Fiona on Fire | ONC 2023

11. superficial

Fiona wore a flowy blue gown to dinner with Alex. He picked her up at her place in his bright red sports car. It was nice, but it also felt ridiculous to ride in.

They parked and walked down the street in sunglasses, a poor disguise. The paparazzi soon crawled out from the woodwork and began to snap photos of them. Fiona was embarrassed, but Alex apparently wanted to put on a show. He twirled her around and dipped her in his arms, then planted a sudden kiss on her lips.

Somebody wolf-whistled. Fiona smiled but rushed the rest of the way into the restaurant. They were seated immediately and offered wine by a waiter. Fiona declined and asked for water.

"You should probably try their tasting menu," Alex suggested. "It's excellent. The chef has really mastered the use of—"

"What was that outside?" Fiona asked, staring hard at him.

"Oh, sorry. I knew they'd like some good shots of us. It helps both of us, you know." He went on blathering about the food.

"What do you mean by that?" She was fixated on how strange he'd acted.

He chuckled. "From the beginning, my publicist kept saying it would be a really good look for us to actually date. Fans love that, when an on-screen romance is real. It generates so much free publicity."

He looked up and noticed her indignant expression.

"I wasn't going to try to date you for that reason, I swear. I really started to like you. And it's cute how you weren't ready for any of this. I figured I could show you how things work."

Fiona stood, pushing her chair away from the table with a loud screech against the floor. Other diners turned to look at them. She was furious. "You used me to make people talk about you more."

Alex looked surprised by her reaction. "I'm serious, I genuinely like you. And it helped both of us, anyway."

Fiona shook her head and began to walk away.

"Fiona, we could be legendary together—"

His voice cut off as she walked out the door.

She was done with him. The worst part was that she'd still have to finish filming with him while pretending to be in love with his character.

She did her best to ignore him completely except during their scenes together. But, on the very last day of filming, she had a change of heart.

"Alex, let's go out again," she said with a wide, flirtatious smile.

"You're serious?"

"Yes." But this time, it would be all for show.

He opened his mouth but didn't say anything. She grabbed his hand and dragged him out to her car.

"Am I being kidnapped?" he asked.

"Get in," she commanded. She would show him she knew how to play fame games, maybe even better than he did.

She drove all the way to Santa Monica Pier and made him parade around with her. People stopped them to ask for autographs and pictures. Paparazzi showed up eventually. She could already imagine the annoying headlines: Young Stars Alexander Monet and Fiona Flores Spotted on Second Romantic Outing: Relationship Confirmed?

Alex passively played along, for the most part, but there was some sadness in his eyes.

He didn't say anything until they were high up on the Ferris wheel. "I get it now. I get how I made you feel. And I'm sorry."

"I've lived out here for years now, you know. I'm not some girl who needs her hand held. It's one thing when I directly ask you for help or your opinion. It's another when you decide to take me on as some kind of pet project to work on. People are supposed to be equals in relationships." She paused to catch her breath. "I really thought you were decent."

They were high over the pier now, the city's lights sparkling in the distance. She thought she could see the cluster of tall buildings downtown and the highways weaving through it all like a carefully spun spider's web. The city did have a tendency to trap people.

"Maybe we can try again? Start over?" he suggested.

Fiona thought about that. She turned and stared out at the Pacific Ocean. The clear blue waters faded into the depthless black of the night sky. "Maybe in time. Years. It feels too crazy right now, for two people probably at their peaks of fame to date."

"Hey, I'm far from my peak." He feigned being offended.

She hadn't realized how immature he was underneath his external façade. He had been a child star, so he never got to have a normal life outside of fame. He didn't know anything different.

The Ferris wheel gently lowered them back down to earth, away from the stars and back into stardom. "For now, we can still be friends," she offered. "We get each other like not many people can."

"Sure."

"Let's go get some cotton candy?"

He smiled, took her hand, and led the way.

__________

I didn't plan for their relationship to go this way, it's just what came out. lol