Breathe On Me

Author's Note: This story is completely fictional and did not happen. All characters and names are fictional and were made up. I do not make money from these stories. Please do not copy and plagiarize my work.

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October 2003

New York City, New York

The rush hour of traffic was audible within the distance of the first few floors high up in the corporate office building. All the result from a window currently open, inviting the honking horns and roaring engines from lines of traffic down below. Working downtown in Manhattan always came with a hectic day as the afternoon hours pushed on. A radio in the distance across the office cubicle had given sounds of rock music playing to quiet the outside ambience. Dante Sims had come to know this attitude of New York City all too well. He leaned against a window, gazing back at his reflection across the glass surface and gazing up at the many skyscraper buildings that occupied this city. The open window was across the room, near the left corner from where he stood.

At twenty-three years old, Dante had fallen into what would be a dream job for many coming out of college and working through photography gigs. Having family connections across town had paid off when he found himself dropping out of Rutgers and taking on a job for photographer James White. A famed photographer who's images had appeared on the covers of various magazines throughout the years. James had his name on some of the finest photo sessions with famous models, singers and actresses. As one of the most the highly sought photographers in New York, it was common for him to blend in with associates from Hollywood. Within a month on the job, Dante had become a regular assistant, accompanying the skilled photographer who signed his checks at the end of every week. The pay had proven to be worthwhile for sticking around, but it wasn't like there was another choice to be had.

Today marked the second meeting at the Esquire corporate building where a photo shoot had been arranged for a pop singer who was seemingly dominating the world at the moment. As Dante stood in the corner, he turned from the window to see a man who had been sitting in his office chair. Feet propped up on his desk away from the keyboard to his computer, the man was leaning back with a magazine hiding his face. The front cover had revealed to be Rolling Stone's latest issue from October. Anyone would've recognized the deep brown eyes gazing back from the cover of that magazine and Dante certainly knew that innocent, but mischievous face. Britney Spears was on top of the world, or so it seemed. That racy cover shoot by Matthew Rolston had sent shock waves back at the White photography office, all before this day had come.

Swallowing his breath, Dante ran his right hand across his freshly shaved face and through his long brunette hair. He had fixed it up in a ponytail to make life easier for when he was on the job. Today he dressed in simple casual clothes with a T-shirt showing the album cover of Led Zeppelin II and a pair of blue jeans. After the sizzling Rolling Stone shoot, Britney Spears was set for a session date with James White for Esquire magazine. Yesterday was the start of that shoot and Dante had yet to meet her, but he had witnessed her on the set. The large skyscraper building had a proper studio up one of the higher floors, all set and ready for use. It was better than using the smaller studio back at James' offices. For Dante, it was somewhat ironic that here he was working on a day with Britney Spears. He could remember just three years ago when her early hits were inescapable for any day listening to the radio.

It seemed like everywhere you turned, Britney was impossible to avoid. Her photo shoots dominated the covers of magazines while every new single had proven to be a hit on the charts. There were times years ago when Dante couldn't stand her music, yet here he was today going to work and knowing he would be within the same room as her. Dante would be a liar to not admit he couldn't stand her dance beat driven pop music. He still had nostalgia for discovering Soundgarden and the Melvins back in the day. Classic Rock radio channels gave a better option than having to hear Nickelback songs in rotation on the main channels. But in the end, it all came back to Britney's music. If not on the radio, you couldn't look past her music videos which were enough to make Dante question his hatred of her music. As he gazed back at that magazine cover, he was again in disbelief that he would be meeting her for a second consecutive day.

"Hey, Dante! What are you doing!?"

A voice called out in the distance, quickly alerting him as Dante took a forward look to see a familiar face. Sonja stood with her arms crossed, quirking up her eyebrows with her arms folded over her chest. Light shined from the row of windows over her dark hair, highlighting the wavy locks. The black woman was James White's other assistant who followed him on photo shoots. Whereas Dante often had camera duties, Sonja was his media manager. She stood tall in black high heels, a grey skirt that matched her buttoned up jacket revealing a white shirt underneath. A stark opposite from Dante whom she was giving that look as if he were a slacker currently in trouble.

"Hey Sonja, I was just hanging out for a bit. Is Mr. White ready to get started?"

She didn't answer him back. Instead, Sonja uncrossed her arms and motioned with her right hand index finger for him to follow her. That was how she typically treated Dante, leading him to figure that she was about to scold the younger man. As he followed behind her, she turned. Heels booming across the carpet floor down as she began to speak.

"Mr. White had to leave for an emergency."

"What happened!? Is everything gonna be alright?"

As they continued to walk, Sonja replied.

"It's something family related, I can't give you the details. He needs someone to finish the shoot up in the studio. We've got two hours left before Miss. Spears has to leave."

Dante felt a sudden surge as his heartbeat began to race. They walked to the sliding metal elevator doors when he looked at Sonja in absolute fear. His eyes were enlarged as Dante blurted out his words.

"I have to finish the shoot with Britney!?"

The older woman looked as if she were about to roll her eyes and smack him across the face. Sonja shook her head at his reaction.

"No, you don't have to do anything! You can just stand here and continue to be the lazy ass you've been all week. I shouldn't be the one to have to find you cause you left the studio to go stand around, looking out windows in an office."

Dante rolled his eyes as the elevator doors opened. Sonja noticed that look on his face and then stepped into the empty elevator, watching him follow behind her. She punched a button, leading them up to a higher floor where the photography studio was. The reality that he had to finish this job was only now beginning to sink in. Taking a deep breath, Dante thought to himself how this was going to be his first real job as a photographer. Finishing a photo session with what felt like the most famous woman on the planet right now. Yesterday they had completed the cover shoot with Britney remaking Angie Dickinson's legendary cover from 1966. It was a sight to behold, witnessing the pop princess stand there with no pants covering her gorgeous muscular legs, all in front of a red background. Feet pushed into a vintage style pair of white high heels and only a white sweater covering her chest.

As the elevator began to ride up, Dante stood there silently and thought more about it. Yesterday, he had witnessed Britney's bare ass with the sweater tugged down but unable to cover that thick rump. Her golden hair was slicked back, fitting for a vintage look. Upon first thought, Dante thought that she looked a bit like Marilyn Monroe. That was until his boss, the photographer himself had corrected the young man by showing him the infamous Esquire cover with Angie Dickinson. Unlike the old cover, Britney couldn't hold back her smile. She oozed such confidence while revealing her sexy body and giving the impression that she truly was not that innocent. While that was for the cover, there was a different photo shoot for today. Something that would be even more revealing as the spread within the magazine. Dante almost felt as if he were going to break out in cold sweats the more he thought about it, for he knew the details on that shoot.

"You said we've got two hours, right?"

Sonja turned, nodding back at the young man.

"Yeah, that should be enough time to wrap this up. She just has one last outfit change. Mr. White had to leave in the middle of shooting the last one. You think you can finish this shoot?"

"I'm gonna try."

Her deep brown eyes gazed back at him in a look of disbelief. Dante knew that Sonja didn't think much of him, but this was a job he couldn't half-ass. Not to her, given the stern look she was giving him.

"Don't fuck this up. Mr. White wants you to snap as many photos as you can. There should be at least a hundred rounds left on the main camera. Just go crazy with it."

"Go crazy with it?"

The older woman smirked back at him.

"You heard me. I shouldn't have to tell a young, hot blooded man like you to go wild with snapping photos of that girl. You should just do it."

The elevator came to a stop with a short bell ring. Dante tried not to blush, as Sonja was now teasing him. Perhaps she had witnessed his wandering eyes yesterday when he was looking over Britney's fine legs and bum. Exiting the elevator, the two of them walked down a narrow hall, through a few doors and behind one to enter the large photography studio. The room was massive with wooden stool chairs scattered around near the back. The main camera station had been centered on a tripod off to the corner where a set piece had been created behind a simple black colored back drop. Off to the left was a six piece screen panel silhouette that served as a quick changing room beyond the blue panels. Large lights had been moved to the black set, along with a fan propped on the right side, turned to blow across the left. A tall, heavy built black man walked over dressed in a pinstripe suit. Dante knew of him as Britney's bodyguard.

"Alright, round up!"

Sonja called out, clapping her hands together. A blonde haired woman had stepped out from behind where Dante was standing, but she was not Britney. Hair pinned up in a high ponytail and wearing a red shirt to go with dark jeans, Cindy was the makeup artist for this session. She approached Sonja and spoke.

"She wants to do her makeup for the rest of the shoot, can I call the day off?"

Dante stepped away as Sonja nodded at Cindy, not paying them much attention as the older woman had seemingly taken control of this job with James leaving. As Dante turned to his left, the woman of the hour began to approach. Britney Spears strutted her hips, wearing a black pinstriped strapless bustier that shoved her perky tits up. The bustier contained two loose suspender bands across her waist. Down below, her feet were pushed into a pair of black high heel pumps, giving her a slight elevation in height. Her face radiated as she flashed her full pearly white teeth in that classic smile that could've easily melted Dante's heart. Her hair swayed as she approached Dante, waving at him playfully.

"Hi, you're Dante right?"

He nodded back at her, trying not to blush.

"Yeah. I was here yesterday, do you remember me?"

Britney nodded to him.

"Yeah, you were the guy helping James."

When Dante nodded again, Britney smiled.

"So I guess you're my photographer now, huh? Can we pick up where we left off?"

Growing nervous with each passing second, Dante exhaled deeply and swallowed his breath. It was better to be honest with her since Britney at least gave off fun vibes.

"This is my first time doing a photo shoot, so forgive me that I'm a little nervous. I don't want to screw this up for you or my boss."

Stepping a bit closer, Britney rested her left hand upon his shoulder, leaning in to give Dante a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry, just relax! I'll make this easy for you. James already did some shots and I just have one more outfit to put on before we're done. We can pick up there, that way you don't have to start over from the beginning."

Her eyes shifted over to a small table nearby that had a set of several round beaded pearl necklaces. James wasn't sure what those were for, as he had not went over the plans with James before they started yesterday. Britney stepped over to her bodyguard and whispered something, all while Dante stepped away and moved to the main camera station. There was a smaller camera attached to the side, but it was important to see things through the lens of the bigger one. Despite feeling nervous, Dante was somewhat more relaxed due to Britney's words. He had to be grateful for her humble attitude, as he could easily imagine someone as famous as her having a fit and cancelling the entire shoot with the main photographer out. Sitting down on the stool by the camera, Dante looked over the last shot through the small digital screen on the camera. The buttons allowed him to scroll through and see James' last shots, but he couldn't pay them attention yet with Sonja stepping over and getting his attention.

"You know what you're doing with all this?"

Glancing back at the older woman, Dante quietly nodded.

"Yeah, I've got it."

She stepped away, leaving him there without a response and the sound of her heels stomping loudly into the floor. Sometimes Sonja's mere presence alone was intimidating. The woman wasn't cutthroat like other people he had briefly met in this business, but she was the type of supervisor to demand excellence. It was easy for Dante to see why James kept her around, as the woman was a great media manager. Soon Britney came rushing over to the camera station. Her black high heels clicked and clacked across the floor.

"Here, let me help you."

Dante leaned back a bit, giving Britney some room to look over the screen. She scrolled through the photos by pushing her right hand thumb over a button.

"You see these pics? We had the fan turned on to make it look like wind is blowing through my hair."

He nodded as Britney glanced back at him for a moment. She carried on, speaking.

"You just need to get a few more. Maybe some close ups of my face and then..."

Curving her pretty pink lips into an innocent soft smile, she finished her words.

"It's changing time."

Leaning back up, Britney tapped the palm of her right against the portable camera. Maybe she simply wanted to watch the man blush, but her words were helpful nevertheless. In the distance, Dante could almost feel Sonja's cold eyes starring at him, probably in an intimidating manner to remind him not to screw this up. He wasn't nervous anymore, as he watched Britney move back towards the set, strutting those fine hips before she leaned down. When she bent over, he had a glorious view of her buttocks.

"I'm just gonna turn the fan on and get ready!"

When Britney yelled, her southern accent slightly came out. The fan on the floor had a round shape with three settings from the button in the back. Britney set it on low and then Dante flicked the stand-by switch to the main camera. Peaking out of the lens, he focused his view on Britney as she stood in the center. The fan blew her golden hair into her face as she slightly spread her legs and undid one of the suspenders to her bustier, allowing them to dangle down. Without hesitation, Dante pressed the snap button twice. The camera flashed and Britney then smiled before raising up her right arm, fixing it up before touching her own shoulder. Dante snapped more photos, capturing the seconds of her blonde hair shifting beyond those gorgeous brown eyes. Off in the distance, Britney's bodyguard and Sonja watched.

There was no nervous tensions anymore sitting in the stood behind the main camera. Dante continued to snap photos as Britney turned to face the fan with the hair blowing directly in her face. That was when he finally got up and grasped for the portable camera. Quickly activating it via the switch, Dante moved the lens over his right eye and then motioned for Britney with his free hand. She flashed her teeth in a smile and leaned her head back, quietly gesturing for him to get a proper close-up of her face. Dante adjusted the lens, zooming in slightly and then tapped the snap button several times for quick snaps. After he stopped, Britney softly pushed her teeth together, slightly grinning as she changed her expression. Standing in the back, Sonja folded her arms as she watched the two. The flashing of the camera made her blink, but the older woman was impressed.

After some early nervous jitters, Dante had successfully picked up where his boss had left off. He shot at least thirty snaps of Britney on the portable camera. Each of them with different facial expressions. It was a demonstration of the various emotions she could pull off with her looks alone, cycling from the play of an innocent good girl to a devious woman with a wild naughty side. At one point, Dante zoomed out with the camera, taking a few more full body shots, just to make sure he had some more images of her curves pushed into that sexy bustier. To wrap up, Britney turned off the fan, causing him to smile and make a quick remark between more camera snaps, "Now I can see that lovely face." His compliment made her laugh before giving a goofy smirk back to the camera. It was those playful vibes from Britney that made this job feel more at ease.

"Alright, I think that should do it!"

Britney spoke up, letting Dante know they were done shooting in this outfit. The time had come for her to change. Her eyes shifted over to her bodyguard and Sonja, then she glanced back at Dante before speaking.

"Would it make you more comfortable if I asked for some privacy?"

"What do you mean?"

She smiled back at him, tilting her head to the right. Britney was quietly gesturing to the presence of Sonja and her bodyguard.

"I think I can trust you for this next part. I would just prefer you be the only one to see me naked today."

Those last words caused Dante to raise his eyebrow as he felt his heartbeat elevate as it did earlier today. Britney stepped aside and approached her bodyguard, leaving the photographer of the day there clutching his camera. Not wanting to interject himself to overhear their words, Dante walked back over to the main camera station He checked the tripod while he strapped the portable camera back into space. The booming of Sonja's high heels could be heard as she approached him. He turned to see her standing before him, glancing down at the silver watch latched around her left wrist.

"I'm gonna step out so you can finish with her. You've got an hour and a half to wrap this shoot up."

"What do you want me to do with the camera and all this stuff?"

Waving her hand off, Sonja replied.

"Just leave it along with the rest of the stuff. Mr. White wants to come back and get his equipment later anyway. You know how picky he is about developing his photographs. As for outfit clothes, leave it too. The magazine is paying for all of it."

She turned around, beginning to walk off when Dante noticed Britney and her bodyguard having words in the distance. The tall black man turned his head, giving the younger man an almost menacing gaze for a moment. That was a man few people would dare to end up in a physical altercation with. After some words with Britney he nodded and followed out the door with Sonja. Now the pop princess was alone with the rookie photographer. When the door audibly shut, Britney smiled at Dante while approaching him.