"I am supporting you," Jake told him. "I have no intention of singing any of that crap they wrote for us."
"Then why the fuck didn't you say that? Why were you letting me just yell at those pricks by myself?"
"Because this isn't the time to make a stand on this," Jake told him.
"What?"
"We don't have enough facts right now."
"Facts? What the fuck are you..."
"Look," Jake interrupted, "I don't think that they can really force us to sing those songs. I've read that entire contract now and, though I still don't understand a lot of it, I don't remember it saying anywhere that they have the right to force us to sing songs we don't want to sing."
"So why the fuck didn't you tell them that?" he asked.
"Because I want to be absolutely sure of what our legal position is before I start spouting off."
"So what are you going to do?"
"I need to talk to Pauline," he said.
Chapter 8B: Imagery
The movie premier that Jake and Matt had been pretty much ordered to attend (their contract stated they were required to make themselves available for public appearances as arranged by the record company — this was without compensation, of course, with only travel being paid for) was for a film called Thinner Than Water. Neither Jake nor Matt knew anything about it other than it starred Mindy Snow and Veronica Julius, two of the hottest young female actors on the movie scene today, though two polar opposites as far as public image went.
Mindy Snow was the epitome of the innocent girl next door. She was beautiful, of course, but in a wholesome, family values sort of way. She had been one of the stars of a popular prime time series called The Slow Lane, which was about life in a small midwestern town in the fifties. She had played the churchgoing, overly religious younger sister of the family. America had watched her grow from a sweet and innocent twelve year old to a sweet and innocent sixteen year old during the four years the series had been on the air. She was now twenty years old and had been in two movies since then, her character always a copy of the sweet and innocent role she'd portrayed in the series.
Veronica Julius was also beautiful, but in a way that was not so innocent. She too had been in a popular prime-time series but she had played a troubled, street-wise teenager in a dysfunctional family. Her movie roles had become ever more risqué since then, with her playing a young drug addict, a young AIDS victim, and the villainous vamp in a horror flick.
"Tell me again why we have to go to this thing?" Jake asked Janice — who, naturally, had been sent to accompany them and act as their babysitter — as they rode in the limousine towards the Bentley Brooks Theater in Hollywood.
"Yeah," Matt agreed, tugging at the bowtie on his neck. "And why do we have to wear these fucking tuxedos? I think I'm breaking out in a rash from this thing."
Janice sighed, her patented why do I have to put up with such uncouth barbarians sigh. "You have to go because it will get your faces in the entertainment magazines and therefore give you publicity," she explained. "And you have to wear a tuxedo because that is simply how it is done in Hollywood. It's a black tie affair."
"Well who invited us?" Jake asked. "Why do the people throwing this gig want us there?"
"This is a film aimed at the fifteen to eighteen and the eighteen to twenty-five female demographic," Janice replied.
"So it's a teenybopper chick flick," Matt said.
Janice actually winced at that description, but nodded. "Yes," she said. "And that particular demographic also happens to be a big part of the Intemperance fan base. Therefore, the girls who will be interested in this film are the same ones who buy your records. Your presence at this affair is helpful to National Records and to Galaxy Studios."
"I see," Matt said, nodding wisely. "So what's this flick about, anyway?"
"It's about two sisters," Janice said. "One is wholesome and innocent, the other is somewhat of a... well, a girl without morals."
"A goody two shoes bitch and a slut?" Matt asked.
Janice winced again. "I suppose," she said. "Anyway, the story apparently centers around their uneasy relationship with each other, particularly when they both become attracted to the same guy. The guy is played by Mark Dennison."
"The guy who used to play the quarterback on that stupid-ass TV show about high school football?" Jake asked.
"That's him," Janice confirmed. "He's quite popular among that particular demographic as well."
"I heard he's a dick smoker," Matt said. "Is that true?"
"Well... yes, he is a homosexual, but that's a Hollywood secret. Don't go saying anything about that to any reporters you encounter."
"It ain't a very well-kept secret if Matt knows about it," Jake said.
Janice was starting to get flustered. "Look, you guys," she said. "This is a high society event you're attending here. Some of the elite of Hollywood will be there. Now just watch the movie and then we'll go into the lobby where a cocktail party has been set up. Try to mind your P's and Q's as much as possible, okay?"
"They gonna have any good blow at this party?" Matt asked.
"How about the bar?" Jake asked. "Are the drinks free, or do we have to pay for them?"
Janice sighed, already trying to figure out how big of a disaster this was going to be.
The limousine pulled up in front of the theater and the three of them emerged into a sea of onlookers. There were dozens of photographers and videographers stationed just on the other side of a purple velvet rope that separated the walkway into the theater from the sidewalk. Flashbulbs began to explode all around them, effectively blinding them as they made they way to the doors. Jake could hear astonished whispers as the crowd asked themselves if that was really Jake Kingsley and Matt Tisdale. A few of the reporters shouted questions at them but they overlapped each other to the point where they could understand nothing being said.
Two doormen were guarding the entrance. They asked for no passes or tickets from any of them. They simply greeted them all by name, including Janice, and stepped aside, allowing entry. Jake was so flash-blinded that it took a few moments for his vision to clear enough for him to make out the details of the room. When it did, he whistled in appreciation.
"Holy shit," Matt said. "Look at this fucking place."
"No shit," Jake agreed.
The entire lobby was covered in plush red carpet. Hors d'oeuvre tables covered in silk tablecloths were located in several strategic locations and featured a large variety of appetizers, everything from escargot to expensive salami and cheese to stuffed mushrooms. The smell alone was intoxicating. On the far side of the room a large bar had been set up (the drinks were indeed free, according to Janice, but they had been instructed to "please go easy"). Circulating through the crowd were two lovely young women in cocktail dresses. They carried trays upon which glasses of champagne were sitting. And everywhere were men in tuxedos and elegantly dressed and made-up women, most of them beautiful. Nor was that even the most amazing thing. A sizeable portion of the people were celebrities. Jake saw a multitude of actors and actresses he had seen in television shows and on movies. They were circulating around, sipping from champagne or mixed drinks, talking and hugging and giving fake little cheek kisses to each other. He stared from place to place in wonder, marveling over the fact that many of the actors looked much smaller than they did on screen.
"Oh man," Matt said, his eyes flitting from place to place. "We have got to score ourselves some pussy at this place, Jake. I need to tap me an actress. Talk about the fuckfest coup of the century."
"Matt," Janice warned, "you are not here for cheap fornication. This is a very public event."
"Oh don't worry, Janice," he said. "We'll be sure to fuck privately."