TALK ME DOWN → SEBASTIAN STAN

fourteen | facetime

[ INCOMING FACETIME FROM SEBBY ]

Riley's heart stuttered as she stared down at her phone, her mouth falling open. She didn't know what to do; her heart was pounding so fast and she nearly missed the call. It was on its final tone when she slammed her thumb down on the accept button.

For a few moments, it had to connect. Then, his face appeared on the screen. Her heart skipped a beat at the sight of his face, seeing how amazing it looked on the phone. His blue eyes were brighter than she thought possible, excited and dancing in the dim light of what she assumed to be the studio due to his attire. His brown hair was loose around his face and his fake metal arm was on. Still, she could make out the curve of his real bicep where he held out the phone in front of him.

He could only look better in person.

She blushed; she was getting ahead of herself. Before she could think further, he spoke, "Hey."

His voice was deep and shook her. Her face was bright pink at this point and he noticed. "You okay there?" He asked, his voice a soft purr of a question. "I didn't mean to spring up on you like this; I just really wanted to see you, face-to-face."

"I guess it's more face-to-phone-to-face," she joked, before ducking her head as she realised it was stupid. But still, he laughed, a bright happy laugh. "Don't encourage me, Seb, my joke was awful and you know it."

"I happen to like your awful jokes," he said, his cheeks turning pink above his scruffy beard. The pair of them stared at one another for only a couple of moments before he smiled. "You look great. Special occasion?"

Riley glanced down at herself to see her floral dress and white shoes, and smiled. Her blonde hair was in an up-do, specially for the day ahead. "Yes, it is, in fact," she responded, rubbing the nape of her neck. It was a nervous habit she couldn't break, a way to preoccupy herself so she couldn't focus on whatever was making her anxious. "My big sister's wedding."

"Aha," said Sebastian, his eyes flickering across the screen to scan what he could of the gorgeous dress. "Your hair looks fantastic. I can also truthfully say it's a relief to know that you are actually a girl over the age of eighteen." He then lowered his voice, adding, "and a girl at all."

She laughed, ducking her head once again. That was when she heard a loud yell in the distance. Sebastian's head turned from where he lay on the ground, she assumed, and he laughed.

"Riley!" She heard over the phone. It sounded like more than one voice, like a crowd of people rushing towards him. That was when they all piled on top of Seb, making him chuckle through his groan.

"Sebastian, you didn't tell us you would be calling your beautiful lady-friend." Riley instantly identified this voice as Anthony Mackie, and she fought to not squeal with excitement. It was difficult though, with her being a huge fan of the marvel cinematic universe and the actors in general.

"Hi, Riley!" Another voice yelled. She also identified this voice in a number of seconds. Chris.

"Hi, Anthony! Hi, Chris!" She said, laughing loudly. Janie was out, so she didn't have to worry about making too much noise. They joined her, along with Seb, and one of the men quickly swiped the phone from Sebastian. As she was carried along, she realised it was Anthony running with the phone. "Whoa, guys, can't we share?"

"Nah, we're having too much fun teasing little ol' Sebby over there," said Anthony, who was breathless from running by the time he rounded the fifth and final corner. "Hey, Scarlett, we're got Sebastian's phone! Riley's here!"

Scarlett Johansson soon appeared in the camera and Riley found the urge to squeal again. "Hey, Riley!" She said, sounding as excited as Riley was.

"Oh my goodness, hi!" Riley exclaimed, grinning widely.

"You know, Sebastian's been talking about you all week," she said. The information made Riley's cheeks go red and she smiled still, more fondly and calmly. "I actually told him to FaceTime you."

"Thank you," Riley breathed, unable to believe possibly her biggest celebrity crush had been talking about her. He had been nervous to talk to her. Her stomach was doing cartwheels with excitement. "It's been great talking to you, oh my goodness. I can't believe I'm talking to you, I'm a huge fan."

"Thank you," Scarlett said, grinning at Riley.

Then the phone moved suddenly and she saw Sebastian again. He shoved Chris and Anthony playfully, before strolling away. "Can't trust any of those guys," he joked, sitting down in a chair off the side. "Had to get one of the cameramen to tell me where they'd gone."

Riley laughed, a real, true laugh that made the corners of her eyes wrinkle and her dimples become prominent. She hated her laugh, but Sebastian loved it. His cheeks flushed and he smiled fondly at the sight of her enjoying herself. He'd only seen glimpses of her life, but he knew she got sad sometimes and he didn't like it. He felt a protective urge; he wanted to fight away anything that upset her.

At first, he was cautious about talking to this stranger, without any knowledge of her. He was cautious to reveal his job, not wanting to lose her. But seeing her now, with her gorgeous face lighting up with amusement, he knew he made a good choice.