Bubblegum

Part 1

Eden sat in her managers office, shaking her foot anxiously as he shuffled through some papers on his desk. She yearned for this meeting to be over so she could grab an iced coffee and sit at home with her cat for the rest of the day.

"Streams are up this month, your last single is a hit." Bryan nodded, glancing up. Eden flashed a smile at him and nodded. "The radio stations are going to have this on repeat for at least the next year. Have you thought any more of what your next album should be like?"

"Yes! I really want to switch it up-" she was cut off by her manager making a huffy noise and waiving his hand in the air, dismissing the thought before it had finished.

"Don't fix what ain't broke, kid." he shook his head. "I'll make some calls and see if we can get the writers from your last album to work on the new one. You're a pop princess, and you're going to be ruling the charts next summer. Right up there with Ariana and Taylor. Wasn't that the dream you came to me with?" Eden forced a smile this time and nodded, feeling a weight in her stomach.

"Now, your publicist and I were speaking the other day, and we had the perfect idea. Your name is getting recognized, which is good. But you know what every pop star needs to really get their name out there?"

"An Ed Sheeran duet?" she shrugged. Her manager stopped and frowned, then jotted a note down, mumbling something about that actually being a good idea.

"Anyway, what every pop star needs is a rock and roll love interest." he grinned. "The bad boy and the good girl next door. They're hot, they're crazy, and they're off and on again more times than you can count. But people will eat it up." Eden rolled her eyes at Bryan.

"One problem with your idea. I'm single. And I don't think now is a good time for me to be swiping on the apps again." she sighed. The last time she'd tried dating in the entertainment world, it was a nightmare of influencers and assholes.

"See, that's where you're wrong." Bryan grinned. "We've already picked out the perfect guy for you! No swiping necessary." a knock on the door made Eden jump. "Oh, he's here now!"

"Wait, what?! I don't want to be set up with anyone!"

"Look, it's all fake anyway." Bryan said as he got up to answer the door. "You just have to go out and be seen together on a few dates, break up in a few months, maybe a year or two, and then you get to put out your break-up ballad as another single and watch your sales skyrocket." The way he spoke about it so nonchalantly made Eden's head spin. She stood up to try and got toe-to-toe with Bryan, but he opened the door as she turned around, ready to unleash hell.

A tall, slender woman dressed in a navy pantsuit stood there, grinning like the cheshire cat while she greeted Bryan. Next to her was a young man with brown hair, wavy and just past his shoulders, sort of scraggly, like it hadn't been combed through in a day or so. His brown eyes darted from the woman with him to Bryan, then over to Eden.

"Natalie, I thought you said we were going to meet with another musician?" he mumbled to the woman. She rolled her eyes and ushered him inside, nearly pushing him so he was standing next to Eden.

"You are!" Natalie explained. "This is Eden Beckett, one of the hottest new artists on the scene. Eden, this is Jake Kiszka."

"What?" the young man squinted his eyes at the young singer next to him, then his eyes widened in recognition. "Oh, you're that shitty pop singer my little sister likes." he turned back to the woman. "Why are we here?" Eden's blood boiled at his comment, her being just a shitty pop singer. 'I'd love to see him sing a C6 while jumping around on stage in six-inch heels.' she thought

"Oh they didn't tell you?" Eden seethed at the brown eyed boy. "We're the new It Couple on the block, baby." His eyes widened in shock at her announcement.

"What?! No way!" he protested, throwing his hands up in front of him. "Natalie, I'm not dating some nasal bubblegum pop brat." Nasal?!

"Excuse me," Eden scoffed, shooting a glare at Jake. "I don't want to date you either. You look homeless, and frankly, I don't even know who you are." Eden glared at Bryan, who was standing with Natalie, both with knowing grins on their faces.

"Well, the contracts for the arrangement were already signed this morning." Bryan shrugged. Eden and Jake mirrored each other as their jaws fell open. "Remember those autographs you signed, Eden?" her stomach dropped as she remembered hastily scratching her name on a sheet of paper, what was said to be a birthday gift for Bryans niece.

"You tricked us?!" Jake exclaimed. "What the fuck?!" Natalie rolled her eyes again.

"It's the only way you'd both agree to this!" she said, as if it were the most obvious answer. "Besides, this is going to be amazing for both of your brands." Eden glared at Bryan, praying for telekinetic powers in that instance so that the ceiling would fall down and crush him and Natalie, and she could be free of this terrible idea.

"You two are just going to have to deal with this." Bryan stated. "What's done is done. Now, why don't you both go home and freshen up a bit. Your first appearance together is tonight. Natalie and I will send you the details in a bit." Eden bent down to grab her purse. As she stood upright, Jake was already halfway out the door. She went to follow suit, but Bryan put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. "Eden, I'll send something over for you wear tonight. The last time you dressed yourself was abysmal, truly." the brunette shrugged his hand off her shoulder and marched down the hallway to the elevator.

Jake was waiting already, his hands shoved in the pockets of his dark jeans. Eden silently waited next to him, the animosity growing between them as they avoided looking at one another. The doors to the elevator finally opened and they both went inside, him slamming his finger on the lobby button, then leaning back against the wall, his head tilted up, eyes closed.

Eden took a moment to take in his appearance. His round face was highlighted by sharp cheekbones, and she watched them flex as he clenched his jaw. He opened his eyes and Eden quickly looked away, thanking god that the elevator stopped and she was about to escape. Jake pushed himself away from the wall and stood next to her. As the doors opened, he turned and shot her a smug smirk that made her face flush. He began to walk out and called over his shoulder.

"See you tonight, princess."