Marvels Best ↯ Tom Holland

11 ↴ IRL

The restaurant was well lit and smelt deliciously of food as Tom walked in, a bodyguard lingering behind him. There were only a few couples scattered throughout the restaurant, but apart from that it was empty.

Following closely behind a waitress, Tom was led through the restaurant and through a set of double doors. They arrived at a small function room and Tom spotted Briar, already seated with her laptop open and documents all around her.

She looked up as he entered, the glasses on her nose slipping a bit but she quickly pushed them up with a polite smile. She stood up and held her hand out, Tom shaking it gently.

"It's good to finally meet you, Mister Holland. I'm Briar Cohen, your assistant." Briar introduced herself, and Tom was surprised to hear a faint Australian accent. He had thought that was American, but he had been wrong.

"Yes, I know. Your reputation precedes you, and please, just call me Tom. Mister Holland makes me feel old." He joked, his nerves disappearing. He was no longer intimidated by her abilities... but more so by her looks.

Briar laughed lightly as they both took a seat. "Very well, Tom. I'm just good at my job. The same can be said about you." Briar was gathering up a series of documents in her hands and handing them over to Tom to read as she spoke. She certainly wasted no time. "I went and printed out a schedule for you to read through for the next two weeks leading up to filming. It's nothing major, just final fittings and screen tests and such. If you have any problems, now is the time to let me know so I can move things around."

Tom skimmed over the schedule, a bit dumbfounded. "This... looks good, I think." He laughed softly as he handed the papers back, reaching up to scratch the back of his neck. "I'm just going to say it, I really have no clue what I'm doing. Sorry... I'm just really new to everything and I've never had an assistant before."

A smile pulled at the corner of Briar's mouth. She could tell he was nervous. "That's perfectly fine, Tom. I'll tell you this: every actor I have worked for so far has been different, and every time things have gone smoothly. Over time, we'll grow to understand each other and you'll realise that you're uncertainty was for nothing."

Tom smiled gratefully at Briar. "Okay, good. I don't mean to sound rude, but what exactly do you do?"

Briar paused a moment, thinking of the right words to say. Finally, she said, "Think of it like this: my job is you. Whatever you need, whenever you need it, you can count on me. It's my job to make sure that your time here at Marvel runs as smoothly as possible."

Tom nodded thoughtfully. "So, if I wanted a donut at midnight...?"

Briar let out a laugh. "I would get you a donut at midnight."

Tom's eyes widened. He had only been joking, he would never make anyone do such a thing for him. "Woah, you're really devoted, aren't you? Doesn't it get hard? Being a celebrity assistant, I mean."

Briar shook her head. "I've been doing this for five years so it's natural to me now, and I had a very good first experience. I wouldn't call it devotion, but more or so a reflection of who I want to be; I want to help people. You," she pointed at him. "Want to make people happy so you do that by acting."

Tom sat there silently, stunned at Briar's profound words. She was right, too. Tom quickly smiled widely, devising that he was going to get along with Briar just fine.