Black Equation - The Forgotten Ones

Black Equation - Chapter 1*

Chapter One

"Hey, Jared, toss me a soda. I'm parched," whined Faye Summers as she shrugged out of her leather jacket. Despite the air conditioning, she was sweaty. She never liked the jacket, but it was what her designer scheduled for today. Seriously, it was the most annoying shade of pink man had ever invented!

Where is that silly phone?

Her hands went to her pants, then her bag and under the seat. Geez, that’s the third one she lost within the month! Her temper flared when five seconds lapsed and she’s still without her drink.

"Jared," she repeated in a slightly irritated sing-song tone. "So-da."

"Which one?" frowned the tanned blonde sitting opposite her. He bitterly removed his earphones and left it hanging on his black shirt. He had that stereotypical bad guy look, with his tousled hair and two silver piercings on his left ear.

"As long as it’s cold.”

Jared opened the cooler and handed her a can of Sprite which she immediately popped open and drank.

Gah! The chills!

"Ms. Faye! You ruined your make-up!" gasped Sophie, her expression horrified. The tiny black-haired woman tried to get the can from her without success. Faye grinned as she raised the Sprite over her head, away from her new manager's reach. "Give me that! You need to use a straw!"

"Don't be such a killjoy, Sophie. I'll get retouch later at the dressing room.” Faye chugged the drink like an alcoholic truck driver before giving an unladylike burp. With a smug face, she threw the empty can into the plastic bag beside Jared. "Oh, great! A three-point shot!"

Sophie was in hysterics. “We’re already late! We don’t have enough time to prep you up! They’ll be strapping you in as soon as we arrive!”

“It’s just lipstick!” Faye groaned into her hands. “And we still have twenty minutes!”

“Ten minutes to get you into your costume, five minutes to meet your back-up singers and dancers,” Sophie ticked one by one, “three minutes to rundown the program, another three minutes – “

“Wanna schedule how often I have to breathe as well?”

“Back off Faye," chuckled Jared, resting his head on his chiseled arms. "Give her a break.”

She threw her expensive, Italian bag at him. He merely grinned even though it hit him squarely in the face. “I just ate sushi. If I barf all over your car, I’m not cleaning it.”

"Now that you mentioned it, we are inside mycar," she pouted obstinately. "My car,” she repeated for emphasis. “I can do whatever I want.”

Jared almost rolled his eyes. “Old news. You do whatever you want, regardless the place. What gives?”

Anger kicked into her system. She just lost her phone, and now this? Great. What a day!

“The difference is that once I step out of here, I need to act all cool and nice and sweet and oh-she's-such-an-angel, exactly like how my fans expect me to be. Sophie can get a break but not me?" She crossed her legs exactly the same time she crossed her arms. “That’s unfair.”

Jared gave her a glare. "Behave, Faye."

She huffed.

"Yes, father," she muttered dryly.

"I heard that!”

"Stop that you two," Sophie wanted to pull her hair in frustration. Only now did she fully understand her predecessor’s warning about managing Faye Summers. She’d been on the job only for a week, but she felt like she aged a decade. "Best friends shouldn't be fighting over something so trivial. What are you, toddlers?"