Hoax

Chapter seventy-one

Jenna Carter 

This is a lot of pressure, I must admit.

When I awoke this morning, I felt a nervous pit consume my stomach like a black hole, which is strange, as I rarely get nervous.

I pride myself on being cool, calm, and collected, most of the time, but I guess we've done so much planning and preparation to get here, that I'm scared I'll screw it up for Harry and Estelle.

It's Friday and I've had my freshly dyed blonde hair for roughly five days and still, I can't quite wrap my head around it. 

Every time I catch myself in the mirror, I have to look twice.

I've been ginger for my entire life.

It's a part of me; a feature that I adore and one which I never thought I would sacrifice...but, at the end of the day, it is only hair.

I will likely dye it back after all this is over, but in truth, I'm kind of loving the blonde at the moment. Plus, Richie seems to love it too, so that's a win-win. 

Stell did an amazing job at covering my ginger roots and spreading the tone evenly throughout. Perhaps if this plan goes to pot and she's fired from Little Women, then becoming a hairdresser is her calling...

There's only one word that can sufficiently describe these past five days: stressful. 

Amongst meeting either in person or via facetime with Harry, Estelle, Xavier, and Richie, I've also been balancing work and the imminent plan.

It's a lot.

I had to pitch the idea to my boss, which was scary in itself.

"I was thinking we could do a feature on Hollywood Nepo babies-"

"Boring." She shoots me down immediately. "Seen it a million times-"

"No, but not- not model babies, per se-" I scrounge around, trying to pour my all into this idea. "I'm talking children of the elite! Think- people like Liza Minelli and- and The Beckhams!"

These people are obviously hardly attainable, but I plucked a couple of big names out of obscurity, just to try and entice my boss.

She looks over her glasses at me – "You actually have those people lined up...?"

I pause. 

"Uhm...not exactly-"

She scoffs and withdraws her gaze from mine, seemingly bored, again.

"BUT!" I exclaim, eager to intrigue her further. "I'm thinking we look into Nepo babies who are lesser known but likely upcoming..."

My boss sits in silence, behind her computer screen, as she continues to tap away. 

"Find another cover girl for various brands!" I add, in desperation.

She directs all her attention to her monitor, seemingly completely disinterested.

"I'm sure people would be interested to hear-"

"Jenna." She cuts me off by saying my name, sharply.

I stop talking.

She draws her dangerous gaze away from the computer and onto me.

It's like her eyes are the gun and I'm her unwitting target.

"No-one is going to be interested in that...you want to know why?" She asks, sounding snarky as she speaks, but then again, she always speaks like that...