To his shock it seemed like one of the gossip column magazines that had been popular prior to the SystemÆs arrival He supposed there was no reason to expect that the System would change human nature And he was distantly aware that there were movies and television being produced in Zone 1 When most of the population didnÆt embrace the System as directly they needed ways to occupy their time
The clipping was a reactionary piece to the fact that pop icon Tia Alexandra was now engaged to
Foreign Political Heartthrob Randidly Ghosthound
For several seconds Randidly had no thoughts in his brain The series of words that he had just read left him completely blank He slowly lowered the article Karlito was howling at this point leaning a nearby pile of cinder blocks that were going to be used for the construction of the house
No matter how many times he looked up at RandidlyÆs face each time was enough to set him back to his endless laughter At some point Maude wandered over to see what the fuss was about When she saw the clipping in RandidlyÆs hand she sniffed primly
I would have expected you to be better educated than to read a trash rag like that Maude said matter of factly
This finally was enough to wake Randidly He shook his head slowly then said Yea this
If you want to hear the details of the engagement She continued tapping her interspatial watch and producing another magazine Lifeline is the best There is an interview with Tia that explains the whole proposal Honestly it reminds me quite a bit about how my late husband proposed to me
Numbly Randidly took the magazine
It was the most philosophical Tia began telling reporters but then she couldnÆt even finish the thought
You hear a lot of what heÆs like from all the refugees he works with Tia said her eyes glowing with the apparent emotion she has for her fiance ThatÆs actually how I met him doing a benefit concert at The Orchard But people never talk about how deep and thoughtful he is The date where he proposed was simple He just invited me to help pick apples When I told my publicist she fell off her chair She said ArenÆt there bugs in orchards Æ
I already knew This was probably our 5th date and I already knew you know There was just something there But I didnÆt know if like he knew you know So after we picked apples I just asked him if he believed in soul mates And you know what he did As serious as can be Rand turned to me nodded and said I have one Æ Then he reached over and squeezed my hand I mean whoo Where did he get the confidence to phrase something so important like that
Tia Alexandra 19 is probably the most popular performing artist currently working in Zone 1 Reporters from Lifeline attempted to contact Mr Ghosthound or Senator Firefly for comment on Mr GhosthoundÆs age but they made no comment But based upon his appearance
Randidly stopped reading and handed the article back WasnÆt this wasnÆt this just Neveah talking about him
Neveah Randidly growled Summon me Right now
Chapter 549
Tia Alexandra before the System was the girl who at 16 was creating plans to sleep with the 40 year old musicians at the concerts her father took her to By the end of the concert her father was far too intoxicated to pay attention to her so she would worm her way to the front of the crowd and wait
There was a very specific way to get the attention of an older man Tia knew The first and most important was to be attractive Thankfully her mother had blessed Tia with overly large eyes and an expressive mouth Her other assets werenÆt particularly notable but Tia had played soccer and volleyball since she was a child Her limbs were long toned and tanned
The second thing was to have the man look at her with a suggestive eye Most of the time this was the simplest part The only trick was that the man had to be the initiator of the look It was very important not to be caught looking
Once the man looks you catch him You maintain eye contact
Then instead of looking away you smile
Which was how Tia lost her virginity in a tour bus probably not 100 feet from her father
As she grew older Tia became more adept at utilizing this technique It had never failed her Until she met Randidly Ghosthound Even now her stomach did flip flops as she remembered the way they met
Not that Tia had truly considered this strange pseudo political figure an object worthy of her affections Not at the beginning He was attractive in a serious way Tia originally thought but that image was shattered when you saw his almost childlike grin
At the insistence of her manager Tia performed for some newly rescued refugees from the borderlands It was part of an initiative to make them feel more in control of their lives and also to prove that the government sponsored refugee camps were fun too The young people they were vindicating had been leaving for the relatively similar Unity Church refugee camps in droves mostly this was due to the attractive young men and women who came to the government camps to promote it
Tia was the answer to this problem
When she encountered him there he was speaking to some of her techies before the concert The group of men and women didnÆt even notice TiaÆs arrival so enthralled were they in RandidlyÆs story One of them appeared to be laughing so hard she was crying As she casually approached Randidly looked up She caught him looking at her
She held his gaze and smiled
He smiled back
He turned back to the techies and continued to tell his story
Now Tia didnÆt want to say that she obsessed over the fact he hadnÆt shown her any real attention but it remained in her mind through the concert And afterward the next day Through sheer force of will she had charmed her way into meeting Senator Firefly knowing that he was a close friend of Randidly Unfortunately he was on his way out as she arrived
But for some reason even know she couldnÆt understand Randidly stopped as he was leaving and approached her
Hey YouÆre that singer right Randidly said his emerald eyes blazing There was an easy smile on his face
Tia smiled back ThatÆs me Are you a fan
No Randidly said shaking his head But IÆve always wanted to sing I just think my throat is the wrong shape My singing makes people well Anyways you should teach me sometime
Are you free for dinner Tia said just as surprised as Randidly seemed that she asked in such a direct manner
Randidly simply smiled back
The history of Randidly absentmindedly forgetting about their plans and Tia growing increasingly infuriated But for some reason the more that he blew her off the more Tia couldnÆt help but throw herself at him
For fuckÆs sake they hadnÆt even kissed yet And she had agreed to marry him What sort of move was that if not crazy
Today was a private celebration they were having just to enjoy the relief with several close friends Randidly was finally hers she didnÆt need to chase him any longer
But the party had already started below in Senator FireflyÆs grand ballroom at the Orchard and Randidly was nowhere to be found The butler assured Tia that Mr Ghosthound hadnÆt left but Tia wasnÆt sure how reliable that information that was For one thing the butlerÆs family had been rescued by Randidly and were now staying at the Orchard so the man worshipped Randidly
Also Tia was surprised to discover how capable Randidly was at moving through locations without being detected It was almost impossible to keep track of the man unless you were looking directly at him
As she had expected Tia heard the sound of him working in the stone room She rolled her eyes at her soon to be husband He truly was a workaholic in every sense of the world Whoever had taught Randidly about work ethic should start a clinic They would revolutionize the industry When he wasnÆt helping build housing for refugees Randidly was creating sculptures Some of them were of monsters while others were humans but everyone assured Tia they were extremely captivating