Annie's Story

Chapter Seven: Jake's Turn In The Tabloids

Chapter Seven: Jake's Turn In The Tabloids

Soulshine's music was being played on radio stations all over the world. Women and a few men were talking about the very desirable men of the band. Everyone had their favorite member of the band. They were doing interviews and appearing on late-night and morning talk shows.

Jake always had his light brown hair pulled back in a low ponytail. He barely looked at the camera. He stared off into the distance, barely paying attention to the questions being asked. Rumors circulated he was on drugs and not a nice person.

Thomas' deep voice overpowered everyone else's voice. His blonde hair would fall loosely around his shoulders. He would do most of the talking during the interviews. He would answer all the questions thrown at them. Thomas appeared charismatic to everyone watching the interviews.

Kincaid's jet-black hair fell to the middle of his back. His light brown eyes stood out against his long, dark lashes. He would tell funny road stories.

Trevor's brown hair was shoulder length, paired with deep brown eyes and a raspy voice. He had an infectious laugh that would cause all around him to laugh, even if they didn't know what they were laughing at.

Miguel was the only clean-cut guy in the band. His dark hair was closely cropped, and his eyes were as dark as the ocean's deepest depths. His Spanish accent was slightly still there when he spoke, though he had lived in the States since he was three. When he sang, there were no signs of it.

During the morning talk show, the host was firing off questions to the band. Thomas took over answering all the questions from the host. Millions of people watched the show, and internet rumors began flying about Jake. He wasn't happy. He was leaving the band. He was doing drugs.

Annie stopped looking at the internet about the band. She knew Jake better than anyone spreading these lies. She knew that was not him. There was something broken in him. She would find out what was going on.

Annie walked into the café to start her day, donning the name tag of Michelle for the day. As she began her day, a group of schoolgirls entered, giggling as they held one of the tabloid magazines. Soulshine was on the front cover. Jake, Thomas, Kincaid, Trevor, and Miguel were spotted with supermodels Maria Ketruv, Alyssa Petrina, Lila Lovich, Michele Pierre, and Lulu Lewisky. The girls were talking about the band and who was the hottest member.

Annie glimpsed Jake and Maria, walking arm in arm, and her heart sank. She thought she was over him. She had a great guy; Markus treated her right, and he liked to surprise her. She enjoyed her time with him. Their walks home was always the highlight of her day. When they went to the diner, she had the best time sharing jokes between Markus and Val. Their laughter made her heart sing.

Annie was on the verge of tears when the girls stepped up to the counter.

"How may I help you, ladies?" Annie whispered.

"Do you sell anything besides coffee?" asked the red-headed girl with blue eyes.

"Yeah, we have teas, if you prefer, or I can make you a smoothie," Annie sighed.

"Oooh, what kind of smoothie?" asked the girl with the dark brown hair and brown eyes.

"It will be up to you. What fruits do you like?" Annie said more confidently.

"I like all fruits," said the red-haired girl.

"What milk do you like? Regular, soy, oat, or almond?" Annie asked.

"How about oat milk with strawberries, bananas, and you choose the other fruits," replied the red-haired girl.

"Great, I will get that started. And what about you, sweetie?" Annie asked.

"Let's make it easy, make it a double," the dark-haired girl grinned.

"Okay, ladies, have a seat and I will get them started," Annie said, turning away from the girls. She kept her back to the counter as she cut up the fruits, tears streaming down her face. She turned the blender on as her body shook with sobs. Donovan and Claire came over to her.

"Go in the back. I'll finish these up," Claire guided her toward the kitchen. Annie went through the swinging door to the kitchen and collapsed on an overturned milk crate. Donovan followed her.

"Talk to me. What is going on?" Donovan put his arm around her.

"I don't know what happened," Annie said. "I was perfectly fine. Then those two girls came in with that magazine and I lost it."

"What was on it?" Donovan asked.

"Jake, Trevor, Thomas, Kincaid, and Miguel all walking arm in arm with supermodels. I thought I was over him," Annie sobbed.

"Honey, he is famous now. The women are going to throw themselves at him," Donovan handed her a napkin. Annie wiped her face. "You had to expect this. Besides, you have Markus. Did you think Jake was going to save himself for you?"

"I don't know what I thought," Annie said.

"You know he has seen all the headlines involving you," Donovan said. "You have to expect him to be with ladies. Maybe if you would have told him how you felt, he would not be with this supermodel."

"Sure, he wouldn't have," Annie said, laughing. Donovan laughed with her.

"We both know better than that," Donovan said.

"Everything okay in here?" Claire poked her head in. Annie nodded and stood. "Good, take a few minutes to yourself."

"I'm okay," Annie said. "I'm going to wash my face and be back out."

"Okay," Claire said as Annie walked away. "What happened?"

"Jake is what happened," Donovan sighed. "Those girls came in with a magazine, and he is on the cover with a supermodel."

"Sh*t," Claire said.

"Yup," Donovan said. They went back out to the front of the café. Annie returned with her best fake smile to finish her day. Markus showed up just as she was locking the door.

"Hey, beautiful," he said, wrapping his arms around her.

"Hey," Annie whispered with downcast eyes.

"Are you okay?" Markus asked, raising her chin to meet her eyes with his.

"Yeah," Annie said with a slight smile, locking her arm in his. They walked the three blocks to his apartment steps. "Markus, please, I want to walk the rest of the way by myself."

"Babe, what's going on?" he asked, concerned.

"Nothing, I just had a rough day and need the time to think," she said, shaking her head.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yes, please, I just need to be by myself tonight," she said, wiping the tears beginning to fall.

"Hey, did I upset you?" he asked.

"No, this has nothing to do with you," she said, pulling away from him. "I have to go."

"Call me later and let me know you are okay," he said.

"I will, thanks," she said, walking away from him. Markus looked at Frank, who shrugged at him.

"She looks heartbroken," Frank said.

"Yeah, I got that impression, too," Markus said, watching her hurried pace.

Annie turned on her laptop and began searching for every image of Jake with other women. She found pictures of him with Maria, Lizzy McAllister who is an actress, Hailey Rivers who is a musician, and a few other women. Annie researched all the women they had seen Jake with since he left town. Slamming her laptop closed, she screamed into her pillow.

Annie picked up her phone, wanting to call Jake and scream at him. Instead, she went through the photos of him on her phone, remembering all the fun they had together. Tears streamed down her face as she swiped through the photos. She found one of him and Stella, a tall blonde he used to date. She should have known then that she was never his type.

She cried late into the night, never calling Markus to let him know she was okay because she wasn't okay. She cried herself to sleep. Her arms were wrapped around her pillow, hugging it tightly. She awoke the next morning with a splitting headache. She called into work for the first time in a year.

Annie looked at herself in the mirror, touching her puffy eyes and cheeks. She sighed and crawled back into bed. Grabbing the remote, she clicked on one of the morning talk shows, and there he was. Jake was sitting there staring off into space as the host asked questions he ignored. Annie shook her head, knowing Jake was not happy. She could see it in the way he was carrying himself. This was not the Jake she knew.

She grabbed her phone to text him and thought better of it, placing the phone back on her nightstand. No, she would not contact him. Let his new flame take care of him. She would wait until he came home to talk to him. Then she would tell him what she thought of his escapades.