Chapter 87

The make shift tent was set up along a river, running through an open field, covered in new snow. They had cleared an area for filming and built a large fire for the scene, lining the ground with faux fur blankets and other props like rocks and extra plants. There were lights set up all around with two stationary cameras and a moving camera. Rhys hadn't talked to her much over the course of the previous night. It was obvious he didn't want her first experience on a movie set to be him making love to another woman. Pearl had no idea what to expect and tried to remain calm and supportive. It was his job. It's what he did and she knew it going in. Pearl was set up under a tent with Matt, the director and a small amount of cast and crew members. "Oh hey! I met you at Comic Con. Nice to see you again!" One of the female leads said as she came and sat by Pearl. "I bet this is really odd, isn't it? Seeing your man like this? I do this for a living so sometimes it's hard for me to remember how awkward it is the first time you go through a love scene on set. This actress, Abigail, doing the scene with Rhys, is a nervous wreck. She's only 19 and has never done nudity on camera before. Word is she pushed this up to get it over with." The actress told her.

Rhys came out of the dressing room trailer with a robe on. He walked up to his mark and they experimented with some lighting. A few minutes later, a young woman came to her mark, also in a robe. After what felt like forever, they began blocking out the scene. There were crew members moving their bodies and positioning them for the proper angle for the camera. When it was finally time to begin filming, they both took off their robes and Pearl was very surprised to see Abigail's breasts completely exposed. Rhys was wearing a flesh colored, bandage looking garment around his penis and she had on flesh colored panties. When Matt called "action", they started kissing and were asked to stop almost immediately. A makeup artist and Matt walked to them, repositioning them and making them repeat it until Matt was satisfied. Both Rhys and Abigail looked agitated and tired before the actual sex even began. It was like nothing Pearl had imagined when she watched movies. After 14 hours of this kind of stopping and starting, Matt was finally satisfied and he cut for the day, with only maybe 5 minutes of actual sex. Pearl was sure Rhys' bare ass the primary focus of the entire scene. Abigail looked shy and self conscious but Pearl thought she did a good job holding up through it all. Way better than Pearl would have. She was proud of both of them. She didn't feel jealous or weird about it at all. It was brutal and not sexy in real life. It was stressful and hard work. The only thing Pearl really didn't like was Rhys having to grab her breast. But it wasn't that bad. It was robotic. She walked away with a new respect for him.

Rhys changed his clothes and they headed back to their trailer. Rhys was still silent.

"That was a long day. I can't imagine how tired you must be." Pearl tried to break the ice.

"Yeah" he said, looking out the window.

They got back to the trailer and Rhys got into the shower. Pearl waited for him on the couch. He came out and started peeling an orange, sitting at the kitchen counter.

"Ok. So, what's going on with you?" Pearl asked.

He didn't look at her. Or answer.

"Today didn't bother me. It was fascinating to watch, actually. I hope you're not thinking I have a problem with anything. I'm reassuring you I don't." Pearl said, reaching for his arm.

"Yeah well, maybe I do." He said, standing up and walking away from her. "I felt horrible putting you through that today. It was the first love scene I've done since I've met you. I didn't like it. I felt terrible doing it and sick to my stomach the entire time." He said, putting his head down.

"I'm sorry, it's because I'm here. I won't go to the shoot tomorrow. I shouldn't have went today. I don't want to be a problem in your life. I'll go home if I need to." She said, feeling horrible.

"I would have felt like that whether you were there or not. This isn't about you being here. It's about how much I love you." He said, looking at her finally. He looked wounded in a way. She had no idea what to say to make him feel better. She walked to him, putting her arms around him, holding him for a long time. They just stood there, in the kitchen, holding each other.

"I'm not going anywhere." She said to him.

"I'm not going to do anything to make you feel you want to." He said back.

They went to bed, and she held him the entire night, telling him often how everything was ok and how much she loved him.

The next morning, Pearl woke up to find Rhys gone. She made some coffee and assumed he didn't wake her because he didn't want her to go to the shoot that day. A few minutes later, he came back with donuts and a newspaper. "You're awake. Good morning", he said.

"I thought you left me because you didn't want me to come to the set today, and I was ok with it. Just so you know." She said, grabbing a donut.

"I went to talk to Matt actually. The scene from yesterday is good. It worked. We are moving on. And also, moving forward, my love scenes are going to be a little different." He said, biting a donut.

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"I will still do them but I'm not touching naked breasts and I'm not showing my ass. And moving forward, in whatever projects happen in the future, that's my new rule. I'm not doing it anymore. And Matt gets it. There aren't any other scenes for me like that this season, so if we are renewed, which we most likely will be, that will be negotiated in." Pearl didn't know what to say. She felt bad. She didn't want it disrupt his life and make him change anything.

"I feel awful, I feel like I'm changing you. I don't want to change you or affect your career. I don't want you to do this because if you lose a part, it will be my fault. You'll hate me. You'll resent me and then you won't want me anymore. Please don't do that. Don't change what you do. I'm asking you to not do that" She said, starting to feel panic setting in.

"You ARE changing me. For the better. And this is how I feel. You didn't ask this. This is something inside of me. I don't and won't ever blame you. But he did, didn't he? My god, Pearl, you're frantic right now. What did he do to you? I can make choices without blaming you. I choose you, always." He said.

"Ok. I'm so sorry." She said.

"There is nothing to be sorry for." He said, kissing her forehead.

The week flew by. She was enjoying watching him work, he really was good at what he did and he nailed the part. On her last night there, after his day of shooting, they came back to the trailer and Rhys had food, flowers and candles set up.

"What is this?" She asked

"I have something to tell you." He said.