This fanfiction is based off the song "Everybody Loves Me" by OneRepublic. If you've never heard it before, you should listen to it now. :)

Anyway, this story is going to be a bit out of my element, since I rarely write from James's POV, and I've never written Jarlos at that. But I'm hoping that this multichapter pleases those of you BTR fans who prefer the James/Carlos ship over other common shippings. Either way, have fun reading, and don't forget to review!

It was on a warm summer evening, which years later only a few would remember, that a fancy limousine came to a rest at a red streetlight, and the tanned face of a boy could be seen peering out through the bullet-proof window as it had many times before. His face was little more than a defined shadow, since the bullet-proof windows were tinted and difficult to see through from the outside, but his large sunglasses were clearly visible, shielding his narrowed eyes from view.

At that moment the car started up again and glided forward, not so much as moving him an inch from his position, one arm angled over a bent knee. But finally James lost interest and leaned back against the leather seats of the expensive limousine, ignoring the impressive city buildings of L.A as they continued to flit by.

Maybe it was just an illusion that his foolish mind perceived as real, but as the long, slender limo sped down the highway and past smaller, more rundown cars, it seemed to outstrip all of them one by one, its speed unmatched by any other vehicle or its passengers.

James felt the same of himself and others; he was superior to them, in both money and looks, and since childhood he'd seemed to overtake everyone else he knew, one by one without any trouble. It wasn't from any brilliant skills as he saw it, although that was what the magazines claimed it to be; just good luck and the fact that his parents were successful stars.

Or rather, his dad was a rock star, and his mom had been a movie star. But the latter had died when he was six, victim to some illness that the doctors said she should have been immune to. All James could remember was his father telling him that he wasn't to blame, and himself at the funeral playing with the toys he'd brought as he waited impatiently for it to end.

"Where are we going again?" the teen asked of no one in particular, gazing off in to the distance as he expectantly waited for the limo driver to answer. He couldn't even remember the man's name, and he knew he wouldn't need to anyway; this newest one had been hired recently, but would no doubt quit within the first few months like the others.

The old man answered despite thinking that the boy was being rude, and told him, "You requested that I take you to your friend Julia's house, master James. It is the day of her birthday party and a week ago she sent you an online invitation."

"Oh, yeah," the brunette grunted as he shifted to get comfortable, scowling at how the seat belt got in his way. Then, so that he didn't seem stupid, he added hastily, "But I didn't forget, I was just testing you." To which there was no reply, only a heavy silence.

Deciding to pretend that the man was simply stunned speechless by his charisma, James focused his attention on his music player and selected one of his newest songs, cursing the stupid device when the volume blasted his ears. Then he listened quietly and gazed at his reflection as the limousine neared its destination. He couldn't help smirking and adjusting his beautiful hair in the mirror as he remembered how little he'd done for his album. Everyone else had worked on it for him, using auto-tune and adjusting his unimpressive vocals, which had only been recorded once or twice for each track.

James often thought this privately to himself as he enjoyed the pleasures of being high class, and he couldn't help believing it every day as waiters served him food in his house and housemaids cleaned the mansion for him. But once again it crossed his mind as the limo curved up the driveway of his girlfriend's house.

Everybody loves me.

By then the fast car had come to a standstill, and James clambered out with a sneer curling at his pretty lips.

Ding Dong!

James jabbed at the doorbell with a finger and smoothed down his hair with his hands as he waited for someone to come to the front door. Finally a blonde seventeen-year-old girl opened it and let him inside, her mouth stretched in to a strange smile that he returned wholeheartedly.

"Julia!" James greeted happily, stepping forward to hug her. It was awkward, and her arms did not immediately embrace him; it took her a moment to realize what he was trying to do, and it was only for a couple moments that she allowed him to hug her before pushing him away. Afterwards her laugh was suspiciously delayed, and her smile seemed even more forced than it had previously. James simply frowned as she said, "Come on in," and lead him down the hallway towards the kitchen. He could hear a lot of chatter, presumably coming from her group of friends.

James was undeniably pleased when he saw that everyone else invited there was of the female gender. He waved at each of them before sitting down, grinning at the unexpected amount of giggling. "Is that him?" he heard one girl whisper to another, forgetting to hide her finger as she pointed at the famed boy. "Is that James Diamond?"

James simply nodded his head and tried to look as professional as possible. "Yeah, you've probably heard of me," he replied, taking off his sunglasses. "I've put out some albums of the pop genre."

"Some? You mean to say five!" a redhead cried, characterized by curly auburn hair and an excited grin. She turned to the friend who was sitting next her, who was just as attractive in James's point of view. "Ellie, you've heard of James and his dad, haven't you?"

Ellie, who was dark-haired and wore a sleeveless, silver dress, went over to James and asked, "Do you go to our high school? How'd Julia get to meet you in the first place?" She seemed genuinely thrilled by his presence, and her confrontation only did more to strengthen the whispering that was suddenly spreading throughout the group of girls. Julia was the only one who looked exasperated, her arms crossed as she looked in the opposite direction.

"Well, I met my girlfriend around six months ago," James boasted proudly. "We saw each other in the grocery store. It was one of the rare times that I went shopping for myself, and I saw her eating a sandwich for lunch. Since I had nothing better to do, I went to go say hi to her. If you would believe me, she didn't even recognize me for who I was! But we talked for a really long time. Actually, I think it was the longest I'd ever held a conversation with a non-celebrity."

At this point the girls were all hanging on to his every word. Relishing their pent-up anticipation, James smiled and waited a moment before preceding with the love saga. "Anyway, eventually I told her that I was James Diamond, and invited her over to my parent's house. After our first few dates, we'd agreed on being an official couple! Haven't argued or fought at all since."

He gazed towards Julia, expecting her to say something aloud in agreement, but she only looked a little guilty and regretful as she stared at the wooden tabletop. Then the party moved on with their activities, although the teenage girls never quite stopped obsessing over him and his good looks.

This only did more to fuel James's confidence, and he couldn't help smiling the whole time, although once or twice he did stop to worry about his hair and whether it might have gotten messed up.

Finally the celebration was over and all the guests had gone home except for him. Julie was still acting as down as before, her chin in her hands as she contemplated something gloomily. Finally her boyfriend went over and tapped her on the shoulder to get her attention, bored with watching re-runs on the TV. "Are you lonely?" he asked. "You should talk to me more so you don't feel so sad, Jules." Her nickname would normally cheer her up, but this time it only made her look even worse; she was obviously on the verge of tears.

"But that's just it," the depressed teenager protested, gazing up at him with troubled green eyes. "I don't want to talk to you at all anymore; you're the reason I've been feeling so bad for the past month. Jamie, I'm so sorry, but this relationship can't go on. We can still be friends, but I don't want us to date. You're just not my type anymore."

And so the seemingly flawless James came to develop his first insecurity; stubborn belief that no matter how he tried, he would never get a girlfriend.

Although he would slowly realize over the months that there was an alternative that was just as good.