skin | c.h

intro: a suggestion.

(not checked for errors of edited so bear with me)

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"Are you saying I'm not 'approachable'?!" Calum asked, his face more so outraged than shocked.

"No, Calum, we are saying we want to make you more approachable. Give a better image to your fan base and improve your reputation," The man in front of him explained. Calum slumped in his seat, his other three band members Luke, Michael, and Ashton sitting adjacent to him, watching silently. The head of the band's management, more importantly Calum's bosses, Capital Records, sat parallel to them in the conference room. At the center sat Kurt, head of the label, a man in his late 50's, but you wouldn't be able to tell just by looking at him. With a full head of black hair, neatly combed, a Colgate smile, and dark brown eyes that always held a secretive glint to them, the man looked like he belonged on the cover of Forbes magazine. Which he had covered. Twice. His eyes flickered over Calum, obviously unamused by his reaction.

"My reputation is fine," Calum protested shaking his head as his eyebrows furrowed. His leg bounced anxiously, his hands clasped together so tight they were beginning to get sweaty. "I don't need some fake girlfriend to change the way our fans look at me, at us."

"Look," Kurt sighed, trying to piece together how to phrase his next sentence. "The Rolling Stone article, it's tanked the public's view of you as a band," He explained not bothering to sugar coat the truth. "Fans are outraged and you're being painted as perverted and selfish."

"We're keeping quiet about it just like you said.." Ashton chimed in, trailing off due to the fact that he was intimidated by his higher ups. Kurt glanced at him momentarily, his unamused expression unchanging, before turning his attention back to Calum.

"Yes, you have. All of you except for Michael," he sighed as Michael fidgeted in his chair uncomfortably. "We need something to distract the public, take their mind off of this nuisance of an article. And the team believes a new girlfriend is just the trick."

"Why can't Luke do it?" Calum protested, not appreciating the idea of being used as a publicity stunt, even if it was for his own band's sake. "He's credited with saying most of what is in the article about hooking up with fans."

Luke gave Calum a dirty look, not taking well to being thrown under the bus. Calum couldn't help it, however, he didn't like being controlled and having a fake girlfriend meant total control. Being told where to appear, what to wear, how to act, what to post. It sent a shiver of disgust down his spine. Calum ignored the daggers Luke glared at him with as he looked at his management pleadingly.

"Luke just went through a break up, it would look bad on him if he now all of a sudden pops up with a new girlfriend, and it'll be more likely that the fans will catch on," Kurt explained in a bored fashion. As if he was explaining something to a child. "Ashton has already dated, and Michael is currently dating.. dating.. what's her name?" He asked raising an eyebrow as he shuffled through a few of the papers in front of him.

Michael cleared his throat, pushing some hair out of his face. "Crystal," he said simply, avoiding the gaze of his boss.

"Right," he replied dryly, "Crystal. You are the only boy of the group to not have dated publicly, so logically you are next in line for this role."

Calum opened his mouth to protest, but whatever argument he had to give got caught in his throat. He sat back in his chair rubbing his face as he silently complied to his management's suggestion. "It's not that bad Calum, we've made sure to get a girl who would get a long with you. She shares your taste in music, compatible personality traits, and she's a fan. The fans will love that fact," Kurt chuckled.