VI. GROUPIES
356 Words
VI. GROUPIES
Charlie and LaRissa sat in the backseat of the Prius, out of breath, hearts pounding.
“Excuse me. Destination? Says just ‘Central Park,’” Yannick the Uber driver asked his passengers.
“Can you just drive, and we’ll let you know?” LaRissa’s plan was to conduct the interview from the backseat of the car if she could convince the driver – and she was confident she could entice him enough.
“But I need to know for correct fare.”
“Look… Yannick… We need privacy. I’m sure you saw the police escorting us back there. If you drive us to a nice, secluded spot I will make it well worth your time.”
“Are you two criminals?”
LaRissa thought, “Great, the only person in Manhattan who’s not a fan of Charlie Estrella.”
“A thousand bucks for us to use your car today,” Charlie cut to the chase.
“Right! And then you steal my car.”
“Two thousand.”
“And how do I get car back from you?”
A small herd of groupies from the hotel noticed the black Prius pulled over to the curb, a couple blocks from the Plaza, and began racing to the car.
LaRissa spotted the groupies in the side view mirror.
“You need to drive now!”
“How will I get back to my car?”
“Take an Uber!” Charlie exclaimed, exasperated with how the transaction was transpiring.
“Five thousand,” Yannick negotiated.
“Fine, just drive.”
As the Prius pulled away from the curb, several groupies had reached the car and began pounding on the back windows.
“Can you drive faster, Yannick!?!” LaRissa was shocked at the driver’s extreme caution.
Charlie and LaRissa felt lucky to be alive. The police arrived as the hotel room door was breaking free of its hinges, and roughly two hundred rabid fans were ready to storm the suite.
Other hotel guests – many wealthy tourists freaking out inside their room – cracked open their doors to investigate. “Everyone, please stay in your rooms!” the riot police screamed.
Through the bull horn, the police announced, “Everyone disburse immediately!” This slowed the rowdy crowd, but just as the suite door crashed to the floor, splinters, and dust flying everywhere, the police shot tear gas into the crowd. When the dust settled, a stampede of crazed Estrella fans raced for the exits and elevators.
- Writer
