and... action!
DATE & TIME: May 2024 LOCATION: Hollywood Boulevard, Venice Beach SUMMARY: Ryder and Kitty are on set to film the music video for Ryder's new single, Partners in Crime. WARNINGS: None TAGS: @kittywildeofficial
Kitty This outfit was absolutely ridiculous. The leather stars that had been looped together in some chainmail contraption could barely qualify as trousers, but when paired with the matching black corset top, she couldn’t deny she looked good. Kitty squinted as she stepped out of the trailer, the hot LA sun beating down on her, and she prayed to God she wouldn’t sweat and smudge her makeup. Yeah, maybe a music video for Ryder Lynn wasn’t the height of prestige, but she still didn’t want to look like a drowned rat, especially in front of him. She was ushered through set towards where the red convertible sat, Ryder in the front seat, and she walked over to stand next to the driver’s door, her hands on her hips. “Was the outfit your idea?” She asked, an eyebrow raised. Ryder Ryder had been skeptical when his management team suggested putting Kitty in his new music video, trying to make the most of the publicity buzz surrounding the kiss at the party. All it had taken was one camera phone for their locked lips to be the talk of the internet and the remaining print media outlets which hadn’t been driven to extinction yet. His skepticism turned to outright shock when she accepted the job offer. He had been under the impression that she had better things to do and none of them involved him.
Ryder had been waiting in the car for Kitty to be done with hair and make up, absentmindedly drumming a beat on the steering wheel with his hands. He turned as he heard Kitty’s voice next to him, his eyes instinctively widening as he took in the sight of her. “No it wasn’t but clearly I need to give that person a raise. You look hot as fuck,” He commented, trying his best to keep his eyes locked on hers. It was a tricky task given her (incredible) boobs were the same level as his head. Kitty Kitty taking this job had been a surprise to her team. Although it was obvious why Ryder’s people had wanted her for this video, this wasn’t the kind of high profile shoot that she’d gotten used to over her years in the industry. She didn’t really have a good reason for them as to why she’d accepted, having gone with some half-assed ‘I want to push my boundaries creatively’ that none of them bought (it was a music video where she looked sexy in the back of a car - a dime a dozen job for her).
The truth, though she’d never admit it, lay somewhere in the fluttering feeling in her gut as she watched Ryder work hard to look absolutely everywhere except her chest, and she smirked, moving her hands to rest on the car and leaning forward against it. She knew this action pushed them further into his line of sight, but she kept her eyes upwards, nonchalantly looking at the sectioned-off street around them, bustling with the activity of a music video shoot. “I’m aware.” Was all she said. “God, you guys sectioned off half of Hollywood Boulevard for this shit.” She commented. “You must think this record has some promise.” Ryder Ryder had been planning something entirely different for this video but the plans had been abruptly changed when the pictures of he and Kitty had come out. His team had gone into planning mode, rewriting the video to capitalise on the attention that people were now paying him. He’d rather have gotten the attention on merit from his music, but he knew that fame was fickle and he had to pick and choose which battles were most important. Besides, getting to spend a day in close proximity to Kitty was hardly a chore.
“I like to think all of my songs have promise,” Ryder replied nonchalantly, still trying his best to not stare at her chest. He didn’t want her to think that he just liked her for her body, there were plenty of guys that she could go to for that. He liked her for the way she challenged him, and the insults they traded back and forth whilst pretending there wasn’t a strong chemistry underlying it all. Not that the boobs hurt either. “You must have thought it had promise too, since you agreed to do it. I can’t imagine you agreeing to a dud project,” He added, raising an eyebrow at her in question. Kitty Kitty shrugged a shoulder. She had listened to the song, in a meeting with her team, and then a few times in the car on the way home afterwards. She hated to admit that it was good, definitely good enough to warrant her tapping her foot along to the beat. Of course it went without saying that Ryder couldn’t know that. “You’re right, I wouldn’t.” She commented, moving back, impressed that he hadn’t fallen prey to her cleavage trap. “It’s not a bad song, Lynn, and you’re damn lucky the music video’s gonna kill as welll.
The director came to them now, some scrawny guy with a bad goatee, explaining to them the general vibes of the shoot, but it seemed that Kitty and Ryder had a decent amount of creative control over what they did in the car. Before she knew it, she was stood in the backseat of the car behind Ryder as they sped down Hollywood Boulevard for some behind shots, Kitty’s hair tossed in the wind, moving to the music that played just loudly enough for them to hear it. "God, I hope you’re a good driver.” She called out to Ryder as she danced, raising her arms above her head. “I’m not dying here doing this video with you.” Ryder Ryder was very surprised when she called his song “not bad”. That was incredibly high praise from her, and said to his face too. He was about to reply with a quip about how he was going to use that as a quote on the album cover, like how books did, when the director appeared next to them instead. Ever the professional, he swallowed the comment and made a mental note to try and remember it for later.
They were soon on the move since apparently the agenda for the day wasn’t just for him to sit and talk to Kitty more. He was a good driver, usually. But normally he didn’t have Kitty Wilde dancing in his back seat, looking unbelievable in her black leather outfit. The LA sunlight seemed to be bouncing off her, making her even more of a vision than she usually was. He was captivated, and it made it hard to pay attention to the road. He was just glad it’d been cleared of people so he could avoid any manslaughter convictions for when ran off the road, his only defense that Kitty had looked too good to take his eyes off of. “Don’t worry about me, I got you,” He called back, forcing his gaze back to the stretch of concrete in front of him. “I’m a great driver. Formula 1 tried to sign me up but I said no. I didn’t want to show them all up,” He added jokingly. Kitty Despite her attempt at a sultry, careless appearance, Kitty’s legs were trembling. Ryder wasn’t going so fast, but she was still standing up in a moving car with absolutely nothing holding her down. The director had guaranteed that it was safe, especially given that the road was clear of cars and there were first responders on-set, not to mention the thousand legal threats her team had made in regards to her safety, but it still made her anxious. She rolled her eyes at Ryder’s words, glad that the cameras were behind them so she could relax and talk to him a bit and get her mind off what she was doing. Plus, something about the way he said ‘I got you’ made her believe him.
“Yeah, you comparing your driving to Formula 1 doesn’t help. Those cars go stupid fast.” She replied, shaking her hair out in the wind. The car bumped against something and she sharply sucked in her breath, leaning forward momentarily to grab Ryder’s seat. “Jesus Christ.” She muttered, her brain quickly working overtime to arch her back and hopefully make this shot something they could use, despite her blunder. Still gripping the seat, she took a few deep breaths to calm herself, trying to focus on something, anything, to get her mind off the fear and get her standing upright again.
Ryder’s song restarted from where it was playing on a loop on the car radio, and she hummed along a little, the tune starting to catch on, before her mouth started moving of its own accord. “And if the heat comes close enough to burn…” Her voice was soft as she sang along. “Then we’ll play with fire 'cause…” She slowly pushed herself up, using the momentum to raise her arms again in time to sing the chorus a little bit louder. “You’ll never takes us alive…” Ryder Ryder couldn't help but stare at Kitty through the rear view mirror as she sang along to his song. His song that she apparently knew the words to, which was just surreal. Part of him had expected her to just show up and look hot, he didn't expect her to actually put effort in or learn the lyrics. According to her, she didn't even like him so he hadn't thought she'd consider the video worth her time.
"We swore that death will do us part," Ryder sang, his eyes briefly flickering to the road before they were back on Kitty again. "They'll call our crimes a work of art." He hadn't written the song with the blonde in mind, but a work of art was certainly a fitting description for her. He tried to picture the two of them on the run, a modern day Bonnie and Clyde. They'd be a hot criminal duo, that was for sure.
"Ryder, eyes on the road please, you're not supposed to ogle Kitty the entire video," Ryder heard the director call over the megaphone. He reluctantly pulled his eyes back to the road ahead of them, already fighting the urge to glance back at the rearview mirror again. Kitty Eyes closed, Kitty threw her head back, confidence starting to settle in her stomach as she continued to sing."You'll never takes us alive..." She knew she wasn't much of a singer. Her talents had always been relatively limited to her looks and her wit, and part of her wondered if she should maybe feel self-conscious singing in front of Ryder, especially since it was his song. As much as she hated to admit it, he had a voice and a half on him.
But as she lowered her head, her eyes opened and locked onto his in the rearview mirror. Her instinct was to laugh at how he was staring at her with a look on his face that could only be described as captivated, and make some teasing comment. However, she found herself keeping her eyes on his, letting herself sway her hips and toss her hair over her shoulders as she continued to sing, her eyes trained on him, all humour lost from her face as she found herself as captivated by him as he seemed to be by her. "We'll live like spoiled royalty, lovers and partners, partners in crime..."
A voice on a megaphone was the only thing that could've possibly broken the spell she was under, and she jumped slightly, letting out a chuckle at the director's words. She brought a hand down to grip onto Ryder's headrest for a moment, leaning down towards him with her back and knees perfectly straight, knowing that it was giving an eyeful to the camera. "Yeah, Lynn, stop ogling me." She murmured into his ear, before straightening herself up again, almost disappointed to not see his eyes in the mirror anymore. Ryder Ryder wasn't embarrassed by the call out. Recently he had made no effort to hide the fact that he was into her. He'd always found her attractive but that night at the party where she kissed him had kicked it into another level. He didn't think it was a lie to say it had been the best kiss of his life, and it'd only been fleeting. He could only imagine what getting to kiss her properly, away from prying eyes, would feel like.
Ryder smiled to himself as he felt her lips next to his ear when she spoke. Stop looking so damn sexy then. That's what he would have replied back to her if he got the chance. But not only did she move out of earshot as she straightened back up, but he didn't want their business to end up on the internet again. He had no doubt that the sound technician monitoring the mic feed wasn't paid enough to stop them leaking the audio. He wanted something real with her, and ending up on TMZ again over such a comment wasn't the way to go about that. He'd just tell her later when they were away from everyone else. So instead of saying anything, he found her eyes in the rearview mirror again before throwing a wink in her direction along with a flash of his most charming smile.
The rest of the car section of the shoot passed in a blur. They must have run through the song dozens of times, capturing tons of footage from every possible angle. They'd also made their way to Venice Beach with the hope of capturing the final shots as the sun set. "Ryder, Kitty, positions please." The director called, indicating for them to move closer to each other. The shot was supposed to be two of them getting cosy as they celebrated pulling off their crime spree. "And try to look like you like each other."
"You're going to have to put your acting to the test there," Ryder teased under his breath as he moved closer to Kitty, their foreheads almost touching. He held eye contact with her, for the sake of the shot of course, a smirk playing on his lips. Kitty Getting Ryder's eyes back on hers did more than calm her again, save for the butterflies, and the rest of the car section of the shoot passed almost upsettingly quickly. Over the couple of hours that Ryder drove up and down Sunset Boulevard she had developed a fondness for the wind in her hair and Ryder's eyes watching her in the rear view mirror. Even for the shots where she'd had to hang off the back of the car, she'd felt nothing but adrenaline where she would've usually felt fear. There was something about Ryder that calmed her. Or maybe it was that she liked showing off for him. She liked the idea that he was watching her.
The last part of the shoot brought them to Venice Beach. Not Kitty's favourite place, but at least they'd put some wooden flooring down on top of the sand; the one stipulation in Kitty's contract. She'd risk falling out of a car, but this video wasn't worth getting sandy feet. Production had done a great job timing this, because the sunset was exquisite, but it meant they had to work quickly. At the director's words, Kitty rolled her eyes, before turning towards Ryder. She had her signature unimpressed look on her face, lips pursed and eyebrow raised. She stepped closer to him, eyes flicking up to meet his, determined to keep the look on her face as long as possible.
"Well, Lord knows you won't have to act at all." She teased him right back in a whispered breath, just as the director shouted 'action'. Immediately, her lips parted, and her eyes flickered between Ryder's lips and his eyes as she kept close to him. She moved one hand to rest on his chest as she tilted her head back, moving herself as close to him as she could without actually touching lips. She knew she had plausible deniability that this was acting but if she were being totally honest with herself, this came so naturally. What she'd been doing before had been acting. Ryder Ryder heard the director call out action and it was like his tunnel vision just switched on. He could see Kitty but everything else was blurry or out of focus. He had her in his space, lips practically touching as they stared at each other. They were so close that he could even feel her breath on his face. One small movement from either of them and their lips would be touching. God, did his manager want to kill him? He wasn't sure that he was even going to survive this shoot.
He wrapped an arm around her waist, gently pulling her even closer so that their bodies were touching. Time seemed to slow down, the only movement he was registering was the rise and fall of their chests as he continued to hold Kitty's gaze. He searched her eyes for any kind of sign that she was feeling the tension between them as much as he was. It was electric, at least from his perspective. Ryder couldn't help but glance down at her lips, to really sell the shot for the cameras of course, before dragging his gaze back up her eyes. Her beautiful blue eyes that he would definitely be thinking about non-stop now that he'd seen them up close like this. Kitty Kitty couldn’t help the sharp exhalation that escaped her lips as Ryder pulled her closer, feeling her breathing pick up its pace ever so slightly. She brought one hand up to run up his forearm, her fingers tightening as they moved to his bicep. For the next two minutes, the entire rest of the world vanished. She forgot about the film crew, she forgot about the sand, she forgot about the online masses and their inevitable opinions on this video.
All she saw was Ryder, looking down at her with an expression that could only be described as pure desire. Maybe even adoration. For a moment, she lost herself in it, allowing herself to hope for a second that he could feel that way about her, maybe that he even did feel that way about her. Moving on autopilot, she looked down at his lips for a moment, before her eyes moved up to meet his again, and she felt the magnetic pull to kiss him. Their lips only millimetres away, she leaned up slightly, brushing her lips against his, only a warm-up to the kiss she so desperately craved.
“Okay, cut!”
It was the director’s voice that broke her trance, and she jumped slightly at it, mouth agape as the world suddenly snapped back into focus. She took a step back from Ryder immediately as if he’d burned her, tossing her hair behind her shoulder and trying to appear nonchalant. “Great job, Kitty, nice instinct with the lips touching thing, it really worked.” The director commented, and Kitty hoped that nobody could see her cheeks growing hot at the comment. God, screw that hoping. Hoping for stuff like that was for idiots who didn’t know better. Taking a deep breath, she turned back to look at Ryder, still not totally able to meet his eyes like she had before. “God, you could win a damn Oscar with that performance.” Was all she came up with, and she wanted to cringe at how lame it sounded. Ryder Kitty actually pressing her lips against his threw him entirely. He hadn't been expecting it in the slightest. He figured it was a 'look but don't touch' kind of deal, though they hadn't exactly discussed it in detail. The shot had been described as them standing and gazing into each other's eyes, there was nothing in the discussions that had indicated that she would actually press her lips against his, no matter how lightly.
As Kitty stepped away from him, it took all of Ryder's willpower not to grab her. He wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms and kiss her senseless. The entire day had done nothing but continue to amp up the tension between them and he wanted her more than ever. He was still dazed as he heard the director talking, looking at the floor and running a hand through his hair as he tried to catch his breath. He was definitely feeling a bit hot under the collar. "Huh?" Ryder asked as he heard Kitty's comment, his brain needing a moment to catch up. It wasn't like he hadn't heard her, it was just that his brain had got stuck on replaying what had just happened and was acting on a delay. "I think the Oscar would actually go to you," He laughed lightly. "I don't think I was acting at all, you're the one who knocked it out the park. Maybe you're in the wrong career."
Kitty Kitty's eyes snapped back to Ryder's as he asserted that he hadn't been acting, and that stupid little hope flickered in her chest again. It was so silly, and she knew it would never amount to anything. If, even by some miracle, he could ever feel anything for her beyond just attraction, she'd have to quash it immediately. Yeah, it was a cliché, a blonde bombshell with commitment issues and an allergy to feelings, but it was a line she couldn't cross. Which made it so much worse that she had let her lips touch his.Way to seem uninvolved and unbothered.
So she just smirked, trying to save face. "You're probably right." She asserted, putting her hands on her hips. She watched him for a moment, feeling like she was swimming in his warm brown eyes, and suddenly wanting nothing more than to run into his arms, or run in the opposite direction. Luckily, she stayed put, tucking some strands of hair behind her ear. "Sorry about the sneak attack with the lips thing. I figured a move like that will make this song go #1 based on buzz alone." She shrugged. "Just trying to help." Ryder Ryder was pleased when Kitty finally made eye contact with him again after initially avoiding looking directly at him. "I like to think that the song can go to #1 on its musical merit but sure, I guess this won't hurt its chances," He said. She wasn't wrong, there was no way that this video wouldn't boost the streaming figures. "But thanks for caring, Wilde. Here I was thinking you didn't like me, I didn't think you'd be trying to boost my sales numbers for me," He teased.
"And if I can help you out in return, I'd be happy to," He continued. "For example if you do want to change careers to acting and you want some more practice, you've got my number. Feel free to use it." He flashed a smile at her, more than happy to encourage her acting career if it involved her putting her lips on his again. Ideally the next time (should there be a next time) it happened, he hoped that they'd be in private somewhere and not in front of a camera or surrounded by people at a party. Kitty Kitty wrinkled her nose, theatrically shaking her head. “I wouldn’t say I care. More like I don’t want to be connected to a flop project. Nothing I’ve done has ever flopped, and I’m not having a music video be the thing that does.” It was partially true. There had been some ad campaigns early in her career that had been questionable at best, but it was true that she didn’t align herself with dud or low-profile projects. It was why her team had been so confused about her choice to do this video.
At his suggestion that she ‘practice her acting’, the latest in his series of thinly veiled attempts at flirting, she felt something inside her flutter, but she ignored it, rolling her eyes. “Well that’s an offer with zero ulterior motive if I’ve ever heard one.” She let a makeup assistant run on set to quickly touch up her powder, before getting back in place in front of him as they prepared to roll again. “I’d take you up, but I think the cops would be called to your house, I told my therapist to lock me up if I were caught making out with Ryder Lynn again.” She teased. As the director called ‘action!’, she reached up to put her hands on his shoulders, her words ringing false in her own head because there it was again; that desire to lean up and kiss him. She took a deep breath, pushing the thought to the crevice of her mind. It didn’t serve her in any professional capacity, and it scared the shit out of her. It would be dealt with another time.
