Fan Fiction |
by Jenny Tran
It made her burst into giggles at his outburst and soon Liz had to join in laughing “You should have seen the look on your face!” she pointed amusingly.
Philip smiled despite the scowl on Johnny’s face “It was funny.” He nodded in agreement with his new girlfriend. He turned to Amy with a smile “Now do you agree that you could be an actor? I was so into the part that I even cried after watching you tear up.”
Amy sighed “I’d do anything to payback at Johnny.” She turned to Johnny with a solemn look “Truce for now okay? I want to finish all the important stuff before we start our war again.”
Johnny smiled crookedly “Sure…” he replied slyly “The more time to think of the perfect prank to play on you.” The two shook hands happily.
Liz laughed as she shook her head “Okay, aside from all this fun talk. How are you two going to handle the press?”
Amy glanced at Philip with a shrug “I don’t think there’s anything we can say to convince them that WE are telling the truth.” He began before taking a bite of his fork full of food. He was about to stuff another but Amy quickly pushed his hand away causing the fork of rice fly towards Johnny, who was seated next to Philip.
“Wooh! I have enough rice, thank you.” He retorted as he wiped off the rice that flew on his jeans.
“What did I tell you about stuffing your face?” Amy scolded openly.
Liz smiled “I’m glad someone got a control of your eating habits.” She said to Philip.
Philip groaned “Aww, come on, I can’t change it over night. Just one more bite.” He begged with the food stuffed to one side of his cheek.
Amy looked at him sternly “Not as long as you’re eating with me.” He began to pout and she quickly added “I’m not going to record that song if you don’t listen to me.”
He wrinkled his nose “That’s not fair, you’re threatening me.”
She smiled sweetly “What’s wrong? You regret meeting me?”
“Never!” he cried out startling Johnny.
“Oh, come on guys! I’m eating. You’re gonna make me throw up my lunch and then I have to order another one. Then we would have wasted 2 hours of useless stuff…which reminds me, I want you two to finish recording that song.” He pointed his fork to the both of them.
Philip shrugged “Easy for me, tell that to Miss Amateur over there.”
“I’ll be fine.” Amy nodded with confidence, no longer shy about her voice.
“Don’t get cocky.” Philip teased with a grin.
*************
They returned to the studio and began working quickly at the song. It was Amy’s first time on the other side of the glass window. The soundproof room had a bit of an echo when she walked in. Philip was behind her as he took his place along his microphone “You can stand over there, Johnny will set up the second one for you.” He pointed a few feet from where he stood.
Amy nodded “Okay.” She stretched her neck and took a deep breath. He looked at her strangely and she laughed “I have to relax myself somehow.”
Philip placed the head phones over his neck as they sat perfectly around it, he waved her over to him “Is that all? I’ll help you.” She turned her back on him as he instructed while he gave her a comfortable neck massage. She hummed feeling completely at ease. “I see it’s helping.”
She closed her eyes “Hmm mm.”
Johnny opened the door to the room “If there was no window, people would think you two were going at it in here.” In his hands were the second microphone and wires for Amy’s part.
“Only dirty minds would think that.” Amy snapped her eyes open.
Johnny laughed “Liz doesn’t seem to mind.” Amy shook her head in disgust and it made him laugh even louder “Don’t make me laugh, I have to work!” he scolded. The microphone was set up within 10 minutes when Johnny announced “Done! Okay, let’s start okay?” he turned to leave but spun around at them “You kids behave okay? I can see you from out there.” He pointed to the glass mirror.
Philip shook his head as he placed the head phones over his ears while Amy stuck her tongue out at Johnny “Ha ha.” She said with sarcasm.
The song was recorded to perfection with Johnny correcting every little error. He wanted the song to be the most perfect on the album. “Amy, sing that line again but go softer on the end note.” He spoke through the intercom and she nodded. As he instructed, the second verse sounded better from that tiny change. “Okay, Philip, do your creative adlibs at the end of the second chorus.” He was so busy working that he forgot Liz was in the same room with him. He turned back to get the notebook he always had when he saw her smiling at him. He smiled questioningly “What?”
“You’re so cute when you look serious.” She teased while handing him the book.
Johnny laughed as he brushed his fingers over her hand as he grabbed the book “I can be serious all the time.” He flirted and she giggled.
“We can hear you!” Amy cried through the intercom. Johnny turned and found Philip making gagging faces and Amy laughing at him amusingly.
“Get to work!” he ordered. Johnny gave Liz a short wink before going back to work. The song was finished after another hour of their singing. He was clipping the parts he liked together when he complimented “Your voices are a perfect blend of harmony.”
Amy was leaning on Philip when she looked up “Was that a compliment from the all powerful Johnny?”
“I think so.” Philip nodded.
Johnny rolled his eyes “I am capable of complimenting people.”
“You’ve never complimented me.” Philip pouted like a kid causing the girls to smile.
Johnny gave his friend a disgusted look “Dude, I’m not gay. Why should I compliment you?”
“Well, actions speak better than words.” Philip said teasingly “Remember that one night you almost kissed me?”
Liz covered her gaping mouth in shock “What?!”
Johnny’s face turned a beet red “You promised you wouldn’t tell her!!!” he said with embarrassment.
“Oops…” Philip gave his shoulder a little shrug. He let it slip on purpose.
Amy decided to help out poor Johnny “They didn’t kiss.” She explained to Liz “I wanted to teach him a lesson for putting me on the spot in public, but I wouldn’t have wanted to witnessed it. I think Philip wanted to do it to make Johnny uncomfortable.” Philip broke out with laughter as he nodded in agreement to Amy’s wise observation.
“I’m sorry I missed it.” Liz said unfortunately.
***********
The following week, Philip held a press conference for the release of his new album. He was prepared for back lashing and Amy was cool and calm at the session. The reporters were buzzing with gossip as they were asked in an orderly fashion “You in the front row.” Philip pointed to a male reporter.
“So we should be expecting Miss Chan’s vocals on one of the featured songs right?” Philip nodded in reply “In your own opinion, what is your comment on her voice?”
Philip smiled “That’s an obvious question/answer isn’t it? With Amy being my girlfriend, of course I will have to say that she has a wonderfully warm and beautiful voice. There’s always room for improvement since she’s never had professional voice lessons, but I would say Amy has a born talent for singing.”
They were hanging on his second sentence as hands began to rise like a wave. Amy smiled at Philip knowing that it was his way of telling the media. She was no longer shy about it nor was she afraid of what people would say. She was just glad it was out in the open, no matter what rumors came along they would be able to fight it off with each other’s support. Philip laughed at the fact that almost all the hands were raised, he pointed to a girl in the back, who was on her tippy toes “I think I speak for every reporter in this room when I ask for you to confirm what you just said.”
He smiled with a nod “Yes, I think Amy is a born talent.” The crowd laughed at his tease “And yes, Amy is my girlfriend, you may quote me.”
“When did this all start?” she asked.
“It was all very mutual. But none of us dared to speak up. She was too shy towards the media, I wanted her to be more gutsy when dealing with the reporters, such as yourselves. I think a few of you might have scared her, but she’s very strong now.” He turned to Amy with a loving look as she turned away with a smile.
“In all honesty, I was very afraid of you, the media. But as these past months went by with Philip on my side, I came to realize how this industry worked. The rumors, the tabloids, the hounding reporters, it’s all part of this daily life. I think all actors would be afraid once the rumors and cameras flashing stops. It would only show the end of an actor’s popularity and interest. I guess I should thank you all for being so interested in Philip.” She smiled at everyone and a female reporter in the front caught her eye “Yes?” she pointed to the girl.
“Do you have any comments about the reports that Mr. Cheung beat a man at the Sushi restaurant about a week ago?” she was touching a sensitive subject and Amy knew Philip was not pleased when his eyes hardened but his smile was still there.
Amy thought before she spoke up “I think Philip is very misunderstood by the media as well as his audience/fans. He’s a very passionate person when it comes to his work as an actor or singer. He works so hard to getting everything perfect, whether it be a song or a short scene with no true existence in the movie he is working on. No one sees that passionate Philip that doesn’t care what time of day it is, he will get it perfect, but I do. You can call him a perfectionist, but he is not rude to anyone unless it is called for. In that man’s case, he took our picture at the restaurant without our consent. He even threatened to sell the story to the tabloid after Philip…hit him.” She knew it should come out in all honesty than rumors. The stir began to erupt but she brought their attention back “I am not making any excuses for Philip nor am I covering his mistake. He did feel bad after hitting that man, but he was worried about what the media would say about ME, never was he selfish and thought about himself. He truly is a gentleman in disguise.”
Philip smiled with compassion at his girlfriend’s words “Now who would no fall in love with this girl?” he grinned happily. After a moment, his smile faded “I do want to apologize to that man that I hit, but I do not regret hitting him. In more ways than others, he deserved it. I understand it is a cold thing to say, but I am only speaking the truth. Put yourselves in my shoes, you are having dinner with a girl/guy you were about to announce your love to. When suddenly, you get a big distraction. You approach the matter, the guy disrespects the lady in front of her face and brushes off our feelings claiming that our relationship is not important. As a human being, you would be offended, as a man in love you would punch the guy.” The reporters laughed at his description but most listened intently.
He nodded to a male reporter standing in the back who had his hand up “I believe that problem was cleared up by the manager of the Sushi restaurant. Apparently, he explained the whole situation and the newspaper even wrote an article explaining it and apologized to you and Miss Chan.”
Philip turned to Amy blankly “Really?” he saw a few nods, obviously of those that read the daily newspaper “Whatever. Its no longer important. I never read trash about myself, so why should I read apologies? But I don’t mind a little compliment here and there.” He hinted while a few smiled getting his joke.
Amy glanced at her watch, the time was over the limit of an hour “Well, I’m sorry to cut this short but it’s time for Philip’s autograph signing session at the City Mall. I hope all of you will support the album by buying the original and not the copy. We all know it’s getting out of hand, so a sure sign of responsibility will only help the younger crowd respect the hard work these singers put into their work.”
Philip couldn’t help but laugh “She sure has a way of making everyone remember their duties huh?” he wrapped an arm around her and the cameras began flashing uncontrollably but they no longer cared, it was out in the open now.
***************
The following week, it was strictly for shooting their music video ‘True Love’. The director had no problem having the two love birds in affectionate positions. Half of the video was shot in the studio and the other half was at the beach. Philip requested that the shots be done in a natural environment. Nothing was planned, it was all left up to his and Amy’s natural chemistry. They chased each other around the sand like kids looking deliriously happy. At one point, Amy ran to the water, staying ankle deep, trying not to wet her long summer blue dress. But the idea was useless when Philip came from behind her and picked her up with ease. Before she could stop screaming he raced deeper in the waters and threw her in along with himself getting them soaking wet.
The director had the whole thing on camera while the whole crew laughed at the kiddish gesture. Some were envious of their openness with each other. Their connection was beyond a special bond, it was pure love. Amy and Philip finally emerged from the waters as they walked to the crew dripping wet. She rung out her hair while Philip shook his head like a wet puppy. She giggled when the sprinkle of water splashed all over her.
The camera guy turned off the machine but the director stopped him “Wait. Keep filming, its most natural when they think no one is looking.” He looked up at Philip with a smile “That was great. Let’s take a break.”
The errand guy had ordered boxes of food for the whole crew to enjoy at lunch. Amy wanted to sit in the warm sand while she dried off for the next scene. Philip gladly joined her, he took a seat next to her while handing her a boxed lunched “Thank you.” She smiled happily.
“You’re a born natural.” He said with a laugh.
“Really?” she asked unconvincingly.
He laughed “What’s the matter? You don’t believe me?”
Amy shrugged “I’m a natural when it comes to you. If I had to do a real movie with real lines, you might think twice about that compliment.”
“That’s a great idea!” he exclaimed.
“What?” she was lost.
Philip rolled his eyes “It was your suggestion!” she gave him a blank look as he continued with a sigh “Do a movie with me.”
“You’re kidding right?” she said covering her chewing mouth.
“No! I’m dead serious. I’m working on this new storyline with one of the top producers, he doesn’t have a lead girl yet. Why don’t you audition.” He sounded too excited.
Amy shook her head “One thing at a time, Mr. Cheung. I can’t jump from featured voice to big movie screen all in one day. Aren’t you afraid the movie won’t sell?”
He smiled sincerely “No. I don’t care if it’s a flop, but I’m telling you this, it won’t be. Because you’re going to be in it.”
“That’s so sweet…” she smoothed out the salt that dried on his face “But no.” she spun in a circle away from his face while she continued eating her food.
Philip took the last bite as he closed out his box and sprawled out in front of her on his back “Please? For me? If the producer doesn’t cast you then I won’t bother you about auditions ever again.” He promised.
Amy smiled as she closed out her lunch box and placed it on top of his “Promise?” He nodded with his eyes closed while the sun beamed on his face “Okay, you got a deal!” she stretched her arms out tirelessly.
“Tired?” he asked and she nodded with a yawn as he patted to his now bare chest after he took off his wet t-shirt. She smiled as she lied on his chest comfortably with her eyes closed while he stroked her face.
The director smiled at the sweet gesture, he knew it would look great on the video. Within a week, the video was brought out onto the small screen playing on the top tv-music channels. Amy and Philip were surprised at the finished work and she loved the beach parts, they looked so natural not like the studio scenes, which looked more rehearsed. Their song was played on every station possible with requests overfilling the lines to the radio stations.
As promised, Amy auditioned for the lead role in the movie entitled ‘Haunting Faces’. She thought it was a horror movie so she read her lines with fear and nervousness. When the director told her it was a love story, she felt embarrassed. But he let her do the scene again and this time she did it with feeling. When she left the audition room, he shook her hand “That was very good, Miss Chan. We’ll contact you on who we decide for this role.”
Amy nodded “Thank you.” She walked out of Studio 5M with a renowned feeling of confidence. Philip stood outside waiting for Amy, he smiled when he saw her come out “I probably didn’t get the part.”
He frowned “How can you be so sure?”
“Because I was not good.” She insisted. He instinctively took her hand in his as they walked towards his office hand in hand. She told him about her misunderstanding of the script and he blew up with laughter. She stared at him sternly until he stopped laughing “I was embarrassed.”
Philip reached over as he took her in his arms and rocked her back and forth “Aww, it’s okay honey. I still love you. No matter how goofy you get.”
She pushed him away with a laugh “I’m not goofy!” she retorted.
He was about to argue when his cell phone rang “Hello?” he picked it up. “Yes, this is he. Really? Wow, that is great news. Thank you for calling me….oh what?” his eyes turned to Amy’s questioningly “I see. Okay, I make sure the message is passed on.” He sighed as he took a seat next to her.
“What happened?” she asked slowly.
“That was the director for the new movie project. He found his lead female.” He sounded disappointed.
Amy shrugged carelessly “Probably the girl that came after me. That’s okay. There are other shots.” She was comforting him.
Philip smiled “So you would still continue to audition?” Amy nodded knowing that he would want that. “I’m glad. But it’s a shame you will be busy in the next three months.”
She furrowed her brows “Why?”
“Because you will be tending to my every needs during this movie. Hey, just because you’re my girlfriend doesn’t free you from your personal manager position.” He smiled when she pouted and his face changed as he snapped his finger “Oh wait, you can’t.”
“Why not?” she asked again.
“Because you’re going to be filming next to me the whole time.” When he said it a slow smile appeared on her face as she realized what he was saying.
Amy hit him across the arm roughly “You brat!! How dare you mess with me!” she laughed as she began tickling him, one of his weakest spots was on the side waist “So I got the part?”
He chuckled deliriously “Yes!! Stop…” he was laughing so hard that his stomach hurt. Eventually, he used all his muscles to tackle her down onto the couch they were sitting at.
Suddenly the door opened and appeared Johnny and Liz standing at the doorway gaping at them. Johnny’s apparent smile appeared as he wagged a finger shamefully at them. Philip sat up as he pulled Amy up beside him. He cleared his throat “Don’t you guys knock? I should get a lock.” He said turning to Amy who was smiling.
“A lock won’t drown out the giggles and groaning.” Johnny retorted.
Amy rolled her eyes disgustedly “Is that all you think about?” Johnny nodded vehemently and she turned to Liz “I feel sorry for you.”
“I do too.” Liz quipped and the girls giggled simultaneously.
“What are you guys doing here?” Philip decided to change the subject.
Liz smiled remembering whey they came “That’s right. We wanted to give you two this.” She handed a thick envelope to him.
Philip opened it while Amy stood next to him. It was a wedding invitation “You two are getting married?” Philip asked incredulously.
“Yes and don’t sound so shock!” Johnny laughed as he stood next to Amy with his arms around her shoulders. “Remember to come early.”
“They have to be!” Liz exclaimed “Being the maid of honor and best man that is.” She had a twinkle in her eyes.
Amy looked up with surprise “Really?” she asked “Wow, I’m so touched that you would ask.”
Johnny raised a hand to silence her “No, we’re not asking. We’re commanding. You don’t have a say in this decision.” He said firmly making Philip and Amy exchange smiles.
**************
The wedding came fast with Amy and Philip wrapping up their new movie. The wedding was the weekend before their movie debut. Liz was in a beautiful white laced gown, her veil was designed with tiny diamonds sparkling in the sunlight. The wedding was done at the clubhouse in which Philip belonged to. The garden of roses was the perfect setting for their outdoor wedding. Johnny never looked more distinguished in his white tux. But Amy only had eyes for Philip who stood next to Johnny in a black tux looking so handsome. They threw each other smiles and glances throughout the whole ceremony.
Philip looked at her adoringly. She was beautiful in the lavender silk strapless dress. The four looked like they stepped out of the Bridal magazine as they walked down the aisle hand in hand. The reception was inside the clubhouse in a large room decorated in purple roses and lilies. By the end of the night, the bride and groom began their first dance. Liz waved for Amy and Philip to join them after 5 minutes of their alone time on the floor. The two gladly began the trend as every couple got up to dance.
Philip wrapped has arms around her waist while she reached around the back of his neck. The two locked eyes looking happier than the bride and groom “Don’t they look adorable?” Amy asked after glancing at the new couple.
Philip nodded in a daze “Do you want us to look adorable?”
Amy smiled slowly understanding his little hint “Maybe.” She teased coyly.
He widened his eyes “Really?”
“Depends…if your proposing.” She smiled flirtatiously.
Philip shrugged “Maybe if you look in my pocket, you will know.” He played the game just as well. Amy narrowed her eyes suspiciously as she reached into his pocket and felt a ring. She pulled out a diamond platinum ring. He stopped dancing when she let out a small gasp. “Is that a yes?” he didn’t wait for her to answer as he took the ring from her hand and placed it over the appropriate finger. Amy was speechless, she was engaged “If you don’t answer, I’m going to take that back.” He teased.
She giggled as she hugged him tightly “Yes. That’s a yes!” she breathed.
Liz caught their magical moment as she moved Johnny closer to them “Looks like you won’t need the wedding bouquet after all.” She teased Amy.
Amy couldn’t wipe out the smile on her face “No, I guess not.” The girls giggled together as they hugged.
Johnny congratulated Philip and hugged Amy “This doesn’t get you off the hook. I’m still gonna do that prank.” He gave her a wink meaning that he was just teasing. The two were called to cut the cake as the whole placed thundered with applause. Amy leaned on Philip happily clapping her hands.
“We’ll be up there in due time.” He whispered as he wrapped his arm around her waist from the back. Amy smiled as she looked up at him. “I love you.” He mouthed before leaning down and kissing her on the lips.
The End