by Ema Bancroft
The real song wouldn't even come out until our next album, but when Starbucks executives heard it, they had to have it. And Cecil said what Starbucks wants, Starbucks gets.
All I knew was that it was part of the deal was free coffee for all of us for a year... and I planned to make the most of that small profit.
Perk. Heh. No pun intended.
"What's so funny? " Roland asked as we stopped in front of the store.
I shrugged my shoulders. "Nothing.
The crowds were piles of people, held by a metal railing and a line of cops with a grim face. A line of television cameras lined up in an area on the right, and reporters jumped into action as we moved. We got out of the limo and people went crazy, screaming as we smiled and waved.
On the left, a scuffle caught our attention. A group of demonstrators had moved in front of the crowd, waving signs saying,"God hates gays! " and "Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve."
"Go home, 5Point! "screamed a middle-aged man in a bow tie and jacket. At first I thought he was a fanatic. He looked like a geek lover... or whatever?
"Shut up! Go home! " a teenager yelled at him.
"You're an abomination! " he shouted, pointing at Roland as his face flushed.
"You're a fucking dressing room! " the girl yelled at her, throwing the iced coffee in his face.
"Shit,"Elijah muttered.
Soon after, the drinks were flying and Craig and Brick rushed us inside the building as the police broke the frappuccino melee. We saw with astonishment how coffee splashed against the front windows, and the teenager tore off the Protestant's bow tie around his neck.
"Yes. This is not good,"Raul said.
A cappuccino, or a macchiato - what was the difference? hit a reporter on the side of the head, milk coffee dripping on her immaculate white suit. She got frantically on the spot with a wrinkled napkin.
That stain wasn't coming off.
The police eventually managed to control the crowd, relegating the demonstrators to a small area across the street. The fans shouted for joy, and then drew attention again through the windows, once again shouting and waving.
Carolyn Julio, Starbucks' Public Relations Manager, found her way back to the store, cleaning a wandering splash of Tazo's iced tea from her shoulder. The brunette statue that pushed her lime green glasses over her nose and clapped twice.
"I'm sorry, guys,"she told us. "Obviously we underestimate the security needed today. It won't happen again.
"Lloyd,"she called a man squatting and bald playing with a camera,"meet 5Point. 5Point, Lloyd Ramirez, its director."
"How am I supposed to work like this? " the director asked, waving his arms. "This is a madhouse."
"This,"Carolyn interrupted Icily,"it's a business. One that isn't interrupted by silly or hateful intolerant schoolgirls. We have a commercial to shoot today, and if anyone has a problem with that, they should know about it right now.
She waited half the time.
"No? Excellent. Let's get to work.
Half an hour after Carolyn broke the whip, she dressed us in white from head to toe, including special Starbucks aprons with our names embroidered in bright green. We did a lot of short takes of ourselves making a fool of ourselves - steaming milk and tumbling glasses around. Then we prepared for the dance sequence - Elijah, Roland and I stood at the counter, with Ethan and Raul each at separate tables as Eddie reviewed the choreography with us one last time.
"Listen to music! " Lloyd bellowed, and our spicy latte cut filled the air. We posed and waited.
"Action!"
We snuck into our modified kick, careful not to fall off our raised platforms. When the lyrics began, we sang as the camera moved from one of us to the next.
Ethan: I need my triple shot of ventilated mocha mocha.
I need my macchiato, it's hot.
Roland: Give me a cappuccino, extra foam.
Me: Make mine drip, with a maple nut bun
I did my kick change... and accidentally kicked the milk jug across the room, hitting the makeup artist on the side of the head.
"Fuck! " he shouted.
"Cut! " Lloyd shouted.
"I'm sorry! " I called, mortified. "Are you all right?"
"Well,"he muttered, picking up an ice pack that someone shook across the room and squeezing it to his forehead.
"Reset! " Lloyd shouted.
"Nice shot, B,"Ethan said with a smile. "Ten dollars if you can do it again."
"Shut up, Ethan."
He laughed.
"Listen to music!"
It took a few more shots to make it right, but we finally made it through the number, with Elijah taking the last line:
'Cuz… ooooo…. Starbucks has everything I need.
It's so hot and sweet...
... my candy latte?
And while Elijah sang his love song to a coffee drink, I could almost imagine that he was singing it to me...
And in that instant, I realized I wasn't falling in love with E. C. Lynch.
I'd already fallen... hard?
God help me, I was in love with him.
Elijah caught my attention, a look of confusion fluttering on his face - most likely in response to the horror look on mine. I quickly rearranged my features into a casual smile, and his lips lifted slightly before I returned to Raul.
To fall in love with Elijah was not part of the plan.
"That's all! " Lloyd screamed, after reviewing the last shot. "Good job, everybody!"
Carolyn came to congratulate us and thank us before we went to the bathrooms to put on our clothes and prepare for the afternoon interviews.
"B? Are you all right? " Elijah asked.
I swallowed, fighting a wave of panic. "Yeah. Sure. I'm fine."
"You seemed a little scared."
"I'm fine. " I forced a smile, hoping it looked sincere.
He looked over his shoulder before bowing. "I miss you,"he whispered.
"We've been together all day."
"That's not what I mean."
"I know."
He grabbed my hand all of a sudden, throwing me into the abandoned kitchen.
"Elijah, what are you doing? " I hissed. "Someone will see us."
"Give me a second,"he whispered, lowering his head to kiss me gently. "I just need..." He kissed me again, and I melted in it... dragged in the moment... in Elijah...?
The kiss lacked the despair of the night before. Instead he was gentle and sweet... lazily sore. Elijah gave me a blow to the lips... he lapsed on my tongue... and I tickled from head to toe after his relentless lunge...
When we finally broke up and went to the bathroom, I knew without a doubt that Elijah Lynch had stolen my heart.
You couldn't deny it... and not go back?
All I could do was wait and pray he didn't break it.
Chapter 9
Chapter 9 - Catherine on two sides
Daisy
Twicher.
They called him Twicher.
The paparazzi photographer who dragged us to the restaurant the night before had become a permanent fixture since the shooting of Starbucks. I had seen him when we were going to a talk show in the afternoon, getting into the same black SUV we lost in the alley.
"I think that's the guy from last night,"I said to Roland quietly as we got into the limo. The photographer has just looked at me passively from the driver's seat, his fingers wobbling anxiously on the wheel and his right eye shaking a little.
Roland looked up briefly. "Oh, yeah. That's Twicher. You'll see a lot for L. A."
"Twicher"?
"His name is Jessie Twichem," Ethan explained,"but everyone calls him Twicher for obvious reasons. I looked through the rear window of the SUV and saw his cheek again.
"That's a mean thing to do,"I thought.
Raul laughed hard. "Yeah, well, when I corner you in the bathroom to try to take your picture, you won't feel so sorry for him."
"The guy's an idiot,"added Elijah, pushing his sunglass
es to the top of his head so he could read something on his phone. "Try to stay away from him... if you can"?
Ethan laughed at that. "Good luck with that."
I looked at the photographer speculatively. He looked like he was forty-something years old, with a slight belly and fine hair tucked away in a low ponytail. "I think I could run faster than him,"I pointed out.
Roland laughed. "Maybe if you saw it coming,"he said. "But despite appearances, the guy's like a ghost or something. He shows up when you least expect him.
I shrugged my shoulders, but I didn't say anything.
He seemed to be everywhere, however: Outside the TBS affiliate when we finished our interview... behind us as we arrived at an apparition at a local children's hospital... sitting outside our hotel when we went out to get some dinner... floating on a table near when I got up to go to the bathroom...
I made sure to lock the door.
He stayed close, taking pictures from time to time, but mostly staring... and eating a huge pile of fries with cheese and chili... and shaking?
"What are you waiting for? " I finally asked. "Haven't you got enough pictures of us?"
"Nothing I can sell,"Elijah replied. "The pictures of us walking down the street or greeting fans are a dozen. He is waiting for the taking of money.
"Money shot"?
"Like one of us drunk off our asses,"explained Raul,"or making out with a crappy fanatic. With everything that's been going on, he probably expects someone to harass Roland and start a fight.
"Or perhaps he wants a drink of Elijah's secret lu-vah,"joked Ethan, and won a glimmer of the table. "Did you hear? " continued, ignoring Elijah. "Gayzers have started a survey, trying to figure out who he is. Right now, 52% say it's that guy who's going to be the new Superman.
"Are you doing Superman again? " Roland moaned.
Ethan shrugged. "The rest are evenly distributed among the Breaking Dawn bassist, the hotel bellhop, and..." He stopped dramatically.
"So who? " I asked.
"You, Tim."
I choked, throwing up a bite of Coke on the table. I heard the buzzing of a shutter in the camera and turned around to look at Twicher, who simply shrugged his shoulders, and took another potato chip.
"See? " Raul said. "Money shot."
"Fuck,"I complained, panting to breathe. "Do you think it's me?"
Ethan took a huge bite out of his hamburger, without bothering to swallow before answering. "Only as if it were free and permanent,"he babbled through his mouth.
I tried not to look at Elijah when he mocked:"As if that was going to happen. He looked around the table. "I mean, if I were gay."
Roland was especially interested in their onion rings, dipping them in a mixture of ketchup and mustard before putting them whole in his mouth.
Brutal.
"Look at this,"I said, as a television set hanging in the corner of the bar caught my eye and gave me a way to change the subject of the conversation. The incident at Starbucks took place in Access Hollywood, and a couple of Hollywood connoisseurs were discussing the impact of Roland's announcement on our record sales.
"God, guys, I'm sorry about all this,"muttered Roland, his eyes on the screen.
"It's all over,"Raul said once the report was finished. "People will forget about it when the next big scandal comes. Brangelina may adopt a quadruple set or Justin Bieber will declare himself king of Zimbabwe and change his name to a symbol, such as Prince.
"Win! " Ethan smiled, snapping his beer bottle at Raul's.
"Some conservative groups are trying to organize a boycott,"Roland said quietly.
Elijah snorted. "What's next? Burning our albums? This isn't the fucking' 50s."
Roland shrugged. "I'm just saying..."
"I know what you're saying,"said Elijah, leaning forward. "Look, Roland. What's done is done. We told you we're backing you up on this shit, but you have to do your part.
Roland opened his mouth to say something, but Elijah lifted a finger to stop him. "What it means," he continued,"I'm causing them so much trouble.
"He's right,"Ethan stepped in. "None of that fucking martyr shit. You have nothing to apologize for, so stop saying it.
"It's his problem,"added Elijah, shaking his thumb to the T. V. before pointing the finger at Roland. "Not yours. And not ours. Don't be such a pussy."
Roland's lips got a little stained, but I didn't miss the slight moisture in his eyes. "Fuck you,"he whispered.
"Yes,"said Elijah, taking a sip of his beer. "Fuck you too."
"Not literally, right? " Ethan joked with a smile. "I mean, Roland, Roland, you could do a lot better."
"Not to mention," Raul added, his hand on his heart in simulated sympathy as he turned to me,"would break poor Tim's heart.
Now it was my turn. "Fuck you,"I said, throwing a fries at Raul. I heard the sound of a camera and turned my eyes.
"Guess who's at the Enquirer tomorrow,"Ethan laughed.
"I hope it's got my bright side,"I muttered, I was tempted to throw my whole plate of fries at Twicher's head.
After covering them with ketchup.
And beer.
And that bottle of yellow crusts next to the salt and pepper.
Elijah seemed to read my mind. "It's not worth it,"he said.
I narrowed my eyes as Twicher winked at me... or he might have shaken. I couldn't be absolutely sure.
"It looks like it might be,"I replied, asking myself if it was fast enough to turn around before he had any idea.
"Trust me,"said Elijah, chewing his fries. "Some asshole would pick it up on his camera phone, and you'd let go looking like an idiot."
I sighed grumpyly. "Stupid camera phones. " Unhappy, I ate my burger and tried to be as boring as possible.
Ethan had a drink of his beer. "Heard J. J. is making a fuss about tomorrow's benefit,"he said, swallowing a burp. In his frenzy to turn the P. R. n our way, Cecil had managed to organize an improvised concert without plugging in the next afternoon for the benefit of the children's hospital. Somehow, he had pulled a few strings, and we were playing over the Griffith Observatory. It would be a reduced version of our regular show, and free with a donation to the hospital - although the VIP seats on the roof were expensive... and sold out in fifteen minutes, I could add...
So much for a boycott.
"What's J. 's problem? J.? " Raul asked, asking the waitress to bring our check. Each of us went to get our wallets, but Raul waved us, giving her a credit card.
Roland stretched out, scratching his neck. "What do you think? The guy's a homophobe. He probably thinks he's going to catch my gay."
"Is it contagious? " Ethan�s eyes widened with false terror.
"Only if you're lucky,"Roland replied with a wink.
"To hell with J. J. ", Elijah growled. "It's not about Roland. It's because the asshole can't sing without Auto-Tune.
"Really? " Knowing that Elijah is upset with J. J. , I wouldn't know if he was serious.
"No, he can sing,"corrected Raul. "4-square depends a little bit on technology."
Elijah snorted, but said nothing else.
We got up to leave the bar, Twicher followed us while he was sucking chili from his fingers. He followed us back to the hotel and was still sitting in the same place when we left the next morning.
"Do you ever go home? " I asked. "Change his clothes?"
"Come to him, and you'll have an answer to that question,"Ethan joked.
"Dude! Disgusting. " I wrinkled my nose.
The day was packed, with a video footage filmed in the morning, a live shot for Lunchtime L. A. promoting the benefit concert after that, then the late afternoon show. Cecil joined us in the studio where we recorded the video for Catalina de Dos Caras. The sound stage was installed with mobile walkways and wind and rain machines. Much of the video we would be dancing in puddles and a torrential shower.
Like Gene Kelly singing in the rain.
But with curses.
Okay, not real curse...
just some kind of implicit curse. I was actually surprised that Cecil signed the song at all, since it was on the verge of blasphemy, but as Elias said - we had to walk a line between healthy and dangerous...
I guessed this was the dangerous part.
A redhead with five-inch stilettos and a tight black suit of black leather catskin approached us, kissing each of the boys on the cheek before she reached out to me.
"Hello,"she said in a surprisingly deep voice. "I'm Catherine."
I shook her wavering hand. "Really?"
She laughed heartily. "No, not really,"she said. "I'm Moxie, but I'll play Catherine in the video."
"Moxie's an old friend,"Roland told me.
She put a red fingernail in his chest. "Not so old, honey."
Roland winked and fell to the floor to do some push-ups. His biceps bulged into a prominent display as he was wearing only a blue vest and a pair of short jeans. He turned around on his back to do sit-ups, and I looked carefully at his sit-ups.
I thought I might have cultivated two new ones. Was that possible?
We were dressed in blue and white for the video. Elijah wore a blue leather jacket on a white T-shirt, while Raul wore a white buttoned open over a blue T-shirt.
"Are you okay, B? " Raul asked, raising a sleeve.
I nodded, pulling nervously on my white tie and unbuttoning the top button on my blue shirt. "I don't want to slip and fall in the water."
Moxie smiled flirtatiously and flirtatiously, fastening a leash on her cat suit.
"Don't worry, honey. I'll get you."
Ethan laughed, putting a blue and white striped T-shirt on his head. "Relax, Moxie,"he said. "B is taken."
Moxie shouted. "Really?"
"Didn't you hear? " he joked. "Tim and E. C. are very important."
"You don't say it. " Moxie looked speculatively at Elijah.
"Fuck you, Ethan,"Elijah and I said at the same time.
"No thanks,"he replied, without missing anything.
"Too bad,"Moxie continued, obviously missing the joke. "You're handsome. " She landed on me in those heels, and bent down to touch my nose slightly.
"Uh…thanks? "I squeaked."
"If you ever decide to expand your horizons, call me,"she said with a wink before turning to glide across the room, her hips sway hypnotically.