(Adrian POV)
Adrian had been in scenes that didn't go right before.
Missed cues. Bad direction. Forced chemistry that never worked.
He knew how to separate acting from reality.
He was good at it.
That was the problem.
Because Ruby Alexandra Knox didn't separate anything.
She blurred it.
Without even trying.
---
"Cut."
The director's voice snapped through the set.
"Let's take five."
Adrian didn't move immediately.
Neither did she.
Across from him, Ruby stood still with her script in hand, staring at a point just past his shoulder.
Not him.
Not exactly.
But not not him either.
That was the issue.
Everything with her felt like that.
Not direct.
Not avoidant.
Just… in between.
---
The crew slowly broke apart around them.
Noise returned.
Normal life pretending it existed again.
Adrian stepped back first.
Of course he did.
Distance was easier.
Distance made sense.
Distance didn't ask questions.
---
"You're quiet today," the assistant said as they passed him.
Adrian didn't look up from his script.
"I'm always quiet."
"That's not what I mean."
It usually wasn't.
But Adrian didn't ask.
Because asking meant conversation.
And conversation meant noticing.
And he was already noticing too much.
---
Across the set, Ruby was laughing softly at something Maya said.
Small smile.
Relaxed shoulders.
Different from earlier.
Different from Scene 7.
Different from the way she looked at him.
Adrian frowned slightly before he could stop it.
Then looked away.
---
He shouldn't care.
He didn't care.
He never cared.
That was his rule.
Simple.
Clean.
Effective.
Except—
Ruby kept breaking it without even trying.
---
"Scene reset in two!" someone called.
Adrian rolled his shoulders slightly.
Back into character.
Back into control.
Back into something predictable.
Except nothing felt predictable anymore.
Not when she was in it.
---
"Adrian."
He turned slightly.
Ruby was standing near her mark now.
Closer than before.
Not enough to be a problem.
But enough to be noticed.
Always enough.
"What?" he asked.
She hesitated.
Just for a second.
That was new too.
Then—
"You didn't need to do that in the last take."
Adrian tilted his head slightly.
"Do what?"
"Step closer."
Silence.
---
He didn't answer immediately.
Because the truth was—
he hadn't thought about it.
Not even once.
It just… happened.
Like yesterday.
Like Scene 7.
Like everything with her lately.
---
"I was in character," he said finally.
Ruby nodded slowly.
"Right."
But she didn't sound convinced.
Neither did he.
---
A beat.
Then she turned slightly away.
Like she was done with the conversation.
Like she always did when it got too close to something real.
Adrian watched her for a second too long.
Then said—
"You were too."
She stopped.
Didn't turn.
"…What?"
He should've stopped there.
He didn't.
"You stepped forward first."
Silence.
Longer this time.
---
When she finally looked at him, her expression wasn't sharp.
Not angry.
Not playful.
Just still.
"You're imagining things," she said.
Adrian nodded slightly.
"Maybe."
But he didn't sound like he believed it.
And neither did she.
---
"Okay!" the director called again. "Let's go!"
Ruby turned away first.
Again.
Always first.
But as Adrian stepped back into position—
he realized something quietly uncomfortable.
Every time she left first…
it felt like she was the one escaping something.
And he wasn't sure anymore if it was him.
Or what happened when they were too close.