Diamond in the Rough (3 page)

Armand shook his head and clucked.  “Pen, since when were you such a skeptic? Zoe’s successful on her own and all this partying is making people like her
more
.  Maybe the girl is just a fan.”

“Yeah, maybe she does like my music and isn’t trying to use me,” Gemma pouted. “Way to boost my ego, Pen,” she said sarcastically.

“This
is
an ego booster,” Penelope said. “The biggest stars are so threatened by you that they need to join our side before we squash them with our sheer genius.”

“Okay, maybe,” Armand shrugged. “Either way, no reason why you can’t meet the girl, yes? Can you imagine all the little girls going crazy when they find out Queen Bee might have a guest role on
Outta this World
?”

“Yes! It’ll be so fun,” Gemma squealed.

“But I guess I do agree with Doomsday Penny to watch your back with all these other stars. Girls can be evil.”

Gemma’s shoulders slumped. “I know.  I learned quite a bit with Madison,” she rolled her eyes.

“So this might not be the best time to tell you that I saw her name on the guest list for Queen Bee’s Birthday Bash?” Penelope bit her lip.

“No way! How?” Gemma whined. “She didn’t even like Queen Bee.”

“Rich girls and their well-connected parents, sweetie,” Penelope shrugged. “And I’m sure she likes Tyler Chase, and everyone believes he’s coming.  Including me.”

Gemma flopped back onto the bed and covered her face with a chenille pillow. “I thought I never had to see her again,” she groaned.

“Honey, there are one thousand people on the guest list.  I don’t think you have anything to worry about seeing her regardless,” Penelope said.  She reached over to yank the pillow off Gemma’s face.  “Come on, cheer up! Shall I send Zoe Mercury an invitation?”

“Yes!” Gemma popped back up in bed. “I want to meet her.  I promise I’ll be careful.  I just need to know more people
like
me, you know?”

“Well what about Tyler Chase? Have you heard from him?” Armand asked. “Goodness, all these admirers.  I can hardly keep track.”

“Ugh, if he comes then we’d have to invite his security so he doesn’t cause another disaster like he did in L.A.  Still can’t believe that punk did that,” Penelope laughed. “Though I guess it was sweet that a guy went through all that just to get your attention.  But seriously, heart attack.  Almost died that night.”

“If we invited all his security, we’d go over the club’s capacity,” Armand joked. “Fire hazard.”

“It’s a fire hazard just to have Queen Bee and Tyler Chase in the same room.  All those sparks!” Penelope teased, waving her hands in the air. “There was chemistry there, I know it.”  Gemma blushed, popping a strawberry in her mouth so she wouldn’t have to speak.  The mention of Tyler Chase never failed to make her anxious and excited lately.

“Stop eating those strawberries,” Armand scolded.  “Have more cake before I am forced to eat the leftovers alone.”

“Armand, no,” Gemma frowned.  “I’ve never sung in broad daylight for a national audience and the last thing I need is a food baby.”

In less than twenty-four hours, Queen Bee was scheduled to perform on The Today Show for their famous summer concerts at Rockefeller Center.  Queen Bee hadn’t made a live appearance in months, and after Gemma pointed this out, Penelope and Armand called for an “emergency hang-out” in order to calm her nerves.

“Oh shush your mouth,” Armand waved a hand in front of Gemma’s face. “All this – your face, the eyes, that cute little nose – we take care of it.  If you have a cake belly tomorrow, we put you in the empire-waist Givenchy dress,” Armand said. “We spend hours perfecting Queen Bee –
just
like I spent hours slaving away over flour and butter. Now eat this almond cake before I am offended.”

Gemma and Penelope burst out laughing.  Penelope cut Gemma a piece of the cake and Gemma popped a piece in her mouth, feeling the luxurious, buttery texture melt on her tongue.  She could always count on her team to make her worries magically fade away.

~

“Guess what, my love?” Armand said as he tightened the corset of the custom designed Marchesa gown around Gemma’s waist.  “No need for the other dress.  I think I’ve just given you a twenty-inch waist.”

“I think I’m going to faint,” Gemma squeaked.  She stared into the gilded mirror in their hotel suite.  “And I’m pretty sure I can still see the food bulge.”

“Oh hush!” Armand shook his head.  Gemma took a deep breath in.  They had decided to get into half of the costume before arriving at Rockefeller Center so she would be in disguise before leaving their secret quarters.  At a vanity next to them, Penelope carefully removed a delicate headpiece from its case.

“It took three hours for me to hand sew these beads onto your veil,” Penelope explained as she held up a headpiece with an attached mesh veil.  The bottom of the veil was trimmed with a fringe of hanging beads.  “Dance your heart out on that stage, but if you break one bead off this veil, I’ll murder you.”

“Wow, okay. Love you too, Pen.”

“It’s just that these beads cost more than the outfit,” Penelope explained.

Gemma laughed. “Why are they necessary?” she questioned.

“Because Queen Bee is huge now, and your popularity is growing,” Penelope said. “We have to outdo your every step from now on.  We’re building a team that’s not just Armand and me.  There’s a lot on our plate – on everyone’s, really.”

Gemma nodded in silence as she observed Penelope’s seriousness.  She knew that the phenomenon of Queen Bee had been growing by the day, but she never thought about how their small and private operation would have to expand to accommodate her fame.  Gemma wondered if this meant that more personnel would be let in on the secret of her identity.

“Stop it, Pen,” Armand shushed Penelope.  “Why get all our nerves up right before a performance? You’re made of worry these days.”

Penelope nodded and hushed herself as she placed the beaded satin headpiece atop Gemma’s head.  It was a rich jeweled rose color and shaped in a crescent moon. The attached veil was short and ended right below her eyes with the beaded fringe hanging past her nose and grazing the top of her lips.

“This is gorgeous, Pen,” Gemma smiled. “I love it.” Penelope finally cracked a smile.

“Thank you, but it’s all you.  Everything I make is inspired by who you are,” Penelope said as she adjusted the headpiece and gave Gemma a hug. “You’re going to slay onstage.”

~

In the green room at the studios, Gemma admired her ensemble in the mirror.  The deep green of the skirt contrasted against the jeweled rose of her corset and headpiece but still nothing detracted from her signature lavender eyes.  The skirt draped like liquid in the back while it was open in the front, showing off her gold silk stockings and six-inch black suede pumps with beading that matched her headpiece.

“You two are geniuses,” Gemma marveled joyously.  She felt the energy in her body fully shifting into Queen Bee mode.

The crowd roared the moment she stepped out onto the stage.  The sound of their cheering was deafening and she struggled to hear the host’s questions. Gemma gazed out at her fans and waved at them.  For once, because of the broad daylight, she could see all their faces rather than mere outlines of their bodies.  The excitement was visible – the smiles, the screams, the tears.

“Before we wrap up this interview because I think the fans are getting a little antsy,” the host chuckled. “I have to ask – how many people know your true identity?”

“Many people know my true identity,” Gemma teased. “But since they know that one, they don’t get to know this one.” Both the host and the crowd laughed.

“How many people know both identities, then?”

“Just my family members, and not even all of them.”

“Any chance they’d let me in on the secret?”

Gemma laughed. “Not at all!”

“Well, you can’t blame me for trying!” the host said affably. “Regardless of who you are, Queen Bee, we are all very excited that you’re here today and ready to perform for us.  Why don’t you let the audience know which one of your hit singles you’ll be performing today?”

“Today I’ll be singing ‘My Choice,’” Gemma answered to an immediate roar of approval.  It was a single from her new album and a song she had written at the lake house the summer before.

Gemma made her way to the front of the stage.  She waited for the music to begin, standing in front of the mic with her eyes closed.  As the chords came in, she felt a peace wash over her.  She could feel herself falling comfortably into this role again.

“
Move by move we move the pieces/Step by step the steps repeated/List by list we list our days/Then move by move we move away,”
Gemma crooned into the microphone, remembering all the emotions that coursed through her when she wrote the words. She had had a tumultuous year but she couldn’t be happier to be where she was now. “
Movements, steps and listless nights/Day by day it’s fight or flight/And through the wind we carry on/Through the wind we hear our song.”

The band began to pick up, ready for the chorus.  Gemma opened her eyes and saw her fans surrounding her, singing along with her.  The song had barely been released, yet everyone knew it.  Then suddenly, the loudspeaker echoed.

“We’ve got a surprise for you, Queen Bee,” the voice boomed. Gemma’s eyes shot open as she looked around. “A special celebrity fan is here to sing with you.”

Gemma’s eyes darted to the hosts who clapped excitedly.  She caught a glimpse of Armand and Penelope, looking confused in the wings.  For a moment, her heart feared that Penelope was right.  Zoe Mercury had come to crash her performance and steal her thunder.

Gemma continued to look around, but no one came out.  She heard her cue for the chorus and continued to sing.  “
On repeat like a song you can’t get outta your head/We live our lives roaring, we can wake the dead/And you and I both we can make the choice/You and I both, I can hear your voice/Singing my choice, my choice/You’re my choice, my choice.”

In the moment of the chorus, she had almost forgotten about the secret guest – until she heard a familiar voice echoing her words.  Just when she thought the crowd couldn’t get louder, it did.  She opened her eyes and turned to see Tyler Chase walking towards her, mic in hand.  He smiled as he sang her lyrics, shaking his hair from his eyes so he could better gaze at her upon getting closer.  Her lips parted in surprise.  She batted her lashes, stunned and speechless.

“
And on repeat you’re singing in my head/On repeat, remember all that you’ve said,”
Tyler crooned, his honey-brown eyes focused only on Gemma. “
You and I both, I can hear your voice. ’cause you and I, baby/That is my choice...”

The crowd roared with excitement as Tyler reached in, boldly scooping Gemma into his arms and planting a kiss on her cheek.  She giggled as he pulled her away from the mic and leaned in close.

“I’ve been chasing you for almost a year,” he whispered into her ear. “Are you going to let me catch you already?”

Gemma smiled mischievously. “I think you’ve got me.”

IS ‘MY CHOICE’ ABOUT TEENAGE PREGNANCY AND DID TYLER CHASE KNOCK UP QUEEN BEE?

If so, I’m offing myself now

6/13 3:21PM

Posted by Tara C.

Her Royal Secrecy

For once, the tabloids are saying things that are more deranged than the shit that comes out of my own (admittedly) unstable mouth.

As you Tyler Chasers well know, Tyler hijacked Queen Bee’s performance at the Rockefeller Center concert yesterday (some call it a duet, but I call it showing that bitch who’s boss) and sang a verse of ‘My Choice,’ which include the lyrics, “You and I both, I can hear your voice. ‘Cause you and I baby, that is my choice.”

Those lyrics plus QB’s weight gain/period bloat/constipation/growing fetus have started a shitstorm on the internet that I kinda can’t believe I wasn’t behind.  But then again, I could never fathom the idea of Tyler Chase bumping nasties with anyone besides
myself
the person he truly loves.  I have to say, I’ll be bummed as fuck if Tyler did choose to lose it (yes, I believe he’s still pure) to that masked, possibly fugly weirdo.  I mean, if he’s just into his girls wearing costumes while doing the dirty, I’ll do that for him.  Just don’t make me sing ‘My Choice,’ okay?

In defense of my Tyler, there are other possibilities of baby daddies if QB really is preggers.  Word has it that there’s been a tall, teenaged, dark-haired hottie lurking around her entourage lately who is not a dancer, makeup artist, stylist, or professional ass kisser.  I’m going to place my bets on him being the one who knocked QB up – either that, or the girl really needs to take some Dulcolax.  Because Tyler Chase’s golden swimmers have millions of little “Reserved” signs on them, and those reservations were made by me, or an equally deserving Tyler Chaser.

And I swear to God, Queen Bee, if I hear any more bullshit about you corrupting my baby, I am hunting you down.

Oh wait.  I already am.

The Empire State Building was lit in lavender that night.  Gemma pretended that it was an ode to Queen Bee as she gazed into the distance.  She had seen the building a thousand times, but she found it suddenly breathtaking as she stood alone on the roof of a fifty-floor hotel.

Well, not completely alone.

“Happy early birthday,” Tyler grinned.  “I think… since no one knows Queen Bee’s actual birth date.”

“This way, I get the entire month.”  Gemma turned to him.  In addition to the spectacular scenery was a table for two, set in the very middle of the enormous rooftop.  The sun was almost set, leaving the sky an indigo hue.  It was that time of the evening when the city lights were just beginning to sparkle.