LOVE TO HATE YOU

(NEW) I don't need to eat...

I didn't see Ben at all since that night at work, apart from a few walk by's he'd made in-between meetings in preparation for the shoot. I'd wanted to give him his change, from the night he'd bought the drink. I didn't think a $88 tip on a $12 drink was appropriate, and I didn't take charity from people either. But week past in a crazy frenzy of working during the day and then all night too, that I hadn't been able to give it back to him. So when Thursday finally arrived I was exhausted.

I arrived at the airport about an hour and a half early. I'd been so nervous the night before I'd barely slept. I wandered around the airport trying to decide whether to eat breakfast, read a magazine, or shoot myself. I decided on none of those and instead headed into a candy store and grabbed a slab of chocolate. I ripped the paper off and took a big bite and instantly felt better.

"Sera?" I heard Ness call out and turned to see her and Samantha walking towards me. Behind them were a few people from production I barely recognized, a copywriter art director team I knew and someone else I'd never seen before.

I saw more movement to my left and turned. Another person was walking towards me now. Not an ordinary human though. She was the tallest, most gorgeous woman I'd ever seen in my entire life and she was strutting towards me. No doubt this was the model for the shoot. She walked as if she was on a catwalk. Her shiny, shiny, borderline reflective hair billowed out behind her and bounced as her hips jutted from side to side, causing her whole body to sway from left to right with each step. Who walked like that? And why had she not dislocated something?

Her little ballerina arms looked somehow separate from the rest of her body and hung like delicate butterfly wings from her perfect shoulders. Her collarbones protruded in that mocking way that screamed...

"No bitches, I don't need to eat."

I stopped chewing and slipped my chocolate in my bag, she was making me feel like a beached marine animal. Possibly an elephant seal.

She was also pouting. Her full lips were slicked with lip-gloss that twinkled in the overhead lights. Who pouted like that? Who pursed their lips together like they were sucking on a lollipop, or worse? Heads turned and people stared- clearly the effect she wanted to illicit. I looked back at Samantha and Ness and they both looked positively gutted, the competition had officially arrived and suddenly I imagined one of them licking Ben like a giant lollipop.

"Hi." I heard another voice and turned once more. It was Ben and he was also walking in my direction. I tried, oh-so-flippin- hard, not to let my jaw drop to the floor. He was wearing a casual pair of jeans and a black v neck t-shirt. He looked completely different in that outfit and maybe because it was new, I don't think I had seen him looking better. Judging by the looks on the other's faces, they seemed to agree.

And as if perfectly timed, the three crowds descended on me at the exact same moment. We all looked at each tossing around those awkward, polite smiles that come from not really knowing each other outside of work. I was trying hard not to let anyone see what I was thinking, i.e ripping Ben's shirt from his body with my teeth, rubbing my chocolate all over him and licking it off. I glanced over at the model. She looked like she were thinking the exact same thing, probably substituting the chocolate part for a low-cal celery smoothie though. Her little eyes twinkled at him, her silky lashes blinked and her pout got bigger...

Look at me. I have big, beautiful lips and I want to put them to good use...on you.

Everyone began walking in the direction of the boarding gates and started chatting away happily. I did not. I strode ahead, keeping my distance while shoveling the last of the chocolate into my mouth. But I could feel Ben's presence behind. It made me feel so self-conscious that I started walking strangely, which I was cursing myself for.

Once at the gates we all pulled out our tickets and then boarded the plane. I found my seat quickly as it was close to the front. I sat down and buckled up as I watched everyone walk past me towards the back of the plane. I glanced down at my ticket again, was I sitting in the wrong seat? But my question was quickly answered when Ben slipped in next to me.