Misfit In Hollywood

"Bree-bee! We've come to-UMPH!"

Noah had run into the room and forgotten that I was on my shoulders, so I had smashed into the top of the door and whacked my head. I lay on the ground, with my hand on my forehead, and rubbed my head.

"Oh my gosh Jules!" Nick yelled, running to me and helping me up. "Are you okay?"

"That hurt," I mumbled with my hand still on my head. The pain was really bad. I walked forward into Bree's office with Nick's arm around my waist and the pain started to lessen a little bit. "Where's Noah? I'm so going to beat the crap out of him."

Nick laughed. "He's right here."

He guided me to the chair and pointed to Noah who was sitting on Bree's desk and talking to her. I whacked him in the arm with the hand that wasn't on my head, and he turned around to look at me.

"What's your prob-OH MY GOSH!" I had dropped my hand to reveal the huge bump/bruise on my forehead. He held his hand up to my forehead and poked it softly. The pain was unbearable, and a tear rolled down my cheek. "Did I do that to you?" Noah asked. I nodded. "Oh, Julie baby I'm so sorry. I was just so excited to see Bree that I forgot you were on my back." He looked at the bump on my forehead and I saw him flinch. I could already feel the bruise forming. "You're going to need some serious cover-up to make that thing invisible."

"No duh, smartass!" I heard Bree scold him. Then I saw her rummage in the freezer and she came out with the one thing in the world I needed the most, an ice pack. "Here you go, sweetie." She handed me the ice pack, and I held it up to my forehead and sighed in relief. "Better?" She asked.

"Much better. Thanks Bree. I really needed this." I glared at Noah. "Now, since you and Noah have had your little reconnecting, can we finally go and eat. Nick and I are going to ditch you guys if you don't get a move on it."

"Yeah, yeah, we're going Ju." Bree said, gathering up all of the things she would need into her purse. She looked at me and remembered the state of condition I was in. "Are you sure you want to go out like that?"

"YES!" I rolled my eyes at her, and took the ice pack of my head. She winced when she saw the damage down. "Oh, come on, it can't be that bad."

"See for yourself," Nick said, rummaging through my purse and handing me a pocket mirror.

I snatched the mirror out of his hand and smacked him. "I didn't say you could look through my purse, Nicholas!"

He blushed. "Sorry…"

I opened the mirror and looked at my forehead, only to find the hugest bump I had ever aid eyes on. It was black and blue, and there was a little bit of blood from some of the scratches. This was not good.

"Noah! You are so dead!" I whirled around and looked at him. "I have a fucking photo shoot tomorrow morning, and cover-up may do wonders, but this is fucking blood we are talking about! If I have scars you are so dead!"

He looked at me in surprise. "Slightly diva, much?"

I grumbled. "I would be flipping out on you even if I wasn't a world-famous star. This has nothing to do with being a diva." I snorted. "At least it's not as bad as the time you convinced me I could fly and I jumped off the garage with my arms tied to my waist. Now THAT was bad." I turned to Nick. "I ended up with a lego block in my head, and we had to go to the plastic surgeon for face repairs."

Nick smirked and shook his head at me. "Just one more question I won't have to ask."

"UGH!" I stomped out the door. "You guys are impossible!"

"Jules, wait up!" Bree called. "By the way, your bag is on the ground in front of my office. I'm guessing you dropped it in the fall. I'm going to make Noah carry it."

"Great," I said, not even turning around to look at her. "He deserves it."

I heard them following me, and I turned around to wait for them to catch up, only to find Nick right behind me. "Why hello, gorgeous," he smiled at me. Then he looked at my bruise. "You know, it's not that bad when you look at it. I'll get Dani to help you with it after lunch. She's a whiz with make-up."

"Dani is…?"

"My older brother, Kevin's, wife." Nick said simply. "She's awesome with anything that has to do with hair or make-up, and she has beautiful style."

"That's cool." I said softly. "Is she like the normal Hollywood crowd?"

"No," Nick said, looking me in the eyes. "Not at all. She used to be a hairdresser. We met her on a cruise three years ago, and her and Kevin hit it off. They fell in love fast, and they just got married last year." He looked forward again. "You're going to love her. She's just your kind of girl." There was a silence. "So, I'm going to continue where we left off…is that alright with you?"

"Just peachy," I smiled at him. "And I'm not being sarcastic."

"Okay, well…why do you hate Hollywood people so much? Like I know that people are really fake around here, but that can't be it."

"I've been around for a little more than two years now, and when I first started I wasn't at all like this. I actually was friends with all the girls in the Disney business, especially Demi." I paused to see his reaction, and saw that it was exactly as I expected, shocked. "I met her while touring Hollywood Records main studio with Bree and Noah, and we just hit it off. We became best friends, and she agreed to come with me to my first real interview, which was a month later. We hung out a ton, and got to know each other super well, until finally the interview came around. It was with Ellen." He nodded, listening intently. "It went kind of like this:"

FLASHBACK:

The make-up ladies were fluttering around Demi and I, making last minute changes and preparing us for the interview to come. Everything had to be PERFECT for the tv, and not one freckle or shiny spot was allowed.

"You guys will be on in five," I heard Bree say from behind me, and I turned around in my swivelly chair, causing the make-up artists working on me to complain and scold me.

"Oh, hush up you guys." I smiled at them to make it sound less harsh. "I already look gorgeous thanks to you guys, and nothing would make me feel more better than I already do with your make-up and Demi at my side. Your work here is done."

They all blushed, and went to see if Demi needed any last minute changes. I turned around to see her flapping her arms and trying to get out from under the mountain of people on top of her.

I laughed. "You guys, I think that means Demi is done with make-up."

"But-" Jose, her make-up artist started.

"No, Jose," Demi said firmly, standing up out of her chair to walk over to me. "I look gorgeous. You did a good job."

Jose stood there, "Are you sure?" He looked worried. Demi was his little baby, and she had to look gorgeous all of the time. Luckily I didn't have a make-up artist yet. I personally hate make-up, the only reason I wear it is because Bree forces me to. Stinking sister.

"Yes," Demi sighed. She could tell that I was nervous for my first interview. "Can you leave so I can talk to Juliette about the interview?"

"Okay," Jose said, smiling. He came over and gave her a peck on the cheek before walking out the door. "Good luck, Chiquita!"

"Gracias, papa!" Demi called after him. Since her father abandoned her and her mother, her make-up artist had become like a second father to her. He was always there when she needed him, and he gave her the advice her father had never taken the time to. She loved him a lot, and he loved her just as much, or more, back. Demi turned back to me with a smile on her face. "So…you nervous?" She asked, smirking.

"YES!" I squealed, jumping up from my chair and spazzing around the room. Bree had left to check on last minute details. I started jumping up and down in front of the mirror. I used to be a lot happier before I was betrayed and let my bi-polarness take over. "I'm so happy you're with me! I would be totally freaking without you!"

"My pleasure," Demi smiled at me. "I remember my first interview. Joe, Nick, and Kevin volunteered to come, but I vetoed. When I got here I realized that I should have taken them up on their offer, because I was freaking out. By then, however, it was too late because they were in Canada filming some of the non-Mitchie Camp Rock parts without me. In the end I was fine, but looking back on it I still think I would have had more fun with them than I did by myself."

"Those are the Jonas Brothers, yeah?" I asked. I had stopped spazzing to listen to her, and was sitting cross-legged on the couch in the make-up room.

"Yeah." Demi said. "You totally have to meet them! I'm so going to introduce you to them when they come back, deal?"

"Deal. And you can meet my sexy brother, Noah," I joked.

"Ooooh," Demi winked, joking back at me. "I'm sooo excited."

Just then Bree walked into the room. "I should hope you guys are excited! This is a big day!"
She looked at her watch and her eyes popped. "You guys have to be on in thirty seconds! We got to get on stage, now!"

Demi and I laughed at Bree's worry and ran after her onto the back of the stage. When Ellen called us one we would be ready to walk on, and we had already planned to keep Demi's presence a surprise until the second half of the interview. She said she would be "cheering me on from the sidelines." I was so glad that I had a friend like her.

We go to the back of the stage and saw that the clock said ten seconds left.

"You ready?" Demi whispered, smiling.

"Ready as I'll ever be!" I whispered back.

In the background I heard Ellen introducing me. I started to walk on stage and heard Demi call:
"Go get 'em girl!"

I smiled back at her and walked to the couch that was sitting next to Ellen. We were on the night show, so it was inside with an audience.

"What's up, El?" I asked. Ellen and I were on good terms. She was one of the main pro-Juliette people in the media. Of course Perez and I were best friends, but Ellen was like an older sister.

"Nothing much, Jules?" Ellen said. She turned to the crowd. "Juliette and I have met before. We're besties. She's like the little sister I never had."

I smiled, and the crowd all waved. I waved back and then turned back to Ellen. "So…is this an interview, or just a sisterly pow-wow?" I asked, teasing her for not already bombarding me with questions.

She stared at me with what I knew was fake shock, and held a hand up to her mouth. Ellen was one of the funniest people I knew. "Well, I was just trying to be polite." She fake huffed.

"I was KIDDING, Ellie," I smiled back.

"In that case, let the questions begin!" Ellen said ominously.

I gulped, so far everything had been good, but Bree had told me to steer clear of personal family questions. Ellen already knew the truth, but she didn't want me to scare off my growing fan base with the story of our awful childhood.

Ellen saw my reaction, and turned off her mike for a sec. "Don't worry, hon. I'll take care of the bad stuff." She reassured me. Then I saw her click back on her mike. "So, first off, why are you here Juliette?"

I smiled. This was an easy question. I bet everyone in the audience already knew the answer. "Well, I'm here to promote my new movie AND my new album," I smirked at Ellen. The album was a surprise. Everyone knew I could act, but not many knew I could sing. The joy of acting in a non-musical, beautiful.

Ellen stared at me. "We all knew about the movie, but I'm pretty sure that the album is a surprise to almost everyone here." She turned to the audience. "Am I right?"

She received a chorus of yes's in return, and then turned back to me.

"So, you're saying you also have an album coming out. This is your demo album, yes?"

"Yeah, it is." I smiled. "It's called Flipped."

"Flipped…I like that name," Ellen said thoughtfully. "What kinds of songs are recorded on it?"

"All of the songs are very personal to me, and they're all on true life experiences." Ellen shot me a little smile, and I winked back. "I got a lot of help on the music from Demi, but pretty much all of the lyrics are mine. The music is a little more Taylor Swift style than pop. It's kind of slower, but I do have some up-beat music. I'm already working on writing the next album, and that one will be way more upbeat."

"That's cool." Ellen nodded. "What's your favorite song on the album?"

"It changes daily, mostly with my mood, but today I think…" I thought for a second. "My favorite song would have to be Breathe. It's one of the slower ones."

"And what is Breather about?" Ellen asked. I could tell she was actually interested in this question.

It was hard to answer, because Breathe was actually about leaving my best friend behind in Hawaii. It was written as more of a romance, because I didn't know how else to put it, but it would be hard to explain that, especially because my best friend had been a boy.
"Well…" I thought about how to put this. "Breathe is about my best friend that I had to leave back in Hawaii. He wasn't my boyfriend, but we were super close, and leaving him was one of the hardest things I had to do in my life." It surprisingly was, even considering all of the crap I had been through. "Oliver was always there for me, and he dealt with everything I put him through. I had way more problems than him, and he helped me to deal with them. Breathe is just saying that even if you lose someone who is your everything, you have to learn how to deal with it and keep living for the present, and not the past. When I left Hawaii, he was so mad at me, and he wouldn't talk to me for weeks. I almost lost it, but then I realized that if he wasn't mad, he would be wanting me to live the best I could, so I did."

The audience was touched, and it was silent for a few moments before Ellen spoke.
"Did he ever end up talking to you?"

I smiled sadly. "Yeah, we ended up talking. He realized that it was stupid to throw away our friendship over me moving, and we resolved our problems. We aren't as close as we used to be though, mostly because of Kayla."

Ellen looked confused. "Kayla?"

I suddenly knew that I shouldn't have let that slip. Kayla and I used to be best friends until I met Oliver, and then she went all bitchy on me and told me he was her man and to stay away from him. They weren't even dating, and she acted like she fucking OWNED him.

"Well…hmm…how do I say this?" I smiled sheepishly at the crowd and Ellen. "Kayla and I were best friends before I met Oliver, and she was friends with Oliver before I was." I sighed. "When we became friends…let's just say she got a little jealous…and we ended up not being friends anymore. When I left her and Ollie became friends again, and they kind of forgot about me…"

"Oh. I'm so sorry." Ellen said quickly. She could tell it was a touchy subject, and she steered away. "Do you want to sing Breathe for us?" She asked excitedly. None of the songs were out, and this would be the first time anyone heard it.

"Sure," I smiled at the crowd. "I would love to."

Ellen handed me a mike, and I stood to sing. I looked over to the side of the stage and saw Demi giving me a thumbs-up. I smiled back and she nodded, telling me to start singing. I was so grateful that she had made me warm up my voice a little before the make-up session, I would be dead now if that wasn't the case.

The music started to play, and I began to sing.

I see your face in my mind as I drive away
'Cause none of us thought it was gonna end that way
People are people and sometimes we change our minds
But it's killing me to see you go after all this time

Mmm...mmm...mmm...mmm...mmm...mmm
Mmm...mmm...mmm...mmm...mmm...mmm

Music starts playing like the end of a sad movie
It's the kinda ending you don't really wanna see
'Cause it's tragedy and it'll only bring you down
Now I don't know what to be without you around

The tears had started to run down my face by now, and I was so glad that Jose had insisted that Demi and I wear water-proof make-up. I would make a point to thank him after.

And we know it's never simple, never easy
Never a clean break, no one here to save me
You're the only thing I know like the back of my hand
And I can't breathe without you, but I have to
Breathe without you, but I have to

Never wanted this, never want to see you hurt
Every little bump in the road, I tried to swerve
People are people and sometimes it doesn't work out
And nothing we say is gonna save us from the fallout

And we know it's never simple, never easy
Never a clean break, no one here to save me
You're the only thing I know like the back of my hand
And I can't breathe without you, but I have to
Breathe without you, but I have to

It's 2am, feeling like I just lost a friend
Hope you know it's not easy, easy for me
It's 2am, feeling like I just lost a friend
I hope you know this ain't easy, easy for me

And we know it's never simple, never easy
Never a clean break, no one here to save me
I can't breathe without you, but I have to
Breathe without you, but I have to
Breathe without you, but I have to.

The music stopped, and everyone in the crowd stood and clapped. Suddenly I heard myself being tackled and hugged by someone. The crowd gasped and I looked up to see Demi. She was crying and laughing at the same time.

"I can see why you wouldn't let me hear that song when you recorded." She said softly, still on top of me. "It's so beautiful. I didn't know you and Oliver were that close."

"Me neither," I sighed. "Until I wrote the song. Now can you please get off of me before you ruin our clothes and our make-up? You already ruined the surprise!" I joked.

Demi smiled and got up, holding her hand out to me. "Oh, stop being such a sour puss lettie." I grimaced when she called me that. It was possibly the worst nickname ever. She smirked at my face and pulled me up. "I know you love the nickname."

"Shut up, Dems," I said, dusting myself off. "You just had to tackle me, didn't you?"

"Yup." She smirked. "Just had to."

My mike had been on the whole time, and by now the crowd was laughing at our so-called "adorable antics." We both sat down and turned to Ellen, Demi putting on he microphone.

"So," Ellen said to the crowd. "You can see that we have another guest star, Miss Lovato." They all cheered, and Ellen turned back to us. "We want to ask you a few questions about Juliette, Demi. Is that all right?"

"Sounds perfect to me," Demi said. She turned to me. "But, it's all up to Lettie in the end." She smirked. "Lettie makes all the big decisions."

I rolled my eyes at her continued use of my nickname. I knew that she was just doing it to make me grumpy and let all the paparazzi know my other, unwanted, nickname.
"I'm fine with it, as long as you don't talk about what I do when I sleep."

Demi smiled mischievously. "Of course not, Letts." She then turned to the crowd. "Do you want to see a video of what Juliette does when she sleeps? It's super embarrassing."

My mouth dropped. "YOU TOOK A VIDEO! GIRL YOU ARE SO DEAD AFTER THIS!"

She just stuck her tongue out at me and ran over to plug her phone into the tv screen. A video popped up of me on the screen, and I felt a knot in my stomach appear. I hated people watching me when I slept, it was one of the few things I actually freaked out about. The largest reason being that my dad would always start beating us when we were asleep and helpless.

"I know you can't see it really well, but Lettie is sucking her thumb." She smirked at me. "I also have a video of her talking in her sleep, and doing this weird thing with her tongue." She saw that I was actually visibly upset by her showing the video, and unplugged her phone. She looked worried now. "But you can see those later," she said quickly. "Right now I'm going to answer more of Ellen's questions."

Ellen looked at my face with a worried expression. "And Demi would be answering more questions after the break," she said quickly