Conflicts of Interest: A Justin Fanfiction Saga

Chapter Four: Storm Front

"If a music video had credits, Justin Timberlake's name should be listed under 'hairstylist.' That's because the 18-year-old teen phenom showed a hidden talent for French knots during the video shoot. He learned it from 'a girl he met' ..."

Madeline looked at her laptop screen and sighed. She'd jotted down all her anecdotes in little paragraphs, but couldn't see how they would fit together in the end. She certainly had some humorous moments today, from Chris' breakdancing on the dance floor to Justin's attempt at slow-motion walking. It was fit for a teen magazine, but not a college publication. She couldn't see her peers being interested in this fluff. She needed something fresh.

She thought she'd stumbled onto something when she walked around the hotel floor and found J.C. and Emma sitting in a corner of the hallway, hidden from view. He was sitting at her feet, and she was massaging his back.

"Honestly, I don't know why you surf those things," J.C. was saying, head tilted forward, eyes closed.

"Curiosity. Habit," Emma replied, kneading his shoulders. "I'm on the computer all the time as it is for work stuff. Sometimes I need to be amused."

Madeline didn't want to look like she was spying, so she hung out in clear view, ready to say she had a question if they looked up and noticed her.

"But you're not amused right now. You're bothered."

"Why should I be bothered?"

"You just said there was bothersome speculation about me having a girlfriend. There's always speculation."

"But they were viciously slamming the alleged phantom girlfriend – her looks, what she'd weigh, motive, everything – every single day. They won't get off of the subject."

He sighed and tilted his head to the side slightly as she worked on his neck. "It's all fiction. They don't mean it. People are much more uninhibited on those fan-club Internet things."

"It's all right, you know," Emma assured him as she rubbed her thumbs on his temple. "I'm really not bothered."

"You don't need to be. I'm not."

"But that's because you're not – "

"Hey, Madeline!" Chris chortled behind her. Madeline jumped out of her skin, then looked sheepishly at him.

J.C. and Emma looked up, startled.

"Are you in line for a massage too? I've been waiting forever," Chris groaned. "J.C., you almost done?"

"Almost," J.C. said gratefully. "She's just got to finish with my head."

"All righty then," Chris said, grinning at Emma. "I'll be waiting." He leaned over to Madeline. "Emma gives great backrubs. We always get one from her; she's our road masseuse."

Madeline nodded, a bit disappointed at the false lead.

"I gotta get back anyway," Madeline said to Chris. "We have another scene, right?"

"Yeah," Chris told her. "Just more of the dance stuff. Then we get to check the dailies."

"OK. See you guys," Madeline said, giving a half-wave and turning back to the ballroom.

When she was gone, Chris turned to the couple and said in a low voice, "You guys owe me big time." He grinned wickedly and left them alone.

J.C. tilted his head up to look at Emma upside-down. "How long do we have to do this?"

"As long as it's needed," she replied wearily. "I want to retain my private life as long as I can, and for your career's sake it's probably better this way."