The long and short of it is, they're fucked.
They screwed up, they know that much. Spencer knows it, and if he was one for assigning blame (which he isn't—not since he got this job, anyway), Ryan would be the obvious choice, partly because he's the only one out of the three of them who really seemed invested in that stupid festival-parade-thingy and partly because, well, he's hilarious when he's getting scapegoated.
Point is, they're fucked. It doesn't matter whether Spencer or Ryan or Jon or all three of them take the blame, they're still irredeemably and completely fucked.
"How could you miss a story like that?!" their editor's screaming at them, face red as he paces behind his massive desk. Spencer winces; beside him, Jon tenses. Ryan's face is blank, but his fists are clenched; his skin looks stark white against the burgundy of his scarf. "It was literally right under your noses!"
(...uh)
(this is highkey inspired by the great muppet caper)
(don't judge me it's a good movie and you should all watch it)
(in case you haven't noticed i am highkey muppet trash)
(i stanned kermit before i stanned anyone affiliated with bandom)
(anyway)
as a shipper i prefer ryden, but tbh this would probably work better with brencer; i put both because i'm an equal-opportunity shipper when it comes to fic. (hey, if it's good writing, i'll read it.)
the gist of this is that spencer and ryan are reporters who fail to cover a mugging that happened literally in plain sight within a few blocks from them. it would've been a regular mugging except the victim was socialite ashlee simpson-wentz (who also happens to be married to former playboy and current billionaire fashion mogul pete wentz). in an effort to redeem themselves, spence and ryan end up going to chicago with jon, their photographer (subject to change, the movie takes place in london) to get the full story.
they stay at this crappy run-down hotel managed by patrick and inhabited by most of bandom, all of whom are absolutely bonkers in some way and usually high. it's not the best of accommodations but the paper wouldn't cover their lodging, so they make do with what they have.
brendon, meanwhile, is an aspiring designer and ashlee's long-suffering personal assistant or something. by some strange turn of events ryan/spencer confuses him with pete or something, so he ends up running along with it (bc spencer's pretty hot and he doesn't want to lose him by being a lowly personal assistant/secretary or whatever). they end up talking and getting to know each other, sneaking around pete's mansion and whatever (brendon trying to cover up the fact that he's not actually pete wentz! hijinks ensue), and brendon's totally in love with spencer and spencer's kind of falling for brendon (except, y'know, he thinks brendon is pete and pete is married), god someone help these poor boys...
meanwhile over at the hotel (which has some tangled business history with pete's father, but we won't go there) things are heating up, ryan and jon might have a thing for each other, joe might be hopelessly in love with patrick, all this mushy romantic stuff--plus someone trashed the wentzes' mansion and left, like, dead rats and shit on ashlee's windowsill (just short of death threats...may or may not be inspired by all the shit that went down with dallon and breezy last week). so the boys have their hands pretty full, but it's ok bc spencer gets to see brendon and then get his fashion sense needlessly roasted to hell and back by ryan and jon when he asks brendon out on a date.
while out to dinner at some swanky restaurant (paid for by brendon, using pete's credit card number or something idk) brendon ends up getting recognized by pete and then ashlee basically gets attacked in the bathroom creating a huge distraction and spencer tries to chase after brendon but brendon's already gone (out the backdoor...hehe).
pissed and sad, spencer spends a day or two wallowing while ryan and jon figure things out (bc they're actually good journalists, they just suck at timing) and eventually goes on a walk to clear his mind (read: gets kicked out bc ryan's sick of his moping)...where he runs into brendon. brendon tries to play it off but spencer confronts him and then he explains, ashamed. spencer doesn't quite forgive him but grudgingly says they could still be friends.
so they start talking again but like, shit hits the fan and brendon gets accused of basically stalking, threatening, and attempting to kill the wentzes so he could take control of the corporation somehow. he's arrested and thrown in jail but he didn't do it and spencer doesn't think there was any way he could've done it but so far the evidence points to him, and then spencer ends up enlisting half the hotel's help in trying to prove brendon's innocence--all the while falling in love (again) with brendon.
everything turns out in the end, of course.
(i have no shame)
(^ that last part was a lie i have plenty of shame)
(i do want to write this, mainly because this movie's one of my favorites)
