Hollywood Heartthrob (12 page)

Amy felt empty and alone without Josh in her apartment. When he’d been there it had felt like home, but now, everywhere just felt so cold.

She wished she’d reacted better to the paparazzi. Maybe he would have stayed.  But the initial shock of seeing them all on her doorstep, shouting her name had shocked her. And now, Josh was gone.

She wanted to call him but knew she shouldn’t. After all, he’d said he would contact her, but then there was something in the way he’d said it that troubled her. He’d suddenly seemed so cold and distant. Had he left her because she couldn’t handle his fame?

“Oh God,” Amy moaned, rubbing her weary eyes and plunging her tea bag in and out of her mug of boiling water over and over again.

“I’m such an idiot.”

All the while she kept scouring the internet, looking for signs of what Josh was up to but all she got was a Twitter feed where he declared he was back on set filming.

@JOSHROBERTS – glad to be back on set, feeling great, time to act, ****likeapro

It didn’t even sound like him. The Josh Amy knew was kind and sensitive but looking at the message it seemed that the old cocky Josh had returned and that the media had won.

When her loneliness could take no more, Amy decided to invite her sister over who had been hounding her for days; ever since she’d been pictured with Josh at the party.

****

“I cannot believe you’re dating Josh Roberts!” Tanya declared delightedly, her new short brown haircut bobbing up and down as she moved her head.

“It’s been a crazy few weeks,” Amy admitted.

“For someone who is dating the hottest guy in the whole world you don’t seem very excited about it!” Tanya noted.

“I am, I was…” Amy trailed off, not knowing how to articulate what she was feeling inside which was a mess.

“So what’s he like?”

“He’s nice.”

“Nice? Is that all you can give me?” Tanya sounded disappointed. “Aimes, dogs are nice. Fried chicken is nice. Surely Josh Roberts was better than nice!”

“Stop grilling me, okay?” Amy said, getting up and walking away from the couch where they had been sitting and chatting.

“I’m not grilling you, I’m just asking about him,” Tanya said gently. “I’d be equally interested about whoever you were seeing.”

“That’s the point. I don’t even know if I’m seeing him anymore!” Amy blurted out, unable to keep her fears to herself any longer.

“What do you mean?” Tanya asked, concerned.

Amy came and sat back down on the couch, her body slumping against its soft cushions.

“I’ve not heard from him for days,” she explained sadly. “A bus load of press turned up here, taking pictures, screaming… I freaked out and then he went all cold on me and left.”

“Maybe it freaked him out too,” Tanya suggested.

“Tan, he deals with the press and the media all the time. It’s normal for him.”

“Yes, but it probably freaked him out how upset you got.”

“I guess.”

“Don’t worry, you’ll hear from him.”

“I’m not so sure,” Amy sighed.

The two girls were silent and contemplative for a moment before Amy suddenly asked.

“Tan, you work with actors, right? What are they like? I mean, can they blow hot and cold with people?”

Tanya could see how upset her sister was and wanted to reassure her but also knew she should really offer her the truth on the matter.

“Yeah, they can,” she admitted cautiously. “When you act for a living, you get so used to pretending to be someone else that it can be hard to remember who you really are.”

“So you think he was just acting when he was with me? Just pretending to like me?” Amy asked, hurt.

“That’s not what I’m saying,” Tanya quickly countered.

“But it’s a possibility?”

“I guess,” Tanya tried to sound non-committal on the subject.

“What would you do if this were happening to you?” Amy asked.

“You’re asking me for relationship advice?” Tanya said, bewildered.

“I know, crazy right?” Amy teased. “But I need to ask someone and you’re the only person I can trust.”

“Okay, well if it was me, I guess I’d get tired of sitting around waiting for him to call, not knowing where we were, so I’d seek him out and ask him directly.”

“That’s bold!”

“Beats sitting around all day wondering what’s going on.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

“Is he still filming over at the college?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Then that’s where you need to go. Put on your sexiest outfit, loads of makeup and roll up there to show him what he’s been neglecting!”

“What if he doesn’t want to see me?”

“Then you’ll know not to waste another minute moping about him!” Tanya said sternly. “I hate to see you all cut up like this, Aimes. You’ve not been like this since…”

“Don’t even say his name,” Amy interrupted.

“Okay, okay. Well my advice is to go ask Josh directly what’s going on. He might have just lost his phone or something. Actors are stupid. They do it all the time. Besides, it’s not like he can just turn up here as he would create a media storm and you’d get upset again.”

“Yeah, maybe you’re right,” Amy replied, beginning to perk up.

“So make yourself stunning and go demand an answer from your man!” Tanya ordered.

“Right, yes, okay!” Amy got up and began to march towards her bedroom before turning back to look at her sister, feeling unsure.

“Will you come with me?” she asked, her voice small.

“Of course!” Tanya smiled. “Sisters stick together!”

“Thanks.”

“But be warned that I might start handing out head shots to the director and some other guys on set…”

“Tan-”

“Hey, you can’t blame me for not wanting to waste an opportunity!” Tanya smiled.

Half an hour later and Amy was wearing her most revealing body-con dress with black peep toe heels and looking stunning.

“Sexy lady!” Tanya commented approvingly. “Let’s go make Josh Roberts drool!”

****

The girls drove over to the campus on the other side of town. It was really quiet as all the students were currently away on break. Amy had meant to use the time to catch up on grading, but her entire life had been side-lined by the whirlwind that was her romance with Josh, and she was determined to reclaim control of her life.

She’d spent the last two days moping around the apartment in her sweat pants which wasn’t like her. She was normally so positive and full of life and energy.

“Seems quiet,” Tanya noted as they pulled up on the parking lot and got out. Amy couldn’t help but glance down at the spot where she’d found Josh after he’d been badly beaten up. If she’d not found him that night and nursed him back to health would they be here now?

Had he only stuck around because he felt like he owed her for taking care of him? The thought sickened Amy to the very bottom of her stomach.

“So where’s the film crew?” Tanya asked, looking around the vast campus.

“They could be anywhere,” Amy sighed, feeling the nerves starting to kick in about seeing Josh again. What if he was horrible to her? She wasn’t sure she’d ever live it down. At least she had her sister there for moral support. She had a feeling she’d need her.

“Well, best start looking,” Tanya instructed as the pair of them began walking towards the west part of the campus, Amy tottering behind, wishing she’d worn more appropriate footwear.

After conducting a relatively thorough search of the campus premises the film crew still hadn’t been spotted.

“Maybe they’ve left,” Tanya suggested.

“No, they were meant to be here over the break. They were going to shoot internal scenes in some of the classrooms.”

“Ooh, exciting!” Tanya giggled, wishing she could land such a lucrative film role for herself.

Finally Amy spotted a janitor she knew conducting routine building checks so she went over to ask where the film crew were.

“They packed up and left yesterday,” Andrew Whitmore explained in his slow southern drawl.

“They did?” Amy asked, unable to conceal her disappointment.

“Yep.” Andrew confirmed.

“Are they coming back at all?” Tanya queried.

“Nope. We were told they’d finished up here now and wouldn’t be back so we are just going round mending any damage they left. There isn’t much though, don’t worry.”

Walking away from Andrew, Amy sagged against her sister, the weight of her disappointment becoming too much for her.

“I can’t believe they’ve left,” she whispered, on the verge of tears.

“I’m sure there’s an explanation,” Tanya said, forcing herself to sound positive. “Like I said, maybe he can’t contact you.”

“It’s a big maybe.”

“But it’s still a legitimate one.”

“So what now?” Amy said, feeling tired from it all.

“The plan stays the same. We find him and confront him,” Tanya explained.

“But how do we find him?”

“This might actually surprise you sis, but I have contacts in the film industry. Josh Roberts won’t be difficult to find, trust me.”

“Okay.”

“And whatever happens, I’m here for you.”

“Thanks, I appreciate that,” Amy gave her sister a quick hug.

“Just remember that Josh Roberts or not, he’s still just a guy, and no guy is worth breaking your heart over.”

“You’re right,” Amy agreed, but she didn’t think she was right. She knew Josh Roberts was more than just a guy, he was
the
guy, and most definitely worth breaking your heart over.

More days passed and still Amy heard nothing from Josh and she began to despair. Each evening she sat at her computer, tracking his movements but there was barely anything happening for the media to report.

Wherever he was, it seemed he didn’t want Amy to find him. She didn’t want to give up on them, on what they had, but she also felt foolish to keep holding on if he’d been able to let go so easily.

“I’m sure you’ll hear from him,” Tanya promised over tea that evening, though she didn’t sound as sure as she once had.

“Then why haven’t I?” Amy moaned. “I mean, the guy is a multi-millionaire, if he’s lost his phone it’s not as if he can’t afford to buy another!”

To make matters worse Amy was spending a large majority of her free time fending off the various calls from reporters, eager for her to talk about her relationship with Josh.

“If you don’t hear anything you could always sell your story,” Tanya suggested.

“I’d never do that,” Amy said, shaking her head.