ShawnMendes entered Wattpad.

150

~ You should not put your ear on doors they say. But if you do they say, you better prepare yourself. ~

I'm in the women's toilet when a woman at the sink starts talking to another one. I can hear them through the thin doors, and out of any instinct I hold on opening the door.

"Did you meet her already?"

"No, I didn't. You?"

"No. They're apparently really waiting until the album's published. But imagining that she got him on the hook she must be something really special. Any idea how she looks like? Is she a supermodel or something like that? Or an actor?"

"She's neither of any of the things you supposed."

"But who's she then? Wait - is she a singer?"

"She's just a normal girl. Pretty yes but not extraordinary", the other woman states.

"So then she's a fan? I'd never think that he'd share more than temporarily the bed with a fan."

"Oh, as far as I can judge him, I'd definitely say, that he has no problem to do so. I mean he's mentioned something like that in an earlier interview. It must be years ago."

"Oprah?"

"No. Youtube. Something not very noteworthy."

"Uh-uh."

"I'm asking myself, how long this relation-ship will endure", the other woman says.

"I don't know. I mean, he was with Camila together for over two years. Or were it three? I don't know."

"Yeah, but the Hailee-thing was only for what – a year? I don't think, that he's a thing for long-relation-ships."

"Do you remember the whole Jocelyn-drama?"

They both giggle.

"Nobody knew if there was something. But the press loved it."

"Yeah, they were hungry for a story like that."

"But back to her."

"Jocelyn?"

"No. Shawn's new girl-friend."

"Ah. Yes."

"How long do you think it will last?"

"I don't know. Maybe some months. Until he get's tired of her."

A door next to me opens, and I can hear high-heels clackering on the floor. "Hi girls."

"Hey. What do you think, how long will Shawn's new love last?"

Waters running through the drain, and I can hear a woman laugh shortly. "Let's just say, we shouldn't expect it to last that long."

"How do you come up with that?"

Yeah, well that would be something, that I'd be interested, too.

The woman laughs again. It's a cold, calculated laugh. "Well, if you want a number then, then I would say, that it will last until the album's out. Maybe a few weeks longer. For the promotions and all the interviews coming. But not longer."

"Huh?"

"Girls. Please don't tell me, you don't know the story."

It's obvious they don't.

"Shawn's manager, Andrew, has a deal with him. He has had some problems with the label recently, and Andrew told Shawn to find a solution for this problem. – So you know he was stuck in writers-block, don't you?"

Probably they all nod cause nobody says something loud. I imagine the woman grin.

"So the plan they made, was for Shawn to find a collaboration-partner – someone very unknown to have success with his album without having to credit someone else. They didn't want him to credit a big, famous songwriter showing that he's not able to write songs alone anymore. Or at least only with his own team."
The woman's lowering her voice. "I know, that they've asked Ed Sheeran for help but he refused to. He said, he'd love to help a collague and friend, but he wouldn't have the time and the nerve working on a whole album. Shawn has been a bit disappointed not having the chance to work with him but they'd plan to get on stage together some time this year. So his best chance to finally finish his album was this unknown girl he met on this platform."

"What platform?"

"This cringe platform where fans express what they feel for their beloved stars."

"So she is a fan though."

"I don't know. When I heard Andrew talking with someone else, he didn't say she was a fan."

"So, you're saying, Shawn's not feeling anything for her? He just made her fall in love for him to work on his album?"

"I didn't say that."

"But you believe that."

"Yes, I do."

"Gosh. What a drama. This girl will be heart-broken when he leaves her."

"She shouldn't have started something with our boy."

They all giggle, and I decide to open the door to go to the sink.

But I can't. I can't move.

"Where do you know this all from?"

"You know Sharleen from the third floor?"

"Yes."

"She's friends with Andrew Gertler's girlfriend."

"Hey girls how are you?" A fourth woman enters the womans toilet, letting in loud music and the sound of people laughing and chatting.

The women leave the toilet together, and I'm still not moving. I need several minutes to get my racing pulse and my shaking hands under controll. It doesn't work fully. When I excit the toilet, I look into the mirroir, and I'm surprised by my own reflection. – My face is white as a sheet, yeah pale, and my eyes are red and shimmering in a strange way. My hands are still trembling, so I put them into my coats pockets and give myself the try of a smile in the mirror.

I fail totally.