The One That Got Away.

Betty Mars

Betty Mars is a super fan if ever a super fan existed. Thirty Seconds To Mars is her group. She owns every album (on all formats on which they were released e.g. vinyl, digital, cassette, etc.), every poster, every tee shirt, every sweatshirt, you name it, she's bought it. Until this tour, she had pretty much followed Mars all over the world since they started touring way back in the early 2000s. No one knows how she has been able to afford the lifestyle. The rumors ran wild; she refinanced her mortgage, she was in debt up to her eyeballs, she was a trust-fund baby, she defrauded elderly folks, she was a part-time escort. Nobody knew anything about her, in fact, no one even knew her real name. She is known only as Betty Mars, although some speculate that the name, in part, came from her resemblance to the 1930s cartoon character Betty Boop. 

The last time Betty saw Thirty Seconds To Mars live was during their 2019 Monolith Tour. At that time, no one knew a pandemic was looming on the horizon and Mars would not tour again for over two years. Betty met up on the last night of the Monolith Tour with Jared. She had been in college for half a dozen years but still had not achieved a degree. Jared made her promise that she wouldn't go to another Mars concert until she had earned her degree. She made a deal with him and they shook hands on it. She kept her promise, and now with a diploma in hand, she couldn't wait to show him that she did it, just like she said she would.

Betty is a highly trusted fan. While she would purchase VIP tickets for the Meet & Greets, and special side-stage seating, she never stayed with the group of fans. She always wandered off and found the band members in their dressing rooms or on the tour bus. Emma and Shayla didn't seem to mind, they just love Betty. But then Betty would never neglect to remember them, bringing them all kinds of goodies from exotic flowers to rare books they couldn't find anywhere. Emma was always accommodating and emphasized that Betty didn't have to give them gifts and that she is considered a friend now. She always brought something special for them anyway. 

The only member she was unmoved by, and pretty much ignored, was Tomo. No one knew the answer to why she didn't like him but if you asked Tomo he would say it was because Betty liked her band members unmarried, and unattached. Which would almost make sense, except she didn't seem threatened at all by Tara. She even gave the couple a lavish engagement gift. 

"I hope I'm not letting the cat out of the bag," she whispers as Tara's face lights up when she lifts the lid off of the delicate box. "I noticed what looked like an engagement party on Lauren Mayberry's socials, and well, I put two and two together," she winks. It was precisely the reason Jared did not want The Chvrches invited to the party, he knew they'd leak it. Kelly had never even heard of Lauren Mayberry or The Chvrches. 

It was quite fortunate for Betty that Mars added the extra tour dates, otherwise, she would have missed out on this opportunity; she didn't officially graduate until the tour had ended. 

Even though she had not been there physically, she was still able to keep up with what was happening on tour since it all went on the internet in one way or another. Between the official videos created by Kelly and her team, and fan-made videos, it was easier than ever. She had the heart charm and, of course, planned to give one half to Jared, even though she knew hundreds of other fans had done the same thing. She just knew Jared would feel hers was more special than the others. Maybe she would even get a kiss on the cheek. After all, he cared enough about her to make sure she finished school. Surely that deserves something special.

In all the years she had been following the band, the only physical contact she ever had with Jared, or any of the band members, was a hug. A quick hug at that. Jared never attempted anything else, and neither had she, although she'd always longed to plant a kiss on his cheek. She always sensed a bit of romantic tension between them and that his cold manner was just his way of playing the game with her. She told herself, and anyone else who would listen, that one day she would tempt him away and they would be together. She had even convinced herself, and several other fans, that his relationship with Valeriya was nothing more than a public relations deal that he mandatorily had to go along with, per his contracts with the movie studios and record companies. Those entities wanted him to date a model but what he wanted most in the world was a girl like Betty. Lucky for him, Betty is available.