Roxifilo

An idea, just because... well, just because.

But first!

This whole thing sparked from a little character study on Tom.

Mainly because... well, Tom is a total jerk. And yeah, the concept of him falling for Ryland is super interesting, but let’s be real—Tom is completely codependent on his celebrity status. He loves the fame, the perks, being the center of attention, and being seen as "the man"—the ultimate sex symbol of his generation. So, when you factor in how much weight he puts on his public image and how far he’s willing to go to maintain his A-list status... it speaks volumes about him.

Of course, Gail is a huge asset to his character, and yeah, she’s the one doing most of the dirty work. At the end of the day, Tom is her little golden goose... but if Tom doesn't want something, she won’t push it.

She manages so much of his life—his brand, his gigs, the way the world perceives him; she is, when it’s all said and done, his manager. But she never crosses a line she knows Tom wouldn't want her to. In other words, even though Tom gives Gail free rein to do whatever it takes, he only does it because he knows Gail gets what he likes, period.

So, if Tom wants to land major film roles year after year, loves being labeled the ultimate sex symbol in the US and Australia, and thrives on the talk-show circuit... he knows Gail will simply take whatever path gets him there. ONLY because it serves his interests.

And that, one way or another, definitely messes with the boundaries between his private self and his public persona. Since he is so deeply exposed in the media with every detail of his life out there, it implies that Tom doesn't actually separate the two. Tom is the actor on set, and he’s still the actor off it.

But anyway, I’m getting a bit sidetracked. Actually, a lot. Keeping this quick character study—or rather, this simplified breakdown—in mind... here’s the plot pitch:

While the public thinks Tom is single and straight, the truth behind closed doors is a completely different story. Tom has actually been secretly married to Ryland for several years. Back when Tom was just starting out, he never brought it up; it felt like a deeply personal thing, and the topic just never crossed anyone's radar because his early roles were minor co-stars or lacked the clout to get him interviewed by the media.

I mean, the only time Tom ever hints at being romantically involved with someone is when a crew member catches it on a Behind-the-Scenes clip for a low-budget indie film. But the habit of keeping it under wraps stuck. Over time, Tom stopped dropping even the slightest hint that he wasn't straight at all.

Ryland put up with it at first. He knew how much it meant to Tom, plus, since he also works in an industry where toxic masculinity and homophobia are still very much a thing... honestly, he kind of got why it was necessary.

But while Ryland was simply being private about his love life... Tom was straight-up denying it. He started getting into PR relationships with other actresses to keep up appearances, all while texting Ryland on a second, secret burner phone, asking how his day went.

And you can pretty much guess what that kind of dynamic does to a relationship.

To make matters worse, it's not like Ryland could turn to Colt or Jody for comfort. From day one, Colt had been vehemently against Tom and Ryland tying the knot. Colt and Tom couldn't stand each other—way before Gail ever hired Colt as Tom’s stunt double—so he refused to attend both the civil ceremony and the symbolic wedding. At first, Ryland tried to play peacemaker, but it reached exhausting levels since he and Colt would end up in massive, draining arguments. It got to the point where... well, Colt just cut ties with Ryland completely.

They hadn't heard from each other in years.

In short, Ryland was emotionally stranded.

His only comfort came from Rocky and his husband, Adrian, who were old college friends. And even to them, Ryland was basically single, given that Tom was hardly ever around unless he was on a hiatus between shoots.

And it was always on the down-low. Tom would completely alter his appearance whenever he had downtime and went home, even going as far as hiring a body double just to make public appearances at exclusive spots so the paparazzi would think he was still living the usual high-profile life. It was as if Tom wasn't truly home.

Sure, he was romantic, he was affectionate during those "vacations"... but as the years and the secrecy dragged on, Ryland began to feel like Tom was just acting. Like their home was some ultra-contemporary art project and Tom was constantly putting on a performance.

They couldn't go out to the movies, grab coffee, or—without exaggeration—go grocery shopping without Tom getting paranoid about whether someone had clocked him or not.

In fact, Ryland actually had better communication and mutual understanding with Gail than with his own husband—which totally blindsided Tom, considering she was supposed to be his confidante above anyone else. Gail, in a way—and for the longest time—had been the mediator holding Tom and Ryland's marriage together.

She knew that despite everything, Tom genuinely cared about making it work with him. Because she knew Tom loved Ryland. And that’s why she pulled strings for him, even if it meant lying through her teeth. Like the times she lied on Tom's behalf so he could take breaks from filming just to spend time with Ryland.

She knew Ryland missed Tom, and vice versa, and that he just wanted to be with his husband. Even if it had to be hidden from the rest of the world.

But obviously, that kind of lifestyle never leads anywhere good. The arguments turned into a daily routine. Gail got caught in her lies on more than one occasion. Tom insisted on staying completely off the grid.

So, when Colt’s accident happens—which this time was a genuine accident, a total miscalculation that played out just like in the movie—Ryland rushes to the hospital to meet up with Jody, ignoring Gail’s warnings about how Tom was on his way and that they shouldn't be spotted together.

Ryland arrives at the hospital, asks about his brother, and hands Tom a manila envelope containing divorce papers.

Even though Colt refused to see him, Ryland just walks away. He wants absolutely nothing to do with Tom anymore, and just start signing all the legal documents for Colt's treatments. Now, the only thing he cares about is at least getting the chance to talk to Colt, letting him know about the split, and mentioning that he’s leaving for a research assignment in Antarctica.

Gail finds Tom completely broken, crying on the floor of a private hospital bathroom.

While in my previous Starstruck divorce AU (it’s on my profile if you want to check it out! 😊), Colt was always glued to Ryland’s side, supporting and walking him through that incredibly messy process... as you can see, that is definitely not the case here.

Sadly, Ryland has already grieved the loss of his brother. His twin, actually, just to add an extra layer of heartbreak to the whole situation.

The two of them hadn’t spoken in ages—and to give you a clear picture, we’re not talking about just a couple of years. Tom and Ryland tied the knot back when Tom was just starting out in the industry; Ryland could have gone through a million things, and vice versa, without Colt having absolutely any clue.

Colt hadn't just been hostile toward him during his relationship with Tom—back when Tom wasn't even that famous yet—but he was also incredibly passive-aggressive whenever the topic of marriage or weddings came up. Tom was no saint either, and he wouldn’t hesitate to push Colt’s buttons or clap back whenever things got tense between them.

Honestly, it was like watching two dogs constantly trying to mark their territory.

Colt was hostile toward Tom, and it got to a point where Ryland was always stuck in the middle, forced to choose. This constantly triggered arguments, resentment, and bitterness.

It was emotionally toxic for all three of them. When Tom sent Colt the invitation—because he noticed Ryland was way too terrified to do it himself—Ryland was completely devastated when Tom came back empty-handed. Tom had personally gone to hand-deliver the invite and ask him to show up for Ryland’s sake, but instead, he brought back a letter where Colt basically cut Ryland out of his life.

Ryland held onto hope until the very last second, waiting to see his brother there. In the end, Gail had to step in as a witness for the symbolic ceremony—and back then, she was just an acquaintance of Tom's, not even his manager yet, which just goes to show how close she was to their marriage from the start.

Ryland tried reaching out to his brother, thinking it was just a heat-of-the-moment phase and that he’d cool down over time, but nothing worked. Colt had him blocked on absolutely everything.

The only updates Ryland ever got about his twin were whenever Tom or Gail brought him up, or when they kept an eye on him for his sake. In fact, on top of her great track record, Gail hired Colt as a stunt double specifically so she could keep Ryland in the loop about him.

As for Colt... he felt completely betrayed by Ryland for "choosing" Tom, and that resentment consumed him for years. Much like Tom’s betrayal, Colt never used his real last name, and he never let it slip that he was a twin.

That’s why the journalist in the movie only mentioned seeing their mother and focused solely on Colt’s life. Colt himself completely erased Ryland from his narrative.

And even though it killed Ryland inside, he also stopped bringing Colt up. It was just becoming too complicated and painful to explain why his own twin was no longer in his life.

When Ryland rushes to the hospital after hearing about Colt's fall... I’d say he does it for the exact same reason he decides to physically hand Tom the divorce papers.

He wants closure. But at the same time, he needs to feel like he didn't just walk away without putting up a fight or saying goodbye to his twin.

So, any effort to patch things up has to come entirely from Colt. Which is not going to be easy, considering Ryland literally packed up and moved to Antarctica to completely unplug from his drama and hit the reset button on his life. The only breadcrumbs Colt can even find about Ryland are from niche science news outlets—and even then, barely.

My absolute most angsty, evil self envisions Colt trying his hardest to find out what happened to Ryland anyway. He only finds out about Ryland’s hospital visit through Jody—who, by the way, totally ripped him a new one for keeping the fact that he has a twin a secret. But Colt's search leads him straight into a guy named Carl, who very politely—and key word: intimidatingly—tells him to stop sticking his nose where it doesn't belong. Carl warns him that he’s annoying his boss, and she won't hesitate to put Colt in a wheelchair if she finds out he's making her emotional support scientist nervous or anxious.

Honestly, she’s already got her hands full dealing with superstar Tom Ryder and his sketchy, low-key stalking—and the only reason Stratt hasn't completely erased Tom from the equation is because it would be a PR nightmare, and she absolutely loathes seeing her precious scientist plushie depressed. She definitely doesn't have time to deal with a long-lost twin trying to make amends.

Since the ai accusations are still being thrown around, here's how i personally like to use these GASP ai telltales. 🦄✨

Em Dashes (—)

To emphasize a shift / action / thought.

They're accusing us—actually accusing us—of using AI.

To add drama.

They dismissed our skills as AI—didn't even think twice, the dimwits—and believed they were onto something.

To insert a sudden thought. Surely they wouldn't do that to us—would they?

To interrupt someone's speech. "Hey, please don't say that. I honed my craft through years of blood and tears—" "Shut up, prompter."

To interrupt someone's thoughts / insert a sudden event.

We're going to get those kudos. We're going to get those reblogs—

A chronically online Steve commented, “it sounds like ai, idk.”

Semi Colons ( ; )

To join two closely related independent sentences / connect ideas.

Not only ChatGPT is capable of correct punctuation; who do you think it learned from in the first place?

Ultimate pro tip: use them whenever the fudge you want. You don't owe anyone your creative process. 🌈

But this one time, she got a phone call. In the short time it took her to hang up and come back to the dining room, she walked into this exact scene: my plate of noodles, completely gone; my brother's dinner, obviously already devoured; and me, holding a fork way too close to his neck, trying to snatch my cup back from him because he wanted to drink that too. The entire dining room was a disaster area because I had literally lunged across the table to stop him from eating my food. Needless to say, the poor woman was scared to death, and both of us ended up locked in our rooms (with me getting a fresh plate of food) until our parents got home to ground us.

So! Picture this. (Assuming that neither of the kids had to go hungry during the journey to Erid. I mean, they had enough rations to arrive safe and sound, and Simon already had a better relationship with food ever since they rescued him.)

Both the kids and Rocky and safe and sound in Erid. They both are growing well (the most they can do considering all the odisey the had to pass to arrived there) and ... well, now, picture Little Simon and Little Ryland in that exact same scenario.

Both growing kids… and freaking starving.

On bad days—because every kid has a bad day—both Simon and Ryland were always finding sneaky ways to steal each other's food, and as defeat, different ways to be kill by the other.

This (stealing each other food, more over considering that both of them have access to the kitchen) was completely unnecessary, since on Erid, the scientists were more than happy to create fresh food for the kids every single day… they literally just had to ask.

Still, Rocky is so tempted to put them in separate biodomes at some point, because Simon won't hesitate to use his little tools to attack Ryland if he catches him eyeing his food.

And Ryland won't hesitate to throw hands at Simon if he notices his snack stash has been suspiciously depleted.

Obviously, they both eventually outgrow that phase of stealing each other's food as they grow up and all that. But, man, Rocky felt like his carapace was peeling off every time he caught one on top of the other and had to separate them in rather unorthodox ways. Which was super funny, considering that on other days, when both kids were in a better mood, they could share a plate with absolutely no issues at all.

I loved reading this and I absolutely love the complex idea that they become food aggressive towards each other with their alien parent that HATES watching them while they eat lmao.

(Rocky, literally every time Pebble Grace asks him about his jumpers)

Pebble Grace! who adores being "covered up" because he can’t stand the idea of being without some kind of garment. He kicks up a fuss whenever Rocky or Adrian try to take away one of his makeshift jumpers. And he doesn't care one bit that he’s always bumping into things whenever he tries to walk around wearing one.

Pebble Grace! who, for some reason (without fully knowing why), still uses "human" motor commands for an Eridian body. That’s why he doesn't speak properly and struggles to move his limbs with any fluidity.

Pebble Grace! who, in reality, is "echolocation-nearsighted." He has to wear an orthopaedic device (the equivalent of prescription glasses) to get around on his own. But he absolutely loves being carried everywhere by Adrian.

Adrian and Rocky, being protective parental units with their little pebble. Because he’s so tiny and bumps into everything.

Adrian and Rocky, who can’t help but dote on Pebble Grace, because they find his attempts at chirping for the first time absolutely adorable.

Pebble Grace! who couldn't speak properly for at least a couple of years. He understood what Rocky and Adrian were saying to him, but when he tried to say it back... it was impossible for him to mimic.

Pebble Grace! who literally has no problem eating in front of anyone; he really doesn't get what the taboo is.

Pebble Grace! who, when he first started trying to speak properly (Adrian began taking him to a speech therapist because he wasn't speaking with the same fluency as his pebble mates), would just come out with unintelligible babble. And he’d get so frustrated he’d "cry." Rocky or Adrian had to act as his translators until he finally figured out the trick to pronouncing his thoughts correctly.

Pebble Grace! who doesn't hesitate to demand "Puppet Theatre" from Rocky to no end.

Pebble Grace! who loves playing in the Xenonite version of the Hail Mary and pretends to navigate it whenever Rocky is around.

In the movie, they always portray Tom as an idiot—and he is—but I don’t think Gail would have been so desperate on taking care of him if he didn't have some actual acting potential. It’s clear he’s been in various projects, and Gail has probably managed to perfectly exploit his face for ads and modeling. But the point is, in this story, we’re talking about a Tom who has real potential and some... unique methods for getting into character.

Unfortunately, they tend to be peculiar.

In both cases, he dives deep to figure out how to play his character based on lived experience. When he’s in a good mood, he just tortures and stalks the poor guy he’s picked as his archetype reference, following him everywhere to study him. Gail constantly has to bail him out of the police station for stalking and pay a fortune in settlements. Like the time that he follow a pizza delivery guy for three months.

Or the tima when Tom actually stalked a regular officeman, during a hole year. Gail actually almost did not made it for compensation. Almost.

The second method, which Gail likes the least, is when Tom completely vanishes from the face of the earth for months—no trace, no social media, no emails, no discos, no parties, no drugs—returning only a few months before filming starts, fully prepared and sober. Nobody knows what happens to Tom, but his characters are always believable, so nobody can really say much about it.

Until now.

Tom’s forte has always been action, comedy, and suspense. But then he gets a role in a motivational drama about a teacher who wants the best for his students. For some reason, Tom ends up choosing his second method.

Thomas Riddle arrives at a school in San Francisco to teach drama... and meets Ryland.

The casting is a year and a half out, so Tom literally vanishes from the media for that year, and in that time... oh! Thomas meets the sweetest, kindest man of all: the cute science teacher, Ryland Grace.

He loves it when the kids ask Mr. Grace a thousand questions about science; he blushes when he clumsily tries to help Thomas with his own students. And damn, he feels his face heat up when he sees sweet Ryland getting absolutely furious during a district school board meeting, demanding more supplies for the children.

Ryland, who bikes to work every day, who is patient with the most distracted students, who crochets his own little anatomical plushies, and who always has snacks for the hungry kids.

Ryland, who has a beer on nights out with colleagues and blushes perfectly when Thomas starts getting kind od flirty. Who loves it when Thomas brings him something to eat, or when they chat about the kids who seem to want to become actors or scientists. When they go as chaperones to school dances... Tom falls deeper and deeper for Ryland every single day.

Ryland, who adores how Thomas always seems so excited when his kids are rehearsing lines in the hallways, and who seems obsessed with the sound and lighting equipment just to make sure his 'little stars' always shine in their plays.

Ryland, who loves when Thomas takes the rowdiest kids and casts them as extras in the 'battles' during his theater simulations (they remind him a bit of Colt, his twin, who has been suspiciously happy for quite a while now that he’s free from his odious boss). Ryland, who hates to admit that he blushes when Thomas helps paint the posters himself during school festivals or when he always has a coffee ready for him.

Ryland, who can’t help but smile when Thomas lends him his jacket on museum trips when they’re both chaperoning, or when he blushes even deeper watching Thomas comfort some girls while fixing their hair for school photos (apparently, one of the braids had been ruined because someone spilled juice during recess, and Thomas somehow knows perfectly well how to braid hair in under 10 minutes using just some gel and borrowed hair ties).

More over, when Thomas took a deep breath, and kiss the most cute science teacher after a science fair.

Until the year is up, and Thomas has to disappear.

And Tom hate it.

Tom hates it. He hates watching his calendar count down. He hates that his return tickets to California were booked so far in advance, and he dreads knowing he has to turn his phone back on—to answer Gail’s frantic calls and tell the director of that new project that he’ll be back in time for the start date.

He hates how much it hurts to pull away from kissing Ryland, and he hates how cheerfully Ryland says goodbye to him every afternoon. He hates that his contract at the school is coming to an end—though, considering he was just a temporary teacher, it was bound to happen anyway—and he hates having to let his hair grow out just so he can dye it back to its original color.

He wants to tell Ryland everything—damn, he wants to tell him everything, especially since they’ve been officially dating for a couple of months—when Colt arrives to visit his twin, finding Tom in the living room.

And, like in an action movie, the times freezes.

Colt sees red.

Colt screams at him, they both start arguing, and then Ryland walks in with dinner. And, damn.

Colt: Is that the most important thing right now?

Grace: Yes!

But then when he "meets" regular Tom he's like:

Colt had never in his life seen Ryder so disappointed.

Literally.

The man was, to put it kindly... a disaster. And, unfortunately, Colt had been forced to witness this level of decay out of obligation—and because Gail made him, mostly because Jody begged him to.

Colt didn't really have a clue what was going on. Honestly, he didn't even care—he already had enough of his own drama. Ryland, his sweet Ry-Ry, was absolutely furious; he’d just discovered that the guy he was dating was a total fraud.

His twin looked so horrified at how easy it had been to deceive him, and it broke Colt’s heart a little that he couldn't comfort him the way he wanted to.

And, to make matters worse, apparently, Tom was acting like this because of a breakup. Or at least, that’s the tea Jody spilled after Gail had begged her to go check on him.

Apparently, Tom wasn't handling the split well at all.

So.. here he was. Tom's hotel room.

Tom was sprawled out in his hotel room; his bed was a chaotic mess of blankets and sheets tangled with suits and British fashion magazines.

In the trash can by the nightstand, all of Tom's regular clothes—his shirts and skinny jeans—were half-ruined with bleach and stained with coffee... apparently, Tom had thrown the coffee pot right into the bin.

The man’s sobs were loud enough to lead Colt to the bathroom, where Ryder was fully transformed into a bastardized, deformed brunette version of himself.

Scattered across the sink were the cheap, basic tools that came with the commercial dye kits. Several tubs of bleach, empty bottles of color, and a pair of scissors were strewn across the countertop, staining everything in sight. The hair dryer (thank God) was far away from Tom, but it wasn't hard to see that it, too, was stained with dye.

Tom... was completely brunette. Not just the hair on his head—his beard, his eyebrows (thank God he’d forgotten his eyelashes), the hair on his chest and forearms... everything!

Just because Colt flinched a little, that tom noticed him.

He saw Colt, panicked for a split second, but instead of breaking character, he doubled down. He smoothed his stained shirt, cleared his throat, and with a shaky, wildly over-the-top British accent that sounded like it belonged in a low-budget period drama, he asked:

'Do I look the part, then? Do you think he'll... recognize me? It’s the right shade, isn't it?'

Let’s say there’s an age gap between them. Simon is a bit younger than Ryland. Nothing scandalous, but it’s clear that Ryland is older than Simon… and that academic life has been really rough on him. (Those dark circles under his eyes don’t just magically vanish with a bit of cream). So, when Stratt tells Simon that Ryland is the only survivor, and on top of that, that there’s a space probe from the Hail Mary signaling his return to Earth… years have passed! (For the sake of the plot, let's say Rocky convinced his engineering team to make the Hail Mary go full speed because he knows Simon is surely just as distressed as his Adrian during those years).

So? When Grace is finally safe, still inside his medical isolation bubble… he sees Simon for the first time.

Simon is nervous about seeing his beloved husband for the first time because, well… he’s aged a bit. He has wrinkles that weren't there before, he neglected his appearance quite a bit during those first few years, and he was only just starting to function normally again. But Grace? At least to Simon, Grace is still the most wonderful man he has ever seen.

The first thing Grace said to Simon as soon as he could touch him? (Aside from an extremely passionate kiss):

"I told you, dark circles don't just disappear with cream, my love."

Omg thank you so much for the love! I appreciate you!

And yes!! Oh I love them so much!!

The thing is, Ryland doesn't really know why Tom is so terrified of Court. The first time Court saw Tom was when Ryland invited him to dinner with Colt to catch up—and Tom wasn’t even there.

At dinner, after Court cut up his chicken as if he were six years old again—"Some habits are hard to break, Ry." "I don’t know what you’re laughing at, Colt; you asked me to open your juice bottle less than a minute ago"—Ryland felt he could finally open up to his older brother about Tom. Court didn’t say much, simply nodding every few minutes as Ryland recounted how his relationship with Tom started, their first date, and how Tom was trying to be kinder to Colt.

After that, Court himself—which was strange, considering his usual personality—was the one who insisted on inviting Tom to a family lunch. That was the only time Tom ever met his family. But it seems Court has a deeply intimidating gaze, because Tom can’t stop shaking or jumping whenever he hears Ryland mention his older brother, hears Court’s voice on the phone, or finds out from Colt that Court is visiting their flat.

Ryland knows his brother is stern, but he’s definitely not rude. The only time they met, Court offered him a beer, listened attentively to what he had to say, and—to both Ryland and Colt’s surprise—actually served him his portion of lunch himself.

Maybe Tom is just feeling shy. After all, Ryland only knows Birdie, Tom’s older sister, and she is—to put it mildly—the complete opposite of Court. That’s probably all it is.

Of course, what Ryland doesn't know is that Court managed to corner Tom while he and Colt were washing the lunch dishes. He grabbed him by the shoulder and whispered not only everything he knew about him, but also everything he knew about Birdie —all his and her dirty little secrets from their youth.

He went on about how he had an incredibly precise and lethal file on Tom’s medical conditions and past addictions—he did congratulate him, though, just to be cordial about his first years of sobriety—and how he knew exactly how much bullying he had put Colt through at work.

Court also made sure to stress that, if he so wished, he could make him disappear without a trace; all it would take was for him to find out that Ryland had cried because of Tom.

He added that he didn't even need to kill or torture him to make him suffer, and that he would much prefer this little "friendly chat" to remain a secret.