| Fan Fiction |
by novemberbaby
10:32 A.M. Taipei, Taiwan
“Singer and songwriter Arron Yan is scheduled to release his third studio album within the next three months. His last album, “Inside Of Me”, won four major music awards at last year’s ceremonies. There is no word where he’ll be working for his upcoming album, but rumor has it that he’s back in his hometown, Taipei. Fans spotted the star with his supermodel girlfriend Rina Zhao in a residential neighborhood. It’s been two years since the star left Taipei for Japan when he signed with Pandora Records. Welcome home, Arron.”
__________________________________________________________________
Hebe hardly paid attention to the news. To her, the whole world was in total chaos with wars, people being shot dead in the middle of the street, and stupid people doing stupid things. When she turned on the television this morning, the entertainment segment caught her interest. Surprisingly, another failed celebrity marriage was not the highlight of her day. It wasn’t even another celebrity being chastised socially for using drugs. She wasn’t interested in any of that.
What had Hebe Tian glued to her television screen early in the morning was the news of her ex-boyfriend. She usually tended to ignore his news as well since he was a record-breaking singer and made the news practically every other day, but this morning was different. The news anchor had announced that Arron Yan was coming back to Taipei permanently after spending two years in Japan. Well, it was just a rumor, but she could get it confirmed within minutes. She worked as a pop princess’s personal assistant and had access to celebrity information. She could dial a bunch of numbers, get a ton of confirmations, and then prep herself to act like she had never seen Arron Yan in her entire life before. If their paths were to cross again, she could just escape her fate by assuming a new identity. She could quit her job, remove all traces of her existence in the entertainment world and live as a hermit.
Right. As if reality worked like that.
She was about to pick up the phone when she realized that she was panicking. Why did she even have to bother? It was just a rumor. If it were true, then she could act like a responsible adult and face him. After all, she was pretty sure she was over this man. Her heart would no longer go crazy when he was around. So if he were to really be in Taipei, and if she really did see him, she wouldn’t have the urge to avoid him.
Right. All lies.
But she picked up the phone anyway, deciding that it was best to confirm the rumor. The first person to ask would be her friend at Pandora.
“Hello? Hebe? What’s up? Anything I can do for you?” Her friend Penny was known to answer phone calls with questions.
“Yeah, it’s me. Nothing’s going on. Um, just wondering if you happen to know that Arron’s coming back to Taipei.” She said it as casual as she could, but she was twisting the strands of black hair that rested on her tiny but ridiculously pretty head. She was praying that Penny would dismiss the rumor and tell her something else. Something that was far more interesting. Something that she actually cared about.
“Oh, that. Yeah, he’s really coming back. Our big boss decided that it was time for the boy to come home and start making money here,” Penny explained quickly. “By the way, you and Angela have a meeting with Arron at one o’clock.”
Hebe immediately branded Penny as a crazy woman with a hidden motive to ruin her life. “You’re joking, Penny. What do you mean I have a meeting with Arron Yan? How can that be? Why am I having a meeting with him?”
Panic, panic, panic.
“Honey, you’re not going to be alone with him. Relax,” Penny said with a chuckle. “I didn’t know you were a fan of him. Can’t resist his adorable smile, can you?”
Penny had no idea how wrong she was. Hebe was not a fan. She didn’t want to put herself in the same category as the rabid fan girls who bought Arron Yan bedspreads and matching pillow cases. Instead of answering Penny’s question, Hebe quickly thanked her and hung up. Like she was going to actually answer that question. There was something about him that she couldn’t resist but his smile was definitely not it.
The next person to call was Angela, the pop princess. Hebe had a feeling she already knew what was going on. Angela always knew, but she never told.
“Hebe! I knew it. I just knew you were going to call me,” Angela said into the phone with a girlish laugh. “So you heard, huh? Let me guess. Did you call Penny to confirm?”
Hebe rolled her eyes and made a face at her television. The segment on Arron Yan was showing again. “Yeah, and I was just wondering why you didn’t tell me there was going to be a meeting today. How come I don’t know about this? I’m your personal assistant, aren’t I?”
“That’s right. You’re my personal assistant. Shouldn’t you have known?” Angela spat back with a chuckle. “Okay, enough of my teasing. Arron’s manager called me yesterday and wanted to know if I would be interested in collaborating with him. We might do a film or sing a duet. Apparently our boss Mark thinks it’s a good idea since he finds Arron’s work enticing. It’s a very good opportunity, don’t you think?”
It was a good opportunity for Angela, no doubt. Arron Yan’s record sales were always in the top three slots on the annual charts. Working with him guaranteed success. “Yeah, I guess,” Hebe replied, biting her lower lip. “But are you sure I have to attend the meeting? I’d be embarrassed if I wasn’t exactly invited.”
There was a pause. A chuckle followed. “Arron personally invited you. He knows you’re my assistant.”
This was bad. Bad, bad, bad. Not only was Hebe not ready to see an ex-boyfriend, she wasn’t ready to work with him either. But she convinced herself that she was a professional. A crappy assistant, yes. But professional nonetheless. She would be polite to Arron Yan during her work hours and she could definitely ignore him when she was off. It would work out great. “Angela, do me a favor. Don’t mention anything about what happened between him and me. I am a professional assistant and I don’t want to be involved with any scandals.”
Angela laughed at the last sentence. “If you were truly a professional, you would have ignored the news. Instead, you chose to call Penny.” Hebe was about to protest when she continued, “However, you are just a regular human being so I shall cut you some slack.”
“Thanks,” Hebe muttered.
Before she could change the subject, Angela had to hang up since it was time for her spa appointment.
Hebe sighed deeply as she slipped her cell phone into her satchel bag. Then, she looked at her television screen where Arron Yan’s smiling face greeted her. It was a commercial for a drink. She walked up to her television set and knelt before it. She stared at Arron Yan’s face and decided that she had had two years to avoid him. She had to brace herself for what was coming.
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12:38 P.M. Taipei, Taiwan
“Why are you looking at me like I’m a stranger to you?”
Angela burst into laughter at Hebe’s words as she climbed into the black convertible. “For one, you’re looking unusually beautiful today. I suppose you want to convince Arron Yan that you are still marketable in the world of dating. Second, I simply cannot wait to see the look on his face when he sees you.”
Hebe rolled her eyes and stepped on the gas pedal. “I didn’t put on so much make-up because I want to. Mark asked me to. He says if I’m going to be in the conference room as a representative of the company, then I should at least slap on make-up.” Mark was Angela’s manager and founder of Honey Entertainment.
“Right,” Angela said with a cheeky smile. “Some make-up, huh? You’ve got the full package, my friend. And, you’re wearing the bubble dress I bought you last month. I thought you said you weren’t going to wear it unless you’re accompanying me to a red carpet event.” Her eyes traveled down to Hebe’s feet. “Ah, I told you before you look gorgeous in heels. Hm, are you still going to tell me that you’re not dressed up because of Arron Yan?”
Hebe found it difficult to concentrate on driving when Angela was examining her so closely. “I am not,” she replied in a firm tone. “It’s Mark’s fault! He told me to wear the bubble dress. He said if it’s the only appropriate attire I could find then I should wear it.”
Angela tuned her out. “I should call Chun. He’ll want to see this.”
“You’re kidding me,” Hebe spat. “You know your boyfriend has a ton of work to do. There’s no way he’ll come see this stupid thing between Arron and me.”
Angela’s cheeks reddened. “He’s not my boyfriend.”
“You’re a terrible liar.”
“Look who’s talking.”
Hebe chose to ignore her words. Instead, she kept her eyes on the road and silently prayed that Honey Entertainment was just around the corner. But then the silence became quite awkward and she decided that she should say something. “Okay, enough about me and Arron. What about you, Angela? You and Chun are in love with each other. Are you going to do something about it?”
Angela looked out the window, preoccupied with the mention of her current status with Chun. “No. I wish I could, but I can’t. He’s too good for me.”
“That’s not true and you know it.”
Angela smiled a sad smile. “He asked me out to a dinner date three days ago. He gave me a bracelet that had tiny jonquil charms, Hebe. In the language of flowers, a jonquil is a sign of the desire to have your affections returned.”
Hebe stole a quick glance at Angela’s wrists. There was no sign of the bracelet. “Tell me more,” she urged.
Angela touched her wrist as she said, “I took the bracelet, of course. But I told him that I would have to wait a while to put it on.”
Hebe nodded understandingly. “How long?”
Angela turned to her with a shrug. “Don’t know. I just want to concentrate on my career right now.”
“Well, he’s not going to wait for you forever.”
“Save that line for yourself, my dear,” Angela said with a chuckle. “I’m well aware of the fact that he’s not going to wait forever. No guy ever does, honestly. But I just can’t make up my mind right now. The only thing that’s holding me back is my courage. I don’t have any, Hebe. I don’t want to start a relationship that I’m not really secured about. I might end up hurting him. That’s not what I want.”
Hebe listened carefully and nodded in agreement. She made a mental note to talk to Chun sometime.
_______________________________________
12:50 P.M. Honey Entertainment.
“Ah, Hebe, you look gorgeous in that dress.” Mark Kang remarked as he took a good look at his employee. “And you put on make-up! It would be awesome if you looked like this everyday, you know.”
“I told you so,” Angela added as she nudged Hebe.
Hebe decided to ignore both of their comments. Maybe she was overdressed. She certainly felt that way since Angela was just wearing a simple sundress and had minimal make-up on. Her hair was tied back into a ponytail, showing her sharp facial features. Meanwhile, she was a bit bothered by her purple bubble dress. She felt naked under the limelight. She usually just wore t-shirts and baggy jeans. It was more comfortable and took less time to coordinate. Make-up? She considered lip gloss her only cosmetics friend. But today, she put on “the full package” as Angela had phrased it.
Mark’s secretary Jenna approached them. At thirty, she was still unmarried. Everyone else in the company knew why, though. She had a model’s body and a gorgeous Chinese-Japanese face. She could have any guy she wanted. But she wanted Mark. Luckily for her, he was still single. But he wasn’t the type of guy to be tied down by one woman.
“Mark, the guests are here,” Jenna announced with a smile. Usually Mark was the apple of her eye, but today her attention was drawn to Hebe. “You ought to dress up more, Hebe. You look beautiful.”
Hebe’s cheeks flushed red. “Somehow I feel as if I’m being auctioned off,” she muttered.
Mark gave Hebe a playful grin. “Yeah, we’re auctioning off you to Arron Yan,” he joked, unaware of her mixed feelings.
Only Angela smiled secretively as she observed Hebe’s alarmed expression.
When they finally stepped into the conference room, Hebe held her breath. Her eyes scanned every person in the room. There was Rina Zhao, decked out in a vintage Chanel dress. Her long curls rested on her shoulders. On her face was an annoyed expression. Like she had a stick up her ass. Then, there was a man in a white dress shirt and black slacks. He looked vaguely familiar to Hebe’s eyes but her attention drifted to the star.
It was Arron Yan in the flesh. He was wearing a cream-colored racer jacket. He looked mature, but there was still something quite boyish about him.
She stopped breathing.
Although she had seen him on the media countless times after their break-up, it was still very intimidating to see him in the flesh. Not only that, but he was wearing the jacket that she had given him two years ago.
He looked up and their eyes met briefly for a second.
Hebe chose to look away, only to find Rina Zhao looking at her outfit. It was utter humiliation to have a supermodel stare at you as if she was examining a piece of crappy and ancient art at a museum.
“This is my assistant, Hebe Tian,” Angela said as she squeezed Hebe’s trembling shoulders.
“She is quite a beauty,” Rina remarked, but on her face was a smirk. Hebe thought Rina wanted to say something along the lines of “Your virginal assistant, huh? She looks like she hasn’t dressed up in years.”
Mark The Clueless Man, nodded excitedly. “Isn’t she? I just told her this morning to dress up. She usually dons a pair of old jeans and a plain t-shirt. Quite a shame.”
Hebe could have killed Mark Kang with her bare hands right then and there, but she was too busy avoiding Arron’s gaze.
“Yeah, it is. Now, shall we get started?” Angela suggested. She knew that any moment now, Hebe would pass out because of Arron’s scrutiny. She was sure of it.
“Absolutely,” Arron answered in a voice that startled Hebe. She knew he was amused. Too amused.
She desperately wanted to hide.
_____________________________________
4:34 P.M.
“The movie will start filming in a month. Scripts will be ready a week before that. Meanwhile, we should focus on the rest of the cast as well as other aspects. I think we will be having a meeting every week before the filming starts.” Mark announced with a satisfied smile. He had been pining after a collaboration with Arron for months now. It wasn’t until two days ago that Arron’s manager contacted him and suggested doing a film. He was hesitant at first, suspicious of the celebrity’s sudden change in heart. But he admired Arron’s talents very much and decided that it was worth the risk.
For Hebe, though, it was a nightmare in the making. She had no intentions of seeing Arron Yan on a regular basis. But throughout the entire meeting, she had not uttered a single word, fearing that what came out of her mouth would be a string of profanities at the celebrity. However, she was grateful that he didn’t even glance at her during the entire period. She was afraid that if he did, flying daggers from her eyes would aim directly at him. No one actually paid attention to her as they discussed the plot details and cast selection, and she was also thankful for that. Otherwise, they would have been greeted with a murderous face.
“I look forward to working with you,” Arron said as he offered his right hand to Angela.
“Same here,” she responded with a smile. Their handshake was brief but Hebe caught Rina glaring at Angela.
“We’ve got to go, baby. You have an event to attend and that’s on the other side of the city.” Rina’s voice was cool, but Hebe assumed she was burning inside.
Arron’s cheeks blushed at the word ‘baby’ and Hebe knew exactly why. He wasn’t into calling anyone ‘darling’ or ‘baby’. It was too embarrassing and it didn’t fit his image at all. But Hebe also understood that Rina chose that word ‘baby’ as if she was trying to tell everyone that Arron was hers. It was very infantile.
Before leaving the room with Rina and the white dress-shirt guy (which she found out that he was Arron’s manager), she was pretty sure that he had nodded at her. It was a slight nod, like the ones people give to acquaintances. She only muster up a tiny smile, a tight-lipped one. But it only lasted for a fraction of a second when she realized she had no good reason to smile at him.
She rolled her eyes at her own stupidity when he finally left the room. Mark followed them out, leaving only Angela and her. Then, she looked down at her dress, and rolled her eyes once again. What was the point of dressing up, anyway? She turned to Angela and, in a very bored voice, she hissed, “I dressed up for nothing!”
Angela disagreed immediately. “You just didn’t see his face,” she said with a smile. “He was mesmerized.”
“He was not,” she argued. “He didn’t even look at me once during the meeting!”
“Oh, were you actually paying attention to him?”
She shrugged. “I guess I was. But only because I wanted to scream at him for coming back.” So immature but understandable.
“Right. I shall try my best to believe you, my friend,” Angela said in a cheery voice as she walked out of the room. “But, I did find him stealing glances at you. They were all very brief, around three seconds, I believe. I think he wanted to look at you very much, but with his girlfriend in the room, he probably didn’t want to take the risk of doing so. But no worries, Hebe. You’ll be seeing him tomorrow without his girlfriend.”
Hebe, who had been following Angela, suddenly stopped in her tracks. She blanched. “Why?”
Angela found another opportunity to tease her friend and assistant. “I knew you weren’t listening. Mark said Arron and I will have to go to cooking lessons tomorrow for our roles. We’re playing chefs. In fact, we’ll be attending the lessons for the next two weeks.”
Upon hearing that, she immediately ransacked her brain to find any trace of what was said during the meeting. All she remembered was that there would be a meeting held every week and nothing else.
“Two full weeks of Arron Yan,” she muttered under her breath.
Cruel and unusual punishment, it was.
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Comments and criticisms are highly appreciated! Thank you <3
Posted on Saturday, October 4, 2008.
© novemberbaby. All rights Reserved. Copyright 2008.