Eli

It's been almost a month since I have applied for the position of Nathan Lowe's fake partner and two weeks since I got a call from his manager, Ross Murphy. By the time he called I hadn't honestly been hoping for a reply anymore, which is why I was all the more surprised to find out I had been picked.

By now the initial feeling of giddy amazement has faded and made room for barely suppressed nervousness. What I've agreed to do is a risk, and I'm aware of that. But it's also an opportunity, one that I'm not going to pass up on.

I have cleared my desk in the office yesterday, under the curious eyes of my unknowing colleagues. They don't know where exactly I will be for the upcoming weeks; it's necessary to keep the circle of people knowing about this as small as possible.

I haven't even told my parents, not because of the same reason, but because I know they would be against it. Spying on a person and passing information to a magazine isn't exactly what they would call morally right, and they probably wouldn't even accept the money I'm going to make off it. All that they know is that I'm going to go to L.A. for business reasons and that I received a raise.

I know that my parents rarely watch TV or read magazines, so the chances of them finding out are relatively small. Same goes for my siblings: Layla and Alissa can't read too well yet and only watch kid's shows and Mila and Levi couldn't care less about celebrities. Even if any of them did see something about it, they probably wouldn't know what to make of it. They know I'm bisexual, so they would likely just think I somehow ended up dating Nathan Lowe without even suspecting this is nothing but a way for me to make money.

After calling them, every concern I had vanished. They sounded so relieved when I told them I'd be making more money. Proud. Even my dad, who is usually a rather quiet guy, told me how happy my success makes him and that he's always known that I would make it far in life. It reassured me in my belief that this is the right thing to do.

The only one who didn't seem all that enthusiastic was Levi. At the age of fourteen he's the oldest of my siblings, and the only boy beside me. He's a bit clingy and I know how much he looks up to me. Living in Reno, I can drive to my family home within an hour and usually visit every other weekend. That won't be possible once I'm in Los Angeles, which bothers him. I don't like the thought either, but I promised to call him every week, which consoled him at least a little bit.

Someone nudging my knee rips me out of my thoughts and I look up to see Liz and Kara grinning at me from the opposite side of the table.

We're sitting in one of the little coffee shops at the airport right now, waiting until boarding begins. It's relatively crowded, a group of Japanese tourists trying to order coffee from the over-worked barista, jet-lagged businessmen in wrinkled suits hacking away on their laptops with dull eyes, a couple fighting quietly –I told you to pack a charger! Jesus Christ, how are we supposed to contact the owner of the apartment when your phone runs out of battery? I knew something like this would happen, there's really no relying on you... No, you listen to me, this is all your fault!- , bleary-eyed parents with crying children.

"Sorry," I mutter, directing my attention back to them. "What did you say?"

"I asked if you were tired, but you staring into your espresso like an actual zombie answered that," Liz laughs.

I shrug. "It's eight in the morning and I've been awake for three hours. The question should be why you have so much energy. And also why Lowe's management couldn't book a flight that doesn't require getting up at an ungodly time."

"Stop whining, ungrateful brat," Liz chuckles. "We're flying first class!"

Well yeah. I have nothing to complain about that.

Also not about the fact that Liz is coming with me. It was Kara's idea to send someone to L.A. with me, for support or whatever, and due to a happy coincidence we found out that Nathan is hiring stylists. It was the same stylist who spilled that Lowe was looking for a fake boyfriend who told us this, and it was also her who put in a good word for Liz and managed to get her hired.

Kara's choice fell onto Liz mainly because she attended beauty school for about eight months before becoming an editor for Insider, but also because she and I get along pretty well. It's not like we're best friends or anything, we just spend a lot of time together since she edits my writing and we occasionally go partying together. She's one of the very few colleagues that I can stand. Always in a good mood and chatty beyond belief she's the opposite of me, but maybe that's what makes us so compatible.

Kara gives us an exasperated look. "You two do realize that this is not a holiday, right?" One of her carefully manicured fingers taps the document in the middle of the sticky table. "You're going to L.A. for work. Which is why I'd like you to go over the contract once more, just to be sure."

Liz and I heave a long sigh at the exact same moment. It's probably our fifth time reading it and by now I'm pretty sure we've both memorized it.

It's really quite simple: I am supposed to report back to Kara for the entire duration of my stay with Nathan, however long that may be. I have to give out information at least once a week, ideally with photos, the main focus being upcoming projects that Lowe may or may not be working on and events we will attend. In return, I'm being paid a large amount of money and a bonus for every piece of information. Should something go wrong, meaning someone finds out about my real reason for being there, Insider will help me lay low for a while and continue paying me until I can pick up my regular work in Reno again, and if worse comes to worse, pay for any lawsuits. The contract expires the moment that I return to Reno, either because I get found out or because Lowe's management decides they don't need me anymore.

Liz's contract is similar, with the exception that it isn't her main responsibility to gather information, but to support me and to tell Kara if she has concerns regarding my safety, seeing as I will be the only one living under the same roof as Lowe.

"Got it," I say after skimming all of this once again.

Liz just nods.

"Alright," Kara says, taking the document and struggling to stuff it back into her purse. As our departure inches closer, she is getting increasingly nervous. Which is understandable. After all it's her idea and, in a way, her fault if something happens to us. Everything that's going to happen in L.A. is out of her control, so she has to take this moment to make sure everything will go according to plan. "Remember that once you land in Los Angeles, you have to pretend not to know each other. Make sure not to leave the plane together. Elizabeth, you will take a cab to the apartment we rented for you. Elijah, you will be picked up by one of Nathan's chauffeurs at the airport. Do you have any more questions?"

"Nope," Liz says while I just shake my head.

Just then a voice crackles through the speakers right above our table, announcing that boarding for our flight begins now.

Kara takes a deep breath and glances at her watch. "Well, then. You two should get going."

Having already paid our coffee, we get up and leave the café. Outside, Kara stops and looks up at us.

"Okay then," she says. Her lips are pressed into a thin line. "Good luck to you. Remember, I'm only a phone call away and if anything happens-"

"Nothing will happen," I interrupt her. "We've got this."

"Damn right we do," Liz giggles and leans down to give Kara a hug.

She returns it before moving on to me. I am keenly aware of the fact that her petite frame is shaking a little, but hug her back nevertheless. When Kara finally lets go of me, there's the hint of a smile on her lips. "Thank you for committing to this, Elijah. If all goes well, this might just be what saves Insider."

"I'll try my best," I say and take a step back. "Bye for now."

Liz links arms with me immediately and drags me towards our terminal. We have already checked our luggage in earlier (I had one suitcase while Liz, to my horror, had three), so we can go straight to TSA.

It takes Liz a moment to take off all her accessories; meanwhile, I carefully place my backpack onto the belt. It's filled to the brim with two cameras and their equipment, which I didn't want to put into my suitcase. I know that it's a risk to keep them in there when I enter Lowe's house for the first time, but I feel safer having them close, as stupid as that sounds. Besides, they're probably worth more than I make in a year, and I would rather not have them shattered by baggage handlers.

Used to make in a year. I received a first draft of the contract from Lowe's management a week ago and the sum it promised was enough to make me gulp.

Once we're through security, Liz walks towards one of the duty-free shops.

Catching her wrist, I ask: "Where the hell are you going? They're already boarding."

She rolls her eyes impatiently. "Come on, we still have time! I literally just want to buy two things-"

"Liz..."

"Oh my god, stop being so nervous, you're making me nervous!" she laughs. "It'll only be a second, pinky-promise."

I let go of her with an irritated groan, but follow her into the shop nevertheless. "I'm not nervous," I mutter. "I just don't want to miss our flight because of something this stupid."

"You've been anxious all morning. Like, you couldn't even eat," Liz says over her shoulder while she purposefully strides towards a rack with magazines. "And it's not stupid... It's research." With a triumphant grin, she presses a magazine to my chest.

I pluck it from her hand and turn it around to see what it is, only to find Nathan Lowe staring up at me.

"I'll see enough of that face once we're in L.A.," I say and move to put the magazine back, but Liz immediately reaches for it and clutches it like she's afraid I'll try and take it from her.

Frowning at me, she says: "You're no fun, you know that?" When I only send her a blank stare, she turns back towards the magazine rack. A surprised look appears on her face. "Hey look, his management is right. Remember how a year ago he was on every single cover? Now this is the only magazine that features anything about him."

I grimace as realization hits me. "Fuck, I'm going to be in some of those if this works out, right?"

Liz looks up at me with an amused smile. "Get ready to be famous, sweetie."

I don't bother giving her an answer to that and only shove her towards the checkout counter.

After Liz has bought the magazine and some chewing gum, we jog to our gate and, out of breath and tousled, slither into the first class on our plane. Luckily, Kara managed to book Liz's seat next to mine, so I'll have her chattering to distract me from my growing nerves.

And hell, chattering is something she's good at. She won't shut up from the second we sink into our seats, talking about how she's been to L.A. a few months ago and what she expects Lowe to be like, and once she starts flipping through the magazine, she comments on every single page.

I let the steady word flow lull me into a more relaxed state and watch through the window as Reno starts to grow smaller and smaller beneath us. Eventually, we get swallowed up by the clouds and I close my eyes. 

One and a half hours away waits Los Angeles.

++++++++++++++++++++

So, Eli is on his way to L.A. and he's taking Liz with him. What do you think of her so far? 

I can't even tell you how excited I am for Eli to meet Nathan. Soon, people! :)