Kylie looked at Ethan in contempt, and she shouted at him: "What the fuck are you doing here? Shouldn't you be at work or back at Dora's apartment, banging her brains out?!?!?"

Ethan looked at her, and he asked her if she'd forgotten what he'd previously told her. His voice was deep and slow, and the way that he said things, they always sounded believable.

​​

Kylie turned her eyes away from him, and she said, "I refuse to hear your excuses. You obviously like Dora more than you like me, so let me go. You had no right to come here and harass me. This is my place of work!"

Ethan stepped forward suddenly, and he grabbed her, pulled her to him, and kissed her. The minute he touched her, she tried to pull away, but he held her tightly. The minute his lips touched hers, though, an electric current ran from her toes to the ends of her hair. His steely arms wrapped around her waist and he pulled her closer to his body – and, against her better judgment, she kissed him back.

The director had already called cut, but they hadn't stopped, and as he began to curse them, he let the scene go on. As she moved away, his mind was a disturbing wash of conflicted emotions. The kiss had been nice, but he, as a person, was not nice. She could feel how hot her face was, and she found her embarrassment embarrassing. She turned away from him, swallowed hard, and tidied her hair.

She thought to herself. I will not give this man the opportunity to hurt me again!

In contrast to Kylie's hurt anger, Ethan seemed to be calm as a cucumber. He brushed his sleeves but seemed no worse for wear. Turning his back to Kylie, he resumed his place on set. The director motioned for them to start the scene.

"Was I wrong to save you?" the blind woman asked with tears in her eyes. "Quintus Anthony, am I wrong to like you? Am I wrong to want to be a hero like you, with you?"

Kylie found it hard to stay in character, now that she knew who the stand-in was. Every line that she said reminded her of everything Ethan and Dora had done in the video. Tears welled up in her eyes. Her lips quivered. She took a step forward and tried to pull Ethan's sleeve, but her hands paused in the air longer than they should have. Then, instead of lowering her hand, she took his hand into her own hand.

There was a self-deprecating smile on the blind woman's lips as she said, "If… if I'm hurt in the same way… could you forgive me?"

Her expression never changed, but the grip on his hand increased in increments. If it hurt him, you wouldn't have known it by looking at him. His expression remained calm, in character.

Looking at the blind woman's angry eyes, Quintus Anthony's eyes darkened, and he covered her hand with his own. The blind woman froze. She hadn't expected him to do that.

"Why did you take your necklace off?" he wondered.

They had gone way off script and, at first, the director was going to call the scene. Before he did, though, it occurred to him to see where the scene went. Perhaps something will come of it, he thought to himself.

An ironic smile formed on the blind woman's lips. "Yes," she admitted. "It was not the right size."

"Forget the size," Quintus Anthony said. "Tell me if you liked the necklace."

Kylie looked up at Ethan with a blind girl's expression, but her nails dug into his hands.

"It was nothing to me," she scowled. "You really let me down.

Ethan wrapped his arms around her waist once again, and he pulled her close so that her breasts were touching his chest. He offered her a sly and mischievous grin. His lips parted, and she could see his teeth.

"Enough!" Kylie hissed as she pushed him away. She glared at him for a moment, and then she turned her head toward the director. "Isn't it about time you called this scene," she wondered. "I am practically being assaulted here!

Suddenly, the assistant director came to give Ethan a look and said, "You are wasting our time. You don't even have lines! You are the most unprofessional stand-in that I have ever worked with!"

Kylie crossed her arms as she watched Ethan step aside to fix his hair. Even now, it was as if he were the center of the universe. Even as the Assistant Director yelled at him, he casually dismissed his complaints.

The assistant director turned to the director and said, "Where did you get this guy from? He's not good at acting at all, and he doesn't follow directions. We could send him home and use one of the lighting guys. Even that would be preferable to this guy!"

Kylie turned to the light man and asked him if he wanted to act as a stand-in, and he agreed on the spot. In fact, he was overjoyed at the proposition!

Suddenly the Assistant Director felt Ethan's eyes on him. It was a death glare if he had ever seen one. Without warning, Ethan's eyes fell upon the light guy, and it only took a moment before the poor guy began to stammer. "Ac.. ac… actually… I don't think I am qualified to be a stand-in." As the man said these words, he looked very sad. He looked like a man who'd just received news that his children were dead.

Seeing what had happened, Kylie dragged Ethan off set and demanded to know what he was up to, and what he wanted.

"What do you mean," he replied innocently, "It's what you want that matters."

She was so angry that she bit hard on her lower lip. As soon as she did, though, Ethan pinched her chin. "Nobody can bite you but me," he said, and then he kissed her gently on the lips. Fortunately, there was no light in the position where they were standing, so no one else could see what they were doing.

Kylie pulled away from him. "Fuck you," she hissed. "I will not play second string to a mistress. I will not. Now, please leave. This is my place of business, and you are embarrassing me in front of my co-workers."

He reached for her again, but this time, she managed to dodge his hands. His hand caught only air. He looked down at his hands, and he clenched them into fists. "Let's go home and talk this over properly," he suggested.

"Alright," Kylie replied. She had hoped to escape him and return to work but, before she could, Ethan scooped her up, threw her over his shoulder, and carried her to his car…