The Interview • Chris Evans

The Confession

Chris let out one of those patented laughs, tossing his head back and slapping his hand over his chest. "No, but I'm sure they're both thrilled to be rid of me."

Jimmy and the audience laughed, and Chris rolled his hands as if to say, "am I wrong?"

"Alright, so if it wasn't them, who is this mystery friend?"

You took a deep drink of your wine, surprised when you emptied the glass. How did that happen? Chris was looking a bit like a deer in the headlights, and you got up to grab the wine bottle from the kitchen. Your apartment was small enough you could still see and hear the TV as you plucked it off the counter, returning to the couch.

Chris knew you weren't interested in being in the public eye, especially tied to him. Some of his fans could be ... very intense. And you didn't know if you could take all of the inevitable hate and microanalysis of your life. Walking Dodger in public was already risky enough, though no one had picked up on it yet – perhaps just assuming you were a nameless dog walker. Which suited you just fine. 

Pouring another full glass of wine, you took a sip as you watched Chris flounder around, looking incredibly flustered. Jimmy homed in on this, clearly seeing Chris was trying not to reveal your identity and dying to know who this mystery person was. You were sure Jimmy was assuming the person of this story was a girlfriend, not just a female friend of his, and he was digging for a scoop.

"She's no one," Chris ended up saying, and you flinched. Ouch. Even if you knew he hadn't meant it like that, it still stung.

Chris cringed as though realizing what he'd said, and Jimmy looked like he'd won the freaking lottery.

"This doesn't seem like nothing. So, you have a friend. And she supports your career in indie films? You've gotta tell us about her!"

Chris opened his mouth and closed it twice before speaking. "She's a good friend of mine. She encourages me to do things outside of my comfort zone, to try things I might have otherwise said no to in order to stay in the safety of what I know. I'm lucky to have someone like that in my corner."

Your heart was practically beating out of your chest as he spoke. Although it wasn't anything he hadn't said to you before, it felt amazing to hear it said in front of millions of people.

"She sounds amazing," Jimmy sighed, an almost sweet, boyish tone to his voice. "Is this someone you're perhaps dating?"

Bold. Very bold question. You chugged more wine. Dodger was watching you wearily, his head pivoting from where you were uncomfortably fidgeting on the couch to his dad talking on the TV.

"No, no it's not like that," Chris said, his head tipping slightly downwards, his eyes looking anywhere but at the cameras.

"Chris, I don't mean to pry," Jimmy said, and you rolled your eyes and yelled liar in your head. His next words though had you choking on wine again. "But it seems like maybe you're unhappy with this fact?"

Oh. My. God. This interview had gone so off script and Chris looked like he wanted to crawl out of his skin. You were surprised no one was cutting the interview short, but the cameras just kept rolling. How was there not a commercial break at least? Weren't there editors for this show? It was filmed hours ago. 

"Y'know, she's a great friend," he said, and you thought maybe you should just turn it off. You knew Chris didn't see you as more than a friend, but hearing him say it repeatedly on television was a bit crushing.

"Well, did you friendzone her?" Jimmy asked, the audience chuckling.

Chris was fumbling again. "It's a, uh ... no, I didn't."