Chapter Text
Scout tickled Kristen’s side causing her to squirm and laugh. Most importantly, it interrupted her traitorous eyes, which kept drifting to the direction where she knew Rob and his party was seated. She was surprised they’d even stuck around Chateau Marmont after the hostess incorrectly assumed that the two groups would be seated together in Rob and Kristen’s usual section. Their eyes met briefly, and while the corner of Kristen’s lip lifted, he merely looked surprised and perhaps a bit embarrassed. She didn’t understand why until her eyes landed on the company around him. Compared to her friends in backwards caps, shorts with tees, and sneakers, his circle seemed so much more grown-up, typical Hollywood schmoozy or “snoozy” as they’d once joked. Still, she smiled at the sight of the backwards cap on his head, and before the hostess redirected his attention, she could’ve sworn he was about to smile back.
“Don’t even think about him, babydoll.” Scout nudged her again.
“Damn straight, we’re here having fun, and you know what they’re doing?” CJ dramatically sipped his drink with his pinky up for affect. “Being bores, trying hard to impress Mistah … Robert … Pattinson.”
Kristen rolled her eyes. “He knows what he’s doing, and I respect him for it.” A few of her friends scoffed at that. “What? I do. I… love him, and he wants… he needs to do this part of it so…” She shrugged, trying to appear indifferent. “I wish I could play that scene. It’s just not in me, and I want everything for him. He can be so great, and those people will get him there. I get it. I’m almost glad he finally gets it. Almost. I don’t have to like it, but I get it more than anything.”
“Bullshit. He’s an ass and is making a huge mistake.” She wanted to look away from Jaden’s sharp eyes, but she stubbornly lifted her chin instead.
“I’m not going to insult him with you guys, and I don’t want to hear you all do it for me. So if that’s what you all want, fuck you.”
“I don’t want to insult him.” Suzie whispered. “This just fucking sucks. I feel like the whole room is watching us and trying to figure out how to turn on the subtitles like we’re in a telenovela.”
“I don’t want to insult him either.” Jaden admitted and leaned back in her seat. “Really, I don’t. I just thought a good game of verbally kick the ex is what you needed. Sorry.”
Kristen laughed at that. “No, I don’t. At least not here.” She leaned in looked around the room with mock suspicion. “There are twats on their twits everywhere.”
“Hey, I’m one of those twittery twattery mofos.” CJ pretended to be offended.
She wiggled her shoulders and smirked. “Call ‘em like I see ‘em.”
She was grateful when the conversation shifted after that to something lighter and less personal, and she made sure to chime in every once in a while. As much as her thoughts were on the man on the other side of the room and whether or not his thoughts were on her, she didn’t want to add her inner wonderings to the noise in the room.
Less than an hour later, she spotted his cap and hunched shoulders. Her legs bounced under the table. After taking a big final gulp of her drink, she stood up. It took fifteen minutes for her to convince Scout and Suzie to stay. No female accompaniment required. Skirting around a large group of people leaving, she walked in the direction she’d thought she saw him disappear.
“Hey.” His finger traced her wrist, and she wanted to feel disappointed that she didn’t pull away at the contact. She’d never be able to wean herself off of his touch. He pulled her sleeve, so she’d move closer.
“Hey.” She looked up at him then and really examined his face. “You taking care of yourself?”
He nodded. “You?”
“Yeah, and Bear and Bernie, they’re doing great. I, um, I was going to call or have John call to see when would be a good time?”
“Maybe in a week or so… I have the Dior campaign this week, and well, y’know.”
“Oh, yeah, you’re going to be awesome.” She bumped his shoulder and grinned. She was proud he’d followed Nick’s suggestion after a lot of prodding by her.
He smiled more genuinely at that. “Thanks. I really needed to hear that.”
“I’m pretty sure there are a lot of people eager and willing to tell you that. In fact, some of them are with you tonight.”
He bent toward her ear, and she could faintly smell liquor on his breath. “But they’re not you.”
She jerked her head away from him then. “You can’t just say shit like that.” She moved her wrist out of his reach. “And you can’t just touch me. You chose this. You chose.”
“And you let me.” His nostrils flared a bit as he exhaled. “I miss you.”
“I miss you, too, but, Rob, what are you saying? Are telling me that you’ve sorted your shit out and want to really try, and not worry about them and their fucking opinions?” She shook her head when he didn’t answer. “You know, it used to be about our plans, about us. What the fuck happened?”
“Plans change. You would know.” He hurled his words in her face and regret immediately shone in his eyes.
“And so do people, I guess.” For the first time in weeks, she could feel her eyes well up with tears. She blinked them back. She punched his shoulder in a friendly manner, but she could tell she’d put more force behind it when he winced. “I wish you well, buddy.”
She turned away then. Skirting around one the guys she recognized as someone from Rob’s table, she nodded her head at him and put on her best smile. “Your boy wonder’s over there.” And after pointing her thumb in his direction, she was gone.