Hidden Gem Short Story Collection (9781301405985)

by Lee, India

  Sent. Oh well.

  Zoe shrugged. She had made her choice. There was no point feeling guilty about it. Guilt held people back and Zoe liked to keep things light, simple, always fun.

  It was just a lot easier on her heart that way.

  WHAT (AND WHO) IS NEXT FOR ZOE MERCURY?

  February 28

  The Durt

  Call her the Blockbuster Babe with the little black book. That’s right, ladies can have little black books too and Zoe Mercury most definitely does. I mean let’s be honest here, she might have several because her tally of beautiful suitors has to be going off the page at this point.

  Coming off of a stellar opening weekend, everyone’s favorite Bond girl has also made headlines for her post-premiere canoodling with more than one very sexy and eligible bachelor. Following the L.A premiere of the much-anticipated Bond sequel, Zoe was spotted in the arms of her rather delicious date, Chef Drew Kato. And while Zo and Chef were spotted at brunch together the next morning, the brunette bombshell took to another lover’s arms by the time of the film’s UK premiere. After taking in his soccer match at Wembley Stadium, Zoe and Manchester cutie, Callum Toulson, were photographed having drinks together on Tabernacle Street.

  And who was the gorgeous beast of a manly man whom Zoe was spotted grabbing a beer with after her Berlin premiere? You’ll love this one – it was Andro Dzaga, former bodyguard to Z’s best friend, Gemma Hunter.

  Yeah… could we be more envious of Zoe Mercury’s perfect life? Probably not. Success, riches and a list of men as the day is long, we’re glad she got her ass kicked at least a little while filming Bond because off set, it can’t possibly be a hard job being this bad gal beauty!

  *****

  TYLER

  The air was thick and smelled sweet in a strange, unnatural way. It happened backstage sometimes, whenever the haze machines were on full blast. Tyler would be sure that was the case if it weren’t for the fact that he had been waking up with a similar feeling these days. It wasn’t so noticeable that he could describe it to someone else in the room without sounding insane, so he kept it to himself, sitting in the blurry world that he had just about grown used to.

  From the greenroom, he could feel the bass thumping from the stage. He could hear enough of the music to know that his opening act was just about wrapping up her set. It had been awhile since he had performed, at least like this. Awhile since the focus was completely on him and not shared with his co-stars or director or producer or whatever.

  Tyler’s foray into acting had been so surprisingly successful that he ended up staying for longer than he intended. Just a year into his acting career and he was recognized in a way that his singing career could probably never match. And he hadn’t even won. People treated his single nomination from the Academy as so much more than the multiple Grammys he had sitting somewhere at home. Being at the Academy Awards as a nominee was probably the highlight of his life. But he could barely remember it. Not with everything that had happened throughout his little bout with becoming an actor. Is that what did us in?

  And now, he was back in his old shoes, his old industry, trying to get rid of the nerves he had thought were thoroughly destroyed from his years as a performer. That haze helped, kept him moving somewhat on autopilot. He signed autographs and took pictures with the fans that were selected from some contest somewhere to do a pre-show meet and greet. Words came out of his mouth, generic ones. Something about thanking them for being loyal fans. Something about how he was excited to return to singing, too. Something about how great of a state Connecticut was, where the concert was being held. It was a special, last-minute event his managers had put together, something to capitalize on all the new fame he suddenly had. He wasn’t prepared for it, but he wasn’t sure any amount of time would have prepared him to return to the stage. He said goodbye to the fans, following them out the greenroom and into the dark wings of the stage, watching as they were ushered away to their seats.

  Suddenly, the crowd roared. Tyler was stunned for a moment that the crowd had managed to drown out the music blasting over the speakers, only to realize that the music had stopped. The opening act was over. It was almost his turn. He looked towards the stage to see the opening artist, Azura, kick off a single shoe and grab it, walking barefoot towards him and his team.

  “They fucking took my shoe!” Azura yelled, holding a single stiletto up to her manager’s face once she got backstage. “How the hell does security work around here that some chick takes a shoe of mine and lives to tell the story?”

  “We’ll get the shoe back,” her manager said, trying to sound soothing. She pat Azura on the back, shooting Tyler and his handlers an apologetic look. Azura stepped away from her manager’s touch, waving the shoe in front of Tyler’s face.

  “Watch your back out there, those bitches crazy,” she said. “If this is what they do to me, imagine what they’d do to the person they’re actually here for?”

  “I’ve done this a thousand times,” Tyler laughed. “I’ll be fine.” Azura stared at him, silent and unblinking before turning her attention back to her manager.

  “The thing that bugs me is that the damned security didn’t even notice that I got my shoe stolen, do you know what I mean?” Azura said, trotting barefoot behind her manager as they made their way to the greenroom. “Like, it’s fine if you couldn’t do 23 wow 23g’ about it but they didn’t even bat an eye.” Tyler cracked a smile as she disappeared around a corner. Her antics had somehow calmed his nerves, bringing back the memories of what it was like to be out on stage. And then he was suddenly surrounded by his own team. Hair and wardrobe prodded and plucked at him, making last minute adjustments to how he looked. He glanced over the stylist’s shoulder to see his bodyguard, Mike, making his way towards the group.

  “Anyone know if Azura is single?” Mike threw the question out, to no one in particular. And just as appropriately, no one answered.

  “You interested?” Tyler laughed.

  “Who isn’t?” Mike scoffed. Tyler shrugged. I’m not.

  It was the last thought he could have before feeling himself moved around backstage, guided through a door here, helped up onto a platform there. And the next thing he knew, he was back onstage, the first words of his opening song coming out of his mouth before he even realized it was happening. Tyler stepped through the thick haze that was now unmistakably one that belonged to a machine and not a product of his own mind.

  And then there was the crowd, their arms up in the air, their screams all for him. They surrounded the stage, held back only by freestanding metal barriers and a handful of guards. Tyler tried to stay focused, but instead, he wondered who had taken Azura’s shoe and how they were able to manage it. Still singing, he made his way downstage towards the peninsula where he could get closer to his fans. Their arms reached towards him. Tyler was close enough to see the tears, the sheer excitement on their faces. He smiled, holding his arm out for them, grazing his fingers against theirs as he walked to the end of the stage. It was a familiar image, the looks of love and admiration. They missed him and he could tell. He had missed them too. His heart swelled with a mutual love and admiration, but even more so, a strong appreciation. He wanted to shake every last hand, but he couldn’t quite reach them standing where he was. Tyler inched closer to the edge of the stage, bending over to touch the hands reaching for him.

  He got down on one knee.

  And suddenly, he was dizzy.

  The haze felt thicker than before, surrounding him in a way that made it difficult for him to move. He was still on autopilot, still singing despite the fact that he knew he was staying in that single position for much too long. And suddenly, he was being engulfed by something much more solid than haze. Tyler gasped, snapping out of it and realizing he was no longer alone on stage. The metal barriers had been pushed back and dozens of girls in the front row had pushed past them, pulling themselves on stage. A pair of strong arms grabbed his waist – he knew that grip – it was Mike
, and he was playing tug of war with the crowd, trying to pry Tyler out of their grasps.

  “Fucking help me, bro!” Mike yelled beyond the crowd, directing his voice at the other security guards. Tyler looked for them, hoping they could get through to help. But he couldn’t even see them. Not through the dozens of arms that were reaching for him, not through the dozens of faces that were teary-eyed and maniacal, desperate for a piece of him. Tyler couldn’t feel his feet on the ground as Mike dragged him away. He watched the fans cry so hard that they were shaking, as if being separated from him was causing them the greatest despair. One of them held his shoe. Tyler looked down at his socked left foot. He hadn’t even realized he had lost it.

  DISTANCE MAKES THE HEART GROW EITHER FONDER OR TOTALLY BATSHIT

  “Tyler Chasers” storm stage of singer’s impromptu concert

  The Durt

  February 2nd

  It must be heartwarming to return to the music game and know that your fans are still as completely deranged as you left them!

  Last night, a whopping thirteen concertgoers were hospitalized because Tyler Chase has been in the business of putting screechy teen girls in the hospital since the beginning of days (or since he was sixteen, whichever you want to go with). But this time, the medical emergencies weren’t a result of rampant swooning or any other excitement induced fainting – it was just a result of plain old chaos. Tyler had yet to even finish one song before his admirers went full rabid at the prospect of touching their beloved prince, sparking such pandemonium that the concert was nipped in the bud – canceled in a flash with everyone cruelly sent home without refunds.

  So much for riding out the glory of teen-idol-turned-Oscar-nominee in style.

  Anyway, lucky for you, a few staff members at The Durt (who will remain anonymous due to their reluctance to admit that they are massive Tyler Chasers) were on the scene during last night’s total madness and managed to get some juicy, gurney-side interviews!

  Anonymous Staff Member 1 says, “Tyler seemed a little off from the get go, not totally on his game like he normally is. At one point, I think he was trying to say hi to fans and just got awkwardly close to the edge of the stage. A few crazies saw their opportunity to jump and it looked like one of those situations where one person went in for the kill and suddenly, everyone thought they had permission to go crazy too. It took literally seconds and suddenly Tyler was surrounded and security was going nuts! He couldn’t even finish his song. But for the record, I was taking my niece to the concert. I wasn’t there for me.”

  Anonymous Staff Member 2 managed to haul her ass out of the arena and parked herself ambulance-side to see the damage done. We forgive her for being an over-the-hill Tyler Chaser due to her awesome reporter-ly instincts, rushing to the injured to take quotes before anyone could advise the girls not to embarrass themselves by speaking. Our lovely source reports that the injuries ranged from minor (bruises and scratches) to slightly more severe (broken bones, possible concussions). Among the three interviewees was apparently the self-proclaimed instigator of the bum-rushing.

  “I don’t know what came over me,” said Melanie, 21. “He was just so close. I thought he came that close because he wanted us to touch him – not in a creepy way though.” Um, pretty sure you’re the one who made that quote creepy, Mel.

  Said Alli, 19, who sustained a broken finger from the fiasco: “I didn’t even feel pain in my finger. All I could think about was how heartbroken I was because I’ve never seen Tyler look so scared. I just wanted to tell him that everything was going to be okay. I hated seeing him so upset.” Then maybe don’t interrupt his set by climbing onto the stage, Alli. I don’t know.

  Finally, according to our source, there was Sophie, 22, the sole hospital guest who didn’t actually make it up on stage during the debacle. “I understand their excitement,” said Sophie. “I was excited too. The timing was just unfortunate because the concert had only just started and it seemed like Tyler was trying to connect with his music. But I’m happy I had the chance to see an artist up close like that – I’m just sad that it was such a short-lived experience.”

  Yes, we too are shocked that there exists a levelheaded and fully coherent Tyler Chaser out there. Props on that, Sophie. Hope you heal a little faster than the other injured girls.

  “This is a stupid idea,” Mike shook his head, glaring at Tyler’s manager, Corinne. She was a new addition to Tyler’s team and someone with experience in both the movie and music industry. She shrugged her strong shoulders, flashing her Blackberry at Mike.

  “Doctor’s orders,” she replied, coolly. Tyler watched as Mike rolled his eyes. Corinne was referring to Tyler’s publicist, who had thought it would be a good move on Tyler’s part to visit all the fans that were injured at the concert the night before. Her response sounded particularly silly, half due to the fact that everyone knew she had the final decision on the matter, but also because they were standing in a hospital.

  “I feel like we’re rewarding the idiots who caused this mess,” Mike said. “This is gonna set a precedent for every fan to follow – land yourself in a hospital during a Tyler Chase concert, and Tyler Chase will come running to make sure you’re okay!”

  “Not everyone who was injured caused the incident,” Corinne said, pulling her black hair up into a quick ponytail. “So we have to see them all. If we pick who to visit and who not to visit, we’ll look like even bigger assholes.” Tyler nodded. Against everyone’s wishes, he had spent the morning reading a couple articles about what had happened at his concert. Though he knew it was irrational, Tyler couldn’t help but feel like it was all his fault that people had gotten injured during his performance. Perhaps it was because he had managed to escape without a scratch.

  He felt terrible with every new room he visited, despite the fact that the happy fans were screaming and crying in excitement to see him. Somehow, those sounds made him even more nervous, as if he was disturbing the peace once again. He hugged them, apologized for the cancelled concert, and tried not to stare at the casts and slings and bandages. Tried not to focus on the obvious injuries that would keep them from going about their day normally, at least for a couple weeks.

  But they were just so happy to see him. Tyler felt uncomfortable, wishing for once that he had that strange, protective haziness that had been following him around for a year. It had been a nuisance, but today, it would help to have it serve as a barrier between him and the reality and discomfort of the situation he found himself in.

  Room to room, floor to floor, Tyler repeated the same routine. Corinne jabbered on the phone outside the room each time, coming in and taking a picture to punctuate each visit before scrolling through her list of names for the next person in line. Tyler just followed, unable to keep his head from hanging and his shoulders from slumping between each room. He felt terrible and it was growing difficult to hide. Even with his newfound acting skills, he was only able to carry out a performance for the length of each individual visit.

  “Are we done yet?” Mike sighed, exasperated. He rubbed a large bruise that was forming on his forearm. Tyler frowned, remembering a fan’s hand grabbing at Mike’s arm in hopes of releasing Tyler.

  “I think so,” Corinne said, twisting her lips as she kept her eyes on her phone.

  “Weren’t there thirteen people injured?” Tyler asked. He had counted down the rooms, anxious to complete his tour around the hospital. He knew there was someone left, and though he was far from happy with carrying out this little PR task, he wanted to make sure he did a complete job.

  “Oh,” Corinne said, arching an eyebrow. “You’re right. We have one left, but it says she was discharged last night. Her name’s Sophie – didn’t we meet a Sophie though?”

  “I don’t think so,” Mike said. “But great, one less person to get to – can we move on now?”

  ~

  Tyler had a couple days before he was to show up at an audition back in Los Angeles. Mike suggested they stay on the east coas
t until then, as a bit of a vacation and to catch up with friends.

  “What friends?” Tyler scoffed, unable to hide his bad mood as he sat in the back of the car with Mike. The past year was tough. He had felt particularly alone since switching industries and, well, the breakup. Mike had been his only constant throughout it all. Even his professional team had gone through revolving doors. Every month, there was a new name to learn. And he hadn’t kept in touch with his co-stars. He had always suspected Madison Lennox had a bit of a crush on him, but the interest wasn’t mutual and he didn’t want to lead her on. And Liam Brody had never liked him. Of course, Tyler couldn’t blame the man considering he had put a fist in Liam’s face for flirting with Gemma. Gemma took away any chance of him getting along with Liam after that. But then again, Gemma also took away Zoe Mercury and Harper Gunn. In some sort of unspoken custody battle, Zoe and Harper had chosen their sides – remaining friends with Gemma and allowing their connection with Tyler to slowly dissipate. Tyler had almost forgotten he had been friends with the two girls first, before Gemma came into the picture.

  He shook his head, hoping to clear it of the bitterness that came up every time he thought of her. Tyler felt lucky to have had everything that came with wrapping up the production of Carbine distract him from their breakup, but letting it get under his skin was inevitable. Occasionally, he’d allow himself to mull over that day he had called her bluff – drawing out what he had suspected for ages – that she didn’t want to be with him anymore. He never understood why she wouldn’t come out and just say it herself.