Chapter 4- All is Fair in Love and Buisness




The pair of men halted in their approach as they looked at the young teen, Scott Summers, blocking their path. The men exchanged glances with each other, and released their grip on Alison. Her bottom hit the floor first. As she got to her feet, she gave her rear a slight massage, still feeling the sting from her unexpected landing.

The pair of men cracked their knuckles as the started towards Scott. Obviously they were prepared for a brawl, and from the looks of them, it’d be a massacre. The men had large muscular builds, were sporting black suits and dark sunglasses. The pair stopped just in front of Scott, and stared down at the teenager. They smiled and gave each other a brief look.

“Beat it, kid,” said one of the men.

Scott looked at Alison, and then back up at the men, which both stood a head taller than him. “Sorry,” he apologized, “but that’s not an option.”

“Hey, it’s your loss kid. Don’t take it personally,” said the other man. Then at the same time both of the thugs reached up, removed their glasses, and placed them inside their jackets. They looked down at Scott, and prepared to grab him.

“Wait!” cried Scott. “I’m not ready.” He pointed to his glasses. The thugs looked at each other, shrugged, and allowed Scott the opportunity to remove his glasses. Unfortunately, they found out how big of a mistake it was. Scott reached up, and removed his glasses. Then, he opened his eyes. An optic blast erupted from his eyes and sent one of the thugs soaring back into Alison’s suite. The other stood there perplexed by what he’d just seen. He turned back to Scott, who now had his glasses back on.

The large man swung at Scott, who ducked the blow. The man swung with such velocity, that he spun all the way around. Scott raised his foot, and kicked the large man in the back. He lost his balance and started to stumble towards Alison.

“Back off!” cried Alison. She raised her hand, and an explosion of light erupted from her hand. The thug grasped at his eyes, blinded by the light. Suddenly, Scott aimed and unleashed another optic blast sending the second thug crashing into his friend. Both of the men then lay on the floor unconscious.

“Alison! Alison, are you all right?” asked Scott. Alison nodded her head, still shaken up by the brief exchange. “Come on! Let’s get out of here before they wake up!” said Scott. He took Alison’s hand, and the two teens ran towards the elevator. As the elevator chimed and the doors slid open, both Scott and Alison found a sight that shocked them both.

A tall woman, with long platinum blonde hair was standing inside the elevator. She took a step out of the elevator, and as she did Scott and Alison took a few steps back. The door closed behind the woman and a smile spread across her face. She was wearing a gray woman’s business suit, and a pair of black heel-high leather boots. Her shirt was white, and she also wore a light blue tie.

“Hmm,” she said. She walked closer towards Scott and Alison. The teens started to back up, but they found that path was now blocked by the two large men, that had attacked them earlier. The woman raised her hand at the men, and they merely stood their ground, preventing Scott and Alison from going anywhere. The woman walked forward and placed a hand on Scott. She allowed her hands to trace the contours of his arm and his chest. “Ah, very nice,” she said as she continued. “Firm muscle tone… solid build… undeniably handsome… are you an athlete?”

Scott was confused by what was going on. He glanced at Alison who shrugged at the comments made by the woman. Scott’s attention was quickly returned to the woman when he felt a slight pinch on his rear. “Hey!” called Scott.

“Very nice,” she said having examined what she considered one of Scott’s best features.

“Who are you?” asked Scott.

“I’m sorry,” said the woman, “I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Rita Spiral. I represent Mojo Communications.” Rita looked past Scott and towards Alison. “We were looking to acquire the Dazzler label. We feel that we could work wonders for your career. After all, with Mr. Mojo’s access to every kind of communications medium available and the light display you personally put on during your shows, we can make everyone a lot of money.”

“What are you talking about?” said Alison.

“Oh come now, girl,” said Rita. “We’ve checked with the best special effects artists in the world, and none of them can come close to producing a display like yours. We know you’re a mutant… and that’s another reason we want you to come to Mojo Communications. Mr. Mojo has quite a soft spots for people with… talents like you own.”

“Alison, you’re not really gonna listen to this are you?” said Scott. He turned to face Alison, and found that her eyes were lit with excitement. “Alison?”

“Scott,” she said, “this is a once and a lifetime opportunity. I mean Mojo Communications is the largest media conglomerate in the world. I mean we’re talking television channels, radio stations, movies, magazines, newspapers, and even the Internet services on all seven continents... yes even Antarctica. There’s hardly a place on Earth that doesn’t get exposure from Mojo Communications.”

Scott looked into Alison’s eyes and realized that such an opportunity could truly make her happy. Perhaps she would even happier than the time they had spent together. Alison must have recognized the look on Scott’s face because the smile on hers slowly disappeared as she turned to Spiral.

“Ms. Spiral,” began Alison, “I appreciate the offer, but I can’t accept it.”

“Alison, no!” protested Scott. “This is your dream. I don’t want you to give it up because of me.”

“She won’t have to,” interrupted Ms. Spiral. “Mr. Mojo has recognized how the public is responding to you. I convinced him that you would bring a lot of… sexual appeal to Dazzler’s image.” Ms. Spiral allowed her eyes to travel up and down Scott’s body again.

“You see, Scott!” said Alison. “We can still be together. Come on! It’ll be great!”

Scott looked into Alison’s eyes. As he did, he felt a wave of realization wash over him. “Alison… I can’t. I can’t go with you.”

“But, Scott…” she began.

Scott shook his head silencing Alison. “Alison… it’s not as simple as you think. I know that they’re giving us the chance to be together, but it wouldn’t work.” Alison looked into his eyes trying to understand what he was saying. “We would never be able to totally give ourselves to each other. There’s a part of you… Dazzler… that will never be mine. Just like there’s a part of my heart that I can never give away. It belongs to someone else.”

Tears were now stinging Alison’s eyes. She looked up into Scott’s, with a smile on her face. “Thank you, Scott. Thank you for being honest,” she said as she began to wipe the tears from her face. “I understand what you’re saying, and you’re right.” She looked up at Scott and smiled. She leaned forward and gave him a parting peck on the cheek. “Good-bye, Scott.” She turned to Rita Spiral. “I’m ready now.”

“Oh dear,” said Ms. Spiral. “I really was counting on you to join us.” Scott turned to Rita and forced a smile. “Oh, well, there’s always plan B,” she continued. She turned to face Alison. “Okay, darling, image is everything. So, we’ve got a new beau already lined up for you….” Alison stared into the eyes of Rita Spiral, stunned by her lack of empathy for the situation. “Trust me darling, this is Hollywood… if you’re not dating… you’re not happening. Anyway, here he is now.”

The elevator chimed and the doors parted. A rather tall young man stepped out of the elevator. He was wearing a pair of black leather pants, and a leather jacket. He had long blonde hair that was tied in a ponytail. He walked past Scott and nodded at him. Then, he turned his attention to Alison.

“Oh my God!” said Alison. “Do you know who this is?! This is… this is….”

“David Longshot, my dear. He’s also under contract with Mojo Communications. The polls and the critics all show that right now he’s every girl’s fantasy. Any competition from new teen sensation Tom Welling and any other heart throb out there is left in the smoke. He’s at the top of People’s 50 sexiest people in the world, and he’s already been voted number one for next year… and now my dear he’s all yours.”

Alison’s eyes began to sparkle as she stared into the eyes of David Longshot. “I… I… I don’t know what to say.” Then, Alison saw Scott out of the corner of her eye. He had turned and was heading for the elevator. “Scott!” Scott turned around and glared at Alison. He smiled, letting her know that he was okay, and that he was happy for her. Scott stepped onto the elevator and the doors closed. Alison stared after him for a while, but she felt David’s hands lift her chin up to look into his eyes. And at that moment, she found herself lost in his deep blue eyes and he in hers. She eventually managed to break her gaze and turned to Ms. Spiral. “Where do I sign?”


TO BE CONCLUDED…