A/N: Hello, wonderful people. I thought it was about time I contributed to this community again. This was meant to be a one-shot, but it's kind of turned into a three/four shot, depending on how long it gets. Either way, it'll be short. I forgot how fun AUs are to write... anyway, I hope you guys like it!
The screen suddenly flashes from black to bright yellow as stars dance around in the opening title card. The stars bounce up and down, revealing the words CelebriStar News in bold lettering followed by passing scenes of a twerking Miley Cyrus, a pair of nondescript girls scratching at each other and a vibrant blonde man flashing a smile right before the feed fades to black once again. The screen then erupts into colours, this time featuring a moderately-less attractive man with a blindingly fake grin.
"Good evening everyone, I'm Ethan Everette, and this is CelebriStar News!" He rotates to face another camera, cracking another petrifying smile. "Prepare for a full hour of celebrities, gossip, and celebrity gossip! In half an hour: Updates on the condition of coma-clad pop star Adamus; we dispute the rumours for you! Then, our movie expert Maddy Reid discusses new trailers Betrayal and Night at the Planetarium!"
Ethan flashes another cocky smile as a photo of the same blonde man from the show's opening credits appears next to his head. This time, the picture is clearly not as flattering. "But first, the story that has blown up the internet and crashed twitter for nearly twelve minutes! John Smith, better known as the title character in the smash hit television series Alien 4, is under tons of scrutiny after a number of ugly accusations were made against him earlier today. I'll now pass you off to Emma, with more on the story." He places a finger to his ear. "Emma, are these rumours true?"
The screen pans to a pretty young girl who looked quite similar to Ethan standing in front of a massive screen. She smiles and places both hands on her hips as the same photo of John appears on the screen behind her. "John Smith and CelebriStar's own Sarah Hart have been together for almost two years, nearly a record amount of time for any celebrity couple. Talks of future engagement were even mentioned by an inside source, but today, photos were released online of John in a rather passionate embrace with co-star Maren Elizabeth Porter."
The screen flips to said photo. Emma makes a disgusted face. "So what does this mean of Sarah? John Smith has refused to comment, but luckily Sarah Hart is here with us today." The screen pans a bit to reveal Sarah standing next to Emma. She looks misty-eyed as she stares into the camera. "Sarah here works for CelebriStar's photography department, and was the one to snap this repulsive photo. Sarah, how did you come across your despicable boyfriend and his mistress?"
Sarah blinks as a tear runs down her cheek, making no attempt to brush it away. "I—I was in the park, looking for him. He'd said to meet me there and—"
"—And he was still in the middle of a meeting with Maren Elizabeth! How awful!"
Sarah nods. "Yes, it was. And—"
"And did he try to explain himself, Sarah?"
"W-Well he, he started yelling at me!"
Emma gasped, and Sarah broke into sobs. Emma turns to the camera, shaking her head. "You heard it here first, folks, John Smith is an absolute pig! We'll be right back with more from Sarah right after this break!"
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Marina's eyes snapped open to the sound of someone banging on her front door.
"Marina! You'd better be almost ready, we have to be on site in less than an hour and you know I won't let you be late on your first day back!"
"Crap," She whispered, bolting upright as more of a reflex than anything. There was a slight moment of confusion—she was still in her clothes, and still on the couch, and it took a second for Marina to remember everything that had happened the night before. Right. Now she remembered, reading over the new scripts and—
"Marina! Are you even up?!"
"Y-yes!" She stammers,, standing up and stumbling over to her bedroom. "Just give me a minute!" She's completely disoriented, not sure if she should change or brush her teeth or if she should even bother because the makeup department was probably going to redo everything anyway and she should probably grab something to eat in that case and just forget about primping but why did she feel like she was forgetting someth—she scrambled back over to the living area and found Joe still asleep on the floor.
"Wake up!" She whispers as loudly as she could, trying to pull him to his feet while he was still unconscious. "Wake up, Adelina's outside and we're both late!"
"Ughhh, let's just be late, it's not like they're going to do anything without us, anyway," He moans, still with his eyes shut but the corners of his mouth turned up.
"Marina, is there a problem? I have a key, do you need me to come in?" Adelina says, and Marina cringes.
"But Adelina's not going to wait!" She whispers to Joseph. "Go hide somewhere, she can't know you're here!" She continues to pull him, and finally he gets up on his own.
"You know I can't say no to you," He says through eyes half-shut before disappearing into her bedroom just as the front door clicks and swings open. Adelina's face went from slightly worried to angry to horrified in less than a second.
"Marina, you look like crap! Did you sleep in those clothes?" She says, striding inside. Her assistant, Hector, trails behind her like a lost dog.
Marina smiles weakly. "Uh, yea. I was up reading the new script and I fell asleep on the couch. But y'know, makeup will sort it all out when we get to the new set."
Adelina puts her purse down on the couch as she approaches. "I suppose," Hector picks it up after her and loops it through his shoulder. Marina's manager places a hand on each of her client's shoulders and gets in close enough to sniff her breath.
"Dear Lord, Marina, you at least need to brush your teeth in the morning! Hector, go into Marina's room and pick out something nice for her to wear." She smiles, removing her hands to clap them together. "I will not have my star client looking like she just rolled out of bed on the very first day of filming."
"No, that's okay!" suddenly alarmed, Marina jumps to get in Hector's way. Adelina could not know Joseph was there; she couldn't even imagine what would happen if she did. "I'm fine, really. We should just go, the studio's probably waiting for us."
Adelina shrugs but smiles tightly. "Fine, fine. Just go wash up; I don't want the paparazzi penning you as a slob."
Nodding quickly, Marina hurries over to her bedroom, only cracking the door open a sliver so she could slip inside before quietly closing it again. She turns around to head over to her washroom and literally walks right into Joseph. "Joe!" she breathes, putting her hands on his chest and pushing him back. "They could have seen you!"
He grins and wraps an arm around her waist. "But I bet they didn't." He whispers.
"Well, yes but—" She's suddenly interrupted as he leans down and kisses her in one swoop, forcing her cheeks a cherry red. Then his hand is around her hip and she feels herself leaning into him, smiling under the pressure of his lips. She rather instinctively grabs at his hair while placing another hand at the nape of his neck, but before she can do much else he pulls away and smiles at her.
"Marry me, Marina."
She sighs softly, shaking her head while still leaning into him. She runs her fingers along the collar of his shirt, watching the muscles in his neck rather than look up to meet his eyes. "You know why we can't." She lets go of him and walks around, heading over to the washroom to brush up before Adelina came in looking for her.
She's running the water as Joseph wanders in after her. "I don't need to have a big celebrity thing—let's go up to Canada—heck, let's go Greenland! Somewhere where nobody will care and we'll just do something small."
Marina's squeezing toothpaste onto her toothbrush. How nice that really sounded—just running away with Joseph and doing what she'd dreamed about for so long. "Don't you want your dad to be there? And all of our friends? I don't… God, I sound like such a downer right now." She says before pressing the brush to her mouth.
"You said it, not me." He laughs quietly, leaning against the counter beside her. It's nearly a minute before he speaks again. "Our lives don't belong to us anymore, do they?" He sounds rather dejected.
She spits in the sink. "I just—I don't want our relationship to be defined by the media or the producers or anybody. We're all we have left to ourselves anymore. And, I don't want to share you." She says after rinsing out her mouth.
"But I'm tired of hiding. I don't want to get-"
"Marina!" It's Adelina, her voice muffled by the bedroom door. "We have to go now! I just got a text from the producers—oh god, we've got a big situation here!"
Joseph dashes out of the washroom before Marina can even say anything, just for Adelina to appear in the threshold of the bathroom not a moment later. Marina pretends to look nonchalant as she runs a brush through her hair.
Adelina places a hand on each hip. "Come on!" She reaches out and grabs Marina's arm, who puts the brush back on the counter. "There's no time to dilly-dally! We've got a cast meeting in twenty minutes!"
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Chicago was unreal.
Of course, ever since Alien 4 had taken off years ago, Marina had been able to travel all over the world. They'd done conferences in Toronto and premiers in London and tours in Tokyo. While the show was going strongly into its fourth season, she'd had the privilege to visit pretty much everywhere.
But there was something about Chicago that just startled her. They'd filmed the show in various locations around the U.S., but most of those places were small towns. This year, the epicentre of the show was the John Hancock building, an American landmark. It was huge—and it reminded her or how big Alien 4 had gotten and of how much was expected of her. Every season had to be bigger and better and more amazing than the last.
While Adelina and Hector sat in the front, Marina sat in the back and watched the Chicago shoreline whiz past. It truly was a beautiful place. Still—she could sense the tension coming from the front of the car, Hector and Adelina silently arguing over whether or not to speak.
Marina sighs and rolls her eyes. "I saw the feed on twitter this morning—you guys don't have to pretend I don't know things." All the drama and gossip on twitter had clogged up her timeline. John really knew how to step in it.
"Oh, good then." Adelina squeals. "So then you know we need to have a chat."
Marina frowned. She knew this was coming—a 'talk' with Adelina, a whole ton of publicity garbage that was going to have to happen in order to keep Alien 4 at a number one spot after the whole world lost it at John's 'scandal'. Marina had been a good girl, even from the beginning of her acting career, and Adelina had never had to get involved. Now… she supposed all of Alien 4's PR group was trying to figure out how to save face.
"I'm collaborating with the other managers, we're going to be setting up some stuff to promote the show. Like, a lot of stuff. PR wants to cover all this up as soon as possible."
Marina sighs. "I can understand that. But why don't we just explain to everyone the truth?"
Now it was Adelina's turn to sigh. "Because John made the mistake of dating a beloved CelebriStar employee, and not only will they never allow themselves to be embarrassed my being wrong, but they're making a ton of money off of all this news."
"That's dumb."
"Didn't say it wasn't."
"Is there anything I should know about, Marina?" Adelina says, a slight hint of worry in her voice.
"Like what?"
"Oh, I don't know, an unhealthy, online gaming addiction, a regular drug addiction, a criminal record, a secret child? Y'know, anything that could come out in later months that could bring me more grief that this?"
Marina laughed. "I don't think so. I've kind of been a goodie-goodie my entire life."
Adelina laughs as well, followed by a brief moment of silence. "Are you dating anyone, Marina?"
Here we go. Questions about a criminal record, Marina could handle. But this… this was going to get her into trouble. "What? No."
"Are you sure; no boyfriend? Maybe a couple of casual guys? A date here or there?"
"No, again."
"Are you a lesbian?"
Marina felt her face heat up. "N-no! No, I'm not. But either way it doesn't matter!"
"I'm not saying it would! If anything, it would be a great change of frame for the press to see you prancing around town with a girlfriend. I wonder…"
"You can't spread rumours about me being a lesbian!"
Adelina's voice hits a high pitch. "I'm not saying I was going to!…Just that I was considering it…"
Marina leans back in her seat and once again sets her eyes on the Chicago lakeside. This life, the one of scandals and fast cars and money, it was the one she had signed up for when she'd gotten her big break on Alien 4, but she'd be damned if she didn't wonder if it was worth it sometimes.
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"Does anyone have any idea where Stanley is?"
The cast meeting was scheduled (as Adelina had reminded her a number of times) at 9 o'clock sharp. The late meeting was already going to put the studio behind schedule, since dry rehearsals were supposed to start more than an hour ago.
The meeting is small, only the immediate cast and essential crew members, particularly head writer Sam Goode, who stands at the front of the table with a very classic Stan-inspired scowl.
"He'll just slow down the meeting, anyway." Maren says, seated next to Marina with her boots propped up on the table.
Sam groans, running a hand through his messy hair before looking up over at the head producer seated at the back. The man just shrugs—and so the meeting begins.
"Alright, so I'm sure you all have some idea why we're all here instead of shooting the first episode," Sam says, settling into his own chair at the head of the table.
At his words, John seems to sink farther into his seat.
"Hey, we know it's not your fault, man." Hannu offers, clapping John on the back.
Cody snorts. "And let's not forget it's fifty percent Maren's fault."
"Hey," Maren suddenly pulls her feet down and points a finger in Cody's direction. "He dumped her a long time ago, it's the stupid CelebriStar monkeys that are making this a big deal!"
"Okay, back on topic!" Sam interrupts the developing fight. "We are not here to talk about all the PR gossip, that's between you guys and your managers and PR. We're here to talk about the show!"
Sam shakes his head before running another nervous hand through his hair. "Okay, maybe it does have something to do with all this scandal stuff. But the show has been getting more attention for it's off-screen drama than on-screen, lately. I've been given some green lights by the CEO… we're going to be expanding the cast by one.."
"I believe that's one of the first signs of a dying show," Maggie says pointedly. "Cast additions and changes in a desperate hope to maintain public interest."
Sam raises his hands. "Hey, have I ever let you guys down in the past? This is going to be a tasteful addition, trust me. You guys have all read the books the show is based off of. Can't you think of one character that's a fan favourite but never been on?"
"Alien 11," Maggie says almost instantly.
Sam smiles ominously. "Yes… and no. I can't really say, you guys can't know before public announcement, not even the actors up for the part know who they're going to be playing. But I do need you guys to read scripts with all the candidates; I need to make sure you guys have the same chemistry that's made all these seasons so successful. We're going to have open auditions starting in just a week."
No one can really argue with Sam, he was always right when it came to writing the show. Every one of his crazy ideas had been smash successes, and the studio had all but given him the right to do whatever he wanted. If Sam thought it was time for a new character, then Marina supposed it was time.
"Now," The head producer stands up, clapping his hands to grab the room's attention. "Everyone to makeup! We're behind schedule!"
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Stanley didn't show up until early afternoon, much to the displeasure of the show's director, Atticus Pitt. When he'd finally walked on set, Atticus had propelled himself from his director's chair, stomped right through the scene they had been filming, and nearly strangled Stan with his Gucci necktie.
Although she was more than annoyed, Marina was glad Stan'd finally made it to set—most of her scenes for the day were between him and herself, and she couldn't even fathom having to do another dress rehearsal with Atticus' deadpan assistant.
While a cameraman and a couple of guys from craft services ran over to tear Atticus away from Stan, Joe wanders off set to where Marina was sitting in her makeup chair.
He leans on the armrest of the chair. "You look absolutely ridiculous with those scales."
"Why thank you, you really know how to sweet talk a girl."
"Hey," He leans down so he doesn't have to speak very loudly. "I didn't say I didn't like them. At least if you have all those things on your face, it'll keep the men at bay. I don't want to share you, either."
Marina feels herself smiling, or rather, moving her face as much as she could while the makeup dried. She'd waited all day long with her prosthetics on for Stan to show up, and now that he had the top coat was beginning to crack and they were going to have to start all over again. Thank god she was supposed to moult in the next episode…
A pair of security guards run past, on their way to separate the still going dispute by the set door.
"So I was thinking," Joe says, leaning down just a little closer so he'd only have to whisper. "Can we go speak in your trailer?"
Marina raises her head, checking to make sure Atticus and half the crew were still distracted. "Yea," She says, pushing him out of the way so she could stand up. After discreetly checking with makeup to make sure she could go, the pair walk off the sound stage and towards the elevator. The studio had rented three floors of the John Hancock building for the next few weeks of shooting, and one of the three had been dedicated exclusively to the talent.
One short elevator ride later, Joseph has sprawled himself out on Marina's in-trailer bed. He looks up and nods at her, patting the spot beside him.
"We're going to ruin out hair and makeup," Marina says, but she's already climbing up next to him. Hair and makeup be damned, these stupid scales make her look like a gremlin.
She settles on his arm, lying on her back as she looked up at the ceiling like he was.
"I'm tired." He says.
"Yea, me too."
He rotates suddenly, leaning his head on his hand so he was on his side looking at her. "See how much we have in common?"
Marina laughs, feeling her makeup cracking more. "I don't think that counts."
"Sure, it counts."
She instantly recognizes the look in his eyes. "Don't you even think about kissing me. You will have sparkly purple dust all over your face, and that I don't think you could explain very well."
"I want us to be together, Marina."
"Joe, I know, but—"
"No. I just… we're not like them, you know? We don't do the drama like everyone else, and k don't think we ever will. We've been able to keep a secret for years, and in Hollywood! That's got to be some kind of miracle. We're stronger together than apart, and it's silly of us to keep hiding."
"I know…"
"I want to marry you, Marina. Seriously, at your earliest convenience."
"I want to marry you, too." She says regretfully.
He perks up. "Does that count as a yes?"
"No."
He sighs heavily, allowing himself to fall back on the bed. "I want us to have a future."
She nods her head slowly, quiet as she thinks about everything they talked about. "I know."
They're both silent for more than a moment, Joseph probably just waiting for Marina to mull it over. Yes, it would be nice to move on with her life… but what with what happened to John, all because of the stupid paparazzi, would it ever be possible? And still, she was almost as afraid to lose something she'd worked so hard to keep a secret from the world.
It was selfish to keep their relationship a secret when he didn't want to anymore. He'd been patient enough. The only thing he wanted… She should be able give him as much.
Despite her decision, Marina felt unsure.
She looks over to tell him anyway.
There's a sudden pounding on the door. "Marina, are you sleeping in there?" Adelina… Again. "We need to talk, honey, it's urgent!"
Instead of what she'd been planning to say, Marina sticks with instinct. "You need to hide!"
Joe doesn't move. "What? Why? We're not even doing anything!"
"We'll talk about this later!" She whispers loudly, pulling him onto his feet.
"Hiding in your room is different, I'm not going under the dressing table again. No one vacuums in here!"
"Marina, are you awake? You were supposed to be on set!"
"Yes! Just give me a second!" Marina grinds out, pointing from Joseph to the closet to signal him to get inside.
"You're lucky you're cute," he growls before allowing her to close the door on him. When she's sure he's settled inside, Marina goes over and unlocks her dressing room door.
"Hey, I—" she notices the number of people standing outside her door are more than just Adelina. "Hi, Stan, Sandor. What…?"
Sandor is expressionless as always, but Marina instantly notices the grim expression on Stan's face. Something wasn't right—and it wasn't just the fact that Atticus had rounded half of security in his hissy fit a few minutes earlier.
"We just need to talk, all of us." Adelina says, pushing into the room without giving Marina a chance to respond. Stan and Sandor follow after her and head for the seating area.
"Is this really urgent? I'm supposed to be on set—"
"Marina," Adelina motions to a free chair. "Sit, please."
Marina looks around at the group of people quizzically. "What is this about?" She says hesitantly as she lowers herself into the chair. Stan looks like he's about to be sick.
"Marina," Sandor says, looking over at her. "We need your help. The show needs your help. We're in a lot of trouble as it is with John and… there's a lot of money that's been invested in this show. A lot. And if this show is killed by the drama, all of our careers are ruined."
Marina doesn't know what to do but look over at Adelina. What the hell is he talking about?
"I was hanging out with Maddy Reid," Stan suddenly blurts out.
"You what?" She can't believe what she'd just heard. Not Maddy Reid, CelebriStar News TV critic Maddy Reid?
Stan just looks down as he grasps at his own hands and wrings them together. "It was a huge mistake… I didn't realize, but that's how CelebriStar found out about Adam's coma and Cody's criminal record. She'd been snooping through my phone after, well, y'know—"
"We actually would prefer not to know, Mr. Worthington!" Adelina's voice rises a couple of octaves. "Just the most basic information will do!"
"Right…" Nine looks back down at his hands. "And it's how they found out about John and Maren. I mean, you know he'd never send a message to Sarah to meet him in the park when he was already meeting Maren. And so when I saw what they did I went to her house to confront her, because John hadn't told anyone else where he and Maren were going that day.
"But now…" Stan swallows, clearly upset by what he was admitting to. "Now, she found out some stuff about me, and I can't have it going public."
Marina can't help but glower at him. "What kind of stuff?" Of course, she could probably give a good guess as to what he was talking about. A very good, accurate guess. But she was suddenly cross, sure that he would have told her had his problem come back.
Stan's eyes flick upwards to meet her gaze. "I think you know what kind of stuff—"
"The last I heard, you were finished with that."
"I was, but—"
"Wait," Sandor interrupts, looking over at Marina. "You knew?"
"Yes."
Sandor looks over at Stan. "Why didn't you tell me she knew? Who else knows? Why did it have to come to this, Stanley? I'm your manager, I should be the first to know about these things."
Stan rolls his eyes. "Stop being so dramatic. 'Manager' isn't Latin for 'father', Sandor."
"Your father—" Sandor begins, his voice rising.
"—Is irrelevant in this conversation." Adelina finishes for him, putting a hand on his arm. "You came to ask Marina for help and I came to support you, but I have a mani-pedi at 5, hon."
"Fine." Sandor shakes his head. "Marina, the only way Maddy will keep the news from her producers is if we can give them something bigger to talk about. An exclusive first interview with a new couple on the show, to be more specific."
Marina's heart stopped. No… no way. They couldn't possibly know about her and Joe, could they? How could they have found out? If this didn't just prove her point; nothing was sacred in Hollywood.
"You look flustered, dear." Adelina says. "We're not saying you should date for real, just that you and Stanley already are a popular on-screen couple, and it would work to all of our advantages to have the two of you fib it out for just a little while."
"What?" Marina looks over at her manager as the shock dissipates. So her relationship with Joe is still safe… but now they want her to what with who? That was insane…
"It'll finally be some good press for the show, first of all." Sandor points out. "And at least make some of the investors happy."
"And it'll keep Stan's condition off CelebriStar headlines."
Marina exhales slowly. Joe could probably hear them all, right now. He wanted to move on with his life, not digress into the corners while his girlfriend played pretend with another guy. She could always suggest Stan fake date Maggie, and it would probably be enough. But if she did this, it would be a perfect reason to postpone. If she went through with it, she'd be able to keep Joseph to herself at least for a little longer. He would understand she had to help her friend, right?
"Please, Marina." The pleading tone in Stan's voice makes her look up.
"Okay, fine." Marina says slowly. "I'll help."
"That's my girl!" Adelina shakes her shoulder. "Just you wait, Marina. You may just finally open yourself up to the true world of celebrities!"
That was what she was afraid of.