His Dirty Little Secret (Chris Evans)

16. Tight bear hugs

It's Monday morning and I'm in a particularly perky mood, practically skipping around work. I really enjoyed hanging out with Chris on Saturday, and even though he just wants to be friends, I'm okay with that. Being his friend is better than nothing at all.

"Megan, I need you to make six coffees."

"Sure!"

"Two of them with one tablespoon of sugar, three with two tablespoons and the rest without. You need to bring them to set. Got it?" I nod, then head into the staff kitchen to start making the coffees. I hum along to myself, chirpy as ever. When the coffees are done, I pop them all on a tray and carefully start carrying them outside, where an outside scene is being shot. It goes swimmingly, until I'm walking towards Richard and some of the high-up people, such as the producers and directors. All eyes are on me and I become nervous, the coffee cups shaking. Oh no. Richard glares at me, and somehow, I trip over my own feet. The tray goes flying, along with the coffees. Oh no, no, no, no. Richard is going to kill me.

"Oh, I-I'm s-so sorry--" I stutter, as all eyes turn to me. I can tell just how angry Richard is from his expression. The director chuckles.

"Don't worry about it. Happens to the best of us." He assures me, bending down to help me pick up the broken pieces of China, putting them on the tray.

"Th-thank you--" I quickly stand up. "I-I'll go mmmake them again. S-sorry--" I gulp and start walking back into the building. Shit.

"Megan!" I quickly spin around, face to face with a very pissed off Richard. I gulp nervously.

"Richard, I'm s-so s-sorry."

"You should be! You completely embarrassed me out there! All I asked was for you to make some coffee! Six fucking coffees! And you can't even do that without fucking up! You're fucking useless, and you're never going to amount to anything, you hear me!? You can forget about getting any kind of promotion after this. You're lucky I'm not firing you. Get out of my sight. I don't want to see you for the rest of the day." He shouts, sending me on the brink of tears, cowering away. He storms off and I struggle to breathe. There's a lump in my throat, as tears brew in my eyes. I quickly run to the locker room, bursting into tears. He's right. I'm useless. I'm no good for anything. This is all I'll ever be good for, and I'm not even good at it. I shouldn't have moved here. I don't know what I was thinking. I'm a fucking idiot.

"Hey, Meg," Shit. Spinning around to see Chris by the door, I sniffle, quickly wiping my tears.

"Ch-Chris--" He walks closer to me.

"I saw what happened. Are you okay? What did your boss say to you?" He asks.

"N-Nothing. It doesn't matter."

"Of course it matters. Look at the state you're in. What did he say, Meg?" He presses, hesitantly reaching out and taking one of my hands. My heart skips a beat at his touch.

"Nothing th-that wasn't t-true. Th-that I'm useless and-and th-that'll I'll nnnever amount to anything--" I choke out, struggling to keep it together.

"That's far from the truth, Meg. He's full of shit. He's a fucking idiot and he shouldn't be working here. He had no right talking to you like that. I can get him fired--" I quickly shake my head. Whoa. He would get him fired for me?

"Th-there's no point." He sighs deeply and then does something that takes me by complete surprise; he throws his arms around me in a tight hug. His embrace is warm and comforting. His big, strong arms feel protective around me. The world around me melts away, as I squeeze him back, bursting into tears. This is not like any hug I've received in the past. I don't like surprise hugs; hugs without warning. I like to prepare myself, and I usually pull away almost immediately, uncomfortable. But this. This is different. I needed this. I feel safe in Chris's embrace. I feel secure, and I never want him to let go. This is how a hug is supposed to make you feel. This is what I need.