Within the Script (A Stanathan Fanfiction)

Chapter Seven: Emotions Swirling

As "Still" played in the background on the T.V opposite Nathan, he was more encased in her stories than the show he knew well. As she told him about how they filmed that and goofed off a bunch, especially his little improve at the end where he hugged her and then made a face as though he'd hit the button and everyone on set cracked up a bit, he watched her smile grow in waves. Then, of course, he had to grin at her giddiness. "Sounds like we have fun."

"Yeah," she said, still caught up in the emotion of the memory, "It's a lot of fun."

"So, explain to me how our friendship works if we're..," he didn't know how to say, "working the way we are."

She looked him over and thought a moment on how to explain this to him. When others asked, she just joked and called him her platonic side action or simply as a really good friend who understood the job was just a job. Explaining this to him was different. The only way she could think to explain it to him was, "It's just acting, Nate. You and I kind of just joke about it. It's like we're two different people, our characters and ourselves."

"So, when we're filming but not really on film, what are we to each other?"

Again, she waited, seeing honest confusion bat over his face. Thinking of the fans' explaination (who weren't "Stanathan" shippers), she answered, "Friends. A fangirl and a geek in love with their work, flirting around like it's high school but truly and honestly platonic companions. I mean, this is all other people speaking through my mouth, but it's kind of the only accurate answer I can give you."

He nodded, then grinned at her feverishly, "Fangirl, huh?"

Her smile rose as her eyes rolled, "Yeah, apparently. I mean, I'm the queen of our fandom according to many."

"You quote people a lot," he teased.

"Yeah, well, it's the life of a fangirl," she happily mused, "It's not like you don't have your quarks."

"Really?"

Her eyes widened, "Of course!"

"Like what?"

Stana responded, "You have this awful quark of charming everyone and being too sweet to the world. I mean, you literally make everyone look like they're Hitler when they stand beside you, even if they're Felicia Day or even Molly sometimes."

"That seems kind of impossible," Nathan stated. "Molly seems like a saint."

"She is, but- you're better when you're not being a smart ass."

"So I'm a smart ass here too?"

She chuckled out, "You're a more understanding version of your character. Haven't I told you that before?"

"Sounds familiar," he stated. "So if we're friends on set without film, somewhere in between on set without the cameras rolling but still there and we're our characters when we're filming, what do our families think we are?"

"Friends," Stana stated flatly.

"Fans?"

"Friends."

"And we think of each other as..?"

Stana hesitated. The two of them had never addressed that between themselves. They never really talked about how they classified their relationship to people outside the set. She always just said they were friends and she couldn't even begin to imagine that Nathan would suggest anything else considering the many girlfriends he had. She also was certainly not his first costar who he played a romantic counterpart with, nor was he her first. Yet, she was hesitating. And something about the way she said, "We're just friends, Nate," seemed unconvincing to him.