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Chapter 2: The Third Person

Author's note: Thank you for the warm feedback. I have a lot of motivation on writing this story at the moment so I hope you enjoy this next chapter.

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The crew celebrated Rihanna's successful performance while sharing glasses of champagne in her enormous dressing room. Her show at the Staples Center was completely sold out and many other celebrities came by to watch her perform. Though it's very typical for her, she still very much appreciated and enjoyed the continuous support and success she gets.

As much as possible, she keeps herself down to earth.

The loud Caribbean music blasted while Rihanna's friends like Melissa and Leandra danced. Everyone shared small talks with each other while Aubrey stood by the corner just trying to observe everyone. That is his job anyway.

Though he had been working for Rihanna for about two weeks now, they haven't shared much conversation with each other. Like she said, anything he had to tell her had to be relayed to Jen, which he pretty much has done.

As he stood there alone, Aubrey pondered over how he is overwhelmed with the amount of paparazzi and fans that followed this woman. The moment she steps out of a restaurant or a hotel, scream, shouts, and unstoppable flashing lights hit their faces, he sometimes wondered at what point does the flash truly become normal in his eyes because it's as if he becomes blinded by it. He wondered how she is able to handle such chaos. No wonder why she is so private.

The screams didn't seem to bother her, it felt very...normal. It was as if she was just taking a stroll at an empty street. People shouted 'You're so beautiful tonight' or 'Damn, that dress looks fine.' and it is really as if she doesn't hear anything at all. The flashing lights didn't seem to matter. Of course, she wasn't the one pushing the paparazzi and fans away, Aubrey was.

Despite the chaos, there was a certain calmness to his newfound job. When everything settles down, the fans and paparazzi are gone, the whole crew had left, and he is left alone in a room with only around 3-4 people with her, he is able to just quietly observe everyone. Actually, just quietly observe her just as his position entails him to.

He gradually noticed that whenever she was getting her hair done, her attention was just focused on her phone - probably just browsing through her social media and answering texts. When it was time to get her makeup done, she would just chit chat with her makeup artist, Mylah. An occasional laugh or smile lingered whenever she was around her best friend, Melissa, which quickly answered the question that haunted Aubrey of why Rihanna always brought along a friend everywhere she went. In some ways, Mel kept her somehow sane.

Even though she had an outstanding attitude, which annoyed him, he really did enjoy the rare times she sported a smile. It suited her better than the serious face she always had since the first day they met. He definitely admired the infrequent grin but only from afar. It was interesting to see her with bare face. When all the makeup has gone and her hair is tied up, she looked even more beautiful. He really wished she'd smile more often though. It really fascinated him that this woman who many absolutely love seems so...unhappy and unsatisfied.

"Yo, Aubrey! You're not gonna drink?" Yusef asked while holding an extra glass on his hand.

"I don't drink on the job, man. Thank you though."

"Suit yourself, handsome. It's better to have a little something in your system sometimes."

He felt his phone buzz in his pocket but he ignored what it seemed like a call. On the job, he only answered Angela's call because it would only be just about his daughter. All the other texts and calls would be from friends just wondering where he'd been. Jen was right, this bodyguard position took a toll and it was becoming apparent to his friends. They had all barely seen each other since he started.