Hey, people! Thanks for the great suggestions! Believe it or not, some of you had the exact same ideas that I had already come up with. Great minds think alike, huh? Anyways, here you are!
"Jessica, come on! You're being ridiculous!"
"Maybe I want to be ridiculous!"
"Well, maybe I don't care what you want."
"Well, maybe I don't care if you care about what I want."
"Well, I do care what I care about, and I care about not caring about what you care about because you are caring about something that isn't significant enough to be cared about!"
"Yeah, well, maybe I--wait, what?"
"The point is, get out of the car," Drew said slowly, glaring at her through the glass window of his car. He'd gotten out of his car at the studio where the interview was being held, closed the door, and soon realized that Jessica was not trailing behind him. He'd spun around, seeing her sitting in the convertible looking stubborn. Worst of all, she'd decided to lock the door, and he didn't have the keys with him.
"Drew, I'm telling you, this is a mistake," Jessica pushed, shaking her head from side to side. "The girls at school are enough as it is, but a whole world of girls mobbing me is a bit of a stretch." She said the last end of the sentence with sarcasm similar to the kind she used before they'd started dating.
"Jessica, I'll protect you, I promise," he said alluringly, using that tone of voice that he knew melted her from the inside. That's why he was taken aback when she continued to sit there and stare at him indifferently. That always worked. Always. There Jessica went again, breaking the laws of nature!
"Oh, I'm sure you will," she said in a business-like tone, "but what happens when you're not with me? What about when you're at your hotel and I am at my house alone? Or what if I am walking home from school and some random mob of girls comes out of an alleyway and attacks me? What if they threaten my life, Drew? What if they jump me?"
Drew looked shocked. "I think you might be exaggerating--"
"No," she laughed a little insanely, "no, no, no, trust me, I am not. I thought you, out of anyone, would know how far your fans will go for you!"
"I'll take care of that problem today," he said airily, straightening his posture and shoving his hands in his pockets. He was no longer leaning down so he could be eye-to-eye with her.
"How in the world are you going to do that?" she demanded of him, staying firmly planted in her seat.
"I have my ways," he said simply. "I am Drew Hitley, after all."
"There's your ego again. Aw man, I thought it was gone! You hadn't showed it in a few days," Jessica pouted.
"I have to get in character for the camera," he reminded her as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "The press has no idea that I've changed in the past few months. I'm doing this whole 'I-disappear-for-three-months-then-reappear-for-a-semester-report' thing."
"Okay… so I have to just go along with it and pretend like the conceited Drew doesn't bug the living daylights out of me?"
"Yes."
"All the more reason to stay in the car."
"Jessica!" he whined, strongly having to resist the temptation to stomp his foot like an unhappy child. Normally, he would fix the problem within a matter of seconds by making her get lost in his eyes, or kiss her (that was his favorite way to persuade), but with a glass window between them, both were hard to do. Stupid Jessica and her stupid smartness. "You told me that you would! I already called the studio and told them I was bringing in my new girlfriend, so good luck getting out of it. They were ecstatic to hear I have met someone special at this public school, so they will come take pictures of you at some point. And trust me, it doesn't look good when you sit in the car when you're supposed to be inside. You're worried about getting a bad rep, and if you stay here, you are practically begging for it."
"Just tell them that I had something important come up," Jessica suggested, not liking where this conversation was headed. She had a bad feeling that he was about to win. And sure enough, Drew Hitley never disappoints.
"But why would I do that?" he sneered, leaning up against the side of his hood, watching her through the windshield.
"You wouldn't."
"You wanna bet on that, Kramer?"
"Ugh!" Jessica groaned. She had two options. One: bail and get caught sitting in his car by the press. Not an appealing choice. Two: go inside, get called his 'girlfriend' on a world-wide television broadcast, and most likely make a fool of herself all on her own. "Drew… don't make me!"
"Sorry, the wheels are already in motion," Drew said, although it was obvious he wasn't sorry at all. "You coming or not?" He was too smug for her liking. He knew he'd prevailed in the end.
Jessica scowled as she unlocked the door. Stupid Drew with his stupid charm and stupid plans. Why did he have to call them? Why couldn't they have just showed up together last minute so that the interviewers would have never known she was coming ahead of time? Stupid famous boyfriend. But then a thought occurred to her. What if she did end up staying the car? Could staying inside a convertible instead of in an interview really look worse than going in there, revealing herself to tons of vicious girls, and making a fool of herself? No, it couldn't. Right?
Drew noticed her freeze in thought and recognized that familiar look on her face. She was thinking about it again, evaluating her choices. Before she could go back on her word again, he decided to take instant action. He needed to take advantage of this opportunity while it still presented itself. His eyes darted quickly to the silver lock on his door that was still popped up, signaling that the door was unlocked. He jumped at the chance. Before Jessica could snap back into reality, he took action.
Drew's hand darted to the door's sleek handle, yanking it open. Jessica jumped in surprise. Her eyes scrutinized him, wondering what the heartthrob had up his sleeve now.
"Drew, what are you--?"
She was cut off mid-sentence. Drew leaned down into the passenger side of the car, his face inches from hers. His right arm slipped under the back of her knees as his left winded itself around her torso with lightening speed. Jessica looked at him incredulously, daring him with her eyes. He wasn't about to do what she thought he was going to do, was he? Unfortunately for her, the answer was yes.
"Before you change your mind yet again…" Drew chuckled, pressing her body against his. His knees bent slightly as he picked her up without delay, not able to take his eyes off of her face as it turned fifty different colors. She beat her fists against his chest weakly.
"Put--put me down!" she objected as he turned as began carrying her toward the building. "You're so concerned about press, don't you think this will look a little… straight forward?"
"Yes," he answered cheerily, a happy and somewhat goofy smile on his face. "Are you kidding me? They will love this."
"That's more than I can say for me!"
"You know you love it," Drew rolled his eyes. "What girl in their right mind wouldn't love being carried by Drew Hitley?"
"Apparently I'm crazy," she lied, trying to push away that feeling that was setting off the alarm in her head. She hated, and at the same time loved, the chill that was sent through her body that screamed 'get closer!', even though it was quite impossible. Well, it wasn't impossible, but she wasn't going to resolve the problem anytime soon. Unless a ring was involved, she didn't allow thoughts like that to run through her head. Drew was the same way. That's why they both had to be careful when spending time with one another. The smallest little things set the other off like there was no tomorrow. That's why she was suddenly angry with him. What was he doing? Could he be doing anything more dangerous? Well, she supposed it could be worse. He could be kissing her right now. Now that would be pushing her self-control limits.
Drew's mind was almost obscured by all of the thrills and chills he was getting at the moment. He had to try and ignore the urge to kiss her like there was no tomorrow. That was why, as soon as they were inside the building, he had trouble putting her back down on the ground. His mind said, 'release!' but his heart and hormones said otherwise. He suddenly realized what a stupid idea this was.
Smooth, Drew, smooth, he thought, barely able to keep his thoughts in check as the electricity buzzed between them, you just did what you aren't supposed to do! Christmas Eve was supposed to be the first and last time you tempted yourself like this!
Suddenly, his thoughts were disrupted from the girl he loved so much as a bright flash filled the room. Jessica and Drew's head both swerved toward the source of the continuing flashing bulbs. Four different photographers lined the wall beside a doorway that read, Stage 5. Above it read in big, red letters, Windy in the Morning! The press smiled as they continued to snap shots of Jessica held tightly in Drew's arms.
"Oh, and here's the happy couple now!" a blonde woman exclaimed, clapping her hands together as she came through the doorway. "I'm so glad you two made it! I was starting to worry that you wouldn't show again, Drew!" She stopped a few paces from them, just noticing the position they were currently in. A thrilled and somewhat devious smile spread across her cheery face, not really looking like it fit there. In fact, it almost appeared so unnatural that it was frightening. "Ooh, ooh, ooh," she clicked her tongue, "in a bit of a pickle, are we not?"
Not only Jessica, but Drew blushed furiously as he set her down, the sensation stopping. Jessica suddenly felt light-headed. Great, she hadn't been breathing again! She nervously straightened out her shirt, her hands shooting up to her hair to smooth it out self-consciously. Drew cleared his throat awkwardly, his hands shooting to his pockets so they didn't go anywhere else. Their interviewer looked back and forth between them curiously, her eyes beginning to narrow. Her eyes rested on Jessica, looking her over from top to bottom. To Jessica's surprise, she seemed to approve.
"You must be Mr. Hitley's newest love," she said sweetly, sticking out her hand. Jessica shook it warmly, smiling. Her cheeks were still rosy from the way Drew had been looking at her and how his arms had tightened from a few moments before. In a way, she was thankful that the woman had come in when she did. No telling what would have happened. Note to Drew: no more picking her up. "I'm Windy Blaine, hostess of Windy in the Morning! But I'm sure you already knew that."
"Oh, yeah, I've watched you're show before," Jessica nodded. "I'm Jessica."
"Oh, yes," Windy grinned. "It's so nice to meet you. Wait…" her eyes darted to Drew again, almost disapprovingly. "Haven't you dated a Jessica before?"
"Well, yeah," Drew shrugged, not liking how the questions were beginning. "So what? It's not the same girl. Completely different."
"Right…" Windy said dismissively, "Completely different." For some reason, Jessica felt like she didn't have a reason to believe her. "Anyway, it won't be much longer, you two. The last of the people are taking their seats, so you can just go backstage and they'll touch up your makeup."
Drew nodded and took Jessica's hand, practically dragging Jessica to the backstage area. She suddenly couldn't breathe. Did Windy just say 'the last of the people are taking their seats'?! She painfully remembered one crucial detail.
Windy in the Morning! had a live audience.
Worse yet, they got to ask questions. They had a microphone with an amp.
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