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The British are Coming:

The staff at Beach Radio Magazine was in the room for another board meeting. This was the only place where the goofy chatter and games didn't take place before the actual work. Katherine e-mailed her staff this morning. She wanted to talk to them this morning. The employees all sat waiting.

"What's so urgent that she had to e-mail us?" Vanessa asked.

"Dunno," Sakura replied. They all waited patiently. They had many guesses about what this was. That wasn't all that the employees had on their minds. Noriko and Rose had some little secrets on their own. Men in particular. Both women had found their soon-to-be lovers. But they had to keep it to themselves for the time being. For right now, the excitement was bubbling inside of them. Then, the door opened wide. The journalists all looked up at the door. Katherine stood looking in the doorway. She was dressed in her usual business power suits. The woman had some files in her hands. With her was her secretary, Debbie Mitchell. She had her usual clipboard in her hands. The staff knew what was coming next.

"She's got a new announcement," Vanessa whispered to the crew. "It's a big one!" Katherine set the files down on the table.

"Guys," she said. "I have a new article for all of you." The staff waited. Katherine smiled brightly at all.

"Beach Radio Magazine needs to get onto the British Invasion," she said. The staff all kept looking at her. The boss kept on smiling.

"So," she said. "I want to do a feature issue on the current Brit rock and pop acts!" The staff all looked at her surprised.

"British music?" Noriko asked. "But why?"

"Because," the boss said. "We need to branch out into other cities of Florida, not just in Miami." The staff didn't seem too easy about this idea. Sure, Katherine had great ideas, but the methods of execution were always questionable. Rose and co. weren't sure how this one was going to go. Katherine kept smiling at all of them.

"So, any questions?" she asked. The crew all stayed silent. What was the point? Katherine never asked for opinions once a project was announced. The only thing they could do was to make it work and watch the fireworks. The boss smiled at them richly.

"Great!" she said. "The first thing we need is a title." The staff waited for a few seconds. This was the part where they could throw in their input. But not just yet. She hadn't given the signal yet. Ms. Delany had them trained that way. The boss waited a few seconds before giving the signal. She looked at all of her employees watching her.

"Okay," Katherine said. "Any suggestions for a title?" Now, they could talk! Debbie drew out her notepad and began writing down the suggestions.

"London Calling," Amanda suggested.

"Rule Britannia is good." Adam said.

"British Invasion!" Greg said.

"Eastenders!" Noriko said. The crew all looked at her as if she was crazy.

"What?" she asked innocently. "It's a popular show in England!" The crew still weren't sure. But, Debbie wrote it down anyway.

"Train in Vain!" Duncan said.

"From Beatles to Blur," Amanda suggested again.

"English Tea!" Sakura threw in.

"Britain Pop!" Noriko added.

"All Hail the Queen!" Greg threw in.

"Across the Pond!" Vanessa said.

"The British are Coming." Rose suggested in a little joke.

"Brits Do it Better!" Robyn said. Everyone looked at her funny with that one.

"What?" Katherine asked. The Canadian just shrugged.

"Britain Rocks!" Vanessa said. The list went on until Katherine got a headache. She held up her hand to stop the talking.

"Okay, okay," she said. "Let's look over what we have so far." She turned to her secretary. Debbie was flexing her hand from all over that writing.

"Debbie," Katherine said. The woman looked up.

"Oh right," she said. "Let's see here. London Calling, Rule Britannia, British Invasion, Eastenders, Train in Vain, From Beatles to Blur, English Tea, Britain Pop, All Hail the Queen, Across the Pond, The British are Coming, Brits Do it Better..."

"Wait! Go back one!" Katherine ordered.

"The British are Coming?" Debbie asked. The boss thought about that for a moment. A smile came across her face.

"The British are Coming," she repeated. "The British are Coming," Debbie noticed her face.

"What are you thinking, miss?" she asked. Katherine looked up grinning.

"It's perfect!" she exclaimed. The boss lady turned to her staff.

"Who came up with it?" she asked. So far, no one spoke. Then, Rose mildly and slowly rose her hand. She seemed to be hoping not to be noticed. But sadly, Katherine noticed her anyway. The boss lady's eyes lit up in joy.

"Rose!" she said aloud. "What great idea for a title!" Rose felt herself shrinking away as she was pushed reluctantly into the spotlight once again.

"Uh..." she said. "Thanks..." Her co-workers (except for Amanda of course) were all applauding her in joy. Rose just sat back sighing. "Why do I end being the center of attention?" she thought confused. Oh well, looks like she'll have to wait until they are buried into this latest project so that she could be alone in her head again. It was all a cycle she could not get out of.

After the meeting, the usual gossip was in high-gear again. Rose and Noriko were making into the talking corners. Noriko walked over to Robyn at typing at her computer. The Korean woman was leaning over the cubicle wall peeking in and watching her co-worker. She waited in complete silence for her friend to look up and notice her. This went on for close to a good five minutes. Finally, Robyn felt like someone was watching her. The Canadian journalist slowly looked up. Noriko was just inches from her face. Robyn wasn't instantly startled.

"Hi," Noriko said in a soft voice.

"Don't do that!" Robyn yelled out. "I hate it when you just stand over me and say nothing! It creeps me out!" Noriko just stared at her quietly. She looked as if she would cry now. Robyn looked annoyed now. She sighed and she rolled her eyes.

"What do you want, Nori?" she asked at last. The girl snapped back to life instantly.

"If my parents happen to call you at any time today," she began. "Tell them that one of your boyfriends took me home last night. Please, do it for me! I'm begging you." Robyn looked at her confused. This was very odd of the "baby" to ask her. Something had to be up.

"Wait a minute," she said. "Why?" Noriko looked away blushing.

"It's kind of embarrassing..." she mumbled. Robyn quickly found out the answer. She couldn't help but to titter.

"Oh," she said aloud. "Did little Noriko meet a man?" The Korean was blushing wildly. Robyn really couldn't help but to smile now.

"Oooo!" she said aloud. Noriko really looked away blushing. Robyn leaned in close to her friend. Noriko felt a little uncomfortable now.

"Well, go on," Robyn encouraged. "Who is he? Is he hot? How did you meet him? Don't hold back any details at all!" Noriko hesitated at first. She didn't know if that was a good idea or not. Even though she adored sex and boys, Robyn was very protective over the young woman. She even wondered how the Canadian woman would take it. But then, she drew in a deep breath and parted her lips.

"His name is Kenji Wang," she replied. "He is Korean too. I was walking home when he offered me. I took it happily."

"Go on," Robyn said. "Tell me more!" Noriko pushed herself to kind goes.

"So we talked," she added. "He seems into me. He even asked if I was virgin," Robyn kept her eyes right on him.

"And what did you say?" she asked. The other woman smiled at her richly.

"Ah," she said. "I told him that in order to find out about me, he would have to hang out with me a few times."

"So what did he say?" Robyn asked.

"He said yes," the Korean girl replied. The Canadian woman smiled at her.

"Good deal!" she said aloud. Her young co-worker just smiled at her. Then, Robyn's face became somewhat serious.

"But do you really like him?" she asked. The younger woman stood her ground.

"Kenji treats me like an adult." Noriko said. "I'm pretty interested in him. Plus, I want to test him out to see if he is worth dating me before I give it to him." Robyn looked Noriko with a heavy serious face.

"Just be careful!" she said to her. The younger woman looked slightly annoyed.

"Don't worry!" she insisted. "I'll be just fine! Trust me!" Robyn nodded uneasily at those words. She knew how Noriko was at times. The Canadian woman just didn't want her young friend to get hurt by a man.

Rose tried her best to avoid Amanda at all costs. Ever since Rose's title won, Amanda would glare at her with pure hate. "You bitch!" she seemed to say. "Quit stealing my limelight!" This was being a minor problem. Every time Rose suggested something, she ended up in the spotlight. That always sparked some jealousy from Amanda. The "rival" used to be the number one journalist at Beach Radio Magazine. But ever since Rose came on the scene, Amanda was just pushed backstage. Now, she wanted to steal back the spotlight from good ol' Rosie and be number one again. It was funny really. Rose didn't want to be in the spotlight and she didn't understand why Amanda was so jealous for. Today was no different. "I just hope she's in a better mood when the project is finished!" the journalist thought.

Then, Rose felt a small tap on her shoulder. She looked and saw Vanessa looking at her with bright eyes and a huge grin on her face. Rose just shook her head.

"What is it, Vanessa?" she asked. The blonde was smiling at her still.

"You talk to any hot emo rock star bass players lately?" she asked. Rose froze at that question. "Damn!" the journalist thought. "She doesn't skip a beat, does she?"

"Uh...." Rose said at last. Vanessa's smile grew brighter.

"Ahhh!!!" she called out. "You have!" Rose looked at her in slightly surprise.

"But... but..." the journalist stammered out. Her friend just smiled at her richly.

"Aw come on," she said. "Your face gives it away. And judging by the happy expression, it was a great encounter. So come on spill it? How was it last night? Did you drop your panties for him again?" Rose was now blushing at her.

"No," she said. "There was no sex this time." Vanessa pouted.

"So what did you two do?" she asked. Rose finally smiled.

"I tried to clear my head last night," she explained. "When that didn't work, I went out for a walk. I passed a few guys that were cat-calling me like Tony."

"Oh, I hate guys like that!" Vanessa said aloud.

"I know, right!" Rose said. "Anyway, I must have hurried away from them, because I came to an abandoned street. I was feeling adventurous that night, so I walked down it. I kept walking until I found myself in a rich neighborhood. After a while, I got thirsty. I looked around and found a local Starbucks. I went in and ordered a drink."

"Please don't tell you ordered water in a Starbucks again?" her friend pleaded. "You didn't, did you?" Rose shook her head.

"I ordered a white chocolate mocha!" she said. Vanessa breathed out in relief.

"Oh," she said. "You have learned from your last mistake! That's good!" Rose felt uneasy once again. "Is it really bad to order water at a Starbucks?" she asked herself.

"So, finish the story!" Vanessa demanded. "What happened next? I love this story! I want to know what happens next." Rose came back to earth quickly.

"Oh, right!" she replied. "I got my drink and sat down. I was lost in my thoughts when I noticed that someone was standing over me. I looked up and saw Pete Wentz." Vanessa became excited.

"And then?" she asked.

"He asked if he could sit with me," Rose went on. "I said yes."

"Good move!" Vanessa threw in. "If you hadn't, I would've thought that you lost your mind. I mean after all, you did sleep with the guy! So not letting him sit with you would have been stupid!" Rose just looked at her friend like she was crazy.

"Can I finish, please?" she asked.

"Oh yeah, go ahead!" Vanessa said.

"Thank you," Rose said sharply. "Anyway, we couldn't really talk to each other at all."

"Why not?" her friend asked.

"We live in the world of gossip and tabloids," the journalist explained. "If we even mentioned that we were together the night before, it make the magazines and blogs! I'd be crucified as a slut!"

"Fair enough," Vanessa agreed as she shrugged.

"Anyway," Rose picked up. "We sat there not talking for what felt like forever. Then this is where it got strange. I felt something or someone touching my knee. I quickly looked down and saw that Pete was touching my knee. I was shocked, but yet I liked it. The only thing that would've made it better is if I was wearing a short skirt instead of jeans. When he moved his hand upwards, I freaked out and hurried out of the Starbucks."

"Awww!" Vanessa wailed. Rose held up her hand.

"I'm not done," she said. "I hurried all the way back to the abandoned street. Then, I realized that he had followed me out to the street!" Vanessa's eyes grew big in shock.

"He followed you all of that way?" she asked.

"Yes," Rose answered.

"And then what?" Vanessa asked.

"We talked for once since that night," Rose concluded. "I took him how I felt about him. And it turns out, he wants me too! We kissed as well. I asked him what that made us now. He said it was up to me. So, we kissed one more time and parted ways. I had Kylie Minogue's "Love at First Sight" playing in my head when I was leaving. That was until I ran straight into a light post."

"So other than the light post, it was great evening?" Vanessa asked.

"Yeah," Rose answered. A slight pause came over them.

"So what are you going to do?" her friend asked. Rose shrugged.

"I don't know," she replied. "I want him, but we're with different people!"

"I see," Vanessa replied innocently. "All of that is about to change, girl!" she thought in malice. "Just let Aunt Nessa do the hard and you just help yourself to the prize!" Vanessa never spoke any missions involving Rose at all. It destroy the whole mission it involved. But, Rose just needed a little "help." And Nessie and BUS were going to give it to her.

I Said He's So Sweet