Hi! I hope you liked the last part, I wasn't sure if it was too cheesy, but as promised, drama is on the way! This next chapter is one of my favorites--I'm not sure exactly why, but I loved writing the first part. It came out really quickly and I always like when I can re-read sections and still be entertained (as you know, I am easily entertained by my own stupid humor). Anyway, I hope you like it too! There's some foreshadowing at the end of this chapter, so hold on to your hats, drama definitely picks up...

Thanks again for all of your amazing feedback--let me know if you like this part too. I don't own any characters or any actual part of Instant Star, though the story is all mine :) ENJOY!

"'Jude Harrison: Singer, Award Winner, and Juggler?'"

"Nice title."

"Ehhem…as I was saying, 'Jude Harrison: Singer, Award Winner, and Juggler? Jude Harrison, last year's Instant Star winner, took home the sought-after title of 'Best New Artist' at last night's Juno awards, but that wasn't what made her the talk of the evening. Was it her stunning chocolate-colored dress? Or her flawless makeup and hair?' It was flawless, wasn't it?"

"EJ, will you finish already?"

"Sorry. 'No, it wasn't either. In fact, Jude Harrison was the talk of the night for her ability to juggle the men in her life. In one corner stood her famed producer, Tom Quincy, who she herself quoted as being her 'closest friend' who has 'inspired her in more ways than he knows.' And then in the other corner was well-known model turned actor, Josh Sanders, who showed up at the Juno's after-party to join Miss Harrison. Pictures of her with both men surfaced this morning.'"

EJ stopped and held up the paper to the group. They all saw one picture of her and Tommy's close embrace on the dance floor and then a picture of her and Josh holding hands and canoodling at a dimly lit table.

EJ resumed, "'Jude's relationship with her producer has been called 'close' by numerous sources, but are they closer than just artist and producer? Closer than friends? And where did Josh Sanders surface from? We tried to get an exclusive interview with the pair but they only admitted to 'having a great time together' and 'wanting to enjoy the night.' There were clearly sparks between them but they would not comment on the status of their relationship. Are they, in fact, an item? Or is he just another pawn in her publicity stunt? And where does Tommy Q fall in her life? Producer, friend, boyfriend? We may just have to wait for the next event to know the truth.'"

Everyone was silent as EJ finished reading and set the paper down on the table. Jude looked at Georgia who was scanning the photos and rereading part of the article. She then looked quickly at Tommy who was seated across from her with his head in his hands.

"Well, I for one am impressed by my stellar PR job here. They even asked if Josh was a 'pawn in your publicity stunt.' Hello? That's like a PR agent's greatest accomplishment!" EJ exclaimed, examining all of their distant expressions.

"Great job, EJ," Georgia said flatly, patting EJ on the back. "It was a brilliant PR move, although I have to wonder what we're supposed to do now."

"Well," EJ started, unraveling her plan, "now, we just have to focus on the one guy and leave the other one out of it. No offense, Tommy."

He looked up at her and rolled his eyes as she continued. "So to get the ball rolling and make sure people are talking about the right guy, I've arranged for date number two with Josh."

"What?" Jude questioned loudly, causing them all to look up at her, even Tommy.

"Date two—you know, what comes after date one. Is that a problem? Did you have a bad time or something?" EJ asked Jude tersely.

"No, I had a good time," Jude said with a sigh, "But this should be my decision to make. It's like how I feel doesn't matter."

"Well, how do you feel, Jude?" Georgia asked. "Do you not want to go out with him again?"

"I don't know," Jude said quietly, considering the consequences of a second date.

Georgia and EJ looked at each other skeptically and then over to Tommy, who was being unusually quiet.

Georgia walked over towards him and said, "So, Mr. Inspiration, what do you think?"

"Huh?" Tommy said, looking up at Georgia in a daze.

"What do you think about this whole thing? We're trying to get you out of this situation and we'd like to hear how you think it should be handled."

Jude made eye contact with Tommy across the table. He sat there quietly looking at her, seeing the distress in her eyes but not knowing what to say to take it away.

He shook his head and stood up. "I don't know, Georgia. I think Jude should do what she wants. It's her life. It's her face in the papers. If she wants to date him, then she should. But if not, then she shouldn't have to."

"And if she doesn't, you do realize that the rumors will continue to circulate about you two?" Georgia questioned.

"They can talk all they want. I really don't care. Besides," he continued, walking towards the door, "I'm not here to make headlines. I'm here to make music. Which if you don't mind, I'm going to go do." With that, he opened the conference room door and left abruptly.

"What's his problem?" EJ asked, hearing the door close.

"It's that time of the month," Jude said quietly, looking at EJ and grinning.

Half an hour later, Jude entered Studio B, seeing Tommy with his headphones on. She silently walked in, closed the door, and sat down in the chair next to him. He sighed, feeling her sitting beside him, and took off his headphones.

"What was that?" she asked him bluntly.

"Jude, don't…"

"No, Tommy. Tell me. What's going on? I thought you were fine with Josh. You're the one who took me home last night, not him. Why are you suddenly so worked up about this?"

He exhaled and raked his fingers through his hair. "I just thought we were done with all of this."

"So did I," she said, sighing too and leaning back in her chair.

"So… are you going out with him again?" he asked hesitantly.

"Sort of," she said quietly, as he leaned back into his chair, closed his eyes, and groaned. "Tommy, I know you didn't want to talk about him last night, but there's something I need to tell you. He knows."

"He knows what?" Tommy asked, opening his eyes.

"About us. He knows."

"How does he know?" he asked, a bit of an edge to his voice.

"He just does. I didn't tell him so don't look at me like that. He saw us together and sensed there was something going on. Besides, he likes Sadie."

Tommy sat there, a confused look on his face, trying to figure out what this means.

Jude leaned in closer, speaking softly. "I was thinking…maybe it's not a bad thing for him to know. Maybe we could use it to our advantage."

"How?" he asked.

"He could be our cover. Like my fake boyfriend. Like a decoy."

"A decoy?" Tommy replied, mulling over the idea.

"Yeah, to throw everybody off. As long as he's okay with still going out with me, it could take the pressure off of you and me. EJ and Georgia would be happy and then, in another couple of months, we break up."

"Hmm…that might work…as long as you're positive he's clear about this," he replied.

"I am," she assured him. "He and Sadie have something, you saw it yourself. But I can go through the plan with him. And maybe I'll tell Sadie, just so she doesn't think I'm going after him."

"Wouldn't want you and your sister to fight over some guy," Tommy said with a smirk.

"No way. Been there, done that," she said with a light laugh. "What do you think?"

"I think," he said, leaning into her, "that you've got yourself a plan. As long as you're sure he won't say anything and he's on our side, I'm in."

"Good," she said with a smile. "I'll talk to him. Just leave it all to me."