Internet Famous Read online

“It’s just that…” Madi let out a tired sigh and put her phone away. She patted Sarah’s arm. “So, what were you saying about superstrings?”

  Her sister nodded and continued.

  *   *   *

  The rest of the week passed in a heartbeat. There were simply too many things to do and never enough time to do them. More than once, Madi thought her parents were going to tell Sarah that her mother was leaving, but in every case the moment passed and the announcement was delayed yet again. Sarah had no idea.

  As Friday morning and afternoon dragged by, Madi threw herself back into blogging. Writing was a distraction. And if she needed one thing, it was a way to not think about meeting her fans. She shuddered. The line she so carefully followed—keeping online and real life separated—was going to be breached, if only for tonight. Panicked, she did the one thing that she knew would solve it: She focused entirely on her blog.

  By late afternoon, she’d finished her latest MadLib rewatch, and she posted it as she headed out the door.

  Blog Post 208, Friday 3:48 p.m.:

  Mad, Mad Choices!

  Keep those votes coming in, MadLibbers, because the race is a close one! The four main options at this point are:

  Star Wars saga. Thank you to @StarveilBrian1981 for nominating it and also for suggesting the Starveil series. That was a blast!

  Supernatural, seasons one to infinity. Thank you to @WinchesterForLife for the suggestion. I’m definitely open to this one (and I’m actually not sure why I haven’t seen this yet). So much fandom potential here.

  Buffy series. OMG OMG OMG OMG This would be SPECTACULAR! *puppy-dog eyes* I definitely would be open to a rewatch for this ’verse. But the MadLibbers are always right—so make your own choice. *cough* Vote Buffy. *cough* PLEASE. *cough*

  ’80s movies. This one’s the dark horse at this point, but I think there’s a chance it could happen. (I’m actually named because of an ’80s film, but I’m not sharing that story unless your votes demand it.) If ’80s movies are a go, we’ll do a second round of voting for the actual films.

  Happy voting, everyone!

  *confetti canon*

  MadLib

  PS: I’ll respond to comments as soon as I can—I’m off for a bit of R&R tonight.

  * * *

  Comments enabled.

  Tags: #MadLibs #Round Two MadLibbing #Madi watches things and then blogs about them #Funemployment

  *   *   *

  Madi walked through the Penn Station arrivals area, her backpack clutched tight against her chest. She scanned the crowd. There were no screaming teens wearing her recently sold-out MadLibs shirts, no signs with WELCOME MADI! to signal her online-to-real-life arrival.

  “This was a terrible idea,” she muttered as she forded the crowd. “What in the world was I thinking?”

  It wasn’t that Madi was against meeting new people, she just wasn’t used to it. Her role at home was to keep things calm and help out with Sarah. Here—alone and on her own in New York—she wasn’t quite sure what to do. She thought of herself as independent: The MadLibs blog had been a source of income for well over a year. But the difference between her online life and reality overwhelmed her.

  Seeing no one waiting to meet her, Madi headed to the chairs in the waiting area. A young woman with blue hair glanced up as Madi neared.

  “Are you a MadLibber?” Madi asked with a quick wave. The woman stood from the chairs and Madi smiled in relief.

  The teen pushed past her, launching herself into the arms of an older woman who was approaching from the same direction as Madi. “Mom! You made it!”

  People in the chairs around Madi smirked. A teen boy snickered and leaned toward his friend, whispering. Horrified at her gaffe, Madi waved at an indeterminate person in the distance.

  “Coming!” she said, bustling past the onlookers and disappearing around the next knot of people. “Just a second!”

  She dropped her hand as the crowd closed behind her. “Shouldn’t have come,” she grumbled. “Dumb. Dumb. Dumb.”

  Someone should be here to meet her. Laurent had promised her that. But in her excitement to come, Madi had totally forgotten to find out who.

  “This is why the Internet was invented.” She sighed as she peered into the sea of faces.

  Tonight the group of online friends would be heading to the newly renovated Metrograph theater on the Lower East Side to see a rerelease of Blade Runner. It had seemed like a good idea when Laurent mentioned it, but with the moment nearing, she’d lost her excitement.

  Stumbling past burdened travelers and wearied mothers, Madi felt her cheeks prickling, imagining every eye attuned to her. What if the MadLibbers don’t like me? Before the thought could take hold, she found the farthest chair from the crowd and sat down, pulling out her phone.

  Wi-Fi!

  She was here. There was no way out except through. She slumped down in the seat, phone in front of her face to block her from strangers. Worst-case scenario, she had the return ticket in her wallet. She’d hang out here all night and play on her phone, then return home no worse for wear. It wasn’t a fun evening by any means, but she’d manage. She peeked over the top of the screen, spying a nearby snack shack and, farther down, a sign for bathroom facilities. Food, Wi-Fi, a bathroom within walking distance. Yes, she’d survive.

  With a sigh, she opened the MadLibs site, scrolling through the comments section. As expected, Brian was campaigning for another space epic. She shook her head as she read through his commentary.

  Comments on Blog Post 208: Mad, Mad Choices!

  Comment 12.1, @StarveilBrian1981: Thanks for MadLibbing the Starveil series, @MadLib. I knew you’d be a fan! It was great to see it through your eyes. Very cathartic. If you ever want to talk about it, I’m always open. There’s a great fandom online. And I’m excited to see Star Wars got short-listed for your next rewatch.

  Madi typed in a reply, careful to keep her tone neutral. Her years of blogging had taught her the skill of fan management, and Brian seemed to be pricklier than most.

  @MadLib: Thank YOU, @StarveilBrian1981, for the Starveil suggestion AND for the Star Wars suggestion for the upcoming MadLibs vote. Good luck with the campaign! Voting’s open until Saturday. I’ll try to tabulate the votes by the end of this weekend (if not sooner).

  His answer appeared seconds after she posted her reply and refreshed the page.

  @StarveilBrian1981: To quote Spartan—“Trying is for fools. Rebels just do!” I really think Star Wars would be a great choice. I mean, it’s no Starveil, but you can see which canon elements are linked. I wrote a big meta post on that last week. I can’t post a link here, but if you search my username, you’ll find it.

  She slumped lower, typing another reply to Brian.

  @MadLib: That’s really awesome, @StarveilBrian1981, but I’ve gotta run now. Talk to you later.

  @StarveilBrian1981: Run where? I have more ideas I want to talk about.

  @MadLib: Heading for a Blade Runner rerelease, but I PROMISE I’ll be replying to comments later tonight. Bye!

  @StarveilBrian1981: I love Blade Runner! You should post as you watch it. DO IT! I think there are LOADS of MadLibbers who’d be up for an impromptu liveblog! What do you say, @MadLib?

  @MadLib: Um, great idea, @StarveilBrian1981, but I really can’t. Gotta go.

  @StarveilBrian1981: Okay, then, I’ll just be waiting here. Reply when you get back. Okay?

  A message from her father appeared on the phone’s screen before she could type in her answer. Seeing it, a flicker of worry rose inside her—imagining Sarah getting tonight’s news—but it turned out to be a list of reminders.

  Madi. Don’t forget to be waiting for the train at least fifteen minutes early. Be safe. Walk in groups. I know you’ve been to New York before, but—

  Another text appeared on-screen before Madi could finish her father’s message. This one was from Laurent, saying he had arrived.

  Madi glanced up. She had seen Lauren
t on-screen and knew what to expect—the flawless face and perfect physique—but having attended a couple of comic conventions, Madi realized that small-screen perceptions didn’t always align. The actors she’d met at conventions seemed smaller in real life. More approachable. Laurent in real life was something else entirely. If anything, he seemed bigger. Not just tall, but huge. Like some Asgardian god on a humble Earth-bound errand, he loomed over the crowd, searching for her. Details sprang into focus like the close-up of a made-for-TV movie star: tanned skin that hinted at Latin roots, a straight jaw dotted with dark stubble, longish hair that varied from caramel at the tips to brownish black at the roots, and a physique that made Madi think of every teen heartthrob she’d ever spent hours dreaming about. He literally could have been torn from the pop-music poster on her bedroom door. He lifted his phone and began to type one-handed.

  Oh. My. God. That can’t be Laurent. I’m going to puke. Or die. Or puke and THEN die. That would be worse. He CAN’T be this hot in person. No freaking way— Their eyes met.… Yes way.

  “Madi!” He laughed. “I didn’t see you there.”

  “It happens when you’re only five feet…” Her breath caught as Laurent wrapped her in a sudden hug.

  She was in his arms. Laurent’s arms! He spun her around and set her back down again in the space of three seconds, then stepped back and slid his hands into his pockets. His face looked flushed under his tan, but she was still reeling from being touched, her mind pulling in a hundred different directions at once. Laurent smelled good. He felt good. He was so unbelievably beyond her level.

  Oh my God … I’m totally falling for him.

  “So are you ready?” he asked.

  “R-ready…?”

  “To go to the movie?”

  “Oh—yeah, of course,” Madi said. “You?”

  He grinned. “Wouldn’t miss a MadLibbers get-together for anything!”

  4

  “That’s why they call them crushes. If they were easy, they’d call ’em something else.”

  (Sixteen Candles, 1984)

  Madi followed Laurent out of Penn Station and onto the street. It felt like surfacing; the sounds and smells of the city hit her in a wave of sensory overload. A taxi peeled by. A horn blared. People milled past, on their way to countless destinations. Madi squinted into the late-afternoon glare and smiled. The hum of millions of separate lives, woven together, gave her a buzz she couldn’t explain. Here in New York, she was faceless, unknown. Herself.

  “You like the city?” Laurent asked.

  She turned to find him watching. “Do I ever,” she said with a nervous laugh. “You?”

  He grinned and started walking. “Wouldn’t be here otherwise. It’s amazing. So busy. So full of … of…”

  “Life?”

  He nodded, and Madi fell into step at his side. “So are we walking to the Metrograph? The Lower East Side seems a long way.”

  “Oh no.” He laughed. “We’re just heading over to the Thirty-Fourth Street station. I grabbed you a ticket.”

  “Thanks.”

  “The metr—subway,” he corrected, “is so convenient. Just another block.”

  Madi found herself puffing. Laurent’s long-legged stride was nearly twice hers. A single person took position between them. Then two. Five. “Hold on,” she called, fearful of losing him in the crowds. “Can’t keep up.”

  “Ah! Sorry.” He dropped his pace to match hers. “I should have waited. I’m just excited to get to the theater.”

  The anxiety that had only just faded, tightened once more. “We’re not going to grab a coffee or something first?”

  “No time,” he said. “I want a good seat.”

  “But it won’t be busy,” Madi said. “I mean, it’s an early show of an old movie, right? I don’t think there’ll be a line or anything.”

  “But there will! Everyone’s coming!”

  Madi’s eyes widened. “Everyone…?”

  “The New York MadLibbers group has hundreds of regulars. They’re thrilled you’re coming tonight.”

  “Y-you told them?”

  He grinned. “Of course I did! And they’ll all want to talk to you. People started texting me as soon as I said you’d agreed.…” Laurent chattered on, but Madi couldn’t follow his words. This wasn’t what she’d imagined. A few people, yes, but an entire theater full of them?

  “… and I want to make sure that my close friends get to meet you,” Laurent said. “Ava and Kelly and Morag.” In his excitement to explain, Laurent’s pace had returned to its previous speed, and Madi soon found herself lagging.

  “Laurent, I really need you to slow down.”

  He turned to discover her two steps behind. “Ah! Je suis désolé! Sorry, Madi.”

  “It’s fine. Just short legs.”

  “Your legs are perfectly sized.”

  “That should be a compliment,” she said, “but it’s not. Short is short.”

  “Petite. Tiny. Wee. Delicate.” Laurent glanced at his phone, apparently checking the dictionary. “Aha! Miniature,” he announced.

  “That is not a compliment.” She snorted.

  “No? Fitting, though.” He gave her a once-over. “Mini Madi sounds like a candy bar or—” Laurent yelped as Madi poked him in the ribs.

  “Not funny!” She giggled.

  “Then how about minette instead?”

  She bit her cheeks to keep from smiling. “What does minette mean?”

  Laurent slowed his steps as the stairwell entrance to the subway appeared.

  “I’ll give you a hint: small, cute, but deadly, with…” He poked her and she lurched sideways, laughing, nearly colliding with a businessman emerging from the Thirty-Fourth Street entrance. “Claws.”

  “You’re calling me a cat?” She was breathing hard, and not just from trying to keep up with him.

  “Not any old cat,” Laurent said, grinning. “A kitten.”

  “Kitten, hmmm?”

  “Yes, minette.”

  She couldn’t help noticing his hand hovering near her elbow, guiding her toward the entrance.

  “Unless you prefer Mini Madi.”

  “Minette is fine.” She laughed.

  *   *   *

  The crowd outside the Metrograph was visible a block away. Knots of people milled around the entrance, most of them wearing T-shirts that Madi herself had designed. MadLibbing for the PEOPLE! one announced. It Madders because YOU say it does! quipped another. MadLIBERATION!

  “Oh my God,” Madi moaned. “Who are all these people?”

  Laurent bumped her with his elbow. “Your fans, of course.”

  “My fans?” Madi’s feet slowed. There were too many—far too many!—and she had no idea how she was supposed to act. This was completely different from online chatter. And any skills she’d once had with face-to-face interaction had long since faded. Dread filled her gut.

  “C’mon,” Laurent said. “I have a few people I want you to meet. The friends I hang out with.”

  “I guess that sounds all right.”

  “Great! Come on!”

  He walked toward a small group lounging near the alley on the far side of the street, half a block down. One girl had messy blond hair and an angry scowl, the kind of person Madi would avoid on any other day. Beside her stood a beaming teen, braces flashing. Her pink T-shirt announced, Mad for MadLibs. She reminded Madi of an extra from the Disney channel.

  The angry-looking girl glanced up, catching Madi’s eyes. She scowled for the count of three, then her gaze shifted upward. Her expression backflipped into joy.

  “Laurent!” she shouted. “You came!”

  He strode forward, leaving Madi struggling to keep up. “I told you I’d be here.”

  “So what happened to MadLib? I thought you were heading to Penn Station to get her.”

  “I was—I did!” Laurent reached out, touching Madi’s shoulder. “She’s here. This is Madi!”

  Madi waved nervously as all eyes tur
ned on her. “Hiiiiiii…”

  The Disney girl’s eyes were so big they looked like they were going to pop. “You’re her! You’re Madi. Like the actual, real-to-life, in-the-flesh—”

  The other girl stared at Madi with a look that reminded her all too much of the popular crowd at Millburn Academy. After a long moment she reached out a hand. “So we finally get to meet the infamous MadLib.”

  “Just Madi, thanks.”

  “I’m Ava.”

  Laurent nodded to the other teen. “And this is Chantal,” he said smoothly. “She was going to pick you up, but I beat her to it.”

  “It’s so weird to actually meet you,” Chantal gasped, her hand to her chest. “I have so many questions! I just—I can’t…” She let out a high-pitched giggle. “I’ve been wanting to talk to you forever.”

  “Thanks,” Madi said. “It’s good to be here.” She peeked over at Laurent, who hadn’t stopped grinning since they’d arrived.

  Ava shook her head. “I still can’t believe you’re actually here. I mean, it just seems … weird or something.”

  “Why?”

  She shrugged. “Aren’t you, like, a bona fide recluse or something? I mean, no one’s actually met you before today.”

  “I’m not—”

  Chantal grabbed Madi’s hand. “But you’re MadLib—Madi! And you’re here—with us—for real!” She laughed aloud. “That’s crazy!”

  Madi smiled. “Thanks.”

  “I’m so glad you came,” Chantal said. “I have so much to ask you.”

  “Like what?”

  “Like you write the MadLibs blog for a living, right?”

  “Gainfully funemployed,” Madi said. Laurent chuckled at the joke, and she felt her cheeks warm. Play it cool, Nakama! She forced herself to focus on the two young women. “So how about you two?”

  “What about us?” Ava asked.

  “What do you guys do?”

  “Art program.” Ava glanced at Laurent as if sharing some secret and then back to Madi. “Though I prefer painting. Not mainstream crap. Real art.”

  “And I’m in high school,” Chantal added, still grinning.

  “I hated high school,” Madi said. “Absolutely loathed it!”