Michael's POV

I think it's over. I tried calling Mia, but her friend Tina picked up and told me that neither of them wanted to talk to me. Which must mean I'm really in the shitter since usually Tina would never pass up a chance to talk to me.

How can it be over? I only just found someone I really like, and who really likes ME, not the Michael Wilson me, but the real me, and now it's over? I'm so going to kill Jacques for this. If he hadn't started it by offering to put in a good word with George Lucas for me, none of this would have happened.

I don't even know if I want to do that damn movie anymore, even if I do get the role. Maybe I should just quit altogether. It's just not worth it, is it?

I used to think that being with Mia made all the crap I go through worth it, but now that I don't have her, I don't have anything.

God, I sound so pathetic. I've got to pull it together.

Mia's POV

I feel so stupid. I can't believe how naive and...STUPID I was to have fallen for Michael. I should have stuck with my instincts when they told me he was no good after he made fun of me that day. Then this never would have happened. Sure, I'd still be with Kenny, but at least Kenny would never break up with me just for the sake of a stupid movie. Then again, maybe he would have if someone offered him a role in the next Yu Gi Oh movie or something.

So maybe it's not just Michael. Maybe it's all boys. I'm seriously considering joining a convent now.

Tina made me feel better about it just by listening to me. I told her all about how Michael told me that he likes to watch Seventh Heaven for warm fuzzies after a long day on the set. And that his first kiss was with a girl who was using him, just like Josh used me, and that since then he's found it hard to open up to girls. I even told her about Michael's collection of stamps and coins. I think I told her everything. Oh! Including the totally embarrassing story Michael's mom told me when I was helping her make the mashed potatoes for dinner. It just came spilling out of me and I couldn't stop it. I'm pretty sure I deflated Tina's God-like image of him.

I'm so glad school's broken up for the holidays, because if I had to deal with Lana right now, I'd probably kill her. I know mine and Michael's relationship was never outed to the public (which makes breaking up the teensiest easier), but knowing my mouth, I would have accidently let it slip, or else Kenny will have told everyone himself. And then she would have never have let me live it down. "I would have made a much better girlfriend for Michael Wilson!" Blah blah blah. She can have him. They're made for each other. They're both so two faced, and they've both mastered the art of telling people what they want to hear.

Because that's all Michael did. He told me what I wanted to hear, and then he used me.

I mean, really, as if Michael Wilson has never had a real girlfriend before, or a real kiss (other than that supposed one outside the deli in front of the cameras). As if he's never serenaded some other girl with heartfelt old school Backstreet Boys tunes. As if he's never told some other girl that he was the little girl in West Went Wally, as a way of gaining her trust. I was played, just like the rest of the girls he's duped.

It just makes me so mad!

Tina and I are going shopping today in the post-Christmas sales. She keeps telling me that a little retail therapy will fix everything. Well, unless Bloomingdales sells brand new hearts, I doubt it will.

Michael's POV

"You're an idiot!" Lilly screamed at me the second I walked onto the set, on the first day of filming after the Holiday break.

"Did you have a nice Christmas, Lilly?" I asked her, ignoring the screaming in my ear part.

"You're causing controversy and there's no need for it! And besides, Mia was a lovely girl, you didn't need to break her heart like that."

"How do you know what happened?" I asked her. As far as I knew, no one knows. It only happened a few days ago.

"Everyone knows, you fool!" she screamed at me again.

I looked around at the crew and other cast members to see my bewildered gaze was met with cold glares.

Jacques.

Without another word to Lilly, I stormed off in search of the little man responsible for all this.

"Jacques!" I banged repeatedly on his door until he opened it.

"Jesus, Michael. What's wrong?" he asked innocently. Yeah, like he knows nothing!

"What did you tell everyone about me and Mia?" I asked him, marching past him into the office.

"I didn't tell them anything. In fact, I never even got the chance to tell Clarisse that the two of you are over now since you haven't returned any of my calls."

"So...you didn't tell everyone what happened?"

"I didn't have to." He thrust three different magazines into my hands. "But believe me, I'm just as angry as you are about this. I just got off the phone to Clarisse before you barged in, and she's not at all happy with the way you handled things. She's holding me partially responsible for Mia's broken heart. Now, I fear I've lost all chance of having anything with her at all. Even friendship..."

I looked away from his forlorn face and down to the magazines in my outstretched hands.

Oh my God.

Seventeen, ElleGIRL and NEWSWEEK all have a picture of me on the front cover. The headlines scream, 'Michael the Betrayer', 'Michael Wilson Picks Movie Over True Love' and 'Heartbreaker'.

"Jacques! What the hell is this?"

"This, Michael, may very well be karma. It's come back to bite you on the ass."

I ripped open Newsweek and flipped it to the article about me and Mia.

And then I read with horror.

Mia's POV

I woke up this morning feeling better. And I have no idea why.

"Morning!" I greeted mom and Mr. G, who were sitting at the table eating breakfast.

"Mia, you're feeling better?" mom asked me. She's looking at me strangely too, probably because I haven't ventured out of my bedroom since I arrived home from Michael's parents' place.

"Yeah, I am. I don't know why, but I am."

"Good for you," Mr. G said. "You need to get back on the horse."

"Um, okay." I know Mr. G's just trying to be nice, but it's always weird when he tries to be all step-fathery. After all, he's still my Algebra teacher.

"Do you want some breakfast, sweetie?" mom indicated to the bacon and eggs they were about to eat. Does she still believe that I'm going to actually eat bacon again one day? She has no faith in my determination.

"I'll just have some eggs," I told her. "Thanks."

As soon as I sat down, someone knocked at the door.

I jumped up. "I'll get it."

A distraught Tina was on the other side of it.

"What's wrong, Tina?" I asked before ushering her inside.

"I've done something horrible, Mia. Just horrible." She started sobbing and sat down on the couch. Mom popped her head around the door but left us alone when she saw Tina was upset.

"Shh, it's ok. I'm sure it's not as bad as you think."

"Oh, it's worse. It's horrible! And I'm so sorry, Mia. I'm so sorry!"

"Tina, what happened?" I'm starting to get scared now. Tina's such a happy person, only something really bad could make her this upset. And why is she sorry to me?

"Look...look at this," she sobbed, throwing a handful of papers in my arms.

The papers turned out to be magazines with Michael's face on the front cover.

"Tina," I said, looking away from the magazines. "I don't want to look at your collection of Michael Wilson things right now. For some reason I woke up feeling better about the whole thing, but I still don't want to see him or read about him."

"No, Mia. These aren't from my collection. They're this month's, just released today. Just read the articles."

So I read them.

Michael's POV

I had to sit down after getting through only the first article. By the time I'd read the third one I'm ready to throw up all over myself.

How can Mia do this to me? Did our time together really mean that little to her?

And is Jacques right? Is this Karma?

"Jacques, what am I going to do about this?"

"I'm not sure there's much you can do, Michael. Other than contacting Mia herself and getting her to print a retraction."

I nodded. It makes sense, but I still don't think a front page, full size retraction will help my career now. It's down the toilet.

Maybe it's time for that Mariah-Style breakdown I planned. I might as well go out with a bang.