“This will be your desk here,” Eden said, gesturing to a bare desk with only a monitor and keyboard on it. “We don’t really do the whole cubicle thing. It’s too separating. Since we’re constantly getting tips and leads, it works better for us to be able to talk to each other from our desks.”

The setup was much like Nulu Magazine’s office, only without the half-walls separating each space. The overall atmosphere, though, was much different. While the staff at Nulu was just as dedicated to high quality journalism, the pace was slower and they took time to chat with each other over the course of the day. Here, everyone was buzzing around like worker bees, sharing new gossip and scrolling through every social media site known to man.

It was going to be fine, though. Everything would be worth it once he saw Jonah again and got the chance to explain he hadn’t meant for the blog post to actually be posted. Granted, after he saw Jonah, he was going to have to get used to the idea that he lived in California now.

Both Mason and Deke thought he was crazy, walking away from an amazing freelance career and an apartment that was affordable to move more than halfway across the US just to clear up a misunderstanding. Hell, even Christian thought it was crazy. But this was about more than just Jonah. InTune Magazine was one of the top entertainment magazines in the country. If he could get his name out there, he could eventually find a magazine he actually wanted to work for. Not that Eden needed to know that.

As if on cue, Eden pointed to a room off to the side of the main area. “My office is right through there, and the door to the right is the kitchen area. The fridge is communal, so write your name on anything you bring in and try not to heat up fish in the microwave. We won’t fire you for it, but we will judge you severely.”

Christian laughed. “I don’t think that’s going to be a problem. Reheated fish is disgusting.”

“Good answer. Now I know you’ve hardly had a minute to catch your breath, but every morning we like to go over the latest stories that might be newsworthy. You want to sit in?” Eden asked.

“Definitely.” After all, he’d moved there to work, and what better way to get acclimated to the magazine than to sit in on a staff meeting.

“Perfect. Come with me.”

She led him down a short hallway and into a large conference room, where most of the staff had already taken their seats at an enormous oval table. A few of them had their notebooks ready, while others sat poised behind their laptops. Eden took her place at the front of the table, but unlike the rest of the staff, she didn’t sit.

“Good morning, everyone. Let’s get started. Katie, you’re covering the latest on Avengers 4, correct? What have you got for me?”

A pretty brunette with glasses flipped over a few pages in her notebook. “I’m sitting down with Tom Holland tomorrow to discuss his role and James should be getting pictures to me from set soon.”

“Excellent. Franky, how’s your piece on the next Fantastic Beasts going?” Eden asked.

“I’m having trouble getting in touch with Johnny, but that’s no surprise there,” Franky said, rolling their eyes. They ran a hand through close cropped hair, making it stick up wildly. “I’m hoping to get in touch with his agent this afternoon, so I can see what’s going on.”

Eden flipped through her notes and asked various others at the table how they were coming along with their articles. A few of the staff glanced his way, but no one said anything, so Christian continued to hover just inside the doorway.

“Okay folks, you know what’s coming. What do you have for me today? What snippets of information, what leads that could turn into something big?”

At the end of the table, a man who looked to be in his mid-thirties pulled out a stack of photos. “Felix got these a couple of nights ago. He’s been sitting on them for a few days but I convinced him to share with us instead of someone else.”

He passed the photos around and Christian edged over to the table. He caught a glimpse of one of the photos and his heart sank. Kyle Keaton had one arm slung around Jonah as they exited an upscale sushi restaurant. In another photo, he was purposefully winking at the camera. It wouldn’t have meant anything in the past, but now, he knew Jonah was bi. Rumors had been swirling about Kyle for years, so it would make sense, the two of them dating.

Eden snatched up one of the photos and grinned. “They look awfully close, wouldn’t you say?”

Christian’s stomach twisted. They did look close. Incredibly so. He pressed his lips together.

“More than close,” Franky said. “Maybe this is exactly what we need to answer the question once and for all. I mean, Kyle did just break up with his girlfriend.”

Everything they were saying only made it so much worse. He didn’t want to believe that Jonah had moved on so quickly after their week together, but at the same time, he’d practically encouraged him to when they’d said goodbye. Christian had been the one to tell him he hoped he found someone he could be with. And it looked like Jonah was taking his advice.

“What do you think, Christian?” Eden said, looking at him.

He froze, the picture of Kyle winking at the camera still in his hand. “Oh, I um… It certainly looks like there could be some chemistry there between them.”

Eden nodded, satisfied at his reply. “Everyone, this is Christian Miller, our newest Out correspondent. He’s come all the way from the Midwest to take the position. Of course, you probably already know him. Christian wrote that blog post about his week with his mysterious A-lister.”

That certainly got a response, as no doubt Eden was looking for. The staff practically fought over each other to try and ask him questions or welcome him to the team. Christian’s heart beat faster, and he took a step backward. He’d expected a warm welcome, but they were almost rabid in their interest.

“Enough,” Eden said over the clamor. “There’ll be plenty of time to grill Christian on his blog post, but for now, we have work to do. Get to it.”

Most of the staff dispersed, but a few hung around, including Franky, who was staring at Christian as though he were prey. They walked over after Eden had left the conference room and held out their hand.

“I’m Franky Powell, Out section editor. You’ll be working with me for the most part. Walk with me.” It wasn’t a request. They took off and Christian followed, feeling very much put on the spot. “So, you’re the one who wrote the blog post. We’ve all been dying to meet you. Of course, we didn’t actually know it was you.”

Christian laughed nervously. “Yep, it was me. Just a nobody from the middle of nowhere.”

“Where’d you work before this?”

“I was a freelancer for a couple of magazines in Louisville. It was a great job, really.”

Franky arched a perfectly-plucked eyebrow. “Then what brought you here?”

There was absolutely no way he was going to tell them the truth. They seemed nice enough, even if they were a bit brusque, but he couldn’t afford anyone to know who Jonah was until he’d had a chance to talk to him.

“I’ve never lived outside of Kentucky, and when the job offer came in, I couldn’t say no.” It wasn’t technically a lie. “It was just time for something new.”

And it certainly was new. Eden had put him up in an AirBnb until he was able to find a place of his own, courtesy of the magazine, but living in LA would take some getting used to. The city itself was so much larger than Louisville, and yet, his apartment was so much smaller. It was barely a studio, with a couch that turned into a bed and a kitchenette. He didn’t even want to know how much rent was.

“Well you clearly know how to write. Eden sent me samples of your work and it’s good. You’ve got a gift.” Franky steepled their fingers underneath their chin and sat forward. “A lot of people are going to ask you this, so let me be the first. Who was it? The famous actor you slept with?”

Christian knew it was coming. He was going to get asked more times than he could count. But the thought of betraying Jonah again by naming him hurt to his very core.

“I can’t tell you,” he said. “I’m sorry. I haven’t talked to the guy since, and I know it’s got to be hard for him right now. Just… I need some time, okay?”

Franky looked like they wanted to protest, but instead, they pressed their lips into a thin line and nodded. “I get it. It’s a hard thing to hurt someone you’ve been friends with for years. But just keep in mind that if anyone else finds out who it is before we do, there’s not going to be anything you can do to help soften the blow, okay? We can sit on the story. No one else would.”

It was highly tempting, in that light, but he still couldn’t bring himself to spill who it was. Instead, he shook his head. “Not yet.”

Franky wiggled their eyebrows at him. “Is it Kyle? I mean, clearly everyone thinks it is, but part of me thinks that’s just the most obvious answer.”

“That’s because it is the most obvious answer.”

“So that’s a no?” It was as though Franky could sense it. And they were right. No wonder they were the head of the Out section. They had a nose for the story and knew how to press in all the right places.

“It’s not that it’s a no or not a no,” Christian said carefully. “Just that you were right. Kyle is the most obvious answer. Look, just let me talk to him first. If I can convince him that it won’t be the end of his career, maybe I can get the story for you.”

“He actually thinks it’ll ruin his career?” Franky scoffed. “What, is he living in the nineties?”

“He’s just—where we come from, people are more um… conservative about these things. And I think he’s still afraid of what everyone’s reaction might be.”

The last thing Christian wanted to do was speak for Jonah, but he wasn’t. Not really. It was nothing Jonah hadn’t said at the cabin. Of course, he’d said a lot of things at the cabin that Christian wasn’t at liberty to share.

“Tell him he should talk to trans and nonbinary actors who are trying to find work in Hollywood,” Franky said, crossing his arms.

“I’m not saying it’s logical. I’m just saying that’s where he’s coming from.”

They shrugged. “I guess.” A moment later, they brightened and stood. “Well since you won’t tell us who your lover boy is, come on. I’ll introduce you to the rest of the staff.”

As they walked through the bullpen, Christian pulled out his phone. He was here in LA and now he had one thing left to do.

Christian: I need to talk to you and I’m in LA. Can we meet somewhere?

He waited with bated breath, barely acknowledging the other reporters he was being introduced to. There would be time to get to know all of them, but right now, he had more pressing matters to attend to. What seemed like hours later, his phone buzzed in his hand. He swiped to unlock his phone and let out a slow sigh.

Jonah: I think we should.