Posted: August 2004
Title: Win A Date With Karl Urban
Author: Estella Greenleaf

*****

8/15, LA

Dave couldn't decide whether he should be angry or worried. He was supposed to be at Colin's pool party, but because of a certain irresponsible missing client, he was called in for an emergency meeting with Sean. He wondered if Karl went into hiding deliberately to ruin his plans for the day. He knew how much Karl and Colin disliked each other. He wouldn't put it past his ‘star client' to do some thing so childish; he had spoiled the man far too much over the past five years.

When the manager arrived at his friend's office, he flopped down onto the comfy chair and asked, "So, is Karl still missing?"

"Nope, I finally found him," replied Sean with a mischievous smile.

Dave decided he didn't like the agent's expression; he knew better than anyone how scheming and devious Sean could be. "So, why am I here?"

"Because someone needs to go fetch him and I'm booked solid for the next few days."
The manager raised an eyebrow and said, "I'll send my assistant." He wasn't about to fall for whatever trick his friend was planning; there's no way he would go in person to where Karl was.

"I think you should go, Dave. I have a feeling it will take a lot of skillful persuasion to bring him back."

Dave swore he saw an amused glint in his friend's eye just now; Sean was definitely up to something. "Can't do. Colin's new movie premieres Saturday, remember? There's tons of prep work I have to take care of."

"Come now, Dave. We both know how efficient you are. The premiere is four days away; you have plenty of time to fly to Rockbottom, fetch Karl and come back."

Dave was too shocked to make a response. He had seen the morning papers; the ‘Win a Date' winner, Mr. Orlando Bloom, was exquisite. He could understand if Karl spent the night in the young man's hotel bed. He could even understand if his client took him somewhere remote and stayed there for a couple of days, fucking him senseless. But to fly to a tiny town in the middle of nowhere just to be with him...that was simply too sickeningly romantic and sweet.

The manager was more than a little jealous. He had tried for five years, doing everything humanly possible to get Karl's attention, and the handsome actor wouldn't even lust after him. And now, the little minx from Rockbottom waltzed in and stole Karl's affections in just one night. It was simply too unfair!

The romantic in Dave was devastated; apparently, he wasn't as ‘over' Karl as he thought. He was tempted to quit; he didn't want to see the object of his affections with another man. But the professional in him wouldn't allow him to act so rashly. Karl was a client, and a very successful and generous one at that. He couldn't drop him over something as minor as the actor falling for another.

Sean's quiet question interrupted Dave's musings. "So you'll go?"

"Yeah, and I assume you already have my flight arranged," replied the manager with a weary sigh. He would just have to try harder at telling himself he wasn't in love with Karl anymore.

"Great! Good luck hunting Karl down, Dave," said the agent as he handed his friend his plane tickets.

Dave looked at the thick stack of paper in his hand. He had to make three transfers to get to Rockbottom; he'd be spending all day and night in airports and the air. It looked like there would be plenty of time to decide on how to best maim Karl without getting arrested before he arrived.

*****

8/16, Rockbottom

The muscles on Viggo's cheeks were starting to ache; he wondered how much longer he would have to keep his face set in an indulgent, ‘happy to listen' smile. Usually, it didn't take any effort to smile around Orli. The young man's presence brightened his life, made his heart flutter with joy, put goofy grins on his face, made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside...

Viggo's train of thought got derailed when Orli snapped his fingers right in front of his eyes. "Can't you save the ‘brooding artist' thing for later? I thought you wanted to know how my date went."

Viggo did indeed want to know. He wasn't a masochist; he just wanted to hear the truth from Orlando before his imagination drove him insane with jealousy. The last two nights had been pure hell; Karl kissing Orli on the lips, Karl squeezing Orli's firm butt, Karl sucking on Orli's nipple... those visions were agony in its purest form. Never before had the artist hated his vivid imagination as much as he did then.

"Sorry, you know me, always a scattered brain. But then, that's why I hired you," replied Viggo cheekily, glad to have a reprieve from Orli's constant gushing about his idol.

The young man had been babbling blithely about his adventures for almost an hour now; but he had only gotten to the part where they had dinner at the fanciest restaurant he had ever seen. It would be a very long while before Viggo could have his peace of mind; and he knew there would be a lot more ‘ooohhh, Karl's soooo cute!'s to endure before they got to the end.

Grinning, Orli batted his eyelashes and replied, "Awww, and there I was, thinking that you hired me because I'm prettiest in all of Rockbottom."

Viggo wasn't about to admit that there was some truth in his assistant's teasing. After all, it wasn't Orli's looks that stole his heart; it was his youthful exuberance, his wonderful sense of humor and his innocent sweetness. But before he could come up with a fitting response, his doorbell rang.

The artist frowned at the unusual occurence. Everyone in town knew he was a recluse; they never came to visit. It couldn't be his agent or his editor; they conducted all their business over the phone. Maybe it was some pesky art reporter... but who was he kidding? Established as he was, he didn't have a following like Karl, the movie star and thus wasn't worth the time to track down and interview. So, who could it be?

The doorbell rang again; and Orli decided it would be rude not to answer. He opened the door to find his idol standing on the porch. Karl Urban was there... in Rockbottom...in the flesh. He pinched himself to make sure he wasn't hallucinating before letting out a squeak of surprise. Karl smiled warmly at him and said, "Hey."

At that point, Viggo had made it out to the hallway to see who his unwanted visitor was. For a long minute, he couldn't believe his eyes; it couldn't be, his greatest competitor for Orli's heart, standing at his own doorstep. What had he done wrong in his past life to deserve this?!

"Mr Mortensen, I presume. I hope you don't mind my coming here. I went to Orli's to see if he wants to go to lunch but he wasn't in. His sister, Sam, told me he's here with you," said the actor quietly as he watched the blond size him up as competition.

Karl wondered if there was more between Orli and his employer than business. It would be sad, flying all the way out here only to discover the sweet innocent youth who had piqued his interest wasn't so innocent after all.

Orli had finally recovered enough from his shock to react to Karl's earlier greeting. "Hey to you too."

One look at the faint blush on the youth's cheeks, and Karl knew Orli was indeed as sweet as he acted. Viggo might be having ‘thoughts' about his assistant, but Orli was definitely not reciprocating. He had a fair chance of winning the young man's heart, if he wanted to court him. "So, you want to go to lunch?"

Orli knew he was technically at work, but he desperately wanted to go out with Karl again. Last night, he had thought he would never see his handsome, charming idol again. And now, having him at the door, asking him out, that's like a dream come true. Turning liquid puppy eyes onto his boss, he pleaded, "Vig, can I go?"

Every fiber of Viggo's being screamed "NO". He'd die before letting the object of his love go out with another man. But how could he say no to those molten chocolate eyes and risk seeing disappointment in their amber depths? Never before had he known such dilemma.

Seeing how conflicted his boss looked made Orli felt a bit ashamed. It wouldn't be long before he had to move to New York; and since he was Viggo's only friend here, he knew how much the artist wanted to spend more time with him. He shouldn't ‘skip work' and abandon Viggo like this. After all, it was thanks to his boss that he had gotten a chance to enter the Win a Date contest and met Karl.

"Maybe I shouldn't be goofing off again. I mean, I just took a three-day vacation in the middle of the week. And I get off pretty soon anyway. Karl, maybe if you're free later..."

"I'm here for you, babe. Take all the time you need," replied the actor with a winsome smile. He knew Viggo had won this round; but he liked Orli all the more for considering his boss' feelings before his own. Considerate people like that were practically extinct where he was from.

With a final wave to a blushing Orli and a scowling Viggo, Karl sauntered back to his rented convertible. He had flown all the way to Rockbottom; he could afford to wait a bit longer. He would have Orli all to himself soon enough.

*****

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