Hey babes! Got a new story for ya! This one has been in the works for quite a while, and I think I'm finally in a position where I'm comfortable posting the first chapter. This is gonna be a bit of a long story, with some serious slow burn, so hang in there with me, okay?

This one's a celeb!AU since I'm a sucker for those. However, since I am not in the industry in any way, most of the knowledge I have about it comes from Google searches, YouTube videos, and behind the scenes videos from various celebrities that I follow. So I've done my best.

Enjoy!

Tapping away lightly at the keys on the keyboard of her laptop, Skye bops her head lightly to the rhythm of the music coming through her earbuds. She's completely in the zone, not noticing a single thing going on around her as she randomly surfs the web checks her various social media accounts, responding to the one or two comments from her small fan base. She may not have a huge following, but they're all sweet and very encouraging, always telling her they want to see her in bigger projects so she can show the world her talent. If only they knew how tough it really is.

She jumps at the quick tap on her shoulder, looking up to see her Manager standing next to her bed. "Hey, Nat." She smiles at the redhead and pulls the buds from her ears. "Sorry I didn't hear you come in. I was preoccupied." She gestures to the computer in her lap, her legs crossed up underneath of her as she leans back against the headboard behind her.

"It's fine," Natasha returns with a smile, sitting down in front of Skye on her bed, setting her bag down behind her. "Put that away for a moment so we can talk properly." She gestures to the laptop.

Skye rolls her eyes but closes the lid of her laptop and sets it off to the side on the nightstand and then faces her manager. She sits up straight, sets her hands in her lap and takes a deep breath. "Okay, I'm ready, you have my full attention. What's up?"

"Well, as I promised you when I first approached you about becoming your manager all those months ago, I believe I have an audition for you that I think you might genuinely be interested in this time around."

"Hey, I was interested in all of the other ones too," Skye defends herself. Then she gives a small shrug. "Mostly."

"Right, well, I think this one will really grab your interest."

"What's it for?" Skye asks.

"A movie that Shield Studios is doing."

Skye raises both eyebrows and leans forward. "Wait, Shield Studios? As in one of the biggest film and television companies in the entire U.S.?"

Natasha nods her head with a small, amused smile at Skye's excitement. "Yes, they are currently holding open auditions for the female lead of their latest project; they aren't sure yet if they want to cast a familiar face or a new face, hence the open auditions. I've already heard the basic premise for the movie, and the character, and I think that this one just might be right up your alley, Skye."

"Really? You think I'll do a good job with it?"

Natasha leans forward and rests one of her hands over Skye's. "I know you'll do a great job with it, Skye. You're very talented, I knew it from the first moment I saw you in that short film. This could be the big break you've always been hoping for since you moved out here."

"Thanks, Nat," Skye says with a smile. She takes a deep breath as both women lean back. "So when are the auditions being held?"

"Sometime next week, I believe. I talked to some of my contacts over at the studio today and they said they're going to call me back a little bit later with all of the pertinent information for the role, as well as send over the scenes you'll be auditioning with."

"Okay, wow," Skye says, letting out a breath at the thought of being in a blockbuster film. There's no doubt in her mind it'll be big since it's Shield Studios. They always go big on their movies. "This is huge," she tells her agent, running a hand through her hair. "I mean, this is Shield Studios, for crying out loud. The people who end up in their movies become huge. Like, Tony Stark, huge. The man only signed on to do one film with them and they ended up signing him for three more films for that character that they hadn't originally planned on doing because the fans wanted more. Now he's one of the biggest names in the industry with one of the largest fan bases out there. Everyone knows who he is, even if they aren't a fan."

Natasha laughs quietly. "I know, Skye. Contrary to what you might be inclined to think, I actually do tend to stay on top of what's going on in this industry. If I didn't, then I wouldn't exactly be very good at my job of finding and getting you auditions."

"Yeah. I guess you're right."

Natasha smiles. "Of course I am."

Skye rolls her eyes and smiles back. She's so glad that she's so close with her manager, that they're actually more friends than anything else. "Anyway, you haven't told me what this movie is about yet and I'm eager to know."

"Basically it's a superhero movie," Natasha tells her.

Skye raises an eyebrow. "Seriously? Another superhero movie?"

"Yes. But it actually sounds like a pretty cool movie. It's about this man and woman who live in the same city, but they've never met each other before, obviously. I don't know the entire story because they want to keep most of it under wraps so people can be surprised and whatnot when it comes out, but the man and woman are both exposed to something that gives them certain abilities."

"Let me guess," Skye cuts in. "They team up to stop some big bad who's trying to take over the city."

Natasha chuckles. "Something like that. But of course, there are the usual bumps along the road to being heroes, because not every superhero movie can be all smooth sailing, right?"

Skye nods. "Of course. It wouldn't be a superhero origin story without its usual set of problems."

"No, it would not."

"Do you know if they've cast anyone else yet?" Skye asks, shifting in her seat.

Natasha shakes her head. "Sorry, no. But I did hear a rumor that they're trying to get Grant Ward as the male lead. They haven't confirmed or denied that one yet, though, so people are still just speculating at this point."

Skye's eyes go wide again at hearing the name and she sits up straighter. "Grant Ward? As in one of Time Magazine's Top 10 Hottest Guys in Hollywood for the last four years?"

Natasha smiles at her. "That would be the one."

Skye falls back against her pillow, letting out a breath at the thought of being in a blockbuster movie with Grant Ward of all people. "Wow. If both of us book this movie it could be a huge boost for my career." She sits back up and looks at her agent. "I mean, just getting the movie alone would be a huge boost in and of itself, obviously. But if Grant Ward was my co-star? Do you know how many followers he has on Twitter and Instagram? A lot."

"You have quite a few as well, don't you?"

"Not as many as he does, Nat. The man is amazing on screen. If I get to do this movie with him...holy crap." She frowns. "Oh man, now I don't want to do this movie with him."

Natasha furrows her brows. "What? Why not? Just a second ago you were thrilled at the idea."

"Did you seriously not hear me, though? I sounded like another one of his crazy fangirls."

"You'd get over that pretty quickly if you both booked the movie," Natasha assures her. "After you get to know him a little and you start filming the movie you'll completely get over the whole starstruck phase and he'll be just another person to you."

"If you say so."

"I do say so," the red-head insists, leaning forward just a little. "I've seen it plenty of times before to know that it's true. You'll meet him, fangirl a bit, and then you'll slowly start to get over it and actually act normal around him."

Skye lets out a deep sigh. "Fine. Just know that I'm really trusting you on this."

"Don't worry, Skye," Natasha tells her. "I'm hardly ever wrong about these kinds of things. When, not if, because I am very confident in your acting abilities, when you get this role, it won't be very long before you and Grant Ward are acting like you've known each other forever. Like you're best friends."

"Guess I'll just have to take your word for it until it actually happens. If it happens."

"It will," Natasha reassures her. She takes a deep breath and stands up from the bed. "Now, I have to go and run a few errands, but I will talk to you later, and as soon as I get the scenes you'll be auditioning with, I'll send them straight over to you."

"Great, thanks."

Natasha gives her a smile. "No problem. Do you need anything else from me in regards to your career before I head out?" she asks.

Skye tilts her head in thought for a moment, racking her brain. "Nothing comes to mind. But I'll be sure to let you know if something does."

"Sounds like a plan. Just...try not to text me tonight if you think of something. If it's an emergency, that's fine, but otherwise, try to wait until tomorrow."

Skye grins and sits up a little straighter, eager to know more about her manager's personal life. "Ooh, big plans for tonight?"

She can see the slight hesitation in Natasha's eyes before she sighs and nods. "As a matter of fact, yes. I have a date tonight."

If it's even at all possible, Skye's grin widens at the new information. "A date?"

"Yes, a date. And I'm really hoping that this goes well because it is not easy finding a guy, especially one in the industry, who's okay with being with a strong-willed woman who isn't afraid of saying no and putting him in his place."

"Tell me about it," Skye replies.

Natasha furrows her brows. "What are you even talking about? You have a boyfriend. And a pretty great one, at that."

She shrugs. "Well, yeah. But it wasn't easy dating before him when I was starting out trying to get my career off the ground. I'm just glad Miles is okay with my strong-willed nature. So who's your date?" she asks.

"I've never actually met him before, so it's kind of like a blind date. Apparently, Nick knows him and he thinks we'll be a good match or something. I don't know. So we're meeting tonight at six-thirty for dinner."

"Well good luck to you, then, I hope everything works out well and you get yourself a good man," Skye says to her friend.

Natasha smiles. "Thank you, Skye."

"That's what I'm here for."

Natasha just laughs quietly and then makes her way out of the room.

Skye waits until the other woman leaves the room before pulling her laptop back into her lap. She flips up the lid and logs back in, her internet browser filling the screen again with everything she'd been busy doing before Natasha showed up.

She puts her earbuds back into her ears, presses play on the music on her phone, and immerses herself back into her own little world.

"Hey, Grant!"

Turning away from the punching bag hanging up in front of him at hearing his name, Grant finds his Manager approaching him with a kind smile on his face.

"Hey man," Grant says, stepping away from the exercise equipment to pull Clint into a quick hug, side-stepping the large, black German Shepherd curled up on the hardwood floor of the private gym of his apartment complex. "What's up?"

"I'm just going to cut to the chase here since I know that's what you prefer," Clint tells him, being sure to keep his voice low so as not to disturb the other people in the room. "You know that new movie Shield Studios is doing, right? The one you read the script for last week?"

"The one about the two people who end up becoming superheroes?" Grant clarifies as he moves back over to sit on one of the workout machines and continue exercising, just not as heavily as he was before.

"Yes, that one," Clint says with a nod, moving to sit on one of the machines Grant isn't using.

"What about it?" he asks, his breathing becoming a bit heavier as he works.

"The Casting Director called your agent who called me and so I'm here to tell you that they really want you to play the male lead." He smiles at Grant.

Grant pauses and glances over his shoulder. "Really? They don't want anyone else for it?" He turns back and continues his repetitions on the machine.

Clint shakes his head. "Nope. They said that they think you'll fit the role perfectly and bring something to the part that no one else can."

"Wow. I guess that's pretty cool."

"Pretty cool?" Clint looks at him with disbelief. "Grant, this is more than just 'pretty cool', this is huge. Do you know what being in this movie will do for your career? It'll boost it way up."

"My career is already way up," Grant reminds him, slowing his movements until he's stopped. He shifts on his seat and turns to look at Clint. "Unless you're forgetting that you're currently in the same room as one of Time Magazine's Top 10 Hottest Guys in Hollywood of the last four years." He smirks.

Clint rolls his eyes. "No, I haven't forgotten. You never let me forget it. And yes, I know you're pretty big in this industry already. But doing a movie with Shield Studios, no matter how big of a movie star you already are, is an awesome deal."

Grant thinks for a minute about the offer. He has a few other offers for movies floating around, most of them as the male lead in another romantic comedy. In his honest opinion, he's done way too many of those over the course of his career. Doing a superhero movie might be a nice change of pace. And it'll help him hone more of his skills.

He looks over at his manager and gives a small nod of his head. "Tell them I'll do the movie."

Clint smiles and lets out a breath of air. "Excellent. I'll give them a call and tell them you'll do the movie. Even though I very well could have already done that but I didn't, as to make you feel like you made the decision yourself."

Grant chuckles and shakes his head. "Seriously, Clint?"

Clint shrugs. "What? I've been your manager for a long time now, Grant, though I don't know why when you can afford a whole lot better than me."

"I like the way you handle things for me. My agent's great, I won't deny that, but I like the personal touch that you give things."

Clint nods. "Right. Well, because I know you so well, I knew once I heard about it that you'd take the role."

Grant sighs. "Alright. When do I need to be in for the table read?"

"Not until they cast the female lead, is my best guess."

"Okay. And when are they doing that?"

"I haven't given me all of the specifics yet. But they do want you there to do a chemistry read with all the girls who make it to that point."

"Okay. If that's what they want."

"It is. Though, I think they might be having one or two other guys there for the chemistry read, just to throw people off and make them think they haven't cast you yet. They want to keep everything as close to the belt as they can for this one."

Grant nods. "Alright. I am a little bit worried about this, though. Some of the girls that audition for these things can be kind of crazy, or fake."

"I'm sure it won't be that bad," Clint tries to assure him.

Grant lets out a huffed laugh at his friends' attempts at optimism. "Yeah, well, when you've been to as many auditions and chemistry reads as I have, then you've seen your fair share of everything. A lot of the girls I've read with before were never really in it because they love to act, they were in it because they wanted the fame, the recognition, the money, or they just wanted to meet their favorite celebrities and figured it'd be the best way to go about it."

"They haven't all been like that, have they?" Clint asks him curiously.

Grant shakes his head. "No. Thank goodness. For every bad, awkward, or just plain weird audition or chemistry ready, there's a good, genuine, sometimes pleasant audition or chemistry read. And those are always my favorite kind."

"I'm sure they are," Clint says with a nod. He takes a deep breath. "Now, if we're done here, I have to leave because I have a date to go home and get ready for."

Grant raises a brow. "A date? You don't date."

"I date," Clint defends himself quickly. "Just...not very often. And this is more of a blind date, actually. Nick set it up, thinks this woman will be good for me or something."

Grant nods. "Right. Well, good luck. Don't be an idiot and you'll be fine."

Clint deadpans. "Gee, thanks for the advice, I never would have thought of that."

Grant laughs. "I'm sorry. But seriously, man, have fun on your date. I really hope it goes well for you."

"Thanks, Grant. I'll see you later."

"Yeah, see ya."

Once Clint is out of the room, Grant turns his attention to his dog, still lying on the floor peacefully. "Max, you up for a quick jog around the block?"

Max lifts his head and lets out a quick bark.

Grant smiles. "I thought so. Go wait by the door, I'll be right there. Go on." He gestures toward the door and Max hops up, quickly padding across the floor and out of the room.

Grant takes a deep breath and then stands up, grabbing a nearby towel to dry himself off a bit before his jog. He grabs his t-shirt out of one of the provided cubbies and pulls it on over his head, adjusting it so it sits comfortably.

Tossing the towel down into the provided laundry hamper, he walks over to where Max is patiently waiting for him, his tail wagging quickly behind him. He smiles and pulls his headphones out of the pockets on his shorts as he makes his way to the front doors of the building, Max right beside him. He pulls open the front door and then steps outside, closing the door tightly behind him again as he breathes in deeply.

.

.

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gears-of-ward posted

Okay, but Grant Ward jogging with his dog down by Santa Monica while listening to music is my favorite thing ever.

Only way it could be better is if he was shirtless, but beggars can't be choosers.

#Grant Ward #hi handsome #no one on earth should be allowed to be that attractive #I'm so weak

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Until next time,
Jellybean96 out!