Chasing After Shady | 𝐌.𝐌

Chapter 14- Overnight Celebrity

October 18, 2000
Somewhere in NYC
Ananda's POV

After not speaking since the incident, Marshall called me randomly and asked if i could come over. I thought that it was time that we had that talk. But like always, we ended up having sex. I laid up in his bed sheets alone, half naked, staring the ceiling in my own thoughts. He basically acted like I didn't exist after we done it.  He's never done anything like that before and it made me feel shameful. I went into the living room sat down next to him on the couch, making sure that I kept my hands to myself.

"If we're gonna do stuff, we gotta be careful and use protection." I told Marshall but he obviously didn't take me seriously.

"I'm serious. I don't need or want a baby right now." I expressed. Especially with someone like you i said subconsciously. It was always the things that i needed to say that i would never say out loud.

"Ight. " He gave me a nonchalant answer—likewise. He gave me a once over and got up to put on his clothes.

The way he was nonchalant about everything just pissed me off so much. But every time he calls me, it's like my common sense went out the door. I feel so weak. But not this time.

"Wait-" I felt a tug on my wrist, "Where you going?" Marshall asked with a confused look on his face.

"Home." I yanked out of his grip and grabbed my t-shirt off of the floor without even looking at him.

"Ayo..what's the matter with you?"

"Nothing."

"Why you acting like that? For real?"

"What are we doing? We're both pushing thirty but hooking up for cheap thrills like high-school students." I blurted. It felt good to get some of the heavy load off my chest for once. He looked confused

"I thought you wanted to keep things like this."
I rolled my eyes as a response

He looked at me deeper than before "What are you saying?"

What am I saying? Is he serious right now?

A million things processed through my mind at this very moment. Hundreds of thousands of emotions flowing within my body. All it would take is a few words to describe how I really feel. But my ego wouldn't allow it.

"I'll see you later..." I anxiously left out of the door. I didn't want to leave at the moment but I needed to. I felt my eyes welling up . And besides, the way he watched and let me leave told me everything I needed to know.

October 19, 2000
Morning

After a good long hiatus, it was time for me to return to the office. To avoid any interaction, I took the stairs instead of the elevator. Not a bone in my body missed seeing VIACOM-CBS in bright blue letters staring down at me on the street, nor did I miss the people inside the building. I kept my head down with my coffee and briefcase in in hand as reached my office desk. A mass email memo was delivered to everyone giving them separate assignments for the week. What was my assignment? The "Diversity and inclusion project", of course. By the end of the month I had to find marketing strategies to gain for MTV to gain more minority viewership.

Usually, I can roll my eyes, bite my tongue and do the company's token work, but something about this irritated me. On top of that, my brain was still on Marshall and the events that happened yesterday. I just don't understand how he doesn't see it.
I like you
I want you
I got feelings for you
And I just wanna tell you but I don't know how
But shouldn't it be obvious at this point?

It was all the things that I should've said yesterday that came in to my mind when I was trying to work . I became so wrapped up in my thoughts, and I forgot where I was.

"Ananda?"
I glanced up to see my boss Julius in front of me peeking around my cubicle. Of course he needed to bother me.

"Can I see you in my office?" He asked

I placed the notepad down that I was writing in and followed behind him and closed the door softly.

"I need to know who is responsible for this—" He clicked a button on the VCR that sat below the mounted television. A music video recording of four teen girls a dance studio setting to an r&b track appeared on the screen. It was Aaliyah's girl group. In each scene, they wore clothing that matched with the color of the background and had hip hop styled choreography. The clip lasted about one minute before fading out. The words "Serenity...Coming Soon" appeared in a typewriter font.

Julius turned the tv off and directed his attention towards me."This clip began airing on music video channels across the country since last week. Last night, it was uploaded to MTV.com and received over 80,000 thousand hits. It was so popular that it made the website servers crash. Who are these girls and why haven't you made them apart of the company's diversity project yet?"

"Um..actually I—"

"Never mind that. Look, here's the plan. By next Friday, I want them on TRL ready for a debut performance and an exclusive interview. We have to cash in on this before anyone else has the chance to."

"Cash in? These are actual people..not just a investment you can sell to an audience."
" And this is not my group." I added. "I have no affiliation with them except for hosting the talent search."

"Well say hello to your new affiliates." He placed a photo Serenity on the table and slid it towards me.

"That's all. You're dismissed "

I got up from the chair and walked out of the office internally fuming. Julius basically told me to stalk these teenagers, use them and spit them out all under the guise of diversity. He is a joke. This project was a joke. This company and everything it stands for is a fucking joke. I couldn't believe it.

I couldn't help but notice the eyes around the office peering into me as I walked back to my desk. It wasn't the usual reactions I get, even as the minority. A few people even whispered to each other, gossiping and laughing like hounds. I was confused and scared as hell. I felt a thud on the side of my face as a reward for my distraction. I looked up to see one of the last people I wanted to run into.

Nick.

He stood there in a blue striped shirt and slacks, fixing his tie. His facial hair grown out more than usual and he was looking better than ever. He didn't acknowledge me. I examined him while he never even glanced at me once. Instead, he dug into his work bag and handed me a rolled up magazine. "If you want to know why everyone is looking at you, suggest you flip to page 18." He leaned in and whispered in my ear before walking away.

I stood there clueless, blankly staring at the face of Jennifer Love Hewitt on the cover  of US Weekly. I was scared. Part of me had an idea of what was inside but the other half of me was curious about what it could be. I took a deep breath and opened the magazine. I turned the pages slowly

1..
2...
3...
4...
5..
6...
7..
8...
9..

I was too anxious. With each new page number my heart race speed up a least double that. I began to flip faster

12...
14..
16..