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[pencopanko]

Do We Have a Deal? (A Coco Backstage AU Fanfic)

In which renowned actor, Héctor Rivera trolled a paparazzo by stealing his camera. Inspired by a series of photos of Keanu Reeves running away with a paparazzo's camera.

Author's Note: This was originally written some time in 2018-2019, but I was only able to finish it earlier today (GMT+7). This fanfic is set in an AU referred to as "Backstage AU" or "Actor AU" originally created by imjuanita, in which the characters in Coco are all in-universe actors. Unfortunately, I don't know how to contact her as her tumblr account has been hacked after inactivity so if you know where she is please let me know. However, if you are imjuanita and you are reading this I want to thank you personally for creating such a fun AU. I had a lot of fun exchanging ideas with you!

AO3 link here.

Héctor Rivera is usually the type of person who is willing to talk to you no matter who you are, even though he is arguably one of the hottest Latino actors in the industry. Even after his role in "Coco" as a murdered musician who happens to share his name and so much of his mannerisms that it made him even more famous, he is still willing to send a smile to his fans.

But the paparazzi? Well, that's another thing altogether. He dislikes how pervasive they are towards him, his coworkers (especially Miguel, the kid deserves a normal childhood, after all), and most of all his wife, Imelda. Unlike Ernesto who loves the attention as long as no boundaries are trespassed and deals with paparazzi in a way that is more cooperative, Héctor.... has his own ways. 

Like that one time Héctor Rivera stole a camera.

"WHAT THEーHE TOOK MY CAMERA!!"

According to bystanders, Héctor was seen running from the chasing paparazzi with a bag of groceries in his right hand and a video camera on his left shoulder, presumably taken from a snooping cameraman. He was trying to get the groceries as requested by his now five-months pregnant wife, the ever-talented Imelda Rivera, when he spotted a cameraman trying to get a shot of him. Having no time for his shenanigans and interviews for that day, he quickly grabbed the camera from the cameraman's hands and ran with it.

The stout cameraman who owned the camera was barely keeping up. Héctor's long legs only made it harder for him to catch up to him. It wasn't until he saw the lanky actor took a right turn into what looked like a dead end. Huh, he's not very smart now is he, he thought to himself as he walked cautiously into the . He realized too late that Héctor Rivera is a man of surprises as he felt a hand grab him by his shoulders. The next thing he knew, he became face to face with Héctor in a small space between two buildings.

"You're new to this job, aren't you?" asked Héctor. "They're usually good at sneaking around and all that, you were out in broad daylight, amigo."

The cameraman noticed the camera placed right on top of a closed (thank goodness) garbage can. Looking back at the taller man in front of him, he noticed that his eyes are twinkling with mischief. His grin adorned with a single golden tooth just added to the whole mischievous but definitely threatening aura. He could feel his initial confidence shrink with every breath he exhaled.

"I-I'm very sorry, Sir, I was just doiー"

"Sí, sí, I know. You were just doing your job."

"It's just thatー", the cameraman continued, "you and your wife are so private, a-and people are hungry forー"

"Ah, ah, ah. None of that", Héctor retorted. "I understand that your job is on the line, but your company and you should have known better than to go after me. You're lucky that it wasn't my wife you ran into, or else she would had made sure your face meets her shoe!", he chuckled.

The cameraman could only let out an awkward chuckle in return, but while he might not had been raised in any South American countries he had heard of the power of La Chancla. To think that someone like Imelda Rivera would hit someone with her shoes felt off... but surprisingly in-character? He shuddered at the image of her piercing eyes with a shoe on hand, ready to aim it at anyone in her path.

He jumped out of his thoughts as he heard Héctor speak again. "Alright," he said, as he picked up the camera, took off the cover, and started to record a little video. "I'll let you off with a warning this time. I'll give you this clip, but promise me that you will not disturb me or my wife again. ¿Claro? Do we have a deal?"

The cameraman looked up and he saw that Héctor was indeed recording. He had the camera face the both of them, as if taking a selfie. He had his free hand up with a peace sign, all grinning, talking to the camera as if talking to the masses to leave him, his wife, his fellow cast members ESPECIALLY little Miguel alone. He couldn't help but notice the grocery bag hanging down from Héctor's arm that was holding the peace sign.

Héctor looked at him. The cameraman swore that Héctor was really glaring at him, as he cheerfully asked "Do we have a deal?" at him. He could only let out a quiet "yes" and a nod. The taller man hummed in satisfaction, as he turned off the camera and gave it back to its owner.

"Now, be careful out there and don't let me see you again, okay? ¡Adios!", exclaimed Héctor before walking out of the dark alley. The cameraman could only look at Héctor with his mouth ajar, wondering what just happened.

-----

Weeks later, that clip of Héctor Rivera went viral. Miguel and Ernesto found it hilarious and thought that the stupefied cameraman added a nice touch to the chaos, while Héctor was getting lectures after lectures from Imelda on taking other people's things. Though she did appreciate the praises he sang for her on that video, and for that Héctor deserved a kiss.

Oh, and the cameraman? He got paid handsomely, but quit after three months. I heard that he decided to continue his family business with that money.