Nowhere To Go But Up ⋆ Lin-Manuel Miranda x Reader

Chapter Three

So far, much to my utter relief, things were running pretty smoothly.

The sky was a pale, mottled grey but not too dark, ideal photographing conditions. Plus, it wasn't raining - a miracle in itself!

I was told I had to be quick about it. Celebs were crazy busy with little time to spare. Especially somebody like Lin...there must have been a thousand and one other places he needed to be after this.

Lin, however, did not appear to be in any kind of rush. Whenever Henry tried to chivvy things along to move on to the next location, the playwright kept insisting he didn't like to leave until I was entirely happy. While this seemed to thoroughly irritate Henry for some reason, I thought it was...actually really sweet. I wasn't used to such courtesy.

Lin was wildly enthusiastic about everything. He asked the crew questions because he seemed genuinely interested to know about things. He was charming, easygoing and nothing was too much trouble. In between shots, we were even treated to a round of freestyle rapping. Then, after some teensy bit of gentle prompting from me, he was telling funny stories of his time as a kid, where he faked a serious injury to get sent home from summer camp.

📷

Once done at the Park, we moved our equipment, lights and barriers and we all headed a couple of miles into the city to our next stop: the grand and beautiful St. Paul's Cathedral.

It was somewhere I had passed by many times; its magnificent dome, stone columns and the sheer size of the place drawing the eye like a beacon as it dominated London's skyline...but I had never actually set foot inside.

The sun was just beginning to emerge from behind the clouds as I had Lin stand in position out on the wide steps, me stood a couple below him, camera at the ready.

Unsurprisingly, Lin's appearance out on the streets did not go unnoticed...

We had to pause for a while when some shrieking fans appeared a little distance away on the other side of the protecting barriers. Lin waved to them, flashing a huge smile, which made them squeal even louder, bordering on the hysterical.

I couldn't help a little laugh as we heard them scream, "WE LOVE YOU, LIN!!"

The big bodyguard went to shoo them away so we could continue, but I didn't honestly mind. They were only showing their love and who could blame them for that?

It was that which made it all hit home for me.

Like I said, I wasn't usually one for being star struck but even I could appreciate how utterly surreal this was. A real 'pinch me' moment. I could hardly believe the Lin-Manuel Miranda was stood right in front of me and I was the one photographing him! Little old me!

For somebody like him, having a huge lens shoved in his face must be second nature. Me, on the other hand...I was just a mere drop in the bucket in a long line of photographers.

Self doubt began to creep in, like the bitch it was when you were feeling nervous. All of a sudden, I felt such an amateur. Maybe Henry was right...maybe I was out of my depth, maybe I wasn't good enough for this...

I was way more comfortable taking whimsical shots of nature; dreamy sunsets, seascapes shrouded in mist or happy couples on their wedding day. This was a whole different ball game.

"You okay? You still seem nervous," said a voice, not unkindly, breaking into my thoughts.

I glanced up over the bridge of my camera to see my subject was looking right at me with a lopsided smile. Not at the camera. Me. 

"Am I that scary?" Lin continued with a wider grin. 

I thought I had actually been trying my best to not let my nerves show. Maybe he was just super perceptive. My face relaxed back into a smile at his words.

"No, not at all," I chuckled, "Actually... you're about as intimidating as a pink marshmallow," I said in a lightly teasing voice.

He let out a laugh at this, "Thanks...I think?"

"No, it's just that this is my first big celebrity shoot I've worked on and I really need to impress the bosses," I confessed.

"Your first?" Lin asked, raising his eyebrows in surprise, "Wow, you've really been thrown into the deep end, haven't you?"

"You could say that," I nodded, peering back through the viewfinder, "Could you just shift a little to your left for me, please?" I added.

"Sure!" He sidestepped slightly, planting his feet slightly apart and shoving his hands into his pockets. "Here?"

"Perfect. Thank you."

Just like I'd hoped for, now that he had moved, the pale autumn sunlight which was peeking cautiously through the clouds and around the cathedral's columns, now shone softly upon his olive skin...bringing out this wonderful shine to his already vibrant eyes.

"And I know you've got an amazing smile and everything but not for in this one, please," I requested, zooming in, "And look to your right...? Tilt your chin up a little as well...looovely..."

And I took the shot.

I trotted further up the steps, closer to him, about to take a picture from a different angle, when Lin spoke up.

"Listen, when I was on set for Mary Poppins Returns, I got nervous because I'd never worked on a movie of that scale before..." he admitted to me, "Everybody's got to start somewhere..and take it from me, for the record, I think you're doing an awesome job," he said encouragingly.

I gave an embarrassed shrug but couldn't stop the smile spreading across my face and feel a thrill of delight at his compliment.

"Thanks. Well, what can I say? I've got an awesome muse," I motioned to him, but he shook his head.

"Nah, I'm not taking all the credit for this, it's talented people like you guys that make us look good."

I lowered my camera slightly to look at him.

"That means a lot to me to hear that, coming from you," I murmured sincerely.

"Yeah, I can tell," he said in a gentler tone, turning the full brunt of those gorgeous chocolate eyes on me. The effect was very distracting. They were one of the most striking pair of eyes I'd ever had the pleasure to be lost in.

I suddenly realised I'd been staring at him for far too long.

Gah, focus! Literally...focus!

Dropping my gaze back to the viewfinder, I changed the subject abruptly.

"So um...what was it like getting to work with Dick Van Dyke?"

Lin's eyes lit up at the question.

"Oh my god, he is magical in this movie..." and off he went again, going on this gushing monologue and gesturing with enthusiasm once more; on what an incredible experience it was to be able to work with such a legend... how full of energy he was on set for a man in his nineties, and how he made everybody feel like a child again.

I almost forgot that I was supposed to be taking photos, I was too busy gazing raptly as I listened to him talk with fascination, feeling like a starry-eyed child myself, listening to their favourite story.

But his encouraging words had made me feel so much better about things after that.