CHAPTER 12

Cameras Are As Dangerous As A Foot Is To A Beetle

The spotlights were officially on and literally too. Crowds whispered, gaping at the pretty clothes and gasping at the wrong styles. The celebrated artistes walked down the red carpet in their polished black shoes and sparkling diamond shoes. Somewhere in the back of the mind of someone, there was a faint memory of the poor people in Africa. It disappeared as quick as a camera flash. And there was a handsome amount of these camera flashes. Reporters were practically fighting each other, reaching their microphones out, yearning for a word with the celebrities. Fans screamed in each others ears, screaming, professing their "love" for their idols.

Jason was shielded from these noises by the walls of the limousine he was comfortably seated in. The only sound was of the whirring noise of the air-con. Even the chauffeur's whistling was muffled by the transparent window that separated them. He was sure his knuckles had gone all white and was assured when he looked down. But he also realised that his right hand was covered by someones left hand. Someones very smooth, not very well manicured but still gentle hand. Then she could feel her hand tighten and her head fall on his shoulder. He looked at her and she smiled and Jason practically forced the blood to rush back into his hands.

I can't be nervous. Not now. Amber, she looks pretty nervous. And if she finds out so am I, she'll freak out. And I don't want a freaked out young lady on my hands.

"Hey Amber."

"Yea?" She lifted her head and looked curiously at him, gently combing her hair behind her ear.

"Umm, you're nervous aren't you?"

Amber shrugged and smiled sheepishly. "You can tell, huh?"

"Yea but that's okay. Look, it'll be fine. It's just the Golden Globes." He said. But he thought otherwise.

Just the golden globes? Who are you kidding, Jason my man. Who are you kidding?

He out another hand over hers and tried to think of something that could assure her that everything was fine. "Well I-"

"Sir? This is as far as I can go." Came a voice from the intercom.

Jason looked out of the window and saw a red carpet leading up to the door. They had managed to avoid walking the whole streak of red but they had to face the cameras sooner or later.

"Thanks Lance. I owe you one." The chauffeur nodded and Jason squeezed his escorts hand. Then a gloved man from the outside opened the door for them and screams rushed straight in.

Memories of the first time Jason ever attended an awards show flooded his mind. It was exactly the same thing he was experiencing at the present moment though somewhat more humiliating. He remembered stepping out on the red carpet and tripping almost immediately. Hands flailing and thinking nothing except ways of falling and not crumpling the suit, Jason remembered the crowd gasping and only daring to laugh when he stood up and laughed at himself.

That was probably the grandest way to make an entrance, Kaine had said.

Now it was like reliving the moment. Minus the embarrassment. Plus the pretty woman. A very pretty one.

Jason turned back to take another look at his date. She was smiling. Out of pure terror or excitement, Jason didn't know. But her smile made her look brilliant. And the dress, the dress that flowed from the limousine and onto the lush red carpet, the dress hugged her body and made her looked ever so beautiful. Jason swore that never in his life had he seen someone as pretty as she looked at the moment. Time slowed down. The volume around him went down and it was her he noticed.

Then a camera click. Followed by another. Followed by a few hundreds more. Flash after flash accompanied these clicks which were soon drowned in screams. A sign caught Jason's eye. It read: JASON HARDISLAYE. I WANNA HAVE YOUR BABY.
Smiling, he waved at the sea of fans and leading Amber by the hand, walked along the red carpet. Reporters shouted his name, pleading for an interview. A lucky paparazzi was granted the honour; Jason stopped walking, turned to him, smiled into the camera and said a cheery 'good evening' into the microphone.

"Good evening to you too, sir! Well well, who's the new beau?" Asked the reporter. Amber blushed slightly and smiled at him.

"Well, she's-" Another microphone was stuck into Jason's face and the reporter who owned it interrupted him.

"A cafe waitress we hear. Now is that down-grading or are you just sick of all the equally financed women? Go for the gold diggers now, huh?"

The comment made had Jason clenching his fist. Rude reporters were expected, but not common. Not really.

Keep. Your. Composure.

Jason squeezed Amber's hand. He glanced back and gave her a don't-worry look and turned back to the reporter.

"Look, I don't know what you're trying to get at or why you would say such a thing but I assure you that this lovely treasure whom I have in my hand is no gold-digger. She might not earn millions by the day but she's just as beautiful as any of the celebrities on the carpet right here right now. And to me, she's the most beautiful of them all."

The reporter didn't seem moved by the words. He shrugged and mumbled something under his breath. Then Jason saw him give a smug smile before his whole vision was filled with gray tuxedo material.

"WELL WELL, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, shall we all just turn our attention to a MUCH greater cause, MUCH important figure, SEXIEST symbol?" Kaine had abruptly cut right in between Jason and the bunch of reporters.

Jason smiled to himself. Kaine was putting on airs again but for a good reason. He was letting his best friend and his date escape from the monstrous media.

"C'mon," Was the whisper and Amber was whisked away, past the crowd and into a quiet, marble tiled hall where her heart skipped a beat when she made eye-contact with Leonardo DiCaprio.


i think im done here. HAHA. ending a chapter with Leo's name is probably the best way to end a chapter. DISCLAIMER: i own this stories, the characters. but i dont own the jobs, the red carpet and Leonardo Di Caprio. please dont sue me. now i think this chapter is short and not very nice but im gonna post it. cos im tired and when im tired i do rash things. like post crappy chapters. i apologize.

haha. COMMENT. u better. tell me wats good, wats bad and wats jus plain ugly (excluding me).