Followers

by Raziel Reid

725k followers

  teapoota2 @victorianarana I personally hate when people use mental illnesses as a fashion statement

  victorianarana @teapoota2 its just like no, i don’t want the people to think that being sad is cute

  teapoota2 @victorianarana exactly, like I am diagnosed with anxiety and fuckin hate it, makes my life hard sometimes on myself so this is just fuckin horrible.

  victorianarana @teapoota2 OMG yeees THIIIIIISSSSS, this is what i’m talking about. Having anxiety, depression, or any mental disorder It’s not fun It’s not something you want to brag about or use as an accessory to be “cute”, if I could get rid of it as easy as removing a clip from my hair i will do it forever.

  “Camping?” Greta asks from her bed. She’s wearing a diamond-encrusted “Anxiety” hair clip. She loves making her followers lose their minds.

  Joel’s standing at the doorway. He just got out of a group chat, and Brandon wants the whole squad to go camping.

  “Brandon’s probably been smoking Spice again,” Greta says.

  “He texted that he deleted the video of you and that he was blackout drunk when he projected it,” Joel says. “He doesn’t remember any of it.”

  Greta rolls her eyes. “Convenient.”

  “Thought you might like to see this.” Joel shows Greta a photo Brandon sent him of his busted face. His left eye is so bruised he can barely open it.

  “You should’ve left him for me.” Greta’s thankful that Joel defended her, but she was scared, the way he lost control at Brandon’s party.

  “I’m not going camping,” Joel says. “I’m done with Brandon and Idris.” He gives Greta a look like he’s waiting for her to confirm that she and Idris are over. He’s never trusted Idris. “Wanna hang out? Maybe drive up to Malibu?”

  “Who’s going camping?” Greta asks.

  “Everyone,” Joel says.

  “Including Lily?” Greta raises an eyebrow. She can tell Joel really likes Lily, and isn’t that interesting…Hailey has been after Joel since the show started, and Greta thought that’s where the storyline was heading. Lily Rhode is an unexpected revision.

  “You should go,” Greta insists.

  She hopes Joel and Lily get closer on the camping trip. Let that be her revenge against Hailey! She’s sick of their fake friendship. Hailey’s there for Greta only when they’re on camera. When it really comes down to it, Hailey doesn’t care about her. Hailey doesn’t care about anyone but herself. Greta’s not hung up on the negative stories Hailey plants in the press. That’s just fun, trivial shit. It’s the laughter in the background of Brandon’s video that Greta can never forgive.

  “Not my scene,” Joel says. “And by the way, when I said Malibu, I meant Zuma. Not Dad’s. You up for some surf later?”

  “Sure.” Greta smiles. It’s been a while since they’ve surfed together.

  Joel looks surprised but happy. He heads off to his room, and Greta goes downstairs to make something to eat before they leave. She stops on the stairwell when she hears Kathy’s voice coming from the living room. Greta forgot that Platinum Triangle is finishing up shooting her mom’s confessional today. It’s late because Kathy has been rescheduling the shoot. She filmed one day of confessionals but wouldn’t talk about Jessica. The biggest storyline of the season! She’s been putting it off, but finally the producers came down on her. She’s contractually obliged to spill all the gory details of her divorce and her husband’s transition, and they need to lock down the footage to fit it into this season.

  Growing up, Greta was always closer to her dad than her mother. She thought it probably started when Kathy chose to use a surrogate to carry Greta and Joel. The official Platinum Triangle confessional story is that their mom had a potentially life-threatening condition called placenta accreta that prevented her from being able to carry her own children. According to Greta’s dad off camera, Kathy just didn’t want to lose her figure.

  “I just feel like it was all a lie,” Kathy is saying from the living room. “People ask me how I didn’t know. But I really had no idea.”

  Greta feels her skin prickling. She strains to hear.

  “And now I’ve been turned into this villain, this person who didn’t let Lucas be the person he was always meant to be. Like I held him back for my own selfish reasons. But how was I supposed to know? I loved him. Obviously I loved him. I married him. I had children with him. And I wouldn’t change that for anything in the world because the twins mean everything to me. They’re my whole world.”

  Kathy stops and collects herself.

  “I want to support Jessica. I do. I do want to support her. But it’s complicated. It’s torn our family apart, and our kids, they need their family to be a whole unit. They need to know they’re loved. They need to feel secure. But how am I supposed to give them that love and that security when I don’t have it myself? How am I supposed to keep them whole when I feel so broken?”

  Greta leans against the stairwell. It’s a bit of a soap opera—Kathy loves the attention. Whitney is always teasing her because Kathy can really turn on the waterworks. There are all these scenes of her just shattering into tears. Greta used to think it was phony, but watching Nadia Morcos gain the courage to end her marriage to Ghalib on camera last season made Greta realize that her mother feels comfortable releasing her emotions only when she’s performing them.

  “It’s a hard thing when you wake up in the morning and feel like your whole life has been this giant lie.”

  Kathy stops. Greta imagines her drying a tear from her face. The perfect lighting. The ball gown with costume jewelry she’s wearing during the day. The confessionals are extra. Kathy keeps a glass of chardonnay below the camera and sips it throughout filming.

  “It’s hard not to question yourself,” Kathy says, quieter, a bit more real. “I understand that Jessica suffered with this identity crisis for his whole life—for her whole life, I mean. But now it’s like it’s passed on to me. I wake up in the morning and I look at myself in the mirror and I don’t know who I am anymore.”

  Greta silently walks back up the stairs and knocks on Joel’s door, poking her head inside.

  “I changed my mind,” she says. “Getting out of the house for the night doesn’t sound like such a bad idea after all.”

  brandocadogan

  329k followers

  brandocadogan My brother Forrest once said nothing can kill us, we can’t never die.

  “All right, listen up, people,” Brandon says in the motor gallery of his house in Bel-Air. He’s wearing Versace navigator oversize sunglasses to hide his bruised eye. “My dad cut me off and I’m banned from United Airlines, but who needs ’em?” Brandon jumps up the steps of the RV and honks its horn. “Who says I can’t rough it like the peasants?” he yells down to the rest of the squad, who are exchanging looks as they stand next to their parked cars.

  “Where’d you get the RV, bro?” Idris asks. He drove over to the Cadogans’ estate in Bel-Air in his new Rolls with an illuminated Spirit of Ecstasy.

  “This, young Morcos, is much more than an RV,” Brandon says, jumping back out of the vehicle and tapping it on the side. “It’s freedom!”

  Idris, Bea, and Sean share another look. Fortune records video of Brandon, apparently hoping to strike viral gold with another Brando Cadogan Original. Brandon’s rants are as legendary as his parties.

  “If your dad cut you off, how’d you pay for it?” Sean asks.

  “I sold one of my dad’s Rodins.” Brandon shrugs.

  They all turn to look as Hailey’s Mercedes pulls up. Lily is riding shotgun. Bea told Brandon that Hailey didn’t want to invite Lily but her mom made her. Platinum Triangle isn’t filming but the producers requested that they all post the trip on social media. It’ll be great buzz in the lead-up to the premiere in three weeks.

  Hailey steps out of her car looking like it’s fashion week and not like they’re about to go camping. She asked in the group text if there was room for her to bring her glam sq
uad. She puts a hand on her hip. “Can someone help me with my bags?”

  She pops the trunk and Idris and Sean go over to unload the half-dozen pieces of Louis Vuitton luggage.

  Lily, on the other hand, has only a single backpack slung over her shoulder. Brandon gives mad props to the girl for still standing. Hailey likes to eat them alive.

  “Welcome, Lily,” Brandon says. “Glad you can join us!”

  “Are you kidding?” Lily asks. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world. I’ve seen the cast trips on TV. I have to find out for myself how things always go so sideways.”

  “Careful what you ask for, girl,” Fortune says over his phone.

  “And don’t forget the blender!” Hailey calls over to Idris and Sean. She walks up to Bea and double-kisses her. “I just don’t feel right if I don’t have my celery juice in the morning. And is there a yoga studio nearby?” She turns to Brandon. “A massage would be fabulous.”

  “Yes, Queen Hailey,” Brandon says. “You can get a massage under the stars.” Brandon wanted to go camping, not glamping, to prove he’s rustic AF but Bea helped pick the place. Ventura Ranch KOA. It’ll be roughing it for these kids, who are used to bottle service and blow jobs from their maids.

  Hailey points at the RV. “That’s what we’re riding in?”

  Another car pulls into the motor gallery. It’s Joel’s blue Porsche Targa. Greta’s with him. Brandon didn’t think they’d show. Joel steps out of his car and he and Brandon lock eyes.

  “Strom!” Brandon offers a fist-bump. “Glad you could make it, bro!” Brandon’s being fake AF but he’s spent enough time on TV to know how to keep it rolling. Never complain, never explain. Except in your confessionals.

  Brandon turns to Greta. “You too, Greta,” he says. “I’m honored.”

  Greta holds his stare. “Don’t be,” she says. “You’re just the lesser evil.” Greta heads toward the RV. “Where are we going, anyway?” she asks.

  “Near Santa Paula,” Idris says. Greta ghosts him.

  She climbs the steps into the RV. Brandon and Idris share a look. Seems like #selfiestickgate isn’t totally behind them.

  “This is going to be lit!” Brandon says, clapping his hands together and trying to rouse the crowd. “We’re leaving it all behind, people!”

  “Including Valeria?” Bea checks the time on her phone. “She’s still not here and she’s not replying to my texts.”

  “We should wait for her,” Sean says.

  “I’m so sick of that girl’s diva attitude.” Hailey steps up into the RV. “It’s not all about her!”

  realvalerialeon

  3.3m followers

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  Valeria is up in her room packing a carry-on for the camping trip. Bea keeps sending her texts telling her they’re all at the Cadogans’ house and they’re going to leave without her if she doesn’t hurry. Valeria is running late because Sophia threw a fit this morning and was refusing to eat the pancakes Valeria made her for breakfast because they’re “empty calories.” Sophia kept narrowing her eyes at Valeria and saying, “Aren’t you afraid of getting fat?”

  Valeria picks up her phone and shoots a quick text back to Bea promising she’s on her way. Valeria could really use the escape.

  There’s a knock on her bedroom door.

  “You have a minute?” Gloria asks.

  Valeria drops her bag of toiletries into the carry-on. She freezes when she sees that her mother is holding a script in her hand.

  “Sheldon Bell sent this over,” Gloria says.

  “You mean, my agent is still alive?” Valeria asks. Her heart is racing. She’s been lip-synching her prayers for this.

  “It’s a guest part for a new sitcom premiering mid-season on ABC,” Gloria says. She passes the script to Valeria, who almost expects Gloria to yank it away from her before she can grasp it.

  Valeria stares down at the title: Almost Everything.

  “God, we need this, Valeria.” Gloria gives Valeria a sheepish look. “I had to send your dad some money…”

  Valeria’s heart stops. “Mother, you didn’t!”

  “I had to! He said he was in trouble. That he had some people to pay off, and then everything would be all right. He’d use the rest of the money to settle his hotel bill and book a flight back to L.A.”

  “And you believed him? He’s a pathological liar!”

  “He’s your father. You’ll show him some respect—”

  “Why should I respect him? He’s off in Vegas spending money his daughter made…” Valeria clutches the script to her chest. “Why should I care about him? Does he care about me? All he cares about is gambling. He’s abandoned us, Mom. He’s left you to deal with the bills, and the banks, and the house. He’s left you to become a pimp. A role that seems made for you!”

  Gloria slaps Valeria across the cheek so hard that her neck cracks. It knocks the script out of Valeria’s hands. The pages come loose and flutter to the floor. It would’ve made a beautiful shot if the cameras had been on them. It would’ve made all the trailers.

  “I know the sacrifices you’ve made,” Gloria says calmly. “Your whole life you’ve been the one making sacrifices for this family. But I’ve made my share, too. I know you think I’ve been hard on you, but it’s just because I saw your beauty and your talent and I knew…Valeria, I just knew that you were special. From the moment you were born you lit up a room, you made people so happy. I committed myself to you. I stole neighbors’ newspapers for the coupons, and I skipped meals when the money was tight so that I could pay for your headshots, so that I could buy you a new dress to audition in…. Because I knew that you were destined to be a star!”

  “Stars fade, Mother. Then what?”

  Gloria grabs Valeria’s wrists, squeezing as tightly as Patrick does when he holds them above her head.

  “Don’t you dare! We’ve faced rejection before. All it takes is one break. Your star hasn’t faded. There’s just been some smog over the Leon house, but when it clears, you’ll see. You’ll sparkle yet.”

  “You mean you will.” Valeria pulls her arms away. “Through me. Isn’t that the real reason you made all those ‘sacrifices’? To fulfill your own childhood fantasies? Aren’t you just a fucking cliché?” Valeria braces for another slap, but it doesn’t come.

  Gloria deflates. That scares Valeria most of all. If even Gloria Leon can’t fake it, there’s no hope for the rest of them.

  “Maybe you’re right,” she says quietly. “But you loved it. When it was good, you were happy. And I know you will be again.” She reaches for Valeria’s wrist; she’s gentler this time, and kisses her hand. “All I want for you is to be happy.” Valeria knows she means “rich and famous.”

  Gloria reaches into her pocket and pulls out the Panthère de Cartier earrings Patrick gave Valeria.

  “You used to hide candy in your pillowcase. Your father was always giving you sweets, even though I told him you needed to watch your figure.”

  Gloria tells her, “I had them appraised. It’ll be enough to get the bank off our back for a while.”

  “No!” Valeria tears the earrings out of her mother’s hands. “They’re mine.”

  Valeria’s face burns, from the slap and from shame. She knows it’s stupid, but the earrings mean something to her. When she wears them, she feels different. It’s like when she used to put on a costume for a role. When she wears the earrings, she feels transformed.

  “We can’t lose the house, Valeria.”

  “We won’t lose the house!” Valeria refuses to be a part of Hollywood’s ritual sacrifice. “I’ll book the role. And there will be other offers. Or I’ll work the damn yacht circuit during the Cannes Film Festival if I have to…but we will not lo
se the house!”

  fortunefitzroy

  143k followers

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  The only person who packed more for this trip than Hailey is Fortune. He doesn’t do camping. But he also doesn’t do recurring. It’s not fair that Fortune hasn’t been promoted on Platinum Triangle! He’s basically just “one of Hailey’s gays” on the show, just part of her glam squad. Fortune knows he can be so much more. He’s destined to be a star…That’s why he ran away from those crazy fucking Jehovah’s Witnesses and came to La-La Land. He’s always lived in a la-la land in his head.

  Meeting Hailey has been Fortune’s big break. He’s become her favorite pawn, and he likes being used by her if it means more camera time. Fortune feels like he’s proven his ability to entertain the masses. He’s tried to sell Sam on ways to expand his storyline, but she wants to focus on the “families” of the Platinum Triangle, and Fortune doesn’t have one.

  Fortune depends on the show to make a living. Right now he’s surviving on the kindness of strangers and the ads he promotes on Instagram. But it’s not like he has a platform like Hailey’s milli…Fortune needs to take his brand to the next level. The problem, is he’s not exactly the most likable character. Unlike Hailey, Fortune is more than willing to show his claws. He loves being a bitch!

  “Can you please get it through your thick skull that I don’t want you anywhere near me?” Greta screams from the back of the RV. And there’s nothing Fortune loves more than when someone is being an even bigger bitch than he is.

  There’s a bedroom with a king-size bed at the back, where Greta went to read her Glamour magazine—she’s ghosting Hailey and Hailey’s ghosting her and Fortune is living for it all. Idris followed Greta to the back room, predictably, and now Greta is making a scene. Predictably.

  “This is an RV,” Idris says. “Limited space. And you have to talk to me sometime!”