“No, no, nothing like that.” Her eyes flash with sympathy. “Everything has actually been really positive. The public adores you.”
“There’s that loomingbutagain…”
She rolls her eyes. “But… there’s been some online backlash about you and Ryder not being together anymore.”
“What kind of backlash?”
“People seem to think you broke his heart and drove him to drugs, two years ago.” She winces, preparing for my reaction.
“Theywhat?” I exclaim, outraged. “That’s the exactoppositeof what happened! If anyone’s heart got broken, it was mine!”
“Well, in the court of public opinion, there are some differing views on that topic.”
“I thought you said they loved me!”
“Yeah… well… not as much as they love youwith him.”
I laugh, but the sound holds no joy. “I’m never going to escape him, am I?”
“Afraid not. Your love story is a point of fascination for the whole country.”
“Ourlovestory? There is no love story. Not anymore.”
“Not according to recent Twitter trends.” She grins. “I’d say#Wildwoodis more popular than ever.”
“How is that possible?”
“Because, now you two aretortured.”
“The only thing that’storturedis the turn this conversation just took,” I grumble. “Can we talk about something else?”
“Could you be any deeper in denial? Damn, I got here just in time…”
“I’m not in denial!”
“Uh huh. You really want to know why people are so invested in you and Ryder?”
“You’re going to tell me regardless, aren’t you?”
She acts as if she hasn’t heard me. “What makes Carrie and Mr. Big so great? Or Logan and Veronica? Chuck and Blair? Violet and Beck? Derek and Meredith? Hell, even Ross and Rachel?”
“Um… they’re all fictional?”
“No. They’retortured.” She heaves another sigh. “There’s nothing the masses love more than a couple that can’t be together, for whatever reason. It’s human nature — we root for the things that won’t happen. Agonize over the one-in-a-million chances. Cross our fingers and wish, against all odds, that the two people least likely to fall in love and work things out will do just that.”
“Just because Ryder and I share a complicated romantic history doesn’t mean we’re destined to wind up together.”
“That may be howyousee it, but it’s not going to change how the public sees it. The truth is, no one wants to watch the simple love stories play out; no one cares about the ones that come easy.” Her eyes light with the passion of a devoted fan watching her favorite soap opera. “We want the struggle. The hardship. The burning glances and simmering sexual tension. The explosive potential of something that, in all likelihood, will never happen… because, on the off chance that it does…” She can’t entirely hide her grin. “It brings the roof down.”
“This is my life, not some scripted sitcom,” I point out. “I’m a real person. So is he. With real problems and issues.”
“Like it or not, you’re a celebrity — to the majority of the world, you might as well be a fictional character. TheFelicity Wildethe media portrays is the only one most people will ever get to see. They’re writing the script without you.” She pauses. “But you already know all that. You’ve done this before.”
My eyes press closed. “I guess I was hoping things would be different this time around.”
“Honey — with you and Ryder, things will never be different. The world loved you when you were eighteen, a viral sensation head-over-heels in the epitome of puppy love. Now that you’re separated by seemingly insurmountable obstacles… They adore you all the more.”
“Seeminglyinsurmountable?”