Page 30 of I Knew You Were Trouble

‘“Didn’t know I needed a Frenchman rapping in Korean with his shirt off in my life”,’ J.B. quotes with a wry chuckle, giving his phone a little shimmy.

‘“This is the best live performance ever,”’ Miller laughs, quoting from his screen. ‘“Hope the boys perform this track in New York in January.” Fuck, I hope not.’

‘“Rebel Heart just confirmed the greatest comeback ever,”’ Ravi quotes.

‘We’ve got memes already,’ Aidan carries on.

I watch him. He is relaxed into the sofa contours, one arm thrown above his head, an unopened bottle of water in his lap. The reading and shouting out of quotes on social media goes on for some time. Meredith fetches us more drinks. When she comes back, I sip a bottle of beer. Ziggy arrives, this time looking delighted. I move to where he’s standing.

‘Sounds like the show went down a storm,’ I say to him.

‘Always good when a performance goes viral,’ Ziggy confirms. ‘Does wonders for the credibility.’

‘You think they aren’t seen as credible?’

‘They’re a manufactured boy band. Jesus, I wouldn’t listen to their music. But on a night like this, when they’ve done something special… people start to forget that for a while. People realise that they’re actually very versatile… and talented.’

‘You’ve got to let me start filming again, Ziggy. Their reactions to tonight, I’ve missed all of that.’

He holds up his hands, as though admitting a mistake, even though I’m filming this conversation. ‘Alright, alright. Once we get to Sydney. You can get heaps of footage in Sydney.’

‘And more interview time?’

‘And more interview time. How did it go with Ravi the other day?’

‘It was excellent.’

‘He can be a shy fella but he’s got a heart of gold that one. Let’s try and set you up with another very soon.’

‘Hey, Lexi! Sexy Lexi, get over here!’

I look up to find Cal yelling my name, beckoning me to come closer to the group. My chest tightens. I’m reluctant to join in the celebrations. I edge nearer to them.

‘You get our message, Lex?’ Cal asks with a jaunty smile. None of the other boys will look at me.

I force a half-smile in return, swallowing the lump in my throat. ‘Yes, I got each individual message, thank you.’

‘I mean, Aidey was seriously gutted you weren’t the one underneath with the camera. Duncan’s a cute guy, but… if it’d been you, I’m sure he would have blown you a kiss.’

‘Guess I’ll know for next time.’

Aidan gives Cal a murderous look.

‘Relax, Lexi. I’m fucking with ya. Siddown. Join the party.’

‘Thanks,’ I say quietly.

I look over to Duncan who gives me a reassuring nod.Build trust, I remind myself.

Sweetly, Ravi moves up and pats the seat next to him.

‘Are there a lot of fan accounts?’ I ask him, almost as a rhetorical question, because I’ve trawled through some of them.

‘I mean, we know the big ones,’ Ravi replies. ‘New ones crop up all the time.’

‘All you have to do islook,’ Aidan says, levelling his gaze on mine. ‘It’s called research.’

‘Which I’ve now had plenty of time to do,’ I clap back at him, my tone more aggressive than I intended.

---