#{ rosalind vs. enzo }

[angeldcgs]

"relax, darling." his rushed attempt to reaffirm her of his favorable opinion was nothing but endearing in his typical clumsy puppy dog way, stumbling through an explanation like he couldn't get the words out fast enough. "i know what you meant. i was just teasing..." it was something she couldn't help, but something she should likely quit given just how gullible enzo was. that, and it wasn't exactly the most professional way for a boss to interact with their subordinate— all the hr violations she'd borne witness to at work were proof enough of that. given the intimate nature of his job, the way that it took place in her home, a place where she was used to removing the mask of professionalism, roz found herself treating him with the warmth and familiarity of a family friend. he was just so young and impressionable, at first it had been difficult for her to even trust him with the responsibility of caring for her children, and then once she saw she had nothing to worry about, he became more like an extension of the family than an employee. god knows he saw the kids more than they saw their own father... he wasn't a replacement for her ex, nor was he like an older, long lost child, but he filled a much needed gap in the family, and roz couldn't imagine going back to life before hiring him. it shouldn't have surprised her just how open he was with showing off his body— he was hoping to be an actor, after all. he definitely had the figure for it. if he didn't have enough talent for actual acting, at the very least he could survive out here for a couple years off modeling if he got himself in the right rooms with the right people. she'd thought about asking him to show her some of his work, or just seeking it out herself, but a part of her didn't want to know if he actually had potential. if she watched a performance of his and found out he was just another pretty face with wooden acting, she didn't know if she'd be able to look at him the same again, so she left it up to the same fate as schrodinger's cat. "mmmm," her eyes widened slightly in understanding as she nodded, humming through the sip she'd just taken and imagining enzo in a dirty old wife beater. "stanley..." she remained cryptically staring at him, almost staring through him, a hint of a smirk on her lips like she was envisioning something he wasn't allowed to know. "you don't think you can do it?" sure, he wasn't exactly marlon brando. roz would probably burst out laughing if he ever tried to raise his voice at her or shake her about, but surely he could tap into some of that energy for at least a scene. "you seem like a cool guy to me," she shrugged, quickly polishing off her glass before setting it down. "not tough, but i'm sure you've got it in you. look on the bright side, though— whether you pull it off or not, you'll have every girl in class swooning regardless. girls love a sweetheart these days, yes? much different from when i was your age."

"no! no, of course not!" enzo fumbled over his words frantically, his cheeks growing warm from the embarrassment of being misunderstood in his attempt to compliment her. "i just- i meant that you're beautiful! n-not that old people can't be beautiful, they can, obviously, it's- yeah... sorry." he didn't want to be forthright with how much he liked older women, just in case she got weirded out by the fact her young nanny could possibly be interested in her. sometimes he couldn't help himself and had to stare at her when he thought she wasn't looking but that was as far as he was going to let his little crush go, he couldn't risk his job or rosalind's opinion on him, he wouldn't let her down because he couldn't get a grip on his infatuation. she was already so kind to him, it was nice to have someone he felt like he could rely on even if it was through the means of their transactional relationship, they only knew of each other's existence because of enzo's need for a job and they would've likely never met otherwise and yet somehow she had become unimaginably important to him, more so than he was going to ever let her know. he didn't care about her children like they were his own, that would've been strange but he cared about them nonetheless, he wanted to do his part to look after them not only because it was his job but because in his own way, he'd grown attached. he knew what it was like to grow up feeling like nobody cared, he hadn't had a mother like rosalind, his hadn't cared enough to pay him attention while he was around, let alone hire someone to look after him when she wasn't. he wasn't a part of her family but even being able to witness it was good enough for him, it reminded him had not everyone had to be as lonely as he'd been growing up, he wasn't bitter in his unluckiness and instead found some kind of peace in the knowledge. it was easy to forget that he was shirtless thanks to the wine he'd practically inhaled, his body had never been something he'd considered himself self conscious of and with much more important things to focus on, like ros who had made herself comfortable again beside him, enzo quickly shrugged away any possible awkwardness. having her ponder over his body was one thing, he found having to talk about himself something far more troubling, worried that he might come across as bragging about how well things were going for him; it wasn't as though he was prone to bouts of excessive flattery towards himself, rather it was yet another thing he'd been taught to avoid when he was young, lest he come across as believing he was better than anyone around him. "oh, uh... yeah, i am! we're doing a scene from a streetcar named desire. i'm playing stanley but i, uh, i don't know. i don't think i'm the right fit for it." it was a very masculine role, not the sort of thing that enzo would have ever tried to take on if it hadn't been a requirement for the class. "he's very... um... he's a tough guy- a cool guy, i guess! and i know i'm supposed to be acting but it's hard to put myself in those shoes in front of so many people."

[angeldcgs]

roz couldn’t exactly hand enzo a fruitful career on a silver platter, but it would be easy enough to help him get his foot in the door if she was so inclined. all he needed was to be seen by the right people, and she happened to know just how to connect him to those people where he could then use his charm and boyish good looks to seal the deal, but what good would that do her? if he actually achieved that fame he was so desperate for, he’d leave her and her family in the dust, turning them into an endearing anecdote to share on a late night talk show once his first film started doing press. he didn’t want to find success off of handouts from his employer, anyway— that would be no way to start a career. “oh, stop… you don’t need to say that. there’s nothing wrong with being old, is there?” if it was acceptable for a man, it should be acceptable for her. her male counterparts were allowed to age as gracelessly as they pleased, while roz had taken great pains to balance the preservation of youth with prioritizing her natural appearance, easing into botox and only just recently beginning to phase out her gray coverage. crow's feet or not, she looked good, and judging by his many lingering gazes, she was sure enzo thought the same. whether it was her physical appearance or the perceived wisdom and authority that came along with her age, roz could tell he had some sort of an interest in her, but she’d be better off awaiting the ice age than waiting for him to do something about it. this job was too important to jeopardize, so if she wanted anything more to happen between them, she’d have to instigate. it was a delicate balance on her part as well, still having something at stake when it came to the prospect of having to find a new nanny, and so she couldn’t exactly be as overt as she would've had she been trying to pick him up in a more organic setting. if she came off too aggressive, she’d seem like a predator, but too subtle and they’d never get anywhere at all. seeing as enzo was a little on the naive side, she figured she could go a little farther than she normally would’ve just to make sure he actually got the hint, and even now with his shirt off, he seemed none the wiser to her intentions. “i don’t mind,” she reassured him as she strolled back over to join him, refilling both of their glasses without giving him a choice. “i just don’t want you to be uncomfortable, is all.” if he had no issue having his bare body out on display, roz figured he wouldn’t mind if she got a good eyeful, her gaze lingering on his chest as she sipped from her glass. the city was full of beautiful people, and yet something about him stood out to her, a genuine sort of unpolished quality that was impossibly endearing. pulling her legs up beneath her body, she settled into the couch with her glass in hand, turning towards him with her arm over the back of the couch. “so… tell me about this scene of yours. for class— you’re the lead, yes?”

it wasn't like enzo hadn't thought about consulting rosalind for advice about the industry he was so eager to worm his way into, she must've had a lot of useful knowledge on the right and wrong things to do if he was serious about being an actor but he'd thought better of bothering her with such questions. she was already giving him so much, she was trusting him to look after her kids and paying him handsomely for it, he knew better than to push his luck at the risk of ruining their relationship. "you're not! you're not that old." women liked that, didn't they? having their youth reaffirmed? he hoped that she didn't have any real insecurities around her age, he didn't know for certain how much older than him she was but she wore each crease and wrinkle beautifully. it wasn't even an infatuation that he was aware of but he'd always had somewhat of a fondness for women older than him, probably due to the lack of affection that his mother offered. while in school he'd harboured a pretty serious crush on his drama teacher, though their age difference didn't even occur to him as a problem when he daydreamed about being held back after class for a private lesson. he watched her till she disappeared out of sight, at which point he was forced to return his attention back to his glass of wine. his state of undress should've been more embarrassing than it was but he'd already started to feel a little warm under the collar, it was a relief to be stripped from the confining fabric. sure, he felt a little bad for making ros have to get up and tend to his clumsiness but it was also nice to feel looked after, even if it was him who had been hired to take care of such things. after what felt like minutes staring at the glass, enzo finally leaned over and picked it up so he could down what was left in a couple of forced gulps. it wasn't that the wine was actually bad, rather that he rarely found himself drinking and wouldn't have been able to distinguish a high glass alcohol in any situation. it was meant to be a treat though and the last thing he wanted was to seem ungrateful for the show of kindness. by the time that rosalind returned, enzo had finished his first glass and hesitantly poured a second, though only pouring a tiny amount to save him the trouble of having to force much more down. if she had grabbed one of jaime's shirts on her way back to the living room then he would've took it without so much as a second thought, though he didn't particularly want her to disappear again when she could instead come sit back down and warm him with her company. "oh, it's okay! uh, i mean- if it's okay with you." he was fine sitting there shirtless but maybe ros wasn't do at ease with the idea. he'd cover up immediately and hope the sight of his bare chest hadn't made her too uncomfortable if that was the case, he didn't want to ruin the night anymore than he already felt he had.

[angeldcgs]

if roz had a dime for every bright-eyed, air-headed hopeful young starlet she'd seen chewed up and spit out by the industry, she'd be well on her way to doubling her net worth. trying to make a lasting name for yourself in entertainment was perhaps even harder now than it ever had been, especially for someone born without familial connections, but she wasn't running a charity. enzo was her nanny first and foremost, and while she supported his efforts to further his dramatic education and pursue success of his own, she had no intention of providing him with any resources beyond paying him what he was worth. so far he hadn't shown any interest in exploiting her for connections, remaining curious but polite whenever he asked about her work, which only made her that much more keen to keep him around. "isn't it?" her lips curled into a smirk at just how incredulous he seemed. it was simple, perhaps a bit cheap, but she never tired of the amazement she was met with at the simplest of statements, like she possessed a worldly wisdom that he could only hope to one day mimic. "i've got wines older than you— god, that makes me sound... prehistoric." which wasn't exactly as daunting to consider as it was when she noticed a new varicose vein snaking up her calf. no, when she was emphasizing her age in relation to his, it somehow triggered a spark of excitement, something primal in the pit of her gut. feeling such a thing was only natural, but to act on that perverse sense of arousal would've been morally bankrupt. as far as scandals went, it couldn't be the worst thing, right? it wasn't illegal, at least. her concern remained focused on the stain as she doted over him, providing plausible deniability should he try and accuse her of coming onto him, trying a few more unsuccessful dabs of her home remedy before abandoning the rag altogether. "of course, darling," she smiled reassuringly, waiting patiently for him to strip his shirt off while she remained knelt beside him. "it's no problem at all." as each new inch of his smooth torso revealed itself, her gaze tracked the ascent of his shirt, getting a good eyeful of his sun kissed skin before she had to meet his eyes again. "i'll be right back, alright? keep drinking— have another glass!" despite her promise, roz didn't hurry on her way to the laundry room, instead leisurely strolling down the hall, taking her time to apply actual stain remover before finally tossing it in the washing machine and choosing the longest possible setting. the whole time she was imagining him on the couch in her living room, half naked and anxiously awaiting her return, perhaps even taking a courtesy sip of wine he didn't even like just to say he'd followed orders. by the time she returned to him, she felt positively giddy, warmed from more than just the wine. "oh, shoot," she stopped short and let out a dramatized sigh. "i forgot a shirt for you to wear... i could grab something from jaime's room, if you'd like." her son was only thirteen, but she reckoned enzo could fit if he squeezed a bit— the real hang up came with the ethics of lending her son's shirt to a man she intended to seduce, and if that was worse than forcing him to remain shirtless while they drank.

when he'd first moved to the city, his mother had made it abundantly clear that she had no interest in entertaining his silly delusions of achieving any kind of fame or notoriety. he didn't have the talent, nor the smarts or social skills to make any kind of clever business decisions, he'd burn himself out before he even began and end up back in their small town with a job at the grocery store. maybe she was right but enzo was determined to prove her wrong by any means necessary. with no financial support offered from his family, he'd been forced to make ends meet by himself and finding work in looking after rosalind's kids had been perhaps the greatest thing to ever happen. not only did she pay well but she was empathetic to occasionally having to work around his school schedule, plus she let him eat dinner there when she had to work late and gave him the occasional bonus in addition to his normal payment; it was a dream come true. no one had been so nice to him in a long while, not since he'd left home and without even realising it, he had come to crave her approval, seeking her validation in a way different to that of an employee wanting to impress their boss. she was so much more cultured than he could ever dream of, seemed to move around with such grace and purpose simultaneously that he had to wonder if she'd ever been uncertain about a single thing in her whole life. he felt a sudden wash of panic at his little accident and looked to ros with big, worried eyes as she stood up from the couch. his concerned gaze followed her as she headed towards the kitchen then turned back down to the stain, thumbing the evidence of his clumsiness. "wow, really?" maybe that was why it tasted bad, because it was so old. surely that couldn't have been safe, he didn't know much about wine but did you really have to wait two decades before drinking it? why bother? "that's crazy..." it was a question that would bother him for a short while then immediately leave his mind upon being hit with the next bit of stimuli, that being the sound of rosalind returning and then settling down beside him. his wide, dark gaze flickered between the stain and ros' face, whatever tension he'd let draw him up tight quickly dissipating as he realised she was annoyed at him for his spillage. it was nice to be taken care of, developing a sense of independence had been a nice change from his previous reliance on his family but he did secretly miss being doted over. "oh, sure! thank you." there was no reason to question her motives, not when she'd been so good to him throughout the weeks he'd been under her employment. he'd always been told he trusted too easily, yet he failed to see how that was a bad trait to possess. without second thought, enzo moved to pull his shirt up and over his head, revealing his tanned, smooth chest, dusted with a handful of freckles.

[angeldcgs]

it wasn’t as though roz had hired enzo because of his looks— if anything, she’d have preferred the most mundane looking nanny just so her kids would get the chance to see what real people look like, aside from all the industry folk they were usually exposed to, folks who were so nipped and tucked and full of filler that they had become cyborgian. it just so happened that all the aspiring nannies in town were also aspiring artists of some other sort, and so she had no choice but to go with the pretty boy. he seemed the most responsible, and though he didn’t appear to be the brightest bulb in the chandelier, he always got her kids to and from school and their extracurricular activities on time, they respected his authority enough to allow him to take over as caregiver when she was away, and he always tidied up after himself even without being asked. it was an easy working relationship, and the fact that she got a pretty face to come home to was an unintended bonus. over time, she couldn't help but look at him like a piece of eye candy trotting around her home like a good little domestic pet, holding down the fort and doing the housework suitable for his physical build and intelligence level while she did the real work. she didn't mean to compromise his ability to do his job with her offer, and she didn't intend to start anything he wasn't fully enthusiastic about, but she had to put her feelers out there somehow, and if he wasn't interested, at least she could revel in some of that endearingly boyish charm of his for just a bit longer before he had to return home. "oh, shoot," she purred, pursing her lips and wasting no time before she was up and darting for the kitchen. "don't touch it." her instruction was somewhat maternal in delivery, unable to help from defaulting to that tone when speaking to someone so much younger than her. "you like it?" as she spoke, she was rifling around under the sink, thankfully having remembered the remedy for red wine stains despite her lack of other traditionally motherly knowledge. "i think that bottle might be about as old as you are... wild, isn't it?" it only struck her then that she couldn't remember whether he was actually old enough to legally drink— at least they were in the safety of her home. with the peroxide and dishwashing liquid concoction mixed, roz scurried back over to his side, kneeling beside him and dabbing a rag against the blotchy stain on his shirt. "shoot... we might need to pop it in the wash to keep the stain from setting. i'm sure we could find something for you to wear in the meantime, yeah?"

open to: women.

featuring: enzo shepard, twenty-one, heterosexual, nanny/aspiring actor.

plot: to help pay his bills while he is in drama school, enzo babysits the kids of a wealthy woman who has developed somewhat of an infatuation with him. unaware of her affections, enzo has been indulging her fantasies unknowingly with a never-ending stream of compliments and bout of attentiveness intended to be seen as friendly. one night, she invites enzo to stay for a drink or two, her intentions less than pure.

with the kids asleep and all his designated chores around the house taken care of, enzo had been slipping his jacket and shoes on when a bottle of wine had been brought out to him, two glasses dangling in her other hand along with a gentle plea for him to stay a little longer. it was a saturday night and he'd already told her that he had no other plans, he was only going to head back home and get caught up on the script he was supposed to be performing in class the next week, nothing that couldn't wait till the next day. he'd never felt sympathy for his gracious employer, in his eyes it appeared that she had everything a person could ever want, the possibility of loneliness wasn't something that even crossed his mind. how could it when he had been hired to take care of her little menaces when she was too busy to do so herself? how could someone be lonely when their house was always so full of noise? it didn't occur to him in his innocence that there were different kinds of loneliness, the sort that familial affection couldn't brush away. he'd considered turning her down, not because he didn't want to have a drink with her, rather he didn't want to end up making a fool of himself and end up losing his job- the only thing that was keeping him in the city and making his way through school, yet somehow he still found himself curled up on the couch, half filled glass in hand. "shit- sorry." a trickle of wine spilled past his lips and down onto his shirt, an accidental spill caused by the glimpse he'd gotten down her blouse as she'd leaned over to put her glass down. he shuffled around in search of any stains on the expensive fabric of the couch but found none, the evidence of the spill remained thankfully only on himself. with an embarrassed laugh, enzo quickly wiped his mouth dry and placed his glass down on the coffee table beside hers. "i don't really, um, drink wine a lot. it's very... expensive tasting. it's... good." it tasted awful but he chalked that up to his undignified palate, obviously she knew better than he did and had chosen something too classy for him to appreciate; his fault, really.