Page 47 of Bad Influence


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‘Result!’ I held out my clenched fist and we bumped.

‘But test or not, more accurately, you got it because you’re brilliant at what you do,’ I said. ‘Trust me, I know first-hand how hard it is to have a diva for a boss, I used to assist Mona Armstrong. She, who would only drink caffé macchiato from one particular London coffee shop, andhad a penchant for never answering her phone, or being polite to people. It’s the hardest job in the world – you have to develop the patience of a sloth and be skilled in literally everything.’

‘Bump back to you for sticking it out with Mona Armstrong,’ they said, as we tapped knuckles again. ‘I’ve heard her reputation precedes her. They ended up putting a ban on working with her atWonderland. She was more high maintenance than the A-list stars.’

‘Perhaps your wonky trajectory stood you in good stead,’ I offered.

They smiled. ‘Yeah, you’re probably right. I was definitely resilient – you have to be, when bullies are on your back. The same skills come in handy when navigating life with a celebrity.’

‘It sounds to me like you understood who you were from a young age. It just took other people longer to catch up. I really believe we’re all at different points on one big scale – labelling people is where the problems lie. I wish we didn’t have to use labels at all. But now the world is becoming more open, it might not be so hard for future generations. Are we full circle with my “Self-Love Utopia”?’ I smiled.

Blair looked me straight in the eyes. ‘I love your positivity, babe, but the world isn’t nearly there. I think there is more polarisation than ever. It’s up to people like us to make a difference – I’m looking to you to keep doing what you’re doing and encouraging authenticity. There’s no way we can break down barriers if we keep pretending to be somebody else. We can all have influence, in big or small ways. WhenI think about that show I watched and how it enabled me to come out to my family, it literally liberated me from a prison. It has stuck with me. We have a really important job to do here, Amber, we have the possibility to make change.’

‘Wow.’ I bowed down before them. ‘Can you run for Prime Minister now, please?’

‘Ha.’ They grinned. ‘That’s your job. I guess this is what I wanted to say to everyone on the first evening, but I felt too embarrassed. Plus it was a little premature,’ they said.

‘I think we’ve crossed that line now.’ I cringed. ‘The question is whether we have to go back the way we came, or move forward. We’re still not even through the first fortnight.’

‘We have to try to convince her,’ they said. ‘If a star like Mandy decides to let down her guard, this could be huge.’

‘I’m with you.’ I smiled. ‘And Blair – thank you for telling me all this. We owe it to you and all the other Blairs out there, to continue encouraging individuality. I think we all have a role to play in this.’

They held out their pinky towards me and instinctively I linked it with mine. ‘BFFs in here?’ they said.

‘Yes, baby, to Beautiful Furry Friends living in a Self-Love Utopia!’ And we laughed together, until we remembered we were meant to be quiet.

After another quick door check, through which we both thought we could hear a soft snore, I unfurled my legs from underneath me and slowly stood up. My knees cracked as I rose. ‘I definitely shouldn’t be this stiff at twenty-six,’I muttered. ‘If she’s sleeping, I’m going to steal from the bread bin. I’m starving.’

‘I’ll join you down there in a bit. I’ve got to do something first,’ they said, taking my outstretched hand to help pull them up. ‘I just want to call my mum to tell her I love her.’

Chapter Thirteen

Blair’s last comment stayed with me. I needed to call Lucy back, and I really wanted to speak to Rob. I headed back to my room to change into my comfy onesie and check my phone. I found a missed call from Rob. Typical. He called in the one hour I wasn’t incessantly checking it. The fact he had made the first move was quietly pleasing.

I FaceTimed him back.

‘Hey,’ he said, his voice lacking energy.

‘Hey, I can barely see you.’ It was very dark where Rob was, I could only just make out his features. ‘Are you in bed already?’

I glanced at the time at the top of my phone, it was only eight p.m.

‘Yeah, I felt tired, so I thought I may as well hit the sack,’ he said half-heartedly.

‘Doesn’t sound like you. Nothing to even watch on TV?’

‘Nothing I fancied.’ This was unlike Rob. Working in television, he was always keen to see anything to keep up with trends, and talk me through the technical details of how they would have been filmed. I don’t think I had everknown him at a loss for something to watch. ‘Anyway, how are you doing?’

I explained the weirdness on the shoot today and this evening, and Rob listened. I was always interested in his verdict on celebrity goings-on. He was a voice of reason and had seen plenty of it before, having produced a number of series with stars including the crazy Angel Wear show we did together in New York.

‘Hopefully she’ll come round,’ was all he could muster at the end.

‘You sound pissed off. Is everything okay?’

‘Yeah, I’m fine.’

‘You don’t sound it.’