In Another World

Chapter 9

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As Dianne filled Joe in on the situation, Lee still didn't really know why he was here. Of course, Joe had helped them raise their social media profiles, but it didn't explain him literally being in the studio with them when this could have been done just as easily over the phone. The singer couldn't help wondering whether there was something going on between Dianne and Joe. He noticed their beaming faces and their close proximity as soon as Joe arrived, and Lee felt like a bit of a gooseberry! He also wondered whether their close relationship may have played a part in Dianne and Anthony's break-up, which he was now receiving the blame for. Of course, Lee knew that Joe and Dianne's relationship (whether it be platonic or romantic) had nothing to do with him, but he did feel quite uncomfortable about Joe's involvement in their partnership.

"So, you think our social media posts have attracted the press' attention?" Dianne asked as he browsed the articles on her phone.

Joe nodded, "Yeah, probably," he muttered, "I guess this sudden burst of content would have caught their eyes".

"But you're the one who suggested that we use our platforms more", Lee pointed out.

"Yeah, I did," Joe sighed, "Sorry, I didn't think that you'd be targeted as well".

Lee rolled his eyes at his words, then turned to Dianne, "'He knows his stuff', does he?" the singer questioned pointedly.

"Hey, this isn't Joe's fault," she chastised before shaking her head at Joe, "You don't have to apologise, the journos just took advantage".

"Because I let them," Joe argued bitterly, "I encouraged you guys to share more online".

Dianne rubbed his arm, "You said that we shouldn't do anything we're not comfortable with, and we didn't," she reminded him, "So, the stuff we posted was on us; our responsibility".

Joe smiled slightly, "Well, I'm still sorry".

"Don't worry about it," Dianne assured him, "I was the one who reached out to you, it's not like you forced us to do it".

"And now you're reaching out to me again," Joe remarked before jokily adding, "Are you sure you wanna do that?"

Dianne smiled encouragingly, "Positive".

Lee watched this interaction with narrowed eyes. Unlike Dianne, he wasn't positive about Joe helping them again. Although his ideas during the previous week had probably contributed to them getting safely through the last round, Joe had actually caused more problems for them in the long run. Of course, he and Dianne had free will – they had chosen to follow his advice when they could have ignored it – so this situation was their faults as well.

But it didn't help that the advice that Joe gave them was hardly ground-breaking. Lee could have figured out for himself that they should 'carefully reduce their social media output' and 'keep their heads down more' – as Joe suggested this time around – so he didn't understand why they needed his 'expertise'.

"Thanks again for your help," Dianne murmured as she walked Joe to the door after their meeting; a sentiment that made Lee roll his eyes, "We really appreciate it".

"It's no problem," Joe assured her, "I'm just sorry I got you into this mess, I really hope this will get you out of it".

"Like I said: this wasn't your fault," Dianne countered, "But I hope it'll work too".

Joe smiled reassuringly, "Well, don't hesitate to get in touch if you need to," he replied before hesitantly adding, "Or if you just want to talk about anything".

Dianne cautiously stepped closer to him, "Look, I know that we agreed that we'd meet up during the week and talk properly," she began quietly, "But, obviously, things are pretty full-on right now; I don't know whether we'll get the chance".