FOTD, Peanut Butter #5, Star Fruit #22 - The Fame
Author: askingxalice
Title: The Fame
Summary: A pop star walks into a restaurant in New Orleans...
Story: Second Genesis
Timeline: May 4041 - Chloe and Faith are 25, Penn is 28.
Challenge: FOTD (minim), Peanut Butter #5 (wood), Star Fruit #22 (I don’t know the meaning of the word)
Word Count: 1,502
Rating: PG
minim \MIN-uhm\, noun:
4. Something very small or insignificant.
Example: Not Chloe
It had all started with a simple question that Faith had nearly missed. It seemed like she had been on the phone all day, making sure that everything was set up, that there was no schedule overlaps, that no concert equipment had somehow caught on fire again. Being Chloe’s manager must have been one of the hardest jobs on the planet, but Faith had nearly had a conniption at the idea of anyone else doing the job. Nobody else knew Chloe as well as she did, and she’d die before anyone else helped run her career. Tugging at the end of her ponytail as she snapped her cell phone shut, Faith had to stop herself from chewing on the end of it; she had broken that nervous habit years ago, and she wasn’t about to make it something she did when she was stressed.
“Hey, Cherry...” Faith walked back into the hotel room to find Chloe talking to the hotel manager who was assuring her that the hotel would supply anything she needed with a phone call. With the prices of the rooms, Faith dearly hoped they made that offer to every guest; Chloe hated being singled out and doted on like she was more special than someone else because of her job.
Over the manager’s shoulder, Chloe caught her eye and winked, and Faith felt a stirring of excitement. She knew that wink well enough. It meant that Cherry Cherry Boom Boom had a plan for some fun, and was about to initiate the first step. The singer turned her attention back towards the manager and waited for a pause in the stammered assurances to speak. “Do you know where we could find some good barbecue? I’ve had a craving for it ever since we left Tennessee.”
The question seemed to take the manager off guard, and it was a moment before she could answer. Faith heard some stumbled over answer about a very nice, high quality fine dining restaurant nearby, and nearly shook her head along with Chloe before she stepped in. “If you don’t mind, can you recommend a more... down to Earth sort of place? We’re much more casual when it comes to our food.”
The hotel manager blinked as she turned to face Faith, taken aback by that. “W-well... you could always try... The Joint?” She offered, as if she were expecting to be yelled at for suggesting such a place. “It’s in Bywater, on Poland Street.”
“Sounds perfect. Thanks.”
It took longer than Faith would have liked to actually get out of the hotel. The manager had to be tipped, along with the employees that had brought up their luggage and helped them get settled; Penn had to be woken up and coerced into going, because in Chloe’s mind, she wouldn’t need bodyguards if she had both Faith and Penn with her, and then there was the process of getting ready. When it came to Chloe, getting ready to go out was never a short process.
But it was a shorter time than she expected, even if she laughed and shook her head at the fact that Chloe looked like a mixture of Alice in Wonderland and Jackie O with her knee length halter sundress, five inch heels, and parasol. Penn chuckled when Chloe slid her sunglasses down her nose and jokingly fluttered her eyelashes at him when he had opened the door for her, and off they went. The paparazzi waiting outside of the hotel wasn’t a surprise to any of them, though Faith had to drag Chloe to the car after more than a few moments of happily waving to the cameras.
By the time they arrived, night had completely fallen, and both Chloe and Faith nearly had their faces pressed against the tinted windows to take in New Orleans in all its glory. Penn had scoffed, and made the usual big brotherly comments about how they were dorks, and made sure they didn’t see how he stared just as much out of the corner of his eye. Unsurprisingly, there were cameras waiting for them outside the small restaurant, though the trio hardly noticed this time; the smell of smoking wood and barbecue was far more enticing than posing (or in Faith and Penn’s case, glaring protectively from just out of the lenses sight).
If the patrons inside the building didn’t know what to make of the camera flashes and yelled questions outside, they certainly didn’t know what to do once Chloe walked through the door. Faith and Penn quickly found themselves pushed to the side of a growing mob that they had to fight their way back to the center of. Chloe’s smile was wide, and a pleased blush stained her cheeks at the attention by the time they reached her. While Chloe did what she did best and charmed the crowd, Faith stuck to her side in case anyone got shirty, and Penn kept a weathered eye on the door.
It took even longer to get to a free table than it had for them to get ready and leave, though Faith openly admired Chloe’s way of handling her fans. She had talked to everyone who had greeted her, and listened to every word they said. Thanks you were given just as much as smiles were, along with small talk here and there about her life, her music, and the two siblings had been amused at how Chloe made sure that the ring on her left hand was seen by anyone who had been inclined to flirt. She had flirted back, of course, but it was innocent. It was quickly known that she was there for food, not boys.
She had politely declined anyone that offered to move tables or give up their seats for them. One of the employees had even offered to put their order ahead of everyone else’s, and Chloe had looked appalled at the idea. “No. I’m just a normal person that wants some ribs and baked beans. I’m not here to cause any trouble.” She said, before the employee had blushed and nodded before hurrying away. Penn had made a comment about how she could have at least put his order first, because he was starving. He quickly had to swallow a few choice words as Chloe stomped on his foot under the table, and Faith had to press a fist against her mouth to keep from laughing too loudly.
By the time they were ready to leave, the restaurant had calmed down a bit. Most of the other patrons had stopped staring, though it wasn’t odd for someone to come over to the table every once and a while to ask for pictures or autographs, or just to say hello if they had just come in. Chloe accepted them all with the same gleefulness that she had before, and Faith had to wonder how the girl hadn’t ended up as prom queen when they were in school. She had such a way with people, and not a drop of it was an act. One older gentleman had even asked her to dance, and Chloe had laughed and agreed, and she spent the next little bit learning how to dance a Cajun waltz. Both Faith and Penn were both certain that the steps would be incorporated into a dance routine on stage at some point.
Penn darted outside with Chloe took care of the bill, and returned with a grim face. The cameras had only grown in waiting for her to come out, and the news called Faith to scowl, while Chloe’s smile toned down. She didn’t mind the paparazzi, but she would be lying if she said she felt liked dealing with them at that moment. Looking around the restaurant, she quickly got the attention of a waitress that was about her size and had the same hair color. Beckoning her to bend down, Chloe spoke in a quiet voice. “I really need to get out of here without causing a huge scene. Would you mind helping me?”
The plan she concocted made Penn mutter a quick prayer under his breath. This could go wrong in so many ways, but leave it to Chloe to make it seem like a perfectly logical plan. The waitress led Chloe the bathroom, while Penn guarded the door and Faith made a few phone calls with very specific orders. Twenty minutes later, the paparazzi took as many pictures as they could of a dark haired woman in five inch heels, a knee length sundress, with sunglasses and parasol as they could before she quickly got into a cab.
The photographers left and took their cameras with them soon afterward. Not long after that, Chloe, Faith, and Penn got into another cab. The two siblings wore the clothing they arrived with, but Chloe was now hardly recognizable in her worn and torn jeans, barbecue stained t-shirt, and sneakers.
Title: The Fame
Summary: A pop star walks into a restaurant in New Orleans...
Story: Second Genesis
Timeline: May 4041 - Chloe and Faith are 25, Penn is 28.
Challenge: FOTD (minim), Peanut Butter #5 (wood), Star Fruit #22 (I don’t know the meaning of the word)
Word Count: 1,502
Rating: PG
minim \MIN-uhm\, noun:
4. Something very small or insignificant.
Example: Not Chloe
It had all started with a simple question that Faith had nearly missed. It seemed like she had been on the phone all day, making sure that everything was set up, that there was no schedule overlaps, that no concert equipment had somehow caught on fire again. Being Chloe’s manager must have been one of the hardest jobs on the planet, but Faith had nearly had a conniption at the idea of anyone else doing the job. Nobody else knew Chloe as well as she did, and she’d die before anyone else helped run her career. Tugging at the end of her ponytail as she snapped her cell phone shut, Faith had to stop herself from chewing on the end of it; she had broken that nervous habit years ago, and she wasn’t about to make it something she did when she was stressed.
“Hey, Cherry...” Faith walked back into the hotel room to find Chloe talking to the hotel manager who was assuring her that the hotel would supply anything she needed with a phone call. With the prices of the rooms, Faith dearly hoped they made that offer to every guest; Chloe hated being singled out and doted on like she was more special than someone else because of her job.
Over the manager’s shoulder, Chloe caught her eye and winked, and Faith felt a stirring of excitement. She knew that wink well enough. It meant that Cherry Cherry Boom Boom had a plan for some fun, and was about to initiate the first step. The singer turned her attention back towards the manager and waited for a pause in the stammered assurances to speak. “Do you know where we could find some good barbecue? I’ve had a craving for it ever since we left Tennessee.”
The question seemed to take the manager off guard, and it was a moment before she could answer. Faith heard some stumbled over answer about a very nice, high quality fine dining restaurant nearby, and nearly shook her head along with Chloe before she stepped in. “If you don’t mind, can you recommend a more... down to Earth sort of place? We’re much more casual when it comes to our food.”
The hotel manager blinked as she turned to face Faith, taken aback by that. “W-well... you could always try... The Joint?” She offered, as if she were expecting to be yelled at for suggesting such a place. “It’s in Bywater, on Poland Street.”
“Sounds perfect. Thanks.”
It took longer than Faith would have liked to actually get out of the hotel. The manager had to be tipped, along with the employees that had brought up their luggage and helped them get settled; Penn had to be woken up and coerced into going, because in Chloe’s mind, she wouldn’t need bodyguards if she had both Faith and Penn with her, and then there was the process of getting ready. When it came to Chloe, getting ready to go out was never a short process.
But it was a shorter time than she expected, even if she laughed and shook her head at the fact that Chloe looked like a mixture of Alice in Wonderland and Jackie O with her knee length halter sundress, five inch heels, and parasol. Penn chuckled when Chloe slid her sunglasses down her nose and jokingly fluttered her eyelashes at him when he had opened the door for her, and off they went. The paparazzi waiting outside of the hotel wasn’t a surprise to any of them, though Faith had to drag Chloe to the car after more than a few moments of happily waving to the cameras.
By the time they arrived, night had completely fallen, and both Chloe and Faith nearly had their faces pressed against the tinted windows to take in New Orleans in all its glory. Penn had scoffed, and made the usual big brotherly comments about how they were dorks, and made sure they didn’t see how he stared just as much out of the corner of his eye. Unsurprisingly, there were cameras waiting for them outside the small restaurant, though the trio hardly noticed this time; the smell of smoking wood and barbecue was far more enticing than posing (or in Faith and Penn’s case, glaring protectively from just out of the lenses sight).
If the patrons inside the building didn’t know what to make of the camera flashes and yelled questions outside, they certainly didn’t know what to do once Chloe walked through the door. Faith and Penn quickly found themselves pushed to the side of a growing mob that they had to fight their way back to the center of. Chloe’s smile was wide, and a pleased blush stained her cheeks at the attention by the time they reached her. While Chloe did what she did best and charmed the crowd, Faith stuck to her side in case anyone got shirty, and Penn kept a weathered eye on the door.
It took even longer to get to a free table than it had for them to get ready and leave, though Faith openly admired Chloe’s way of handling her fans. She had talked to everyone who had greeted her, and listened to every word they said. Thanks you were given just as much as smiles were, along with small talk here and there about her life, her music, and the two siblings had been amused at how Chloe made sure that the ring on her left hand was seen by anyone who had been inclined to flirt. She had flirted back, of course, but it was innocent. It was quickly known that she was there for food, not boys.
She had politely declined anyone that offered to move tables or give up their seats for them. One of the employees had even offered to put their order ahead of everyone else’s, and Chloe had looked appalled at the idea. “No. I’m just a normal person that wants some ribs and baked beans. I’m not here to cause any trouble.” She said, before the employee had blushed and nodded before hurrying away. Penn had made a comment about how she could have at least put his order first, because he was starving. He quickly had to swallow a few choice words as Chloe stomped on his foot under the table, and Faith had to press a fist against her mouth to keep from laughing too loudly.
By the time they were ready to leave, the restaurant had calmed down a bit. Most of the other patrons had stopped staring, though it wasn’t odd for someone to come over to the table every once and a while to ask for pictures or autographs, or just to say hello if they had just come in. Chloe accepted them all with the same gleefulness that she had before, and Faith had to wonder how the girl hadn’t ended up as prom queen when they were in school. She had such a way with people, and not a drop of it was an act. One older gentleman had even asked her to dance, and Chloe had laughed and agreed, and she spent the next little bit learning how to dance a Cajun waltz. Both Faith and Penn were both certain that the steps would be incorporated into a dance routine on stage at some point.
Penn darted outside with Chloe took care of the bill, and returned with a grim face. The cameras had only grown in waiting for her to come out, and the news called Faith to scowl, while Chloe’s smile toned down. She didn’t mind the paparazzi, but she would be lying if she said she felt liked dealing with them at that moment. Looking around the restaurant, she quickly got the attention of a waitress that was about her size and had the same hair color. Beckoning her to bend down, Chloe spoke in a quiet voice. “I really need to get out of here without causing a huge scene. Would you mind helping me?”
The plan she concocted made Penn mutter a quick prayer under his breath. This could go wrong in so many ways, but leave it to Chloe to make it seem like a perfectly logical plan. The waitress led Chloe the bathroom, while Penn guarded the door and Faith made a few phone calls with very specific orders. Twenty minutes later, the paparazzi took as many pictures as they could of a dark haired woman in five inch heels, a knee length sundress, with sunglasses and parasol as they could before she quickly got into a cab.
The photographers left and took their cameras with them soon afterward. Not long after that, Chloe, Faith, and Penn got into another cab. The two siblings wore the clothing they arrived with, but Chloe was now hardly recognizable in her worn and torn jeans, barbecue stained t-shirt, and sneakers.