Chapter 223: One Week Later

A few days had passed since Pepper came over to update the business. It was already Friday and I was at Scarlett’s house

"Scarlett, are we at the point where we should share some big secrets?" I asked her, while she was resting her head on my chest. We were watching America’s Got Talent.

"Yeah! After a little more than a week of relationship, that’s exactly what we should do," she replied sarcastically, though there was a smile on her face.

"Girl, it’s going to blow your mind."

 She looked at me, suspicious.

"I’ll be annoyed if you build up all that suspense and it ends up being a 5 out of 10 secret," Scarlett said jokingly.

"What if it’s a 10 out of 10? What do I get then?"

"A 10? Are you that confident?" she asked, surprised.

"I am."

"Hmm… but how do you know I won’t just say it’s a 9.9?"

"Are you that kind of person?" 

She just rolled her eyes.

"So?" I asked again.

"I’ll let you choose all the movies we watch until April," she offered.

"No more The Virgin Suicides or Head Over Heels?" I smiled.

She nudged me. "Those were films by directors I’ve worked with or will work with. Sofia would be mad if she heard you."

"Oh come on, this just proves that even great directors can’t do much with a weak script," I said, exasperated. "They were horrible movies."

"But you can’t complain too much, you basically slept through half of them. Or were texting on your phone," she glared at me.

"Okay, I’m sorry," I apologized. "That wasn’t very supportive of me as a partner. Let’s fix it—whoever wins the bet, the other has to watch the movie fully engaged."

"You’re really betting that I’ll say it’s a 10, huh?" Scarlett looked astonished. Then we went back to watching AGT.

After a while, I spoke again:

"Lettie, I mentioned tomorrow’s party, right?"

"Yeah."

"Some famous people are going, besides you and my friends," I added.

She nodded, still looking at the screen. "Who?"

"Mikayla, Lindsay Lohan, Hilary Duff, Amanda Bynes and her group, Josh and Drake," I listed. Mikayla asked if she could invite Amanda and the others. She liked last week.

Hilary was invited by Cher.

Now Scarlett turned to me. "Did you use Teen People magazine’s list as your guest list?"

"No. That’s like a little girls’ magazine, right?"

"It’s a teen magazine (13 to 19). J-14 is for younger kids (8 to 14)," Scarlett corrected me.

"There’s a copy in that drawer," she pointed.

As I went to grab it, Scarlett commented:

"That’s a 9.5 out of 10. Sorry, Jake." She smirked.

"9.5??"

"I’m picky," Scarlett continued smirking at me.

"You misunderstood, Lettie, I’d rate it like a 7. If that’s a 9.5 for you, the 10 is already guaranteed." Now it was me who was smirking.

"Really?" she murmured.

The cover featured Britney with the headline saying she was voted number one. I flipped through the magazine until I reached the list and read it out loud:

"13. Lindsay Lohan, 12. Samantha Puckett..." I burst out laughing. "I need to mock Sam about it." I kept reading, "11. Tasha Ratajkowski. Tasha's already that popular?"

"She’s a model who manages to be both stylish and goofy. She's becoming really popular with teenage girls," Scarlett explained.

"Do you know her?"

"That bubblehead girl was a friend of mine, I'm happy for her!" I nodded, leaving out another fact.

"10. Mikayla Gomez, 9. Carly Shay. 'Carly, the lovable girl you’d want as your best friend,'" I read the description by the side.

"That she is!" I agreed.

"And finally, our incredible number 8, Scarlett Johansson." 

Lettie gave a soft smile and opened her arms with a small bow. 

"7. Hannah Montana. Wait, how is she ranked higher than you?" I asked, astonished.

"You’re way prettier than her," I added.

She rolled her eyes but explained, "It’s not a beauty ranking, though it counts. It’s more about fame and influence over young girls. I’m surprised I’m even this high on the list."

"6. Amanda Bynes, 5. Olsen Twins. Wait, are they counted as one?"

"They always appear together," Scarlett nodded.

"Humm 4. Laura Vandervoort and 3. Kristin Kreuk."

"You know them?"

"Just Laura, she studied at my school," I said, then moved on. "2. Hilary Duff. Lizzie McGuire really took off, huh?" I looked at Scarlett.

"Yeah, she’s a teen sensation."

"And finally, number one… it’s Britney Spears," I announced.

14 girls. After tomorrow’s party, there will only be three I've never met...

"Britney is way out of everyone’s league on this list. There’s no comparison between her and Hilary. Britney could top any ranking, of any age. And she’s often first," Scarlett said with admiration.

"Wait, isn’t Britney too old to be here? What about others like Jessica Simpson, Beyoncé, Anne Hathaway, and Natalie Portman?" I asked.

"Anne not being here is surprising. Maybe she had some fallout with someone high up at the magazine. The other three have more appeal to an older demographic. They’re more like adult teens."

"So Britney is here because she’s a bubblehead girl," I laughed.

"Don’t talk bad about Britney, Jake," Scarlett scoffed. "She’s my idol. Come on, are you going to say you’re not a fan?"

"I totally am. I’m her number one fan," I said proudly, striking a Britney pose.

Scarlett burst out laughing at my sudden 180-degree turn but looked suspicious after. "How many songs does she have?"

"Fifty-two, counting collabs," I replied instantly. Britney is a little needy, and she really considers me her bestie.

So I put in a little extra effort. I know all her songs and even some personal details (favorite food, color, etc).

"Wow, that is a surprise. Don’t tell me you know her?" Scarlett said jokingly.

"If she showed up tomorrow at the party, would that make it a 10?" I asked, ignoring her question.

"What??"