Devil's Drop

Mike's First Shoot

Mark sat back in his desk chair, the slight squeak from his weight, or lack of fine craftsmanship, annoyed him as he laced his fingers together. It was early, but that didn't stop the work train. There were things to be done, scenes to be shot and film to be edited. The morning sun poured through the far windows, lending an extra amount of light to the darker painted room. The plum color on the walls hadn't been Mark's first choice, but over the years he'd grown to appreciate the lack of white and beige in this room.

He sat for a moment, looking across his desk at Chester Bennington and his newest employee, Mike Shinoda. Both had scripts for their first scene in hand. "As you can see, I kept it simple since this will be your first time, Mike. Very little dialogue to memorize. You seem like a smart boy, I figured you could handle that on the fly."

Mike cringed internally as Mark called him 'boy'. It was demeaning, a way of keeping emotional control over his employees. He didn't take his eyes off the script as he commented, "yeah. I can do it."

He glanced over the scene for another second, his mind racing. He still wasn't sure he wanted to do this, but the overriding emotion was concern for Chester. He couldn't back out and just leave him alone. Not now. He bit his bottom lip as he read and waited, wondering what other unwritten instructions were coming.

"It's a very basic scene, which I always think is best for new boys," Mark said as he sat forward in his chair, his elbows on the desk. "Chester will be able to guide you through most of it." He gave his senior employee a nod.

"Sure, it will be fine," Chester answered as he looked from his boss over to his boyfriend. "Don't let all this freak you out, most of it is just for visual cues," he stated as he motioned over his script.

"That's right," Mark agreed. "It's as much about your actions as it is about camera angles." He paused for a moment, his gray eyes flashing across the room to the wing backed chair by the bookcase, where Jason was sitting. He had his legs and arms crossed as he sat silently. "Jason will be filming," Mark continued as he turned his attention back to Mike and Chester, a smile parting his lips. "Along with the cues you give each other, you'll need to be listening to both mine and Jason's instructions as well. You'll need to stay fully present," he stated, his tone turning a bit more serious.

Fully present. Mike looked at Chester, for the first time realizing that what they were about to do wasn't what they did behind the closed doors of their own home. There wasn't anything romantic or loving about being ordered around in front of cameras, and he felt a sudden wash of shame through his insides. This was what Chester had been trying to tell him since he'd discovered his boyfriend was in the porn business. It was just work. There was nothing else there. It would be different for them in some way, he had to assume, because they were in a loving and committed relationship, but he just didn't know what to expect all of a sudden. This wasn't going to be like making love at home. Nothing about this would be like that, except that they would be together.

He looked back at Mark. "What else do I need to know?"

"The important thing is communication," Mark said, folding his hands on top of the copy of the script on his desk. "You're going to have to let Chester know certain things as you go along, and he'll do the same. Jason and I can only tell so much from the sidelines, so it's important the two of you are in sync when it comes to changing positions. This is a short scene, so we've only got half a dozen shifts for the two of you."

Mark flipped his copy of the script open, as he shoved his dark framed glasses up on his nose. "Opening with Chester on his knees, he'll suck you first and then you'll swap." He stopped as he looking over the top of his glasses at Mike. He had to pull back his chuckle at the redness forming around Mike's neck and ears. "Porn is all about going back and forth. Partners take turns, Mike. It's all about sharing." He looked back down and turned the page, and Mike and Chester turned with him. "Then we'll move to the couch. We'll start with Chester again. We'll put you on the couch and let Mike fuss over you a bit - kisses and groping," he said, unenthused, "but by that time you'll both need to be fully stripped."