** Harper **
At the end of the night, Harper thought that she might as well have died of embarrassment.
There actually weren't that many love scenes in the movie, only three. But each of them was different and gave off a whole gamut of feels together. The first one was wild and passionate. The second one, which she missed a good portion of but somehow still remembered clearly, was tender and shimmering with sparks of real emotions. And the third, near the end of the story where the spy had to complete her mission and kill the general, was full of unspoken angst. If Harper was watching this with some heart and a clear head, she'd probably even agree with Eli that these scenes were superbly done, and that there was indeed much to be learned from them.
But how could she have either the heart or a clear head, sitting in that intimate theater box with Eli all night?
If not for Eli's convenient timing for making his drinks, if not for the lucky fact that both of the later love scenes coincided with his trips to the mini bar, Harper wasn't sure if she could make it. She also wasn't sure if he was intentionally doing it for her sake … Did he somehow notice her flushed face and evasive glances? Did he somehow figure out that she was actually far from experienced when it came to movies like this?
She tried not to think too much about those questions, in case the answers would necessitate digging a hole in the ground and burying herself in shame. But they bugged her the entire night nonetheless. Kept bugging her on her way home, and kept bugging her as she tossed and turned in bed. When Sunday rolled around, the same thoughts were still stuck in her head.
In utter frustration, she grabbed her phone and decided to text the first contact she saw:
[ Hey Chelsea, I could really use a drink. Got time today? ]
~ ~
"What? You went on a date with him?" Chelsea's eyes went wide as saucers.
The two of them were meeting for dinner at La Cantina, their go-to pub. Chelsea had just started digging into a plate of loaded nachos when Harper divulged the gist of last night's story over a Guinness and some generic background music.
"N-No!" Harper blurted. "We went to see a movie at a theater. That's not a date."
"You went to see a movie, in a private lounge for just the two of you. So yeah, that's a date." Chelsea grinned. "Way to go, girl! Hit the mark on the very first day! Is he handsome?"
"It's most definitely not a date! It's— Wait, you don't know what he looks like?" It took Harper a moment to realize what Chelsea's question implied. "I thought you knew him."
Chelsea shrugged. "I was originally gonna put you in touch with one of my friends. That was a she, by the way — I wasn't thinking about giving your book to a guy to edit at first — but anyway, she got back to me and said one of the other editors on her team was interested in helping you instead, and she recommended him cuz his specialty suits your story better. So I thought why not?"
It was Harper's turn to stare with eyes like saucers. No wonder something felt off when Chelsea gave her Eli's name! Was it really fate that her web novel somehow ended up landing in his lap?
"Now tell me," Chelsea urged, "what's he like? Tall? Handsome? Rich? Smoldering hot? Did you feel any sparks?"
"No! I mean, yes. No, I mean—" Harper groaned helplessly, palming her face. "I mean … I know him, actually. He's an old friend from home."
Chelsea's hand paused midair, the nacho in her hand still tethered to the plate by a thinly stretched string of cheese. "Oh," she managed after a few seconds of processing.
"Yeah, exactly." Harper whimpered, seeing that Chelsea finally got the point. "Awkward, isn't it? I haven't seen him for years, and he just suddenly popped up like that and … and read this indecent novel I wrote! And apparently that made him think I'd enjoy watching an indecent movie! And—"
"I thought you guys watched Bullet to His Heart."
"The unabridged Bullet to His Heart. It had about an hour of sex scenes." Or at least, that was how long it felt like to her.
Chelsea's eye suddenly lit up with a peculiar light. She picked up her food the rest of the way, crunched on it, then gave Harper a meaningful look. "So you've never watched this kind of movie with him before?"
"What? Hell no! I was still in high school when I saw him last!" Harper wouldn't even try to conjure up an image of them doing what Chelsea suggested. Honestly, she could barely picture Eli being the type of guy to enjoy these movies in the first place, given the proper impression he had always made in front of her … But then again, the same could be said about her and steamy romance novels, so who was she to judge?
Chelsea watched her with intense focus as she battled that discrepancy in reality. "Hmm … and you've been friends for the whole time you've known each other?"
Harper blinked. "Pretty much. Why?"
Chelsea's eyes lit up some more. "Want to hear my professional opinion on why he invited you?"
Harper blinked again. Everyone knew what Chelsea's professional opinion meant — she was the relationship guru in their friend circle, the best channel of gossip and a surprisingly reliable source of advice. Her eyes were the sharpest when it comes to interpreting mixed signals, cheating signs, and predicting upcoming drama. No one would ever turn down an insider's scoop from Chelsea.
But what did any of this have to do with the movie night?
"Um, sure," Harper said anyway, with some curiosity. "Though I thought it made sense that he picked this particular movie to help me with my book."
"Oh come on, girl!" Chelsea rolled her eyes dramatically. "Men aren't so innocent! You seriously never suspected he's interested in you?" She lowered her voice and leaned forward across the table. "I bet he was using the movie — hell, maybe even this whole deal about your book — to test the waters and see how far he can take things with you!"