Babington arrived shortly after Sidney left to pick up Charlotte and take her to the studios for the second consecutive day of recording. During the drive, Babington tried to engage Charlotte in conversation, but she struggled to formulate any kind of response to his efforts. Her despondency persisted throughout the day, even though she was doing something she loved because the moment she'd had with Sidney was weighing heavily on her mind. James seemed to notice that something was up, but when he had asked Charlotte if she was OK, she had just said she was tired, which to be fair, she was.
Throughout the day Charlotte found she kept checking her phone more often than usual, wondering if Sidney was going to text, but after a few hours it became apparent that he wasn't going to. Unrequited love sucked, and there was only one thing for it... she needed an evening with Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore. Now what movie would it be? The Wedding Singer, 50 First Dates or Blended? Or perhaps all three? Thankfully, she wasn't working tonight so she could just have a movie marathon. As soon as she got back to the flat from the studios, having excused herself from dinner (as she wasn't in the mood for company), she popped a frozen pizza in the oven, got into her pyjamas and stuck on the first movie ready for some escapism.
**********************
"It's a PR nightmare!"
"There's no brushing this under the carpet!"
"Do you think there will be an impact on her album sales?"
"Will they still run the feature in next month's vogue?"
"What was she thinking? Why couldn't she sneak out the back way?"
"But, oh my God – Otis Molyneux! He's supposed to be happily married."
"Well, obviously not."
Sidney's head was pounding by the endless questions and remarks being bandied about by the publicists and PR team. He took a deep breath. "OK. Enough." He said firmly and everyone went quiet and turned to look at him as he took command of the room. "Has anyone actually spoken to Georgiana?"
"I spoke with her manager." Lucy chipped in. "Georgiana's lying low at home. Paparazzi are stationed outside."
"So no-one has spoken to her?" He clarified. The room was silent. For f***s sake! he thought. "As this concerns her private life, shouldn't that have that been the first thing to do? Or have you forgotten that her welfare is also our responsibility?" The room was still quiet. "And has anyone actually thought of what we can do to manage this or are you just going to bark unhelpful comments and questions?" Again, no-one said a word.
"Right, I will phone Georgiana now and when I get back, I want solutions to all the issues you've raised and a PR strategy." He stood up and stared down the room as all of his staff avoided his eye. "And there will be no more gossip. Understood?" They all nodded sheepishly and he left the room to go into his office to call Georgiana.
"Sidney." She answered
"Georgiana."
"I wondered when you'd call. Well go on then." She sighed defeatedly.
"What?"
"Out with it. Tell me what everyone's saying about me, that I'm a homewrecker... a slut."
"Actually I was calling to see how you're doing."
"Like you care."
Sidney sighed. "Contrary to what you may think about me, I do actually care about your wellbeing." There was silence for a moment.
"He loves me." Georgiana said tearfully.
"He's married." Sidney responded.
"I know that." She snapped. "But he doesn't love her."
YOU ARE READING
Sanditon Melodies
FanfictionSidney's train to Sanditon is delayed, and when it finally arrives, he is annoyed to find his reserved seat occupied. Who is this girl that has stolen his seat? And what is it about her that he finds so intriguing? Can he open himself up to the poss...
