no...it's not Kyle! It's me! I...I know I'd never be good...good enough for someone...like you, and I..." Nina took a deep breath. "Tom, I...I can't fall...fall in love again..."

"I never said you had to, Nina."

"No...but..." Nina shook her head. "I'm going to...to see if anyone, uh...needs...help..." She shuffled off, and stopped a few feet away, one of her hands shooting up to her head, where part of Tom's costume still sat.

She pulled it off, almost dropping it, and she walked slowly over to Tom. He stood with his hands clasped in front of him, a small smile on his face, almost as if their conversation hadn't just happened.

"Yes, I'll be needing that." Tom said softly, staying still as Nina stood on her tiptoes to reach up and place the hat atop his slightly ruffled hair. Their eyes locked for a brief moment before Nina's self-conscious side took over and she darted off quickly.

Tom stared after her, his arms now folded, his expression unchanged. What was this woman doing?

What was she doing to him?

*****

Another week soon passed, and over that week, Nina almost completely avoided Tom, except for the brief small talk they made whilst she was doing his hair and makeup in the morning. Tom felt like he was losing her a little bit and he didn't like it.

However, Nina seemed to be regularly confiding in Annie though; she hadn't alienated herself completely. And Nina still disappeared at random moments, looking quite nauseous. Tom knew he wasn't the only one who had started jumping to a conclusion but he knew something more was going on.

He wanted to find out, he wanted to be a good friend but Nina seemed to want to push him away slightly. He knew that that one night, those few seemingly blissful moments had ruined it all.

But he was determined to get Nina back. There were only about three weeks of filming left and Tom didn't want to spend it having to ignore one of his new friends.

Ohana, he said to himself in his head as he began the walk back to the hotel in the cold evening air. He saw his parents sometimes, his sisters occasionally, but each time he worked on a new film, the rest of the cast and crew became his new, if temporary family.

Tom decided he'd go for another jog to clear his mind. A clear mind was really what he needed in that moment. As he approached the hotel, he saw a slim figure leave the small lobby and set off at a steady pace in the opposite direction. Nina.

Perhaps he'd catch up with her. Then they could have their long overdue chat, and Tom could get to the bottom of what was really bothering her.

[A/N] i had such bad block on this chapter but hopefully things will speed up a little with another plot twist soon! hope you're all enjoying still- drop a vote if you are?
yours truly :) x