Decided to try to resurrect this series. Hopefully my writing has improved since the last entry in the series. I'll admit the first two chapters aren't my best work. Any and all celebs in this story are not my property and are unlikely to act this way in real life. Enjoy.
Okay. So it'd been a few years since I crossed paths with Christina Aguilera. For some reason, nothing like that happened again at Top of the Pops. About six months after that happened I'd left that job and spent a year backpacking around Australia mainly to chase the opposite sex. That country did not disappoint in that regard mainly because they all love the accent. The constant walking, time spent in the sun and carrying a heavy rucksack with everything I needed day to day had greatly improved my physique not to mention given me a good all over tan. I'd spent a lot of free time recently in the gym, seeing if I couldn't take decent shape into Magic Mike worth. The 6 pack was nearly finished which went down very well when I was out drinking.
With my time away came a low bank balance -- I'd done some cash in hand gigs where I could get them but eventually my holiday work visa ran out and I knew I'd have to return home where, sadly the opposite sex don't spend nearly as much time in beach wear.
So here I was, broke and living with my folks till I could save up enough to move back out into my own space again.
Using the experience I'd accumulated at TOTP I'd managed to bag an interview with a company that provided personal assistants to celebrities visiting this country which could open some very promising career opportunities and hopefully some legs. I figured the latter was wishful thinking.
I arrived for my 2 o'clock interview promptly at quarter to and took a seat in the reception area. Adjusting my tie, I glanced around and checked out the competition. They were all younger -- some by a couple of years. Least I had experience on my side. My confidence rose.
Two others were called before me. One of them was only in there 2 minutes. He was out of the running then. Then it was my turn. I followed the receptionist down a long hall way before being shown into a small meeting room with two people already present. One male, one female. They both rose and we shook hands as they introduced themselves. The woman would be my boss and the person training me, her name was Nicola. I detected a slight Geordie twang to her speech and she appeared to be in her mid-30s but clearly looked after herself which I could tell despite the fairly modest office attire. The guy was Steve. He was Nicola's boss. He was... nondescript to say the least.
We went through the usual interview stuff. Work experience, relevant skills etc. I went on about my time travelling, some of the amazing sights I'd seen, my interests etc. Then came the "why do I want the job question" which I answered honestly, that it was a great opportunity and was something I believed I could really excel at having done mostly menial stuff before now. I made sure to include buzz words like potential and passionate.
Then we got to my ace in the hole. See, about a week after my experience with Christina, I'd received an e-mail from her which included a scan of a handwritten letter of recommendation which she'd also copied to my boss (which, at the time had netted me a nice raise) and I was hoping it was going to guarantee my hiring.
Steve retrieved a copy of my CV to which said letter was pinned to.
"So we noticed this letter from Ms Aguilera included with your CV."
"Ah yes." I replied, pretending I'd forgotten it was there. "Yeah, I ran some errands for her during my time on Top of the Pops."
"Uh huh." He replied a little non-committal. Then he started reading excerpts.
"James was an absolute pleasure to get to know. He made sure my every need was seen to. He really came through for me when I needed him. He worked really hard to make sure I went away with a smile on my face."
I had to bite my tongue to stop from grinning.
"We actually reached out to Ms Aguilera to ensure this wasn't forged." At this point Steve swapped a glance with Nicola. "She confirmed that she had indeed written it. She actually still remembered you and was able to describe you too which I found a little odd."
"I must just have one of those faces." For sitting on, I added in my head.
"Right. Okay. Have you got any more questions Nicola?" A brief shake of the head.
"We'll bring this to a close then. James, it was a pleasure meeting you. We've got one or two people left to see today so we'll hopefully be in touch by end of tomorrow.
And with that, we all shook hands and I left, mentally skipping in my head as I went.
The following day I got a call from Steve to say that I had in fact gotten the job.
Then it was 2-3 weeks of filling in forms with their HR department as well as time spent in seminars and training classes to make sure I knew everything I needed to rules wise. One of the biggies was do not try and date or sleep with the celebs you're looking after. That was the first rule I was gonna break if given half a chance.
My first week on the job rolled around. First couple of days I spent helping out around the office, running errands and making coffee for the managers mainly. It was on the third day my manager pulled me into her office and told me my services were required.
"Hayden Panettiere?" I asked incredulously.
"Yeah. You're familiar with her then? Excellent." Which apparently settled the matter.
"Damn right I am. I was annoyed when Heroes didn't live up to its early promise."
"Yes well... She's requested your presence at her hotel room this evening around 6pm to go over her itinerary for the week of her stay. She has a number of engagements -- mainly auditions for roles and wants everything to run smoothly. My boss, having already apparently imparted all the information she had, lost all interest in the conversation and turned back to her screen.
I stepped out of her office and had to stop myself jumping for joy. Getting to look after someone so hot my first time out? I should buy a lottery ticket I thought to myself.
As it was already nearly 5pm, I had to quickly zip home and shower before changing into a fresh shirt and tie and grab my smartest looking coat. I then headed to her hotel. I got there nice and early. No way was I getting off on the wrong foot by being late. I hung around the lobby for 15 mins before wandering over to the reception desk and asking them to buzz her room. She apparently answered and was happy for me to go straight up.
I got to her door and I was still early. I knocked and heard the sound of papers rustling and footsteps before a hurried looking Hayden Panettiere answered the door in a hotel dressing gown -- this must have been the rustling.
"Miss Panettiere? I'm James. Executive Assistants Ltd sent me to look after you for the week?"
"Yes of course, come in and please, Hayden is fine."
