Kristof: You think the two are mutually exclusive?
Rowan: Hang on, you don’t think I’m nice, @Pearl?
Pearl: I was just talking generally. Nice is overrated but for the record, I don’t think you have a short temper.
Jayden: That’s because he always gives you the special treatment.
Kristof: Which is precisely why journos are always asking if you two are dating.
Rowan: They always ask that because they can’t see a woman and a man getting along without assuming they’re bumping uglies. Also, it’s lazy and they’re just after clickbait.
Jayden: Calling yourself a man is a reach.
Rowan: No “reaching” is what you have to do to get to the top shelf.
Kristof: It’s not just that. You act all protective. You keep threatening them not to ask @Pearl about the “close fit” of her costume.
Rowan: That’s not true. It’s just that one guy from PoppingMovies who asks EVERY year. He’s an utter creep.
Pearl: He is. I always appreciate you shutting him down. I’m not here to tease you for being raised right. Unlike these two jerks.
Jayden: You started this! And of course you appreciate @Rowan taking the flak so you can keep your rep squeaky clean.
Pearl: Ugh. Raising my middle finger so hard to you in the direction of the East Coast.
Jayden: I’m back in LA, so ha.
Pearl: You want to get lunch tomorrow?
Jayden: Sure. I look forward to you giving me the finger in person then.
Rowan: Why do they never notice this obvious flirting between you two?
Kristof: They hide it in front of the press, dumbass. Seriously, just put on an act. It’s your job.
Pearl: Also, don’t think of journos as the enemy. They’re just doing their jobs too.
Rowan: I get that. I just don’t get why I’m supposed to be okay with answering rude questions.
Jayden: I’d like to propose a technique I call “Mr Mysterious”. Just be vague. They’re asking about who you took home last Friday night? Give them an enigmatic smile and say: “I couldn’t possibly say.” They love it. And you haven’t endangered your strict moral code by lying.
Rowan: “Nice” and “vague”. Is that what you’re going for in interviews? Because when you respond like that to more than two questions, it sounds more like you’ve experienced a head injury.
Kristof: Still works – sympathy vote.
Jayden: That is poor taste @Rowan after that time you knocked me out cold.
Rowan: How many times do I have to say sorry? I wasn’t used to how small you are & I thought you were further away.
Jayden: And you’re trying to convince us that you’re nice?
Rowan: Fair cop. You’re right. I’m an arsehole.
Rowan smirked…but Lila had said she thought he was nice after she liberated him from the storeroom, her cheeks pink with embarrassment after she spoke, making him feel like she’d truly meant it.
Pearl: I miss your ugly faces.
Rowan put down his phone as they all signed off in a similar way. They’d all spent so many years working together, they slipped into the banter as easily as breathing. Most of the others did find navigating the press easier than he did, so he appreciated their advice, no matter how it was delivered. They were all older and more experienced than him and it was more relevant than the bland messages he’d received on Monday about cultivating a public persona, giving the press enough of the personal to make you seem accessible, keeping the key messages of your brand in mind and if you ran into trouble use the ABC.
