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Tom flips through the pages he was handed the night before. He’s scheduled to read with a few of the women shortlisted for the role of ‘Michelle’ who passed the first audition stage. He glances at the list of women up for the role, some of the names he’s familiar with, others he’s never heard of, but he’s eager to meet them and see how they will act opposite him. It’s his first experience as the lead waiting for the other actors to sit for a chemistry read. He’s been called back for several roles in the past - some he even ended up getting - where he was supposed to read with the main actor to see how they played off each other. In all those situations he was usually the child and they were a parent or older guardian-type figure so this is basically the first time they would test for chemistry in the romantic sense of the word.It’s a huge secret as to who ‘Michelle’ is supposed to be in this universe but he’s been told that they wanted to go a different route and shake up the classic Peter/Mary Jane storyline from the comics. Tom loves the idea and he can’t wait for whoever they’ll cast as his leading lady. He knows they won’t be paired together in the first film but it’s always fun to know something the audience doesn’t and build on that relationship in the background in anticipation of future films.He finishes his tea and checks his watch. His first meeting is at 9am so he still has some time to kill. He decides to look up some of the names of the actresses he isn’t as familiar with. He knows it’s probably a bad idea to check them out right before the meeting, lest it cloud his impressions of them but he’s curious and bored and a little googling at 8:27am can’t hurt, right?Twenty minutes later, he has various tabs on his phone’s browser open and he’s been really impressed with a few of the women he’s looked up. A few aren’t really what his idea of ‘Mary Jane’ would look like, but he realizes that’s the whole point of changing her name and shaking things up a bit. The next person he goes to look up is the mononymous actress, Zendaya. He’s definitely heard her name before and can vaguely picture what she looks like but he’s not quite sure what she’s done in the past.A few clicks and google brings up some recent news stories, her IMDB, wiki page and links to her official website and all her social media accounts. The top hits are for her role on a Disney show he’s never heard of. She looks young, which is great for the role as they were meant to be 14-15 year-olds.Curiosity gets the better of him and he clicks on the the image tab. Thousands of photos of her load on the screen and he almost drops his phone. Damn, she’s gorgeous. All the other actresses he’s looked up previously were very pretty in their own right, but some of these photos of her on the red carpet are on another level. Wow . A few of the pictures looked like thumbnails from her snapchat. He goes back to his home screen then clicks on the Snapchat app, enters her username in the search and feels slightly deflated when she has no new snaps. He goes back to google and clicks on the video tab under her search. He isn’t sure why he’s taking so much time looking her up - he’d spent less than two minutes on all the others.One video thumbnail catches Tom’s attention and he clicks on it, realizing that someone must’ve saved her snaps and uploaded them onto YouTube. It isn’t recent, he notices from the date, but he presses play and is delightfully surprised by the video. Zendaya is animatedly lip syncing to a Beyoncé song from the passenger seat of a car. Her hair in a messy bun on top of her head is bobbing along with her as she dances in the car and flips her head to the beat. It’s quite possibly the greatest video he’s ever seen and when it ends, he presses the replay button faster than he’d like to admit.He watches about five minutes worth of her other snaps that are uploaded by her fans before he realizes he’s going to be late for the first meeting. Rushing down the hallway he makes his way to the meeting room and sees Harrison’s annoyed look as he walks by.“They thought you’d forgotten it was at 9am. I told them I'd reminded you several times,” his friend comments over his shoulder but keeps walking.Tom slips into the room and takes a seat next to the director, Jon, and gives a friendly wave to their casting director, Sarah. There are a few other men in the room he’s met several times before, all producers who want to be part of the selection. They call the first actress in at 9:10am and he’d be lying if he said he wasn’t slightly nervous about the process. By the time lunchtime rolls around they’ve met with four actresses, all of whom are lovely, but he hasn’t felt a real spark or that they are giving the character the personality she needs. One actress stays in character throughout the entire meeting and comes off so aggressive and condescending in her scene with him that he actually feels like she hates him. It’s jarring.When they finally take a break for a bite to eat, Tom glances at Jon and knows he feels the same way - they haven’t found Michelle yet. He takes a seat at one of the communal tables next to Harrison and pulls out his phone. His thumbprint unlocks his screen and the first image that appears is a paused video of Zendaya in the middle of singing in her living room. He quickly presses the home button to clear the screen but isn’t quick enough.“Ooh, who’s that?”“No one, it’s nothing, Haz,” he lies.“She’s hot.”He ignores his friend and finishes his lunch before they’re due to be back. An hour later they say thank you to the next actress but they still have a couple more actresses to see. He has his back to the door, chatting with Jon when he hears a voice he recognizes from her videos to be Zendaya. Turning around he sees her walking towards them with a big smile on her face.Days later he’ll still be replaying it in his head - the slow, awkward trainwreck that is Tom Holland greeting Zendaya. He wants to be professional and she’s trying to break the ice by being friendly. She’s still in the doorway as he eagerly puts out his hand to shake hers, realizing belatedly that she’s extending her arms for a hug instead. He tries to switch to a hug too fast and knocks his left arm into the door frame. Ignoring the pain, he puts his arm around her shoulder, his right hand trapped between them still waiting for that handshake. It’s then he realizes that she’s taller than him - at least two inches - and when they pull away he glances down to see she’s only wearing Nikes.He apologizes for the awkwardness and introduces himself, mentally noting that she doesn’t look phased at all that he’s literally looking up at her. Behind her an older gentleman is extending his hand to him and when he shakes it firmly he says, “I’m Zendaya’s dad, Kazembe.” Oh great, Tom thinks, not only did I make an idiot of myself in front of her, I also look like an idiot in front of her dad! He’s so caught up in his own embarrassment he barely notices that they’re all taking their seats and about to begin. Clearing his throat he takes his seat next to her at the table and smiles tightly as he flips through the pages to the beginning of the first scene.He starts reading his lines, with Jon reading for Ned’s part and when she jumps in, her voice and tone is so spot on he almost gets chills. She’s in worn jeans and a hoodie looking like she could pass for a high school student and for a second he forgets they’re doing a scene. She’s squinting at him with the perfect balance of bored and know-it-all and he hears himself reply with something not on the page. He enjoys some improvising from time to time but generally in these situations it’s not really needed. He can’t help it, though, he feels the need to challenge her and see if she can keep up with him. She cocks her head to the side and scoffs, responding with her own improvised line that makes him want to laugh but he stays in character a bit longer.They do a few more scenes together, each time reading what’s on paper but changing a word here or there and it’s the first time all day he’s felt exhilarated even though he’s read these scenes at least five times already today. They finally come to the last scene and on the page Michelle has a short monologue, which a few of the other actresses stumbled through, but Zendaya takes one look at the paper in her hands and fixes him with a look that screams ‘MJ’. She not only delivers the monologue perfectly, but she adds her own touches to it, expanding on the idea so it’s a full argument. He’s so impressed and he hopes his mouth isn’t agape.“Wow, that was amazing,” Tom compliments her as they’re walking out.“I saw you trying to trip me up in there with your improv! Good thing I can go with the flow,” she jokes.“No, I didn’t want to trip you up! I could tell you could take the scene farther. I’m glad I pushed you, though. You were amazing.”“Thanks, I’m glad you did too,” she smiles. “It was great to meet you, Tom.”“You too, it’s been a pleasure. Really.” This time he goes in for the hug and she squeezes him back tightly.Once she’s gone, he turns back to the others in the room and they’re all smiling and nodding at each other.Sarah is beaming proudly since Zendaya was her first choice, “what did I tell you guys?!”“I think it’s safe to say we found our Michelle,” Jon says. Tom couldn’t be more thrilled.---Haz set up google alerts on his laptop sometime ago for any Spider-Man related news and Tom scrolls through it one early March morning while he’s finishing a bowl of cereal. He sees the headline and before he knows what he’s doing he’s sending a text to Jon that includes a lot of exclamation marks and ecstatic emojis. He sees Jon’s reply and smiles, copying the phone number he forwarded him and putting it into his contacts.He quickly composes a text message to that number and sends it off. He puts his empty bowl in the sink and goes to take a shower. A few hours later, on the other side of the globe, Zendaya peers at her phone in the early morning sunlight. She’s got a couple missed calls, some voicemails as well as a few text messages from several people. She reads the one from her agent first and screams excitedly. She had gotten the good news the day before but seeing a link to the news articles made it that much more official.Sitting up in bed she reads the rest of her messages and listens to the voicemails of congratulations from friends and family. She feels giddy and proud and so excited she could burst. There’s one text from a number she doesn’t recognize but when she opens it she grins.
Hey, Zendaya it’s Tom Holland! :D just wanted to be one of the first to say congrats and i can’t wait to work with you this summer. it’s gonna be amazing!!!
p.s. i was rooting for you since our chemistry read. i’m glad they picked you. You really deserve it! :)
They end up texting a few more times over that week, which turns into sporadic texts over the next month and he finds out she’s completely hilarious. Her quick wit doesn’t really surprise him but he’s caught off guard by how many times he’s actually laughing out loud when he types ‘LOL’. Even though they only spent a brief time together in person, he feels like when he reads her texts he can hear the lilt of her voice and the way she laughs when she replies with the laugh-crying emoji.She calls him out of the blue to tell him how much she enjoyed his scenes in Captain America: Civil War and he can’t help but grin from ear to ear as she recounts screaming in the theatre when he finally appeared on screen.---He finds the link to the article before Harrison has a chance to forward it to him. It’s a few weeks old but some fans had unearthed it and were sending awkward tweets to both him and Elle. He skims through it and cringes at the photo at the end. An old photo of him and his ex smiling with a caption calling her his current girlfriend stares back at him. Sometimes he really hates how the press seems to be great at reporting certain things and absolute shit at other things. They’ve been broken up for months and yet they’re digging up old photos from last October when they were already near the end of their relationship.He had wanted them to stay friends because that’s what she had been from the start, but it was a lie they told each other through tears and strained smiles on their faces. He checks her twitter to see if she’s acknowledged it and is relieved to see nothing. He makes the mistake of scrolling down further and sees old retweets from some months ago shortly after they broke up. They weren’t about them specifically but anyone could put two and two together and see she was still hurt and not over things. They haven’t spoken in months and he doesn’t see that changing anytime soon so he thinks maybe it’s time he cut the cord completely. He unfollows her from twitter and instagram and any other place he can think of. They need a clean break if they’re going to move on for real and part of him is glad this article popped up to remind him of that.---The next time he sees Zendaya is in Atlanta on the first day of production. They’ve kept in contact through text the past few months but finally seeing her in person makes him a bit anxious. She greets him with a warm hug as if they’ve been friends for years and instantly he feels calm. He can tell it will be easy to fall into a quick friendship with her as they walk over to see the rest of the cast. She waits until after he introduces her to Jacob, Laura, and Tony to tell him, smirk on her face, that she’s actually already met everyone a few days ago.He rolls his eyes at her, “of course you have.” She’s laughing at him and for the first time in a long time he feels something stirring inside him and his cheeks feel hot. He brushes it off as hunger pangs since he only had time for some orange juice this morning.Jon arrives shortly after and gives a big welcome speech, making references to The Breakfast Club and the group excitedly smile at each other. He finishes up by announcing that they’re going on a team building field trip and having a picnic and then going to the aquarium.At their picnic lunch, Tom silently wishes the ground would swallow him up when Zendaya declares they should all go around the circle and state their first impressions of each other.“It’ll be fun!” she says and he feels like she’s singling him out when she innocently looks at him, a soft smile on her lips. Everyone mostly has compliments for each other and he feels himself relaxing a bit. It gets to her and he fully expects her to recount his most embarrassing moment when they first met but instead she jokes about him testing her at their chemistry read and going off script.“He thought he could trip me up, but he didn’t know I’m quick too,” she laughs.When it’s his turn, he admits to watching a few of Zendaya’s snaps before they officially met and chuckles when Laura is searching for the video in question on her phone and starts lip syncing along to Yoncé once she finds it.“Yesss!” Zendaya claps and smiles at Laura. In the watery blue light of the aquarium, he watches the tropical fish swim around the colourful coral, ducking in and out of the vegetation and avoiding the larger fish in the tank. Jacob is telling Tony a story about sharks as they move into the next room with Laura trailing behind them. Tom lingers a moment longer to watch Zendaya peering up at the large white creatures in the water on the other side of the room. She catches him looking at her and waves him over. They watch the beluga whales gently glide through the water, effortlessly spinning and diving down. He comments on the way one of the whales swims towards the glass then at the last minute turns away. Their light banter is easy and he thinks about how happy he is that she’s joined the cast.---The first time he tries on the Spider-Man suit it takes a group of four people about 20 minutes to get all the pieces on him and the first five of those minutes was spent staring at the thong they’d handed him and thinking, ‘ well, here goes nothing ’. When he steps out of the wardrobe trailer, he squints up at the sun and doesn’t realize his friends are all there waiting to see him.“Yooooo!” Zendaya yells and jogs over to him. “It looks so amazing,” Laura says as she runs a finger along his arm. “Oh my god, you guys, you need to feel the suit. It’s so weird !”Suddenly there are hands all over him, touching and rubbing his arms and back. He feels like an animal at the zoo with everyone staring at him and petting him.“It feels like a basketball,” Jacob chuckles and Harrison agrees.Of all the hands on him, the ones that seem to burn into his skin aren’t touching him anymore. Zendaya watches him from the periphery of the group, having stepped back once she ran her hand down his shoulder and chest to feel the material of his suit. He can still feel the ghost of her hand where it paused above his heart before she pulled away. She stands with her arms crossed over her chest now, smiling slightly at him through the crowd of people.Jon tells him to put on the mask and after some help from one of the wardrobe people he’s pulled it over his face and looks out into a white haze. He can hear muffled cheers and general excitement around him but the mask obstructs his vision and his hearing due to the thick material. He’s glad he isn’t claustrophobic because this would not be fun otherwise. He grins, not realizing that no one can tell.Laura asks him how it feels and he tells her it’s pretty tight and he’s sure it will get hot once the afternoon sun is out and she vaguely nods at him. “You sound like you’re underwater. I can barely understand you,” she laughs.Later in the day he’s still got the suit and mask on but his right web shooter fell off and one of the props guys tells him to take a seat while they take a look at it. He wanders over to where Zendaya and Tony are chatting in their chairs with someone from the crew. He can’t really see their faces that well but when he starts talking he just assumes they’re listening. He finishes telling them a funny story about what one of the stunt guys did earlier and neither of them react.He looks down and sees that Tony is talking to the crew member and Zendaya is checking her phone. He pokes her in the shoulder and tugs off the mask, slightly annoyed.“What?” she asks, confused. “I was just telling you and Tony a funny story and neither of you were listening!”She starts to laugh and looks over at Tony for confirmation, “sorry, man, I honestly had no idea you were talking to us. You were just mumbling something, I assumed you were running lines on your own.”“Yeah, you gotta speak up next time,” Tony agrees.Tom looks down at the mask and frowns. “I gotta talk to Jon about changing this mask a bit. I can’t see a thing in there and apparently now no one can hear me!”“It’s a pretty sweet suit, otherwise,” Zendaya says and reaches up to touch his forearm. “Jacob was right, you feel like a basketball.” Her hand trails down to his hand before dropping away back to her lap. He looks away so he’s not tempted to stare at her. “You really do look amazing, though. Is it comfortable?”He snorts, “fuck no!”She laughs so hard, she almost falls out of her chair.--- She asks if he’s got any ice cream in the house and he tries to remember what he and Harrison got last time they were at the store. They definitely got some kind of ice cream at some point but it wasn’t on any of the last grocery runs in the week or so.“We might have some, like, freezer burnt ice lollies or something,” he replies and she’s already out of her seat running to the kitchen, laughing about how he calls them ‘ice lollies’. She returns with two popsicles and asks him if he wants red or blue.“Oooh I’m gonna go with.... blue.”She tosses him the blue one. “Good, cus I woulda had to wrestle you for the red if you’d chosen that,” she says matter-of-factly as she rips off the wrapper and licks a long swipe along the one side. He swallows around a lump that’s somehow formed in his throat. He looks away and takes a bite out of his and crunches the cold ice between his teeth.“Why you biting it right off the bat? You gotta savour it!” She’s busy licking and sucking her quickly melting popsicle and seemingly doesn’t notice him struggling to breathe. Finally she takes a small nibble of hers but continues licking the sides to catch all the potential drips.“I gotta bite it, it’s melting so fast!”“Yeah, that’s why you keep licking all around.”He can’t believe they’re arguing about the proper way to eat these - popsicles - she corrects him. She’s always making fun of his British vocabulary. Sometimes she imitates him and she sounds ridiculous but he can’t help laughing at her terrible English accent.“HA! Your tongue is blue,” she observes and he cheekily sticks his tongue out at her in reply. He’s already finished his popsicle but she’s slowly working her way down the stick, running the cold ice along her lips slightly before taking another nibble.“Is my tongue red?” she asks and opens her mouth wide and sticks her tongue out like you would at the doctor’s.He smirks, “yeah, your lips too. It’s like red lipstick or something.”She pulls out her phone and uses the front-facing camera to look at herself. “Damn this is a great colour!” she jokes. “Brings out the colour of my eyes.”He doesn’t realize until hours later when he’s going through his account before bed that she sent him a private snap of her ruby red lips, stained from the popsicle, all puckered up. She holds a sexy pose for a moment before she breaks into a silly face and the snap ends.He closes the app and googles “how to save snapchat stories”.---Tom steps onto the Midtown School set for the fourth time this week and smiles at how amazing it all looks. The props department have gone above and beyond to make it look and feel like a typical American high school. Or what he assumes to be a typical American high school, since he didn’t actually go to school here. He takes a seat at the cafeteria table where they’ll be filming a scene with the academic decathlon team, looking over his lines. Michael joins him shortly after and they chat about the action scenes Tom had filmed the day before.He looks away from his friend for a second and spots Zendaya on her way to join them. Her curls fall into her face and she brushes them aside as she slides in next to Michael. “Hey!” Tom greets her enthusiastically and tells her he was just explaining the scene he shot yesterday to Michael.She listens intently and when he tells them how he had to pee so badly but the Spidey suit is so cumbersome to take off and put on he just held it for hours, she laughs so hard she’s doubled over on the table. He can’t help but feel warm inside at the sound of her laughter. He loves the way her whole body goes into it and her face lights up, mouth wide open and tears coming out the corners of her eyes. He finds himself cracking up with her, mostly because her laughter is contagious, and soon they’re both holding their stomachs in pain from laughing so hard.A couple hours into the scene he’s walking away from the table while his acadec team are scowling at him and throwing balled up paper at his face when Jon yells, “cut”. They hold their positions while he checks to make sure they got the scene and let them know if they can move on.While they wait, he looks over at Zendaya who’s checking her phone. He stares a bit too long because when she finally puts her phone away she glances up and catches his gaze. She smirks up at him and in a stage whisper calls out, “hey, how’s your bladder doing? Are your kidneys feeling okay?” To which, he snorts and they both fall into another fit of giggles.---He’s reading through his lines when he hears a knock on his trailer door and he yells for whoever it is to come in. Expecting it to be one of the guys he’s surprised to see Zendaya in a black tank top and shorts.“Oh, thank god. Your AC works!” she says and sprawls out on the couch next to him, her head brushing against his thigh as she throws her legs over the armrest. “The AC in my trailer just stopped working this morning and they said it won’t be fixed until tonight. I was dying in there.”“Well, that sucks. Feel free to chill in here as long as you need.”“Thanks, you know I love the heat but that was legit like being in an oven. Zero air flow.” She looks up at him and smiles. “Whatcha up to?” “Lines,” he sighs because usually he runs them with Harrison but he’s out running errands and he wasn’t back yet.She props herself up onto her elbow and looks over at the script in his lap. “Oh damn, that’s a lot of pages. Is that all for after lunch?”He nods. He’s used to this but he’s had shitty sleep the past couple nights and his mind is feeling hazy. He tells her about how he’s feeling drained and hasn't been sleeping well. Immediately her whole demeanor changes and she sits up, moving closer to him, a concerned look on her face.“Hey, are you okay?”He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. “Umm, yeah, I’m fine. I think I just need to get better sleep tonight, y’know?”She reaches out and rests her hand on his shoulder, giving him a supportive squeeze. “Are you sure that’s all it is? Tom, you know you can talk to me.”His throat tightens in a way he hasn’t felt in awhile, almost like tears but he hopes he’s not anywhere near the point of crying. He wills himself to turn and face her - she looks so worried, he starts to feel bad for even bringing it up. “It’s nothing.”“No, it’s not,” she says firmly. “Tell me.”He laughs bitterly and looks away, feeling ashamed and stupid for putting a damper on things. But then he opens his mouth and suddenly it all comes pouring out of him. How he’s suddenly terrified of the pressure and responsibility of the role. How he saw fans yesterday waiting by the exterior set for hours just for a wave and he thinks how this is only the beginning and how things will never be the same again. How he’s so scared of disappointing the fans and that he won’t live up to their expectations. His cameo in Civil War was big enough to excite the fans but also small enough to not feel any real pressure. Plus, he was in a movie with Captain America and so many other amazing superheroes that he never felt like he was really in the spotlight. But now this movie would rise or fall depending on his performance and the reality of it is finally weighing on him. He feels like he’s about to hyperventilate and his voice is starting to crack.“Hey, hey! Come here,” she says in a hushed voice and pulls him into a tight hug. “It’s okay to feel like this. It’s completely normal. It’s okay.”He wraps his arms around her and squeezes tightly, burying his face in her hair and feeling like he might actually cry now. She keeps holding him while whispering soothing words and rubbing his back slowly. After another moment he finally lets go and she pulls away only enough to look into his eyes and smile at him.“I obviously have never been at the helm of one of the biggest superhero franchises before, but I know a thing or two about public pressure and meeting people’s expectations and worrying about all that shit,” she begins. She tells him all about how she dealt with the pressures of being a role model while growing up herself and trying to always say or do the right thing.“In the end you can’t please everybody and you just have to understand that that’s okay. Once you get right with that in your own heart, you can start to relax. As long as you put in your 100% and you do what feels right to you, then everything else will fall into place. You gotta learn to accept that there’s always gonna be the haters out there, doubting you and making you feel like you’re not good enough. But if you surround yourself with family and supportive friends it won’t matter at all what the few haters say. Sure there’ll come a day when you might mess up or you’re not at your best and, yeah, the fans can be fickle, but just keep your head down and work hard and they’ll see you for who you really are. And at the end of the day the only opinions that truly matter are those who are in your close circle and that’s all you have to focus on.”He lets out a long sigh and it’s like the dark cloud that’s been hovering over him the last few days has finally lifted. “Thanks, Z. I needed that.”“Anytime,” she says and when he meets her eyes he sees nothing but genuine affection and support there.“You’re really good at pep talks, d’you know that?” he asks with a grin.She looks away in fake modesty, “I’ve been known to offer some decent advice now and then.” Her hands are still resting on his shoulders and she gives them another squeeze before pulling away and getting up to look in his mini fridge for a snack.“Oh my god you have Haagen Dazs?!”He smiles widely, remembering that he bought a tub her favourite ice cream for his trailer because the last time she jokingly told him he had shitty snack options.There’s a moment after she hands him a spoon and puts the ice cream between them on the couch, where he thinks, oh no. She takes a swipe of the ice cream with her own spoon and puts it in her mouth, closing her eyes to savour the flavour. He can feel his heartbeat quicken and he can’t stop staring at the way her lashes brush against her cheeks when she looks down and how she smiles around the spoon, enjoying the cool treat. He pushes any thoughts about her lips deep down and instead thinks about what great a friend she is even though he’s only known her for a few months through text and a couple weeks in person. He’s pretty sure a few of his friends from back home would’ve just clapped him on the back and told him to chin up, but the fact that she got him to open up so quickly and then gave him some really good advice was something he never expected.“Did you just tune me out again?” she pokes him in the chest with the back of her spoon.“Sorry, I’m listening, I promise. You were talking about your nieces.” She smiles, happy he was listening, and continues her story. He thinks he could listen to her read the phonebook if it came to it. Again, he thinks to himself, oh no.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
They sit in comfortable silence on two loungers by the pool - Zendaya sprawled out on hers, staring up at the stars while he sits cross legged facing her. It’s completely dark save for the lights in the pool casting watery shadows and reflections on the side of the house. He takes another sip of his now warm beer and grimaces. He hates how any cold beverage becomes piss warm within minutes of being exposed to the hot Atlanta air. He’s used to nursing a pint at the pub and knowing it will still be cool when he finishes the last dregs.She comments on his face and laughs when it’s yet another complaint about the heat. She’s grown up in this kind of heat her whole life, she thrives on it. The truth is, he wouldn’t mind it so much if the humidity would just chill for a second. Every morning in hair & makeup the ladies are laughing at the frizz on top of his head. He always feels like he needs to take another shower immediately after he’s just had one. He feels like the sun is personally out to murder him and he’s already gone through 3 bottles of sunscreen in the last month.But it’s not all bad. He likes that he can walk around in swim trunks or shorts and no shirt because it’s so warm out. He likes his huge outdoor pool and being able to swim laps at 2 o’clock in the morning if he wanted. He loves that Zendaya shows up at his house in basketball shorts and a loose tank top or t-shirt over her bikini and that that seems to be her permanent state of dress. Some days her hair is like a lion’s mane, wild curls all around her face but she doesn’t care and to him, even frizz looks good on her.He checks his phone for the time and realizes it’s late. She should be getting home, he should be getting to sleep. They have another busy day tomorrow filming at the school set, probably one of the last before he has to move onto some more of the action scenes. As much as he loves filming the stunts (as many as they’ll let him) and crazy action sequences, he does miss filming with the rest of his friends. It can be isolating in the suit when it’s hours of resetting and filming the same jump over and over and the only people to talk to are his stunt team or the guy with the ice packs to keep him from passing out in the heat.He glances down, expecting her to still be looking up at the sky but she’s looking back at him, head cradled in the crook of her arm. With anyone else that kind of stare would be too intense and he’d look away but he holds her gaze for a while longer, smiling without realizing.“Everything okay?”“Yeah,” she shrugs. “It’s late, I should call Darnell to pick me up.”“I can drive you, it’s not far.”“You’ve been drinking,” she points out and gets up. She flips her hair over and expertly ties her hair up into a messy bun on top of her head. He can’t decide which look her prefers - the loose curls around her face or the messy bun that should look ridiculous, but on her it’s adorable.He holds his bottle up to her and shows how little he’s had to drink. This seems to be a recurring issue for him: grab a bottle from the fridge, sit down to chat with Zendaya, forget about beer, have to toss out warm, flat beer of which he’s only had 3 sips. He can’t help it if their conversations are so engaging and hilarious he forgets about everything else around him.Seemingly satisfied with his proof of sobriety, they walk through the dimly lit house to the front door. She slips on her sandals, he grabs his keys and they jump into his car. It’s barely a ten minute drive to the hotel she’s staying at while filming but when he goes to turn on the radio, she moves his hand away and plugs in her phone instead.A slow jam he isn’t familiar with comes on and she starts softly singing along, her voice slightly audible over the male singer’s voice. He keeps his eyes on the road but can’t help smiling. He turns into the hotel’s side entrance and pulls up as close as he can to the doors where she’ll be able to slip in with her room key unnoticed. Putting the car in park he turns slightly towards her and the car goes quiet as she unplugs her phone from his car’s console.“You on set tomorrow?” he asks and wishes his voice didn’t sound so desperate.“Not until the afternoon. I’m looking forward to sleeping in.”“Ugh, jealous. I could do with a lie in one of these days.”She makes a face and chuckles, “you say such weird things sometimes.” He rolls his eyes. “Thanks again for dropping me off,” she says as she pulls him in for a hug. One thing (of the many things) he really likes about her is her hugs are always full contact - always a tight squeeze and genuine. He can feel her smile as her cheek brushes against his.“No problem at all. Honestly, anytime you need a lift, I’m your guy,” he replies and instantly regrets how lame he sounds. He’s never been known as a particularly smooth person, but around her, he’s anything but. “Sleep well,” he adds weakly and she hops out of the car and smiles at him before closing the car door and walking to the hotel. He watches her go inside safely before throwing the car into drive and making a U-turn in the parking lot to get back to the main road.When he gets home he’s got a text from her waiting on his phone.
Okay, but real talk. The fact that u haven’t watched shrek in years is ridiculous. It is a CLASSIC!!!
She’s referring to a discussion they had earlier about best movies of all time where she mentioned Shrek and he laughed. Little did he know it is one of her favourite movies.He gets ready for bed and as he’s brushing his teeth he replies to her that maybe he should rewatch it sometime since it’s been so long. He smiles with a mouthful of toothpaste when he sees her reply.
Wednesday. Lunchtime. My trailer. This is happening.
He knows she’s talking about watching the movie but his heart starts beating faster thinking of sitting on the couch with her in that tiny trailer. He rolls into bed and replies in the affirmative trying to keep it casual and light. He checks the time and winces, realizing he’ll likely only have a little over 5 hours of sleep if he gets to bed right now . He can see her typing something, the three dots blinking at him in the dark, and he wonders if he should just say goodnight and end it there.Instead he opens up Snapchat and sees that he’s missed some of her snaps from earlier in the day. It’s become his nightly ritual of checking her snaps every night. Mostly they’re snaps of her bored and using one of the weirder filters and making silly faces. He can’t help but grin at her cute laugh while she talks into the camera about how sexy she looks with a giant nose and dopey eyes. She finally sends her message and it was like she read his mind.
You should get to bed, Spidey, it’s late. Gn
He chuckles softly and replies with the snoring emoji.---He squares his hips and grips the iron in his hands remembering to keep his arms straight and in line with his body. He rotates his chest, hips and feet in the backswing and follows through, making contacts with the ball and watching it rise into a perfect arc over the trees and towards the green.“I fucking hate you, man,” Jacob says behind him from the golf cart. “Why you gotta make it look so effortless?”Tom squints back at him, the sun blinding him for a second, and smiles boastfully. “What can I say? I’m a natural.”Harrison scoffs, “that was a fluke and you know it. The last five holes you were hitting into the rough and bushes!”Tom continues to hold his hands up in mock humility, “I’m sorry you two just weren’t born with my skills.”The two other guys start throwing more insults at him as he joins them in the cart and they drive to their balls, a couple hundred yards away.“So is Zendaya joining us for dinner tonight?” Jacob asks as he grabs his pitching wedge and makes his way towards the sandpit. He swears there’s magnets in the bunkers that draw his balls there every hole.“Oh, I - I hadn’t asked her yet. Should I text her now? Where did you guys decide to go? Are there vegetarian options?”Jacob smirks at Tom. “I’m just joking, man. It just seems like every time we hang out you invite her along, so I was surprised you didn’t invite her already.”Tom cocks his head and looks over at Harrison who is chuckling behind his gloved hand. “Wait, what are you getting at?”“Oh, c’mon, don’t act like you’re not into her,” Jacob replies and swings. His ball flies out of the bunker, sand flying along with it, and lands on the green close to the hole. “YES! Look at that shot!”Tom ignores his golf comment and crosses his arms defensively. “I’m not into her, we’re just friends. The same way I’m friends with you, and Tony, and Michael, and Laura….”“You aren’t texting Laura until 1am, though, are you?” Harrison counters.Tom stands there between his two friends, sputtering and unable to form sentences that will prove his innocence. Jacob just laughs and shakes his head.“You’ve talked about Zendaya for about two of the three hours we’ve been out here. If you’re not into her then you have to stop bringing her up every two seconds unprompted,” Harrison says, which only makes Jacob laugh harder.Tom frowns at his friends laughing at him and realizes he can’t deny it any longer. He tried to keep his feelings in check, reason with himself that this was a bad road to go down but he couldn’t help it. He was already so far down the path before he even realized he was there.“Okay, so I may.... possibly…. have a really small, tiny thing for her,” Tom admits quietly.“Finally!” Jacob says like a hallelujah. “Admitting you have a problem is the first step.”Tom rolls his eyes. “Look, it’s not a big deal. It’s probably just cus we’re in such close proximity. In a month she’ll finish filming and I won’t see her as often and these feelings will fade.”“Yeah...until you see her at the press tour and they come back?”“Haz!” Tom whines.“I’m just saying, you’re not feeling this way about Laura, who technically is playing your love interest in this movie. You barely even have any scenes with Zendaya.”“It’s weird, I know, but even in this short time I’ve got to spend with her, I feel like I’ve known her for years. She’s hilarious - I know you both agree. We have the same sense of humour, sometimes she just looks at me and already I know what she’s thinking before she says it. We just… click.” Tom looks up at his friends who have suddenly gone silent. “What?”“Oh shit, this isn’t just some crush,” Harrison says, completely serious. “You really like her.”A long pause as he lets the reality of those words sink in. If his two friends are seeing it then it’s not something he can lie to himself about anymore. “Fuck.”Jacob puts a comforting hand on his back and says, “cheer up, dude, we’ll be your wingmen on this.”---By all rights, they really shouldn’t be playing this game. If Marvel knew that they were wrestling and practically drowning each other in the pool, they’d kill him. He grabs the ball and runs as fast as he can in the water to the net before he feels someone grab his leg and pull him under. He gulps for air and instead takes in a mouthful of disgusting chlorine-infused water. He struggles to break free and at the last second he lefts go of the ball and the iron clad grip on him is gone, allowing him to return to the surface for oxygen. He coughs and sputters and makes his way to the edge of the pool, resting his head on the rough stone, he closes his eyes and continues to cough up water.“Oh my god, is he okay?” he can hear Laura shouting as she runs over to him.“Oh fuck, Tom!” Jacob yells behind him. “I’m so sorry, man! I didn’t mean to hold you under so long!”He coughs some more, feeling someone smacking his back to dislodge any excess water from his lungs. He pulls himself up onto the deck and rolls onto his side, coughing a bit more but he feels a lot better now. Looking up, he sees Zendaya hovering over him, rubbing his back.“Don’t die on me, now,” she says jokingly but he can see the worried crease between her brows.He smiles weakly and clears his throat. “I’m good. I’m fine, really. It’s okay.”Slowly he sits up and waves everyone off, assuring them he’s okay. Jacob apologizes a few more times and even gives him a hug once he gets out of the pool. Laura returns with a glass of water for Tom and he thanks her before taking a few sips. He relocates to one of the loungers next to where Zendaya was originally sitting with the other women.Wiping his face on his towel, he sighs, “who knew almost drowning would kill the party mood so fast?”She smacks him on the arm and it actually hurts a bit. “Don’t joke about that. You could’ve really gotten hurt.”“I’m fine, Z, really,” he reassures her again but the worry in her eyes doesn’t go away. He leans forward and rubs his thumb between her eyebrows to smooth out the line there. It’s a small gesture, but he doesn’t realize until he’s doing it just how intimate it would be.He pulls away quickly and takes another sip of his water noticing her watch him in his periphery. As much as he has come to know her quirks and habits over the past few weeks, sometimes it’s like a wall goes up and he can’t read her at all.“You should put more sunscreen on, you’re looking pink,” she says and slips her shades back over her eyes.---One night after filming ends at a decent hour for once they all go out for dinner. He takes a seat across from Jacob and Zendaya’s quick to slide into the booth next to Tom, forcing Harrison to sit across from her with Harry on the other end. Tom’s starving and can’t wait until their server returns with their drinks so he can order.Next to him, Zendaya is checking her emails and replying to a few of the more pressing matters. She’s always busy with her various projects and between KC Undercover, her clothing line, her app, photoshoots and awards shows she’s scheduled to attend, he’s not sure how she has time to sleep. The past few days she’s been a bit weird around him - not cold but sort of distant. A few times he’s joked with her on set and she doesn’t laugh as hard as she usually does, which granted, he’s not that funny, but he’d be lying if he wasn’t disappointed. He notices that she’s started calling him ‘bro’ more often and he can’t figure out why it makes his hair stand on end.The rest of the guys are talking about a funny video they had watched earlier and laughing boisterously. Once the server takes their orders he nudges her arm with his elbow causing her to almost drop her phone. She looks over at him questioningly.“All good?” he motions to her emails.“Yeah, sorry! I know I shouldn’t be on my phone while we’re all hanging out. I’ll put it away,” she says quickly and makes a show of turning off her phone and slipping it into her jeans pocket.An old school hip hop song comes on over the restaurant’s speakers and Jacob and Zendaya both start singing across the table at each other. Tom knows the chorus but they both are singing each verse like it was just yesterday the song came out. He smiles watching her nail the rap, with full arm and hand motions, and doesn’t notice Harrison’s phone out filming everything.When the food finally arrives, they all end up sharing everything except for Zendaya who only steals some sweet potato fries from Harry and a jalapeño popper from Jacob, but can’t partake in the meat options they have chosen. Tom leans into her and swipes a large forkful of mac and cheese from her giant bowl and stares at her with wide eyes at how damn good it is.“Oh my god, why is this the best mac and cheese I’ve ever tasted?”“Right?!” she agrees and then blocks any further advances from his fork. “Hey, it’s MINE!”He ends up stealing another small forkful when she’s distracted and she pretends to stab him in the arm when she catches him try again.When their plates are cleared and they’re waiting on dessert he feels something brush against his pinky finger. He’s got his left hand resting on the booth seat and when he glances down, Zendaya’s right hand is next to his. He keeps his hand still and wonders if it’s a coincidence her hand is where it is or if he should be reading more into it. He waits until Harrison finishes his story, a good three or so minutes later and nonchalantly glances down again. Her hand is still there.Ever so slowly, he stretches out his pinky so it brushes against the outer edge of hers. He responds to Harry’s verbal jab at him easily and turns it back on Harrison who tries to deflect, all the while noting that she hasn’t reacted at all to his touch. She laughs along with the rest of them and interjects with her own comeback despite what may or may not be going on under the table. He’s only had one beer with dinner so he can’t even claim liquid courage as he decides to be brave and hooks his pinky finger around hers. This time he sees the tiniest reaction from her out of the corner of his eye. The smallest smile tugging on her lips as she listens to Jacob explain something he’s already tuned out. All he can focus on is the fact that she hasn’t pulled away and that his heart his pounding incredibly hard against his chest. He hasn’t felt this nervous in ages but he can’t stop now.He carefully moves his entire hand to rest on top of hers, gently stroking the tops of her fingers and the back of her hand with his finger tips. He sneaks a sideways glance at her and she’s still listening to Jacob’s story, an interested and engaged look on her face, save for the way she’s nibbling the inside of her bottom lip. He stills his hand for a moment to see if she’ll react in any way and to his surprise, he can feel her splaying her fingers out so his intertwine between hers. She curls her fingers under, bringing his with them and gives him a small squeeze.“Who ordered the ice cream?” comes the voice of their overly enthusiastic server from behind them. Zendaya pulls her hand away from his and takes the bowl from her with a smile. “Great, and the creme brulé was yours, sir?” the server asks as she places the plate in front of an excited Harry. She places the last plate of dessert in front of Jacob and Harrison who had decided to split the giant molten lava cake. She turns back to Tom and tells him she’ll be right back with his apple crumble and he weakly thanks her, wondering when he’d lost the ability to speak.He clears his throat and takes a sip of water, watching his friends and brother dig into their desserts. He can’t bring himself to look at Zendaya just yet. He feels hot like his ears are on fire and he’s thankful for the dim restaurant lighting. When his dessert finally comes he wishes he’d gotten ice cream instead because the heat is rising up his chest and neck and he hopes he isn’t blushing bright red.In the car heading home, Jacob is riding shotgun and Zendaya is in the backseat with Harrison and Harry. The two guys in the back are arguing over a videogame while Jacob checks his phone. Tom adjusts the rearview mirror and locks eyes with her for a moment. He gives her a lopsided smile and she smiles back but he doesn’t feel anything but friendly vibes. Throwing the car into reverse, he backs out of the parking spot and heads to the freeway to get back to her hotel. She jumps out and thanks them for a fun night and waves as she disappears into the lobby.When they get home he sees that Harrison has sent a video to their group chat. It’s Jacob and Zendaya singing at dinner and you can clearly see Tom staring at her affectionately. Jacob replies with a series of emojis that mostly include raised hands and laughing faces. Tom watches the video again with the sound off and can’t believe how obvious he was being. To his horror, Zendaya suddenly replies with three laugh-crying emojis and he wants to die.“Who added Z to our group chat?!” Tom asks in a panic. Up until tonight it had been a private text message group for the four guys, mostly for setting up golf outings and sending links to hilarious tweets or instagram posts, but now Zendaya was added and she had seen the video.“I did,” Harrison replies.“HAZ! What the fuck?”“What? She saw the group chat on my phone earlier and asked to be added. I didn’t think it would be a big deal,” he explains but Tom squints at him in annoyance.“I can’t believe you added her without asking the rest of the group and that you posted that video when you know how ridiculous I look in it.”“Calm down. You’re not even the focus of the video, I was filming her and Jacob,” he replies innocently. A beat passes while Tom contemplates this and then Harrison adds cheekily, “and besides, maybe she’ll see you making that lovesick puppy face at her and end this ridiculous saga once and for all!“Oh you’re so dead!” Tom launches himself at Harrison and wrestles him on the couch. Between the yelling and the laughter, Harrison manages to say, “You’ll thank me for this one day!”---Zendaya has to leave again for a few days for something called the Kids Choice Sports Awards. When she first mentioned it he thought she was joking but when he calls her the night before to hang out, she reminds him she’s flying back to LA and he laughs, “I honestly thought you made that up.”Things between them have been weird since the dinner but in the best way possible. They never once mentioned the hand touching or the group chat video but she seems to smile more around him and her sarcastic jabs at him only make him laugh because this girl knows how to drag you. On set she grins and makes faces at him across the room, trying to get him to break and afterwards when he goes over to her, she runs away laughing and screaming. They’re like inseparable kids who can’t get enough of each other and he never wants it to end.He checks his phone the next night and sees he’s got some missed texts and private snaps. One is from Zendaya and the moment he opens the snap he can’t help but laugh. She’s using one of the filters that distorts your face and makes your voice all high pitched and she’s talking like it’s the most serious thing ever. He taps the screen to load the next snap and it’s a short clip of her getting ready for that awards show with the caption, “Law has me out here lookin like a christmas present”.He gulps and taps the replay button to watch the video again. She’s standing in front of a full length mirror in what appears to be tight leather pants, black heels, and a huge gold bow tied around her torso. She’s tilting her head to the side and looking into the camera with a sultry look he’s only ever witnessed through photos and video, never in person. He has to agree, she does look like a present wrapped up with care, and he’d be lying if his first thought wasn’t what it would be like to unwrap her at the end of the night.Instead, he replies to her with a winking emoji and tells her she looks absolutely amazing. Her reply back is a series of emojis blowing kisses, which make him smile wider than it should. He wants to say more but over text it seems like not enough so he shuts off his phone, rolls onto his side and pulls the covers up over his shoulders.---
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Stepping out onto the stage at Comic Con is unlike anything he’s ever witnessed. Tom stares out into the huge room, packed with fans cosplaying various characters, their screams and cheers are deafening and he has to take a moment to gather himself before he brings the mic up to his mouth and says the now iconic line, “hey everyone!”Everything is a bit of a blur for him and the rest of his castmates. Jon had surprised everyone with some early footage of what they’d been filming the past few weeks and Tom’s blown away.“Okay but was that even real?” Laura asks on the flight home. They’d completed a whirlwind series of interviews and appearances after their Comic Con debut in Hall H and less than six hours after they’d arrived they were already flying back to Atlanta.Tony laughs and shakes his head, “that was IN-SANE.”“I honestly feel like I’m dreaming,” Jacob said. “Like, it was dope as fuck, but I feel like I’m gonna wake up any second and this was all in my head.”They all laugh along with him in agreement.“At least you guys didn’t have to dodge questions about who your character really is. Everyone was coming at me asking if I was really Mary Jane,” Zendaya said with a smirk.In front of them, Jon turned around and said, “get used to it, you guys, this is only the beginning!”---The only thing worse than night shoots are night shoots with your best friends because everyone gets giddy around 2am and lines are flubbed more times than not and everything seems to drag. Tom is sweating in his suit so he loosens his tie slightly as they reset the shot. He walks over to the refreshments table and grabs a cup of the punch they put out earlier. He’s had about 7 cups of this sugary liquid, which in hindsight may have been a mistake and the cause for his hyperness, but what’s done is done.“I know I’ve probably had my weekly intake of sugar by drinking this punch but it’s oddly really great,” Laura says as she grabs herself another cup.He smirks and agrees. His nerves have mostly dissipated from earlier while they were filming the kiss scene over and over. Jon going into extreme detail about the amount of awkward energy he was looking for from both of them. Tom’s glad that’s over.Zendaya joins them at the table, grabs the cup from his hands and takes a sip as if it was the most normal thing in the world. She’s standing in front of him joking around with Laura and he can’t help but watch the way her bangs fall into her eyes and how she tucks them away carefully behind her ear. He has to stop himself from reaching up and doing it for her.The sound guys are fiddling with the levels and periodically blasting clips of music the cast and extras are supposed to dance to during the scene. Earlier they were playing Panda, which got everyone dancing and laughing and now it’s random tracks that get the crowd going for a while but they have to cut the music for dialogue.“Here you go,” Zendaya says and hands him back the empty cup with a look that shows she’s pleased with herself.“Gee, thanks. Just what I wanted,” he replies sarcastically but he’s leaned into her space and she hasn’t stepped back so their faces are way too close together to just be friendly banter.Beside them, Laura raises her eyebrows, takes a sip of her drink and turns away from them to hide the look on her face. Neither of them notice her walking away.---Tom knows something is off the second he sees Zendaya arrive on set with bloodshot eyes and a look on her face that clearly says, don’t talk to me. He gives a questioning look to Darnell when he passes by and the other man shakes his head indicating he can’t talk now.A little bit later at craft services he spots Darnell alone and asks him what’s up.“I don’t like to talk about other people’s business, but let’s just say her ex did something recently she wasn’t happy about. Just give her some space,” he says and heads towards her trailer with two to-go cups.Tom nods in understanding, knowing that he shouldn’t press Darnell any further and walks back to his trailer. He knows about Trevor and the general story of what happened between her and him and how things ended. He overheard Zendaya and Laura talking about it once while bitching about guys and when he inquired about it later Zendaya had told him the coles notes version of the story. He’s completely disgusted that anyone would cheat on someone they supposedly love but he’s even more perplexed as to how someone could ever cheat on her.Curiosity and concern get the better of him and before he knows it he’s googling her ex’s name to see if any recent news pops up about him. Sure enough, he finds a few articles about Trevor releasing a new track and he sees one link that sends him to a online forum where Zendaya fans are discussing the song. He sees several comments of outrage and the sentiment that they’re glad they aren’t together anymore. There are several references to the lyrics and more than one person calls Trevor a fuckboy, so he closes the tab and searches for the song.Harrison walks in as he presses play and makes a face at him. “What are you listening to?”“Some song Z’s ex wrote about her. He just released it yesterday.”“Wait, it’s about her?”“Haz, shut up, I’m trying to listen!”“Okay, okay!”They sit side by side listening to the song and looking at each other in shock when they hear some of the chorus.“What the FUCK!” Tom yells when the song ends. He doesn’t think he’s ever been this angry about something that didn’t directly affect him. He starts pacing and ranting at his friend about all the things he’d say and do to Trevor if he ever saw him in person.“Okay, Tom, calm down. The lyrics aren’t the most tasteful but we can’t be sure it’s about her -”“HE CLEARLY MENTIONS COFFEE FLAVOURED HAAGEN DAZS ICE CREAM! How many other people do you know that love ice cream so much that everyone knows their favourite brand?!”“Fair point.”He fumes for a bit more before finally letting his friend talk him down and reminding him this isn’t his battle to fight. Tom’s got to be in the makeup trailer in a few minutes so they agree to not mention the song to anyone and leave his trailer.
At lunch Zendaya’s sitting alone with her headphones on while she eats - a clear indication she doesn’t want to talk to people. He takes a chance and sits down across from her, thankful when she finally slips off the headphones and acknowledges him.“Hey,” he says with a warm smile. “Darnell said you were a little under the weather today. How bad is it? Should I get you a sick mask so you don’t infect the rest of the crew? Or is it more of a gastrointestinal problem?”She scoffs at his lame attempt at humour, but he can see a tiny smile trying to surface despite her mood. “Don’t worry I don’t have a cold - or the shits.”“Oh thank god, the last thing we need is the whole crew out with the shits. I don’t think we have enough toilets!”She finally breaks out into a smirk and rolls her eyes, “you’re such an idiot.”Under the table he pokes her foot with his. “Honestly, though, if you need to talk, I’m here.”Her face falls back to the serious look she had earlier but she looks down and says, “okay” in a neutral tone.They finish their lunch in silence and he hopes his presence is calming. He wishes he could offer her some comforting advice like she did to him only a few weeks ago, but he’s never been good at words.On their way back to set he gently grabs her hand to slow her down. She stops to look back at him and he takes the opportunity to pull her into a hug. She doesn’t react immediately so he’s worried he’s overstepped his boundaries, but just as he’s about to let go, she wraps her arms around him. She starts shaking and he can’t tell if she’s laughing or crying but then he hears her take a big gulp of air and realizes his shoulder is wet with tears.“Hey, hey, it’s okay. Everything’s going to be fine, I promise,” he murmurs into her ear and wishes he knew how to console her better. He runs his right hand up and down her back in a soothing motion and gradually he feels her start to relax into his arms and rest her head on his shoulder.“Thank you,” she whispers before stepping back and sniffling into her sleeve. Her eyes are red from crying but she doesn’t look as miserable as she did that morning.He gives her a sympathetic smile and says, “I meant what I said before, I’m here for you. Whether you want to talk or just sit in silence together…or if you need a shoulder to cry on, I’ll always be here.”“Thanks,” she says again, looking sheepishly at him. “You may wanna change your shirt, I’m pretty sure I got makeup and snot all over your it.”He sighs and shakes his head. “That’s just lovely.”For the first time all day she breaks out into a genuine smile and all he can think about is how relieved he is to see it again. He’s always considered himself a loyal friend who would do anything for his friends and family but until today he’s never felt that sheer need to protect someone from the pain and hurt in the world.He takes a weary look at the state of his shirt and says, “C’mon, snotface, we gotta get back to set and I have to swing by wardrobe first to get a new shirt.”---“So Z tells me you used to dance ballet? Lemme see some of those moves!” Deja says in a cute but completely challenging way that makes him sit up straighter on the carpeted floor. He’s only just met this girl, one of Zendaya’s best friends, but her smile and bubbly laugh is infectious. He feels an urge to impress her for Zendaya’s sake and even though reason is telling him he should just chill, he can’t help feeling like this is some sort of test.“Erm, it’s been years since I properly danced but I can do a few things,” he explains, trying to keep expectations low. He gets up and makes a show of stretching and bouncing on the balls of his feet to get ready.Deja nods encouragingly and he can see her getting her phone ready to take a photo or something. Behind her, Zendaya is giving him a sarcastic thumbs up, “You got this, man.” No pressure. He places his feet into fourth position then opens his arms in preparation for a pirouette. He picks a spot on the wall across from him and brings his pointed right foot to his knee and pulls his arms into first position as he does the first pirouette. He spins easily and muscle memory takes over so he keeps turning as many times as he can. He’s done about 5 spins before he realizes Deja is taking a video but he can’t stop just yet. He kicks his foot out to get more momentum and pirouettes a few more times while she’s yelling “oh shit! You killin ‘em, Tom! You killin ‘em!”He loses his balance and spins out a bit before slowing down in time to see Zendaya standing off to the side, arm out like she’s presenting the weather. They all break down into laughter when they rewatch the video on Deja’s snapchat.An hour later he’s been roped into several other snapchat videos as well as a short choreographed dance by Deja’s boyfriend. He’s sweating but he’s having a blast and a few times he looks over at her, Zendaya is grinning ear to ear and looking content. In retrospect, he’s glad he told Harrison and Jacob to go golfing without him. He wouldn’t have wanted to miss today and he’s happy to finally have met one of Zendaya’s close friends.At the end of the night, he’s washing his hands after using the toilet and as he’s drying them on the hand towel he can hear the two girls’ hushed voices down the hallway. He slowly cracks open the door but doesn’t leave just yet, knowing it’s wrong to eavesdrop but he can’t help himself.“You were right, he’s cuuuuute,” he can hear Deja saying and drawing out the ‘u’ as the other girl tries to shush her to keep her voice down. He can’t hear what Zendaya says in reply but what Deja says next stops him in his tracks. “Girl, that boy is so clearly into you, it’s not even funny.”Was he that obvious, even to strangers and people he just met? After the incident with their hands at dinner the other night, she acted like it never happened and while part of him was disappointed, he realized it was probably better this way to just ignore it and stay friends. Sometimes she would give off strong friendly vibe so he backed off but then other times she would give him a look that said otherwise. He was trying his best to give her space but it was hard considering how much time they spent together during filming and on their breaks. He thought he had gotten his feelings in check but if Deja was noticing something was up, he clearly wasn’t doing a good enough job. He looks at himself in the mirror and sees his face is still slightly red from dancing so his embarrassing blush will be less obvious. He makes a point of being loud leaving the bathroom and walking back to them.“You guys need a lift back to the hotel?” he tries to keep his voice light.“Darnell’s already on his way, but thanks,” Zendaya replies quickly and he can’t help but notice that she won’t meet his eyes. The three of them make their way to the front door so they’re ready once their ride arrives.“So, Tom, you’ve got some moves!” Deja compliments him again and he smiles bashfully. “If you’re ever in LA, you really should come to one of my dance classes, it would be so much fun!”He laughs at that. “I just watched about 5 minutes worth of clips from your dance classes and I can tell you right now, I would get slaughtered in there. Those other dancers would wipe the floor clean with my ass! I’m no where near their skill level. But thanks.”Darnell pulls into the driveway and Deja reaches up to give Tom a hug goodbye. “It was so great to meet you. We definitely gotta hang together again soon! Tell Z to make it happen.”He agrees and hugs her back, “if I don’t see you before you leave, have a safe flight!”“Goodnight, bro!” Zendaya says giving him a playful punch in the shoulder and for a second he thinks maybe she’s pretending to be Michelle from the movie. He moves to give her a hug goodbye, something they almost always do as a parting gesture, but she steps away and waves as she runs to the car. “See ya tomorrow!”He stands in the doorway feeling confused and waves bye to them as they drive away. That was weird. ---He towel dries his hair and steps into the living room looking for any signs of life. He was sure he heard the doorbell ring when he was getting out of the shower but now he can’t find Harrison or whoever was at the door. He moves to the patio doors and he can hear Zendaya’s voice outside somewhere but when he walks out to the pool he doesn’t see anyone. He can hear a basketball bouncing and cuts through the bushes to get to the side where the basketball net is set up. He spots her dribbling the ball around Harrison, running past him and shooting for the basket. It easily glides through the hoop and she throws her hands up triumphantly, making a big show of dancing around in celebration.“Hey guys, what’s up?” Tom asks when he’s close enough to them.Harrison rolls his eyes in mock annoyance and says, “your girl here is challenging me to a game after she knows we just came back from the gym. It’s not a fair fight, I’m exhausted and I can barely lift my arms over my head!”Tom tries not to react to his friend’s choice of words since she’s no one’s girl, let alone his, but when he glances over at her, she’s grinning slyly back at him. “Taking advantage of the weak, I see?” he remarks.She chuckles and shrugs at them, “excuses, excuses.” She tosses the ball at him, hard, and he catches it noting the dare in her eyes.“No no no no no. I just had a shower, I’m finally clean after a long session at the gym. I’m not getting sweaty again, if I can help it.”“Speaking of, I still need a shower. I’ll catch you guys later,” Harrison says and disappears back into the house.“Where’s Deja?” He bounces the ball a few times before throwing it back to her.“She’ll come over later, she was catching up earlier with a friend who moved to Atlanta recently. She said she’ll just take an uber here.”He’s finally alone with her and he thinks now would be a good time to talk. She dribbles the ball a few more times and half-heartedly tosses it in the general direction of the hoop, missing it by a few feet. The ball bounces away, rolls down the driveway before stopping in the rose bushes - he’ll grab it later.She looks at him as if to ask ‘what’s next?’ and suddenly Tom’s hands are sweaty, something he’s never had an issue with but lately his body has been severely rejecting the humid weather. He wipes his palms on his shorts for the nth time today and motions for them to return to the back patio. Zendaya leaves Atlanta in two days and this is one of the last times he’ll be able to spend with her until the press tour possibly. He offers her a drink and she declines, but his throat has become dry so he excuses himself and grabs a glass of water, downing it in one go.When he returns she’s hiked up her pants over her knees so she can stand in the shallow end of the pool. He could easily step into the water next to her, look her in the eyes and tell her how he feels. Explain that he knows it’s probably a bad idea they get involved, but he’s willing to take that risk because she’s all he can think about and it’s slowly killing him.A cool spray of water in his face shakes him from his daydream and he realizes she’s flicking water at him and laughing. His shorts are soaked in the front in such a way, it looks like he’s pissed himself. He jumps into the shallow water and pretends to push her in, she’s shrieking and laughing, running as fast as she can to the edge so she can get out. She hurls herself onto the deck and scrambles out, screaming again when he grabs her ankle, pulling her back.“No! No no no! I give up!” she yells between giggles. His hands are around her waist and she rolls around trying to escape his grip. She’s stronger than she looks but finally he has both of her wrists in his hands and she’s sitting on the edge with her legs on either side of him, out of breath with a fading smile on her lips.It would be so simple to just gently pull her towards him and kiss her but he’s unsure how she’d react and he’s not one to overstep boundaries. He relaxes his grip on her wrists but she leaves them there cradled in his hands. She’s backlit by the setting sun and if he’s not mistaken she’s leaning towards him. His eyes are trained on her lips but he looks up at the last moment and sees her eyes flutter closed.“Hey, Jacob just texted, he’s on his way over for movie night,” Harrison calls to them across the pool from the doorway, oblivious to the moment he’s just interrupted.Zendaya pulls her hands away from him and smiles over at Harrison. “Cool.”Tom clears his throat and looks over his shoulder to glare at him. Harrison catches his look but just shrugs and slips back into the house. Tom turns back to her and he thinks maybe he imagined her leaning into him. She looks so casual, leaning back on her elbows, feet hanging in the water.“So tomorrow’s your last day on set?” he says, wishing his voice sounded more nonchalant and less wistful.“Yep.”“Gonna miss me?” he asks with a smirk and she shoves him playfully.“Not at all, you’re so annoying. I can’t stand you.”“I think you’re gonna miss me,” he says in a mock-serious tone. “You’re gonna be crying on the flight home and pining over me the next few months, wishing you were back here in Fun-lanta.”“Ohhh, pining? Really!?” she asks incredulously.He nods. “Yeah it’s not a good look, but I get it.”“Right, okay. Also, no one calls it Funlanta. Why are you so corny?”The sun has finally dipped below the horizon and the pool lights suddenly flicker on automatically. They’ve gone silent but it’s a comfortable type of silence he’s grown to love and it’s only one of the many things he’ll miss when she’s gone. He looks down at her and she’s staring back at him, lips parted slightly. She takes a deep breath like she’s about to say something really important and he can feel his heart begin to pound a little faster.“Tom, what are we doing?”“I...what?”“I mean, I feel like we’re just dancing around each other but we’re not doing anything about it. Tomorrow is my last day and I feel like if I don’t say something now it’ll be too late and I don’t want to live with regrets and what ifs.” She pauses for a moment to assess his reaction but his brain seems to have malfunctioned because he opens his mouth to speak and only half words come out in a garbled mess.She licks her lips, looking down at her hands in her lap and when he glances down he can see they’re slightly trembling. “I guess what I’m trying to say is,” she says and looks him square in the eyes. “I like you and I’m pretty sure you like me. Soooo, are we doing this or not?”Maybe it’s her courage that makes him bold enough to step forward but he leans into her space and takes her hands in his own. She’s a bit lower than him, sitting on the pool deck while he stands, but he makes sure to look her in the eyes when he smiles and says, “I’ve been wanting to ask you that all week but I was too scared. I’m glad you’re braver than I am.”She squeezes his hand and replies with a small smile of her own, “okay then.”“Okay, so let’s do this,” he says with a wide grin that he can’t stop from spreading across his face. When he leans down to her level, her right foot rubs against his calf under the water. Her lips are soft against his and he lets go of her hands to cup her face. Her own fingers are gripping and twisting the front of his shirt, pulling him closer.Behind them someone yells at the top of their lungs, “Jacob in da house!” and they pull apart, startled. He turns just in time to see Jacob walking out the patio doors, shades over his eyes despite the lack of sun. He seems oblivious to having interrupted their intimate moment and instead calls them back inside to join the others in the living room to watch a movie.“Hey, Z, what’s up!” Jacob greets her as she steps out of the pool. She gives him a hug and they walk arm in arm back to the house.Tom follows slowly behind them in a state of euphoria. He knows they’ll still have a lot to discuss and figure out, but for now he’s just kissed the woman he’s wanted to kiss for weeks and he couldn’t be happier.---Later that night, after Deja has arrived and set the guys straight on what they were gonna watch, Zendaya excuses herself to take a call. When she doesn’t return after 20 minutes, he goes looking for her and finds her sitting at the top of the steps heading to the basement, scrolling through her phone.“There you are.” His voice sounds shaky to his own ears but he hopes she can’t tell.“Hey, sorry. Work stuff, putting out fires. The usual,” she explains and he nods, taking a seat next to her. He offers her his hand and she takes it, threading her fingers through his and smiling demurely at him when he pulls her hand to his lips to kiss the back of her hand softly.“I’m kicking myself for not making a move sooner,” he says honestly.“Didn’t I just make the first move tonight by speaking up when we were out by the pool?”He grins and plays with the rings on her fingers. “I mean, if we’re gonna be accurate, I think I technically made the first move at dinner the other night.”“Okay, I’ll give you a half point for that, but then you just chickened out and acted like nothing happened after!”“What!? You’re the one who acted like nothing happened. Calling me ‘bro’ and being all weird!” He’s grinning at her like she’s crazy but she’s got that competitive look in her eyes that he loves so much.“Okay, first of all -” she starts giggling at herself before she can finish her sentence. “First of all, I can explain.”“Please do!”“So, this is going to sound dumb, but when I think someone likes me, I accidentally friendzone them.” Her laughter is contagious and he can feel it bubbling up in his own chest. “I’m just really bad at flirting and I don’t wanna be too obvious, so I think I end up overcompensating by being too chill and laid back and I do the exact opposite of flirting.”“I’m glad you told me because when you punched me in the shoulder yesterday I thought for sure I was friendzoned for life,” he says, chuckling and she’s practically cackling now. “I thought only cartoon characters punched each other in the shoulder like, ‘hey, buddy old pal’. It was so strange!”They’re both laughing so hard now, bent over each other in stitches. Suddenly the hallway light flickers on and several pairs of eyes are watching them with confused looks on their faces. Tears are streaming down her face as she laughs and he can barely breath from laughing so hard.“Are you two okay?” Jacob asks.It only makes Zendaya shriek louder with laughter and Tom thinks he may choke to death from lack of oxygen and laughing uncontrollably. Harrison, Deja, and Jacob exchange amused but perplexed looks and disappear back into the living room to finish the movie.Once they’ve finally calmed down and wiped the tears from their cheeks, Zendaya leans forward and capture his lips with hers. Her fingers inching their way into his hair and around the back of his neck, pulling him closer to her. Tom reacts quickly and kisses her back, loving the way her hands are tugging at his hair. He feels like it’s been years since he’s properly made out with someone. He forgot what it was like to feel dizzy with lust. He breaks from her lips long enough to angle his head and kiss along her jawline and down her neck to the collar of her t-shirt. Her breath is warm by his ear and he can hear her gasp slightly when he leaves a quick open mouthed kiss on her exposed collarbone.She shrinks away, shy all of a sudden, and leans back on the door frame. He feels like he’s dreaming, watching her through hazy eyes, his heart pounding so loud in his ears.“C’mere,” he whispers and gently tugs her back toward him.She obliges and gives him a quick kiss on the lips before standing up and dragging him up with her. “As much as I would love to continue this,” she says, wrapping her arms around his waist, “it’s getting late and once that movie is done, Deja and I gotta go cus tomorrow is my last day and a girl needs her beauty sleep!”Tom finally concedes begrudgingly and by the time they join the others in the living room, the film credits are already rolling. Deja is debating the film’s ending with Harrison who can barely get a word in edgewise while Jacob looks up at them from his phone and grins knowingly.“What?” Tom asks.“You know what,” Jacob replies and motions to their joined hands. Zendaya tucks her hair behind her ear and shrugs.The other two finally look over and Deja smiles so wide, trying to hold back her excited squeals of joy. Harrison just says, “finally”, under his breath.---“And that’s a wrap on Zendaya!” Jon announces as cheers and applause erupts on set.Zendaya smiles at the large group of people clapping for her and hugs a few of the crew, the DP, and the boom operator before turning back to Jon. He gives her a big hug and congratulates her on her amazing work. He tells her about how he had always wanted the MJ of this universe to be different than what had been seen in previous iterations of Spider-Man, and he couldn’t have asked for a better person to portray MJ than her.She turns in time to see the high school cast rushing over to her and enveloping her in a big group hug - Jacob is of course the first to reach her and squeezes hard. She says her thank you’s and goodbye’s and finally sees Tom waiting off at the side of the sound stage, a proud grin on his face and his arms open wide. She falls into his arms and they cling to each other for a long time, not wanting to let go.“If all goes well, we’ll be back here in two years filming the Peter, Ned, and MJ adventures!” he says, half joking. She’s still in her Michelle costume and her hair is down around her shoulders and pulled back slightly. He wants to reach around and undo the tie holding it back and let her soft curls free. (He’s decided his favourite look is when her hair is wild and messy around her face.) Instead he tells her he’ll see her later tonight and gives her fingers a quick squeeze. He watches her disappear into her trailer and turns to head back to his trailer to get changed and ready to head home.---That night he tells the guys to give him some privacy and when Zendaya comes over, he leads her back to his room and shuts the door behind them. When he sees the unsure look on her face he rushes to explain.“I just wanted us to have some time alone together away from everyone else so we could talk. I wasn’t presuming…” he trails off as he watches her eyes land on his bed in the middle of the room. He makes a point of taking a seat in the armchair in the corner of his room and motions for her to take a seat on the bed if she wants. She sits down at the edge and pulls one of her legs under her.“You bring all your girls back here?” she says jokingly and he smirks at her but the mood is somber and even her attempt at lightening things up doesn’t last. “I really wish I wasn’t going back to LA tomorrow.”“Cancel your flight and go back next week,” he says completely seriously.She laughs bitterly. “I wish it were that simple. But I have obligations, meetings. I’ve got so much going on right now, I just can’t.”“I know,” he replies and leans forward resting his elbows on his knees. “It was worth a shot anyway.”“We can Facetime, and I mean, I already send you so many snaps a day and half of them are when we’re in the same room.”“I love your snaps. Please never stop sending me your weird, random snaps. And yeah, I’ll definitely hold you to Facetime. Everyday if you’re okay with that.”“Yeah, of course!” she says sounding relieved. “I wasn’t going to say ‘everyday’ at first in case you thought it would be too much, but I’d like that.”“I don’t know if I could go a day without talking to you, Z.” It’s an honest admission that takes them both by surprise. Her smile is the sweetest thing he’s ever seen and she looks down to play with the hem of her jeans.They continue to talk about logistics, when they’ll be able to see each other again, and set some basic ground rules for each other. She’s adamant about maintaining good communication and making sure they’re both on the same page with regards to how to do this long distance. He’s eager to start setting dates for when they’ll see each other again, looking for gaps in their busy schedules where they can block out for each other. He eventually moves to sit next to her on the bed as they look at the calendars on each other’s phones and soon they’ve moved to the head of the bed to be more comfortable leaning into the pillows.An hour or so later she’s curled into his side, his arm around her and his lips pressed to her temple. She turns on the TV to some home decor show that neither of them are paying much attention to but the host’s voice fills the silence as he runs his hand up and down her arm.“I’m going to miss all of you guys. I honestly didn’t expect to bond with you all so fast. It feels like we’ve known each other for years, not a couple months.”“I know, it feels so surreal.”She shifts her body to face him and props her arm up on his abdomen, cradling her head in her hand. “I’m going to miss you the most, though.”He reaches up and tucks a curl behind her ear. “I’ll miss you more.”Again her smile catches him off guard and he can’t stop himself from leaning forward, grabbing her face between his hands and kissing her hard. She pushes back, making him fall back into the pillows as she captures his lips again between hers. When she finally comes up for air he opens his eyes to see her hair creating a curtain around their faces. She flips her hair to one side and gives him another deep, lingering kiss.They stay wrapped in each other’s arms for hours and eventually fall asleep on top of the covers, fully clothed, cuddled into one another.
When Zendaya wakes up the next morning she’s surprised to find herself in a strange bed. She tries to turn onto her back but she’s trapped under a weight around her. Blinking the sleep out of her eyes she finally realizes Tom’s arm is around her waist and her back is flush with him. She smiles happily as she remembers their talk last night followed by the greatest makeout session. She doesn’t remember feeling tired before she fell asleep but she does know that she had one of the best sleeps in recent months last night.Behind her, Tom stirs and she can feel him stretch as he begins to wake up. He opens his eyes and sees nothing but brown curls before he realizes where he is. He pulls her closer and breathes her in, using his other hand to move her hair aside so he can kiss the back of her neck.“Morning,” he says in a gravelly voice.“Mmm, morning.” She turns in his embrace and smiles at his sleepy face.“I have to be on set in an hour and a half,” he groans.“And I have to get back to my hotel and finish packing before my flight this afternoon,” she pouts.“Let’s just lay her a little while longer,” he says and rubs his nose against hers.“Okay,” she agrees, closing her eyes again. She wraps her arm around his torso, pulling him closer. Her fingers brush along the hem of his t-shirt and she slips them under to run along the smooth skin of his waist and back.His eyes snap open and suddenly he’s wide awake. “On second thought, I should really get up now so I’m not late.”She grins as he throws the covers off and grabs his phone from the nightstand. When she looks at her own phone she sees a couple missed texts from Deja that consist of a series of winky faces and some other emojis implying sexy times, which she can’t help but laugh at.“You know, no one will believe us that we slept together last night and all we did was just sleep,” she says as she pulls her hair up into a high bun.Tom chuckles and gives her a wink as he opens his closet to get some fresh clothes for the day. “Let them think what they want. Literally nothing can ruin my day now after waking up next to you.”---Fourteen hours later, Tom finally wraps for the day and sprawls out on his trailer couch to check his phone. One text messages from her appears on his screen, sent just before her flight took off.
I miss you so much already :( :( :(
When he checks Snapchat he sees several snaps from her and Deja documenting their trip home to LA. He has one private snap from Zendaya sent a couple hours after they landed. She’s hugging Noon and pouting at the camera with the caption, “ wish you were here ”.He closes the app and opens up his contacts, scrolling until he reaches her name and taps the screen. A few moments later her smiling face appears on his screen and he grins at how excited she seems when she says, “hi”.“Hey, you.”“How’d it go today?” she asks, wanting to know what they filmed today.As he launches into a story about one of his stunt doubles, he thinks about how it’s almost like she’s here with him. When he finishes his story and ask her about how her day was he briefly is reminded of the very first impression he had of her. That video of her lip syncing in her car will forever be ingrained in his memory. If he’s honest with himself, he’s had a crush on her since their very first chemistry read where she blew him away with her ability to adapt and improvise when he went off script. Months later, she still manages to impress and surprise him every day. Of course, things won’t always be easy and the distance will probably get to them at times but something tells him that this is the real deal. It isn’t just a passing phase and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to keep her in his life for as long as he can.