J
My hand stretched to hit the snooze button. It was way too early to be awake, but Lisa had obligations - she had to get in the shower and go be a movie star.
"Ten more minutes," she groaned, nestling her face on the back of my head. My eyes closed and I drifted right back to sleep, but the buzzer on the alarm clock wouldn't allow it to last.
"Babe, it's five thirty. Your car will be here in a few minutes." I rubbed her back to wake her.
"Mmm!" she moaned. "That feels nice."
Her cell phone rang, forcing her to reach. "Morning Mike. Yeah, I'm up." She got out of bed, rubbed her eyes, and looked out the bedroom window. "The alley looks clear. See you soon."
I smiled to myself while I made her a cup of coffee. I was so in love with the person who woke up next to me and was now getting ready for her day in my shower.
I thought about how different things were since the first time she spent the night. How I wrestled with the thoughts of not allowing myself to get hurt again versus the burning desire to love again.
"I have a twelve hour day scheduled. I'll call you when I'm on my way," she said happily as she dried herself with a towel. "What's on your agenda today?"
"I have to drop off the deposit at the bank and I was going to do some grocery shopping. I'm almost out of coffee and there's really no food in this place."
"While you're at the store, would you pick up a couple of things for me? I'd really like some sort of soap that doesn't smell like fruit." She sniffed the skin on her arm. "Just pick out something for me please? Oh, and make sure you keep your cell phone with you at all times, just in case."
In the kitchen, she wrote a small list on a piece of paper. "Here's some money. It's all the cash I have left on me after losing to Gary last night." She pulled a random mix of bills from her pocket and laid it on the table. "Use it!"
We waited by the back door in the pub kitchen for her driver. I punched in the numbers to shut the alarm off. "The code is 693091 and then you hit this button here."
He repeated the number. "You may have to remind me; I don't know if I'll remember it."
"It's my birthday but in reverse… remember? 19th of March in 96. You should at least remember the year." I nudged her.
"I remember when your birthday is," she droned kiddingly. "Do you remember mine?"
"November seventeenth." I grinned. "Three more weeks."
Her driver honked once and she kissed me goodbye. "Got to go. I'll call you later." The annoying cameras started clicking the moment she stepped one foot out the door.
By the time I reached the apartment door, I heard my cell phone playing Lisa's ringtone.
"I forgot something," she said, sounding a bit regretful.
I hurried to the kitchen. "You need me to add something to your list?" I already had the pen in my hand.
"No!" she said amusingly. "I forgot to tell you that I love you."
My heart skipped another beat just hearing her say those words to me. "I love you too!" I whispered.
I plunked down in the kitchen chair and took a moment to revel in her words; her grocery list was still in my hand. I scanned over the items she requested – typical items that you use every day – shampoo, razors, body soap, and contact lens solution.
I did an inventory of the things I had on hand in the pantry and added a lot to her list. The last item she had noted was raisin bran cereal. Her needs were simple.
I turned my computer on to check the balance of my accounts before going shopping, just so I knew how carried away I could get. I pressed the icon to open up my Internet connection; the second my finger clicked my mind flashed to Hyunji telling me I was on the Internet.
Search: Lisa Manoban
I hesitated before hitting Enter on my keyboard. My pinky finger hit the key anyway.
It was like opening up the floodgates to Hell. There were over sixty two million different hits for websites with her name. At the top of the page, there were several items listed under "News results."
Lisa Manoban's steamy nights in Seaport
Lisa and Mina – their devastating breakup
Trouble in Paradise! Split could ruin the next Seaside
It's Over! – Lisa moves on
Lisa's New Love
I clicked the last selection and was redirected to some gossip news website in the UK. There was a picture of Lisa and me as we were coming back from Jaehyun and Wendy's. I could tell when it was taken by which side of my body was facing the buildings. I read the article.
Lisa's New Love
Lisa Manoban and Mina Myoui may play star-crossed lovers on screen but fate has something else in mind for these two actors in real life. Lisa has ended her almost two year relationship with Mina and is reportedly dating local Seaport, Rhode Island business owner, Jennie Kim.
"Lisa met Jennie several weeks ago and is completely smitten," says an insider. Lisa, 26, and Jennie, a 27-year-old New York native, have been turning up the heat on their relationship. Lisa has been seen entering and exiting her apartment at all hours of the day and night and has spent several all-nighters with the attractive brunette.
It was also reported that Lisa had all of her things removed from her private suite at the Lexington Hotel on Monday, where she had been staying while on location, and had them delivered to Ms. Kim's apartment. Her reps have neither confirmed nor denied the relationship.
"Lisa has been disappearing a lot lately and has been spending less time with her co-stars," says another insider, although last week we reported that almost the entire cast spent several hours together at a private party hosted by Ms. Kim herself.
"Mina and Lia left the party early and both appeared quite distraught. That's the day Lisa let Mina know there was someone else in her life now."
I scrubbed my fingers through my hair. Even though the relationship rumors between Lisa and Mina were completely false, there was still a lot of truth mingled in the article. God, most of this happened less than twenty-four hours ago and it was already in print! No wonder her manager called yesterday. I clicked on another link.
Split could spell disaster for the Seaside movie series.
Timing could not have been worse for Lisa and Mina's relationship to fall apart – Blake and Gwen's relationship in the third installment of Seaside is elevated to new intimate levels and is the primary focus of the story. "Everyone is worried that their off-screen relationship will have damaging effects on their on-screen chemistry. If there is tension between the two of them it will certainly show in the film. The smallest of changes can really destroy their amazing chemistry," says a Seaside insider.
I spent the next hour searching her on the Internet. I was shocked to see how many photos there were of Lisa, along with thousands of other pictures of her and Mina together. There were even a few fan-made websites devoted to worshiping her every move; the one website included almost a day by day blog of her life.
I found that there were photos of me on several of the tabloid websites as well. Someone had taken several pictures of me walking down the sidewalk alone; there were also pictures posted of Tammy and me taken the day my window was smashed. There were a lot of pictures of Lisa and me from the night we went to Jaehyun's.
The general consensus indicated that I was nothing more than a home-wrecker, the reason why Lisa and Mina were being ripped apart. I could all too clearly imagine the die-hard Seaside fans coming after me to burn me at the stake.
How convenient for me that they were already out on my sidewalk.
I thought about having to leave the apartment to go grocery shopping and panic welled in my veins. Will the paparazzi follow me into the grocery store to report on what type of body soap I pick out for Lisa? I'd seen pictures of celebrities before and most of them were of the celebrities outside, although the inside of airports seemed fair game; could they follow me inside the grocery store?
I looked out my front window; most of the street seemed clear, except for the normal traffic. Maybe Lisa was seen leaving this morning and the paparazzi and obsessed fans followed her?
I took a shower and spent extra time fixing my hair and makeup, just in case. I took my time, fighting the urge to stay holed up in my apartment instead of going outside… out there. I could understand why Lisa hid in her hotel room.
I put on my best jeans and my black low ankle boots with the chunkier two-inch heel – just in case I needed to run – and my black leather jacket and sunglasses. I counted the money Lisa had left for me - one hundred and twenty dollars – and put it in my purse. Grocery list, purse, bank deposit, keys, cell phone… bravery? Where did I leave my guts? Don't let them decide for you, you can do this.
I paused by the back door, fixed the alarm, took a deep breath, and stepped out into the alley. That's when the cameras began to click. About five paparazzi followed me, asking me questions the entire way down the alley. I didn't answer; I kept my focus on getting to my car. At one point I found that I was almost able to tune out their questions by thinking about something else.
I made sure to look like the love notes that were stuffed under my windshield wiper for Lisa didn't bother me. I even think I smiled once. I patted them into a nice pile and placed them on the passenger seat of my car.
Did these freaking women actually think that her girlfriend would be considerate enough to pass their love notes on to her? Surely they had to know this was my car and not her!
Maybe they hoped that if we ever got into a fight that she might pick the first love note in the pile and go running to their arms? Like these notes were somehow entry tickets to the Lisa Manoban lottery and the lucky winner would be chosen randomly from the stack? What the hell was in all of their heads?
I knew exactly why she broke down yesterday; these people were loose on the streets. My mind flashed back to the old zombie movies and I pictured that Lisa and I were the only ones not turned into monsters - yet. I took a moment to program my music selection. Ah, there it is – I knew I had it, "Zombie" by The Cranberries. I smiled, turned the volume up, and put my car into reverse. Take a picture of that.
Since I had a large amount of cash on me from my profits at the bar, the bank was the first stop on my agenda. I stood in the small bank line waiting for the next available teller; my options narrowed when one of the two tellers working placed her 'window closed' sign on the countertop. Just my luck I would have to do my banking with someone I went to high school with - Michele Weeks, another downside to living in a small town.
She noticed me standing in line and suddenly she was smiling at me from ear to ear. Great! This girl never said more than two words to me all through high school and now she was grinning at me like we were long-lost friends. Why would she talk to me back in those days? I wasn't part of that crowd; I hung out with the normal kids who didn't think they were better than everyone else.
Back then she was the head cheerleader, dating one of the three most popular guys in school, who just happened to get her pregnant right after graduation. Now she was the head teller at my bank. I laughed inside; funny how she always had the term "head" associated to her name.
"Hi Jennie!" she greeted me. "How are you?"
Like you really care.
"Good, thanks! Deposit please," I said, sliding the rubber banded stack of cash and my deposit slip toward her.
She took my money below the counter and typed onto her computer. She was still smiling and looking me over and I knew at any moment she was going to ask her burning question.
"Jennie, please tell me. Is it true?" she whispered her plea to me. Her eyes scanned back and forth for eavesdroppers. "Are you really dating Lisa Manoban?"
Wonderful, another freaking nosey fan. A few smart-ass answers ripped through my brain like 'no, she's just living with me and having as much sex as one man is humanly capable of without dehydrating,' but I kept my composure and stared at her blankly.
"Come on!" she urged. "I won't say anything!"
"That's good to know." I leaned into the counter a few inches further, my eyes glanced from side to side to pique her interest, and then I dropped the bomb. "Neither will I."
Her smile morphed into a frown in an instant, and she shifted her focus to angrily count my deposit. She slid the deposit receipt towards me.
"Have a nice day," she droned. I could tell she didn't really mean it.
I decided to drive out of Seaport and into the next town to do my grocery shopping. Why? I didn't know. Something about putting distance between me and the zombies perhaps?
I drove past one of the large hardware store chains and another thought dawned on me. I turned around and parked in the large lot. I wanted to get copies of my keys made so I could give Lisa her own set. I hoped she'd get a better understanding of just how much I wanted her with me.
I was just on my way into the Super CostMart when Lisa called.
"Hey you! What are you doing?" she asked.
"I'm on a top secret mission," I joked with her as I set my purse in an empty wire cart. I stopped for a moment; it felt like I had something stuck to my shoe. I crossed my foot up on my knee to take a closer look. That's when I noticed the older Plymouth drive slowly past me. It almost stopped right next to where I stood.
"Oh my God," I breathed out, ripping the gum off my heel. I dashed with the cart towards the doors.
"What?" she panicked with me.
It looked like the curly-haired, gap-toothed girl but I wasn't absolutely sure. Who ever it was had large sunglasses on. There was no sense in making her worry unnecessarily.
"I had some gum stuck to the bottom of my shoe."
"Oh, you scared me for a minute!" she admitted. "Hey, do they sell socks in the grocery store? I just ripped another pair."
"I don't know about the grocery store, but I'm walking into the Super CostMart right now. Can I buy them here or do famous movie stars require expensive designer socks?" I teased her.
"Let me ask Jaehyun," she joked. "Just get me some plain white crew socks, preferably ones without holes in them. You know the kind that I wear."
"Anything else?" I asked.
"Duct tape and a shovel?" she requested.
I sighed. I could only imagine the hell Mina was putting her through on set. "How bad is she today?"
"She's being difficult," she muttered. "Jennie, you know I'm making this movie, right? So please don't be jealous when I tell you this, but we had to do a kissing scene this morning and she complained that I had coffee breath and she made a big freaking ordeal about it. It was embarrassing."
I knew how she felt about her; jealousy was low on my list of emotions. "Lisa, I know it's pretend. She's nothing for me to be jealous over. I'm more worried about your relationship with the director. Did you get it filmed?"
"Yeah. We had to do several takes until the playback looked good enough to be believable. Kenneth was happy with the fourth take. If you remember, pick up a bunch of spearmint gum too. Then I have something to take the bad taste of her out of my mouth."
I had to banish the thoughts of them kissing. "How long are you going to be on set today?"
"The call sheet says till seven for me but you never know. We shot two scenes already. I was just going over my lines for the next one, which is coming up in about fifteen minutes." She yawned. "Fortunately she's not in that scene. I should be there close to seven, eight at the latest."
"I'll leave the back door unlocked for you; hopefully there won't be too many hairy leeches back there waiting."
"Did you smile for the cameras this morning yourself?" she uttered amusingly.
"Wasn't too bad. I made sure to smile when I retrieved today's selection of love notes off my car though. I kept them in a nice pile in case you need bathroom reading later."
"I was hoping for softer toilet paper than that!" she laughed out.
By this time, I had walked through the store and was staring at a wide variety of socks. I tossed three packs of socks into the cart. "I'm getting you three bags, all of your holy socks are going in the garbage tonight."
"Hey, pick up a bag of nacho chips and some salsa. I've been hungry for some Mexican food lately."
"You want tacos for dinner tonight?" I figured that sounded good too.
"Promise? Don't toy with my emotions, Ms. Kim!"
"You're bad! I'll see you tonight. I have to go pick out some scented stuff for my girlfriend now." It warmed my insides to say that word again - out loud.
"Okay, Peaches!" she laughed.
I snapped my phone shut and turned the corner into the soap aisle. Our conversation had me smiling. I found the body soap section and started opening and sniffing all the bottles. I smirked to myself, taking the mental picture of Lisa naked, wet, and all soapy into my mind. It was one hell of a private thought.
She asked for new razors so I wheeled my cart down the next aisle to check that item off the list. I was looking over the different brands of shaving cream when I saw her out of the corner of my eye – the curly-haired, gap-toothed girl. She was at the end of the same aisle pretending to be looking at some product on the shelf while watching what I was doing. I felt a jolt of terror sting into my spine. It was her I saw in the parking lot!
Don't panic, we're in a public place. Maybe it's just a coincidence.
I selected the rest of Lisa's toiletries and hurried away to the shampoo aisle. I was on a mission to get what I came for and then go hide in another part of the store.
By the time I was finished shopping, my cart was loaded to the brim; I was no longer shopping for one. Even though I was mostly focused on my list, I still nervously looked over my shoulder every now and then. Was the curly-haired girl following me? I was slightly relieved that I never saw her again.
The cart was heavy and hard to push through the parking lot. The front wheel of the cart was wobbling and I had to use two hands to keep it going in a straight line.
Sounds of tires squealing on the macadam captured my attention; instinctively I looked for the source of the noise. That's when I saw the old blue Plymouth coming straight at me from the end of the line of cars.
Thoughts of me dying in a parking lot, just like my mother, flashed through my mind.
Some deep down impulse forced me to release the grocery cart and leave it where it was; my body jumped in between two parked cars. If the psycho bitch was going to take me out, she'd have to take a few cars out with me. But instead, she drove right past me. She didn't even glance in my direction.
I watched as she drove off out of the parking lot. She hadn't aimed for me at all. I felt quite silly for letting my imagination get away like that. I shook my head to get my mind back to the task at hand, and pushed my cart to the trunk of my car to transfer my bags.
When I pulled down my alley, the paparazzi were there, waiting for me. I wish they would stop taking my picture and help me, I thought to myself as the cameras clicked around me. Wow, exciting news… Lisa Manoban's girlfriend grocery shops! Stop the damn presses!
People are starving all around the globe, the pollutants we pump in the air are destroying the ozone, the global economy is in the toilet, but yet the most exciting news at this moment was to capture me digitally as I unloaded my groceries.
I transferred all the bags from the trunk to the kitchen and then drove off to park my car. I hit the key fob to lock my car doors and was just about to cross over Mulberry Street when I saw the old blue Plymouth turn the corner two blocks away. She keeps this shit up and I'm getting a restraining order.
I hurried down the alley; again in a strange way I was actually relieved that there were other people around, even if they were the pesky paparazzi. They only wanted to take my picture; somehow they were not threatening. And now that I had seen them several days in a row, their faces were becoming familiar to me.
The one photographer I recognized was a small Italian-looking man with short, peppered dark gray hair and a scruffy beard. He was the nicest of them all so far. He didn't ask annoying questions; he just asked me how my day was going. I wondered if these leeches actually had a heart when it came to their chosen profession.
Another one of the photographers that I recognized was taller, maybe six-two or six-three, with a well-pronounced nose and dark, olive skin. He also was somewhat nice, complimenting me on my clothing all the time. Today he liked my jacket. I pondered when the fact that I didn't always wear designer clothes would come into play.
As I unlocked my back door, the short Italian man wished me a blessed evening. "Thank you, sir! You too!" I replied with a cheerful smile.
After I carried all the groceries upstairs and had most of them put away, I called Tammy.
"Hey, I need you to ask Tony a question for me." Tammy's brother was a police officer in Providence. "I think I have a fan problem. Can you ask him what the criteria is for getting a restraining order?"
Tammy gasped. "Is it that bad already?"
"I don't know. This one girl just keeps showing up. I'm not sure if it was a coincidence or not, but I just saw her in CostMart over in South Hampton. And she just drove down the street after I unloaded my car. I'm a bit freaked out actually!"
"I'll ask him. Maybe you should consider not opening the bar by yourself? Can you wait until someone else is there with you?"
She had a point. "That's a good suggestion. I can wait until Asahi gets here. He'll be in at four. It's not like I make a hell of a lot of money in the afternoon anyway."
"Rather be safe than sorry," Tammy said.
"You're right. Please ask Tony for me; see if he has any suggestions."
I put all the groceries away then placed a small pack of hamburger meat in a skillet on the stove. I thought I'd start dinner now so when she got home we could eat together.
Home? Wait… did my brain just say "home"? I walked around my apartment, observing that there were little bits of Lisa in every room. All her clothing was stowed away in my bedroom, pants from yesterday laying on my chair, her expensive watch and cufflinks were on my dresser next to her bottle of cologne, a new script and a book were setting out on the coffee table, and her toothbrush was hanging in the bathroom next to mine.
Blending my life with her seemed so effortless. I tried to recall how and when it all happened.
It was almost four o'clock – time to turn the bar lights on and open for business. I was comforted knowing that Asahi would be here soon. I turned the television on for background noise and adjusted my business hours sign to reflect the new opening time.
I had expected to see Asahi as the first person through my door, but instead a few female patrons came in - no doubt here to see sights of Lisa Manoban. The three girls sat down at the bar; they looked quite young.
"Good evening, ladies," I greeted them. "What can I get you?"
One of them was sort of glaring at me; I didn't care for the vibe she was emanating.
"I'll have a rum and coke," she stated.
"Sure. May I see some identification first, please?" I asked politely. If you're not twenty-one you're not staying.
One of them was barely twenty-one and the other two were only twenty-two years old; none of them were from Rhode Island. All three of the girls were from Massachusetts, which was a forty minute drive from here just to the border.
I was so relieved to see Asahi walk through the door that I couldn't suppress my smile. One of the girls whipped her head around to see who I was smiling at.
"Hey boss. Sorry I'm a few minutes late," Asahi apologized. In actuality he was only four minutes late. Certainly not a big deal, especially since I had changed his schedule from part-time to almost full-time.
"No worries, Asahi. I'm just happy you could work." I patted him on his shoulder. Secretly I was thanking my lucky stars that I wasn't working alone.
"Limes?" Asahi asked, looking around. I hadn't cut any yet.
"I'll go get some," I said cheerfully, trotting back to the kitchen.
I had several limes and lemons in my hand when I came through the kitchen door. At that very moment, curly-haired, gap-toothed girl walked through the front door of my pub. I sucked in a quick breath from the shock, almost dumping my arm-full of fruit on the floor. I scurried behind the bar, getting as close to Asahi and my baseball bat as I possibly could.
I knew her name was Angel, but she was turning out to be more like the devil in my book. She looked around the inside of the pub before hesitantly making her way to the far end of the bar. I was glad she sat at the opposite end from where the kitchen would be visible from the long bar. Lisa would be coming through the back door eventually.
She reached into her little clutch purse and I felt the adrenaline start to release into my bloodstream. This girl absolutely terrified me; there was no way of knowing what she had hidden in that purse. I kept some distance between us until I could be sure of what she was up to. Eventually she placed some money on the bar and folded her hands on top of it.
Slowly I made my approach. "Good Evening. What can I get you?"
"I'll have a whiskey sour," she whispered. It was weird; she never made eye contact.
"May I see some ID please?" I wanted to know who she was and where she came from.
She reached back into that ominous little bag of hers and pulled out a small wallet. Her fingers fumbled for her driver's license.
ANGELICA STAUNTON, DOB 2/17/1992
943 S. BRIDGE ST, Apt 12C
BROOKLYN, NY
She was thirty-one years old and a long way from home. Now I at least had more information to give to Tammy's brother. I hoped I could get him to do a background search on this whacko.
I made the drink that she requested and tried to be as cordial as possible when I set it in front of her. I purposely mixed her drink light; no sense fueling her psychosis with extra alcohol.
Hyunji came in at five to start her shift. She made a face when she saw that most of the patrons in the pub were female. Asahi was already trying to charm three of the girls at the bar. They seemed to like him too. Asahi was a good-looking guy - tall, well-kept, nice arms, and a flirtatious smile. I hoped he was a good distraction.
Hyunji held her purse up in the air and shook her keys, indicating she was going to lock up her belongings in the office. I completely understood her reasons; the bar was starting to look like the setting for a Stalkers Anonymous meeting. Sure enough, about a dozen or so young girls came into the bar. The trail of tramps didn't end. All of the fans that were waiting outside were now inside my pub.
"What the fu..!" Hyunji gasped. "Where the hell did they all come from?"
"The street, where else!" I breathed back.
"Jennie!" She shook her head at me. "This is effed up! What are we going to do?"
I had no idea what to say to her. I was also worried about serving minors accidentally. We only had this size of a crowd on weekends, and life was manageable when Fred carded everyone before they stepped foot into the bar.
"They all need to be carded and labeled somehow," I said. "Asahi, card everyone before you serve them. I'm going to see if I still have those paper wristbands."
I hurried to the office and dug through my dad's old desk. I found the pack of wristbands but the glue was so old on them they didn't stick together anymore. In another drawer I found a stamp pad and a date stamper. That would have to do.
I went table by table, checking driver's licenses. I was glad that I did because there were a few that were underage. They were requested to leave immediately. It felt good to kick a few of Lisa's fans out.
Women packed my bar; it was indescribable. All ages, shapes, and sizes forced their way in. For what? For the hopes of getting a glimpse of my girlfriend? The one who loves me with all her heart? It reminded me of the time her car was surrounded out in L.A. by screaming, hysterical fans. My mood instantly morphed from stressed to pissed.
Hyunji approached a table of four women who were just sitting in anticipation. "If you're not going to order something you have to leave!" I heard her tell them. "No, water is not an order. We serve alcohol here. This is a bar."
She slapped her serving tray on top of the bar. I could see she was just as pissed as I was. "This is freaking ridiculous, Jennie!"
"I know. I don't know what to do," I muttered in defeat. "I don't know what I can do, besides stand up on this bar and tell them all that she's not here."
I really wanted to tell them all that she was mine and they were delusional, crazy bitches; maybe end my rant with an "everyone get the hell out," but I couldn't.
I was so busy carding people that I completely lost track of the time. My pocket started singing to me.
"Hi," I breathed out, running for cover in the kitchen.
"Hey, everything all right?" Lisa asked.
"No. My bar is inundated with female fans. I don't know what to do." I felt like a panic attack was coming on. "If they see you," I gasped. It was getting harder to breathe.
"Shit, I was afraid of this. Okay, just stay calm. I'll fix this. Do you trust me?"
"Yes," I replied.
"Take care of your business. Stay out in the bar. Things will be a little hectic, but once they get what they came for they'll leave." She was in business mode.
I nervously paced behind the bar, mixing drink orders to occupy my brain. I had no idea what she was talking about, and I had just about my fill of dirty looks for one night. I knew what each one of them were thinking - why her? What was so special about me that caught her attention? I even heard a few of them say that I wasn't pretty enough to be her girlfriend. I felt like the neighbor's dog just snuck into my house and peed all over my carpets just for spite.
A black sedan pulled up out front and parked. I saw Lisa's bodyguard open her car door and they walked to the front door of the pub. The minute Lisa's foot hit the carpeting the women started screaming. My shoulders instantly hunched up and I covered my ears with my hands to muffle the sounds. Cameras were clicking everywhere. Girls even stood up on some of my chairs.
Lisa smiled and waved to the adoring fans while her guardian ushered her safely into the poolroom. I noticed one of the paparazzi also followed them. Just then my cell phone played my favorite tune.
"I didn't know what else to do. Don't be mad," she whispered. "I love you."
"Ladies, ladies," her bodyguard, Mike, called out. "Ms. Manoban will be signing autographs and providing photo opportunities for one hour. One photo per guest only please."
"It's brilliant! I love you too!" I answered her.
In an instant, a line was formed. Actually the line started forming before Mike even spoke. I looked at my watch, it was almost seven. I filled a large glass with soda and took it over to the poolroom.
"Ms. Kim," Mike greeted me with a partial smile. He had his bulky arms folded across his chest to look even more intimidating.
"Hi Mike! Would you please give this to her for me? Can I get you something to drink too?"
Mike shook his head.
Hyunji, Asahi, and I stood behind the bar, just watching. I noticed how none of the other paparazzi entered my bar, but some other menace did - a reporter.
A well-dressed lady sat at my bar, smiling at me. I glanced down the bar to notice that gap-toothed psycho fan was anxiously standing in line.
"Ms. Kim, Sheila Moore from the Celeb Entertainment Network. I was wondering if I might ask you a few questions?" She flashed her shiny, white teeth at me.
"I have no comment," I answered quickly. "No interviews."
"Just one question, Honey," she goaded me. There was only one person on this planet that called me "Honey" and she was not it.
"No," I said firmly. "Please leave now."
"You know that attitude is not very good for her career!" She smiled her fake smile at me. I wasn't falling for her tricks. Like answering her probing questions would be good for his career.
She eyed Hyunji and I could see the little hamster on the wheel in her brain churn another revolution.
"No, you cannot interview any of my employees either," I said sharply. "Now I would prefer if you left." Her eye daggers were confirmation enough of her unhappiness. I really didn't care. I barely spoke to my closest confidants about my relationship; she was crazy to think I'd spill any details to her.
My attention was diverted when new customers came into the pub. Thankfully it was some of my regular male customers. They were obviously happy seeing the large selection of women. The guys quickly punched numbers into their cell phones; it was the modern day version of sending smoke signals to the other tribesmen.
Lisa's little plan seemed to be working. As the women got their meet and greet satisfied, they exited right out the door. The crowd was actually thinning. Hyunji nodded her head in response to seeing some of the girls leave.
It irked me to hear some of the comments these women were making about Lisa. Most were gushing about their encounter with her; how hot she was, how they'd like to "do her" as they put it.
Two young women sat at the bar in front of me, talking about her hair and her dreamy eyes, and how they can't believe how lucky they got tonight to be at the right place at the right time.
I was washing a few dirty glasses when one of the girls expressed her next observation out loud. She presumed since Lisa was here without Mina that they must not be a couple like everyone thought. And since she was out prowling the streets of Seaport (and slumming with the locals), she must be looking for a good time. She felt her odds just increased to getting her. She even came up with a few lines to let her know she could have her. She decided that her "want to come back to my place and have sex?" line was the winner.
A few weeks ago statements like that would have drifted in one ear and right out the other, not affecting me in the slightest bit. But now I felt the burn rip right through my heart. The red tailed beast called Anger welled in me. These women talked about her like she was a thing, an object, a possession to be had. And the thing they desired was the one that I loved.
Hyunji studied my facial expression for two seconds before concluding that I was almost at the end of my rope.
"Go take a walk. Asahi and I have this." She steered me along by my shoulders.
"I'm going to see how she's doing, then I'm going up to have dinner with her. I'll be back a little later." I couldn't hide the anger any longer.
Lisa had just about ten minutes left until her hour of people pleasing was over, and there were still about fifteen women in line. Mike smiled at me and moved slightly so I could look in on Lisa. Two girls were chatting up a storm with her, tossing their hair, smiling, and flirting. It made me sick. Lisa was standing there with her arms folded across her chest, trying to be nice. When she saw me she grinned, ran her finger down her nose, and scratched her chin. It made me laugh.
Two girls to go until curly-haired, gap-toothed Angelica would get her turn. Lisa was definitely looking me up and down, just like the rest of them. I adjusted my shirt, ran my hands over my butt and smirked. Look at that ladies, it's her favorite part.
Lisa was getting anxious to get this over with; she waved at Mike to let the next one in. Two girls went together to meet her. They were beside themselves – it was like meeting God to them.
Lisa moved away from the table when the two girls left. She stretched and walked over to where I stood.
"Hey you!" she smiled and privately drifted her fingers over mine.
"Hey back!"
She yawned. "I am so done with this. How many more are left?"
I roughly counted. "Twelve. Just finish with them; maybe they'll leave you alone now."
She wrinkled her nose and winced. "I'm so hungry. I'm getting a headache."
"Then make it quick! Dinner is ready when you are." I tugged on the bottom of her shirt.
Angelica was getting nervous in line; she was shifting her weight from foot to foot. Lisa saw she was next and whispered something into her bodyguard's ear. Mike unfortunately let Angelica pass. She clutched her little purse in her hand, making me really nervous. I watched her every move, ready to pounce if she tried anything.
She said a few gushing words to Lisa and then started to open her purse. I saw the edge of something silver in her hand; adrenaline coursed through my veins. I was just about to push Mike aside and tackle her when she pulled out a silver camera. Lisa posed with her quickly; now I understood why the photographer was invited along. She looked at the camera and asked for one more picture to be taken but the photographer told her no and moved her along.
Angelica looked distraught when she walked out of the poolroom. I thought she was going to stay inside the bar, so it surprised me when she left the building. Good riddance, psycho.
Several new girls got in line and now the new total was closer to twenty.
"Mike, she's had enough," I whispered. "Two more and that's it. She has a headache and she has dinner waiting."
"Okay, Jennie." He turned to the ladies. "You two and then we are done. No more."
I watched as the bad news was whispered down the line. Quite a few of them left out loud "awes" but I didn't care. She served her fans enough today. Lisa patted Mike's shoulder when she was finished. "Thanks man, I owe you one!"
"No problem, Lisa. I'll see you at six. Go get some rest."
Lisa smiled and waved briefly to the ladies who were still waiting in line; their cameras clicked like crazy. She turned her back to the waiting fans and quickly darted through our stairwell door.