Emmett

Emmett didn't want to admit he was smitten with Rosalie. Nor could he keep himself from watching Rosalie's videos on repeat. Yes, there was definitely lust between them. He'd felt the spark, and she had not only reciprocated, but her eyes lured him in a way that no woman's ever had. He typed a comment on her latest video.

Thanks for this. You are an amazing gift to this world.

That was safe, he thought. Emmett disguised his name so Rose wouldn't know it was from him. 321Mman—his birthdate and the first initial of his last name. That was safe, wasn't it?

Emmett wished he'd never read those tweets. It was because the guys at the station kept grilling him, teasing about the plethora of comments that followed the premiere. It piqued Emmett's curiosity, and he'd already heard some of the bad ones. How much worse could they get?

Jeannie2120

Why did they set up Emmett with her?

#Bellaisaloser #MYATA

GiantBoiXX

Emmett's head is bigger than his body. I think he's

overcompensating. #MYATA

Lizbethanksyou

I'm going to start a campaign #FryAlice thestake

#MYATA

Tuck1215

Rosalie's too hawt for this show

#spoiled beauty queen#MYATA

FryGUYpatriot2024

Jasper, thanks for your service

#salutes #MYATA

Sleepyone23

Edward is too fine to be a doctor

#amfeelingsickandneedmedicalattention #MYATA

AlleyWax

How did Bella get on this show?

#MYATA

Sosuememe

Bella is one vanilla chick #boringBella

#MYATA

Onehotguy

The guys are hotter than the girls.

Even that slut Rosalie. #MYATA

Emmett's blood still boiled as he read that last one. He wanted to take Onehotguy and pound him into the ground. There were so many comments about the way Rosalie looked or how plain Bella was perceived to be. Yes, the producer had warned them, but these people viciously attacked them as though they didn't have any real feelings. He hoped that Bella and the rest stayed far away from the ruthless comments and opinions people left for all to see. Emmett imagined it would only get worse from here on out. And he wondered if Rosalie read any of her comments from her videos. At least, the majority who'd commented were nice and thankful.

Bella had texted Emmett her thanks, letting him know that she and Edward had finally spent some time together. He wondered about that—if Edward really was better than him, or if Emmett really hadn't been Bella's type. Emmett didn't want to think about it, even though the guys at the station had been relentless.

"Come on, Emmett. Did Bella put out? I think you were mismatched."

Though his coworkers and family had signed NDA's, Emmett was still restricted in what he confided—not that he cared to anyway.

Emmett laughed. Mismatched. That was true. His friend, Ethan, joked that they should've matched Emmett with Rosalie. Emmett had thought that as well. What would have happened if the experts had gotten it right? They had their reasons, but it wasn't apparent.

So, have you hit her up yet?

Bella's text surprised him.

No.

Why not?

Because I'm being cool. I told you.

But being cool is so boring. She accompanied that with a winky emoji.

Emmett wanted to warn her again to stay away from Twitter because he had wanted to look up each of those handles and set fires to their houses. They flung these mean comments at Bella, and they knew nothing about her. Well, it was early in the show, and soon enough, they'd see what he'd seen. She was wholesome and sweet and a good person. Yes, she'd had a crush on Edward, but Emmett had his own crush on Rosalie.

I commented on one of her videos.

Well, that's living life dangerously.

It's too soon. Besides, I don't know if she really thinks of me that way. Rose has many, many admirers. The twitter feed was still active, and he only paid attention to the ones that were addressed to Rosalie and Bella. He wondered if Rosalie had seen any of them.

A new tweet popped up on the feed:

RoseQuartz30

Emmett is amazing. #MYATA

Rose Quartz? She went by Rose, and she'd just turned 30. Could it be her?

I can get her #.

Emmett stared at Bella's text. How?

I know people who know things.

Nah, Bella. I want to do things my own way.

Suit yourself. But, I think you are just wasting time.

He wondered if that was true. Or if once they finally did get together it would be like any other fiery encounter he'd had which was put out once the embers were doused by real life.

The next show was about the encounters at Rose's birthday party, and Emmett considered skipping it. At one time, he was curious to see what Bella and Edward's intro had been like, but he was so far past that. Now, he dreaded seeing himself caught up in the fan bliss of Rosalie's company. Everyone else had noticed—and pointed it out to him during the show—so he imagined it would be even more magnified under America's watch.

Emmett entertained the idea of watching it with Rosalie, and the two of them throwing popcorn at the television when things appeared as they didn't want them to.

Are you ready for the next show?

Bella wanted to know. It was the following night.

I'm gonna skip it.

Just as well. It's like watching a train wreck anyway.

Unfortunately, he worked overtime on the night of that third episode, and his firefighter brothers had insisted on watching on the big screen at the fire station. Unable to sit, Emmett prayed for a call as the part aired where he approached Rosalie, and whistles drowned out his request to turn the show off.

"Look at you, Emmett! Flirting with the blonde!"

"Yeah, dude, did you forget you were married?"

"No, look she's into it," another said. "They are into each other."

"Can we please turn this off?"

"Hell to the no," the captain said. "This is good stuff right here."

The show cut to the interview with Emmett, and he blew out a breath.

"So, you know that Rosalie is married, yes?" the producer had asked.

"Ohhhhh!" A few of the guys had been glued to the set, their reactions raucous and exaggerated.

"Yes. We were just talking," television Emmett said. "I recognized her. I'm a fan. That's all."

"Yep!" Carlos said. "That's all!" He slapped Emmett on the shoulder.

The camera panned to Bella and Alice at the back of the room, and the expression showed distress on Bella's face.

"Dude! Your poor wife!"

His poor wife, indeed. "Ah, she wasn't upset about that." The clips they showed related to the drama surrounding Emmett & Rosalie and everyone's reaction to them.

Then it cut to an interview with Rosalie and her smile, letting out a girlish giggle. Damn, he missed her. "Oh, I'm flattered, but you know, I don't think it meant anything. Haven't you ever met someone and it's like you've known them your entire life?"

That's what it was. It was like they were picking up from the third date. Shay, with all her woo woo thoughts, would have insisted they'd known each other in another life. Emmett didn't believe in that.

"Whoa! Twitter just lit up!" his buddy Carlos said, holding up his phone. "Emmett, you should see this."

The captain shook his head. "I wouldn't waste your time with it."

Good advice. This time, especially with this evening's episode he wanted to take it.

The show cut to a commercial and he breathed a sigh of relief. They returned to the part where Jasper was telling him to lay off on Rosalie, but Fate seemed to intervene on his behalf. The tones went off, loud as it boomed through the station. Saved by the bell. So, now America knew of his infatuation with her. Would he ever hear the end of it?

BlancaXoXo

Emmett is sweet on Rosalie #mismatch

#MYATA

Saraih202

Look at that chemistry with Rosalie & Emmett.

#hot #expertsgotitwrong #MYATA

ArnieNot

Emmet & bella divorce is imminent.

#MYATA

Larry11110000

everyone except alice & jasper should divorce now and call it good.

#MYATA

LouisiANAcutie

Emmett is literally cheating on his wife! #cad

#MYATA

I was not! Emmett thought. But he might as well have been for all the indecent thoughts he'd had about her. Damn it. He'd been scanning the tweets, when he'd gotten home, and as predicted, Emmett and Rosalie were the star of them. Most people seemed to believe the show screwed up.

How are you holding up?

Emmett read the text from Shay. He was still amazed by how non-judgmental she was. Everyone had an opinion. Especially his family. They'd been gathering and watching together, and the weddings had been excruciating to sit through. But, he actually felt for Edward when Rosalie had given him the cold shoulder. That was one side of Rosalie he never expected. Now, he had a new respect for Edward because he hadn't let her leave, which was what a lot of guys might've done in that situation. No, Edward had been determined to see it through. They slept in separate rooms, and he was definitely the more agreeable of the two.

Great

Wow. You and Rosalie, huh? I guess I should have predicted that.

I don't wanna talk about it.

I don't blame you, Emmett. Hang in there. Things happen for a reason.

Of course. Shay really believed that. The last time he argued with her that an old couple's house had burned down and they had nowhere to go—what was the reason for that? Or what about the school cafeteria that caught fire? Or the tornado that ravaged that mobile home park? Or the pregnant woman who Emmett couldn't get to on the 4th floor of that apartment building downtown?

Big picture, she would say. Every soul came to planet earth with lessons to learn. What did those people have to learn? Or what did you learn from the experience? What are these things teaching you?

That life sucks and it's unfair.

Until it isn't. Consider what your experience with Bella and the others has taught you as well as what you've taken away from it. Remember it's not over until it's over.

Sometimes it was impossible to have a conversation with his sister-in-law. Her belief in the good of people was 100%.

It will work out for you. You'll see.

At that moment, he received a notification that Rosalie had posted a new Youtube video. She was cranking them out twice a week. He smiled as he read the title. Screw Jiffy Lube! Change your own oil. Even in her overalls, she was a sight, blonde hair tucked into a ponytail, blue eyes that shined, a smile that took his breath away.

Aw man. He had it bad.

He pressed play and sighed, watching as the blonde owned the screen, radiating confidence as she demonstrated the process of draining the oil. By the time it was over, she had over 150 comments and twice as many likes. But still Emmett wondered if she had given him a second thought.

A text shot back from Bella. Emmett already told her he didn't need it. But now as he stared at the ten digits, without even a hint of who the phone number belonged to, he already knew.

Another text from Bella followed.

In case you change your mind.

Rosalie

Rosalie tried not to think about the fact that she was alone. She'd only entered this process because she wanted to find her perfect man. Edward was a perfect man…for someone, but not her. It had been depressing to watch that episode—where she'd acted one way with Edward and another for the camera. There had been a little backlash about it, but her agent assured her there was no love lost. In fact, since the episode aired that she'd fixed their rental car, there had been a 50% spike in her viewers. And now, the fact that America was watching her discover who she really was, they rooted and cheered.

And yet, she was still alone. Sure, her mother had reached out to her—had expressed her sorrow that things hadn't worked out for her and Edward. Her father remained his objectionable self and stayed away. He was a stubborn SOB, and Rosalie didn't miss that at all. In fact, she had everything she wanted right now. She was making a name for herself on Youtube, her agent was landing her interviews with daytime talk show hosts, and she was being invited to audition for a movie to be directed by the great Steven Spielberg. Her days were full with video prep and meetings and photo shoots, but her nights…

The wolves were out in fine order. Seedy producers propositioned her, promising her major movie roles in exchange. Plus, the actors who were more full of themselves seemed to think that she owed them something, expecting her to be their arm candy. She'd taken the producer's advice—stay out of the public eye—with the exception of the videos she'd agreed to do, no social engagements outside of work.

From her studio apartment, she curled up in pink silk pajamas, watching the episode where she met Emmett McCarty for the first time. And how those dimples had captivated her. How he'd seemed to remember details about her that most men didn't—like her commercials and followed her on the shows, yet not in a stalkery way. She knew better than to read the tweets, the agent and the producer from the show had already warned her against it. Emmett…

The chemistry there…unreal.

The memory of his chest in the jacuzzi burned in her mind. And the moments alone together left her heated, always second guessing her instincts. Look where that temptation had gotten her. Sure, now it didn't seem so bad because they'd only flirted, but what would happen when news of the cake incident got out? They would condemn her as well. How would that fare for her videos? She decided to put that worry away for now because she was weeks away from that, and what if nothing came of it?

She'd made no attempt to talk to Emmett alone at the premiere. But, she'd wanted to. And the spark between them hadn't faded, but she'd had to work harder to suppress the attraction. Still, she wondered if he thought of her. He and Bella obviously had not been a match, but at least they had a smoother start than she and Edward. She also thought about Edward. Even considered texting him. He'd played such an instrumental role in the changes in her life, and she could never thank him enough.

The show had literally changed her life. Yet, she was alone. She browsed the comments on her videos, still impressed by the number of followers. Very few men had commented, and one had stuck with her, 321Mman—could it be Emmett? 321- March 21. Didn't he say he was an aries? It excited her to think he was watching, and she so badly wanted to reach out. In a moment of weakness, she tweeted from her private account that Emmett was amazing. She hit send and turned off her computer and resolved to not look at it again.

Are you reading the tweets?

She didn't recognize the number. Who is this?

Emmett

Her heart skipped a beat. She had so many questions. Where did he get this number? Not that she minded one bit.

Hi, Emmett! I was thinking about you.

You were?

Yes.

Tingles ran through her as she watched the dots appear as he typed.

Me too.

The smile stayed stuck to her face as she waited for another text, but it didn't come. She typed a new message.

I haven't been reading the tweets.

That's good. Some of them are brutal.

Yeah, I don't need any more drama in my life. Lol

Well, I just wanted to check on you. See if you're okay.

I am, thank you. And you?

I'm keeping busy. Back to work…

Right. Same.

You've been busy, I see. I subscribe to your channel, you know.

She squealed with delight, feeling like a teenager. Emmett watched her videos. Thank you. That means a lot. Coming from him.

I wish we could get together.

Her heart pounded just thinking about it. Me too.

Then nothing.

Well, can we?

The feeling of excitement sunk and disappeared like a marble into a black hole. Rosalie wished with all her heart she could.

I'm so busy. I've got this tight schedule, and I'm trying to crank out all this content before the finale.

Oh. I see.

Sucks. I mean, it doesn't suck, but it doesn't leave time for anything else. Or anyONE.

Well, would you want to get together on Zoom to watch the shows? Or we could just text and drink every time Bella has wine?

Rosalie giggled. I would love that.

Is it a date?

Yep. I'll be ready at 9 sharp with my own glass of wine.

Sweet.

He sure was. She started to type that she missed him, but erased it. See ya then?

Looking forward to it.

A/N: Unfortunately, I couldn't get it to format the tweets as I wanted, but there ya go because America is watching! We're not done with Emmett and Rosalie yet. Up next, Alice and Jasper. Thanks so much for your patience, for reading, and as always for my reviewers and followers! Looking forward to catching you there. Still no alerts, so check your private messages for a response. :)