Untouchable

Emma felt the cold chill of the night wrap around her pale body. She pulled her sweater tighter around her waist, but it was no use. It wasn’t just the fact that she was walking alone on the sidewalks of Hollywood that made her frozen solid to her core; it was the fact that her boyfriend of a year, as of that day, had just become the world’s biggest asshole. She was sure that in the tabloids tomorrow, there would be nothing but her tear-stained face and some sob story about how she ruined Cody’s life.

‘Like I’m the one to blame,’ Emma thought to herself. She scoffed aloud. The sky slit itself open like a fresh cut and mist came down in sheets. She flipped the hood of her sweater up over her wavy brown hair.

Cody and Miley drifted in and out of her brainwaves. Other than seeing their smiling faces flash behind her eyes, there was nothing but emptiness. She thought of something new—she thought of being alone forever. Her chest paused and stiffened, waiting for Emma to release the breath that she had held in. She froze in place; it was if the world had stopped moving.

A bright flash of light and a small crack resumed the rotation of her world. Emma stared directly in front of her and a mob of people (and cameras) surrounded her. No doubt they’d gotten the news about tonight’s events.

“Emma! Emma! How does it feel to know that you’re in the middle of a love triangle?”
“Who are you planning on dating now?”
“Can you tell us why you ruined Cody and Miley’s relationship?”

The last question that was shouted stopped her dead in her tracks. “Me? Ruin their relationship? That’s the farthest thing from the truth.” She ignored the rest of their demanding questions and walked around them, feeling their presence still following behind her.

Actual rain started to fall down from the pitch black sky and she wished she could be somewhere sunny and warm; she wanted to be somewhere she could be invincible. Was invincibility too much to ask for? She walked a little farther along the sidewalk until she noticed her tears were mixing with the rain. ‘Oh, look, more tears,’ she announced in her head.

Emma tilted her head up to the sky and screamed. “Can this day get any worse?”

A girl drenched in rain sitting on a bench in front of her spoke without looking in Emma’s direction. “I don’t think it can.” She hesitated. “Not for me, at least.”

Emma sat down next to the girl. “I know exactly how that feels.”

The girl sat up, gazing over to Emma through her soaking hair. “What happened to you?”

“My boyfriend of a year decided it was time to come clean about his list of girls that he had cheated on me with. Oh, and let’s not forget about how he met Miley Cyrus for a date at the same table we were sitting at.” She finished with a bitter, sarcastic grin. “Life’s so fair, don’t you think?”

The girl sat up straighter and pushed the hair out of her face. “My boyfriend told me he loves me and I couldn’t find the strength to say it back,” Selena Gomez said, shame and fear shading over her trembling voice.

Emma became stiff. “Can I trust you enough to keep this conversation from being in the tabloids tomorrow?”

“Don’t worry about that. I hate having my personal life and the lies plastered all over some cheesy magazine, too.”

Emma sniffled and put her face in her hands. “Is it sad that you’re the only one I do trust right now?” Her voice was muffled from the small space it had to travel.

Selena laughed lightly. “No, it’s not sad. It’s a relief, actually.” She smiled over at Emma. “I have the same feeling about you.”

“You do,” Emma asked, smiling. She felt oddly comforted by a girl she’d just met. She watched as Selena nodded. “You seriously…just made my day, Selena.”

“I‘m glad I could do something right.”

“Again, I know exactly how that feels.”

Selena’s phone vibrated between the two girls. She picked it up and cradled it in her hand. She drew in a sharp breath and didn’t release it until she started turning blue. “Is your house far from here?”

“It’s a few blocks down, I think. Why?”

She sighed and stood up. “It’s my boyfriend. He’s looking for me and I don’t want him to find me.” She stopped for a second and then added, “Not now, at least.”

Emma nodded quickly and stood up. She pulled on Selena’s hand and led her to her home three blocks down. “This is it,” Emma announced when they entered her home. “My parents are out on some business thing, so it’s just me and my sisters. And I know that they’re out at some club partying.”

Selena followed behind Emma up the stairs. “Thank you. Most people, including my friends, wouldn’t have done this for me.”

Emma smiled gently. “It gets lonely when your parents are gone all the time and your sisters couldn’t give a damn about what you do with your life.” She sighed thoughtfully. “That’s probably the reason why I became an actress. I needed something to fill in the holes.”

Selena giggled as they entered her bedroom. “It’s like you’re my twin!”

Emma’s room was covered in movie posters and multi-colored stripes. She set her purse down on her computer desk. She glanced back at Selena. “We look like we’re about the same size.” She smiled widely and walked into her spacious closet. “Lucky for you I have excessive pairs of pajamas!” Selena caught a pair of clothes that Emma had thrown from inside the closet. “Socks or fuzzy bunny slippers?”

“Socks, please,” Selena answered.

“Suit yourself. The bunny slippers are mine anyway.” Emma paused to throw in an extra comforting grin. “You can have the bathroom first. You’ve had a rougher night than me.”

Selena shifted her weight. “Did the paparazzi catch you, too?”

“It was like hell froze over. Cameras were inside the restaurant, outside the restaurant, and they even had the nerve to follow me for fifteen blocks!”

“Well…I just can’t wait to see our faces on the front page. ‘Two famous hearts broken in one night.’ Sounds fantastic, doesn‘t it?” A hint of sarcasm lingered as she padded into the bathroom and closed the door behind her.