A/N: Inspired by the movie 'How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days' and various other Trez fics. If some scenes look familiar, it's probably because your/their story inspired some scenes. Credits to CatchTheRainbow, xFullDizz and all other Trez writers as well for some of the influence. :)
I apologise if the characters seem OOC.
Thank you to eclipsed flower for beta help.
I do not own Austin & Ally.
'And then the archaeologists placed the stupid old 769 B.C plaque on the museum's newly minted platform display.'
Trish stared at the monitor for a moment before sighing and pressing backspace. Her editor would fire her if she submitted that and she didn't want to lose a job that she actually found somewhat enjoyable.
She just wished that she had a chance to write more fun stuff. Like fashion, food, movies and music! But she was constantly stuck with the boring topics like history and science. Who cared if some kid invented a cure for peanut allergies? It wasn't as if it cured blackheads or acne.
*They wanna know-know-know your name-name-name*
Ooh, a message to distract her from the mental pain of centuries old pieces of stone.
Ally: Tonight, 8pm at Mini's! Get Megan too!
Trish sent a quick reply 'Ok' and spun around to the jangle of necklaces. She could recognise the sound of the kid's jewellery anywhere.
"S'up Trish. How's the story coming? It better be in my inbox by today otherwise you're totes fired!" said a chirpy voice.
Trish gave her a look. "The story has been sent to you, Megan. You might wanna check it before asking next time."
"Whatevs. Don't sass me. Otherwise I'll be having you covering stories about animals."
Trish shivered. She definitely did not want to cover stories about animals. Cute puppies she could handle. Angry bulls she could not. The current reporter had quite the close shave with a pet chimp just last week.
"My bad. By the way, any chance I could get a clue on my next story? Can I please cover the upcoming music festival?"
"Well..."
Trish gave Megan a pleading look.
"We already have someone else in the line-up. Perhaps next year. Meanwhile there's an upcoming exhibition at the National Archives-"
"Aww, c'mon! Another boring story? You're in charge of assignments! Can't you give me something else?"
Megan looked at her tablet and scrolled through pages. She pursed her lips and made some thoughtful noises. "I'll see what I can do. No promises! The last time I gave you a spa to review, you took an entire week there and used up all their cucumbers! The editor almost skinned me when she saw the bill. Which reminds me, why on earth did you use up so many?"
"They're a healthy snack?" Trish shrugged innocently.
Megan raised a brow, huffed and walked off.
"MORE LIGHTS! MORE FLASHES! GLITTER! GLITTER!"
Austin scowled and stopped in the middle of his dance.
"Hey! The director didn't say cut!" shouted one of the sound producers.
Austin stalked towards his director. "Dez!"
"Yes, Austin? You know, only a director gets to stop all the action. CUT!" he shouted at the entire studio. "Take 5, everyone."
"Why. Do. We. Need. Glitter," Austin said through gritted teeth as he shook his hair, loosening a flurry of glitter.
"Oh Austin," Dez put a hand on Austin's shoulder as he gave him a patronising look. "Your song is about having the time of your life! How can anyone have the time of their life without glitter?"
"Um. The song's about the love of your life..."
Dez waved it off, "It's all the same."
"No, it isn't. I think we better stop for today. We need to discuss your 'vision' again. Let's hang out at Mini's tonight. 8pm."
"Fine. I'll call Nelson too."
"Why?"
"Because Nelson can appreciate glitter a lot more than you. Hmmph."
-Later that night at Mini's-
"Ally! How you doing girl, give me the 411. I'm here for all the gossip. What's new with you and Austin Moon?"
Ally looked amused as Megan gushed away about rumours on the singer and songwriter's supposed romance.
"Relax, Megan. There's nothing between Austin and I."
Megan sniffed and settled down while giving Ally a 'Yeah right' look. She was going to let the matter rest. For now anyway.
"Hi guys, sorry I'm late."
"How are you late when you and Megan left the office at the same time?" asked Ally.
"Well, I received an e-mail, right when I was about to leave, to rewrite certain sections of my story," said Trish while looking at Megan pointedly.
"Hey, when you get the power to command, feel free to make me stay back all you want. For now, you'll have to listen to me."
Megan gave Trish a smug look while Trish pouted back at the brat.
"Anyway..." Ally interrupted.
"Is there anyone new in your lives?"
Ally and Trish looked at Megan who blushed at her sudden blurt.
"Not right now, no..." replied Ally slowly.
Trish just raised a brow in question.
Megan sighed, "It's just that the editor wants a romance story to come up for the Valentine's edition of Cheetah Beat and I'm fresh out of ideas."
"Well, get Trish to write it! I mean Trish has been bugging you to write something else besides history and science right?" suggested Ally.
"Yeah...but it's not like Trish has had a lot of experience in love."
"Hey! I'm not inexperienced. I can easily make anyone fall in love with me! I'm lovable."
Megan's eyes suddenly lit up and Trish felt a little afraid. And Trish does not get afraid of little girls. And since when did Trish refer to herself in 3rd person? Ok, Trish needs to focus on what Megan is saying.
"Hey Ally!" someone shouted.
"It all began when I saw 'Letters from a Lover Lost'. I don't just like romance movies. I love them! The passion, the heartache, the emotion. They live the love we can only dare to dream, Austin."
"Dez, as awesome as that may sound, you've never actually fallen in love. How can you know about the love of your life?"
Dez gasped indignantly.
"Hey guys, I'm here to be a sinner!" a voice interjected.
"Nelson, we called you out to join us for dinner. Why would we call you to be a sinner?" laughed Austin.
"Well, he might have thought that because the devil called him," remarked Dez looking at Austin.
"You know, because you dissed my love life, you blond-haired little he-devil," added Dez at Austin's quizzical look.
Austin shrugged, "You realise that you were the one who called him right?" Dez pointedly ignored Austin.
"Aw nartz, do you know how hard it was to get me on the bus?" Nelson pointed at his devil's tail, horns and fork. "Oh well. Oh hey Ally's over there! Hey Ally! Heyyy gorgeous!" The last part was directed at Megan. Nelson waved at them.
"And Trish!" Trish scowled, offended.
"Oops, sorry Trish!"
The guys waved at the girls before settling down and continued on with their conversation.
"Anyway, as I was saying before, I've had lots of dating experience! I can be really charming you know. After all, I am known as the Love Whisperer," continued Dez. As usual, he whispered the last words.
"Yes...but you are often the one who ends it because they don't like your kangaroo or zaliens. Or your suspenders. You can't keep a relationship! And, nobody calls you that, " replied Austin, whispering the last part as well.
"Yes I can! Remember Glamour Kitty?"
"Yes I do. Only three hours after you had chased her to explain how 'unsophisticated' you were, you broke it off with her because she didn't like your drum chilli."
"No one disses my chilli," Dez simply said.
"My point is that you need a relationship where you don't end it because of a small difference."
"Fine! I'll go date a girl and not break up with her!"
Austin smirked in amusement, "Ok. In that case I challenge you to date a girl for at least 10 days without breaking up with her. The only way you can end the relationship is if she initiates the break up."
"I accept the challenge."
"And we get to choose the girl."
"What? Ugh. Fine. Just don't choose someone scary like Mindy."
"How about Trish?" piped up Nelson.
Dez looked at Nelson in horror. Austin's smirk grew. "Yes Dez. What about Trish?" He gave challenging look to the redhead.
Dez had an internal struggle as he contemplated the mean Latina. On one hand, he could probably annoy her easily as he had often done so on a daily basis. On the other hand, she could probably kill him with meanness before the 10 days were even up.
"Deal. If I win, I get to direct all your productions as I want them to. I'm thinking of getting you and a gorilla in a cage together."
Austin's smile froze a little. He calculated the risks - Trish would probably dump Dez on the first day – but how could he pass up the chance to see their faces when they went on a date?
"Deal. If I win, you'll have to listen to others' opinions as well. And no more glitter."
They did their 'what up' handshake in agreement.
"So how do we get Dez to ask Trish out?" asked Nelson.
Dez and Austin frowned. Just then, both of their phones beeped with an incoming message.
Ally: Team Austin & Ally meeting at Sonic Boom in 20 minutes!
The guys looked at the girls' table where they were looking back. Dez and Trish caught each other's eye and smirked at each other.
The girls had turned back to their conversation after waving at the guys, or in Trish's case, scowling at the guys.
"As I was saying, maybe we can do a special love feature! Trish, you have to make someone fall in love with you within 10 days," said Megan.
"What? Why?"
"You were the one who said you could get anyone to fall in love with you," added Ally. "Besides, this could be your big chance Trish!"
"Yes but-"
"Are you afraid?" asked Megan.
"Whaaaat?" Trish snorted. "I'm not afraid of anything."
"Good. Then you are doing this. You're officially assigned the potential cover story of Cheetah Beat's next edition," said Megan with a tone of finality.
Trish grimaced then with a sigh of resignation, said, "Fine. I'll do it."
Megan gave a small smirk before adding, "And the guy of your challenge shall be Dez."
"WHAT?!" both Trish and Ally cried out at the same time.
"No no no no no," said Trish repeatedly.
"Yes. Because I said so. And besides, you guys are friends. It'll be easier for you!" Megan said, all too pleased with her idea.
"I don't know about this Megan, we don't want to hurt Dez...both mentally and physically," commented Ally. "Then again..." Her mind spiralled off into a daydream about her best friends being happy together while she and Austin... Wait. No. Just Trish and Dez. Dez and Trish. Right.
"Ally?" Trish prodded her silent friend.
"I say go for it, Trish!" Ally cheered.
"But. It's Dez," Trish stressed the name.
"Yeah! And you guys could totally end up together!"
"Huh?! Eww! That doofus? No way! And I thought you didn't want him to be hurt? I would so kill him for his idiocy on the first day," Trish snorted, but sent furtive looks at Ally, silently begging her to be her side.
Megan decided to interrupt, "You guys are mean to each other every day anyway. However, I have no doubt that you will fail. Nonetheless, whether you succeed or fail, an awesome story must come out of you. Your Cheetah Beat career rests on that red headed doofus now. Whether you like it or not. Either that or you're expected at the National Archives exhibition next week."
Wha-?
Trish looked pleadingly at Ally who had returned to her dreamland. She was on her own now.
Ugh. Well. No harm right? Somehow… she already had the expectation that she would fail. I mean, seduce Dez? The idea was laughable. He would be easy to please though. Oh well, at least she would have a comedy to write even if it failed.
"So...when do I start?"
"Ooh, we could set up a Team Austin & Ally meeting later and you could ask him out!" offered Ally, whipping out her phone to send a text to the guys as she spoke.
The girls looked at the guys table and a few seconds later, their mobiles beeped and they looked at their phones before looking at the girls. Trish and Dez caught each other's eyes and smirked at each other.
At Sonic Boom
"Ok, so Ally/Austin and I will go up to the practice room to work on our song," both Austin and Ally said at the same time.
They looked at each other, smiled at Trish and Dez, then scurried up to the practice room.
"I thought this was supposed to be a meeting," commented Dez.
Trish merely rolled her eyes. She didn't dare speak for fear that she might say gibberish in her nervous state. She had to ask Dez out! On a date! Ugh. What did the universe have against her?
Dez noted Trish rolling her eyes at him. His palms felt clammy. How was he going to ask her out without getting killed? Oh right! He had a plan.
"ThenewZaliensmovieiscomingouttomorrow! Wannago?"
"Huh?" Trish processed his sentence for a moment before narrowing her eyes at him. "Are you asking me out?"
"What? Pfft. It's just a movie. You like Zaliens. I like Zaliens. Why not? And it's not like we haven't hung out before. Besides, I have tickets to the premiere," he said cockily, his hands at his hips.
Trish felt relieved, now she didn't need to find a reason to ask him out.
She shrugged, "Why not? And get rid of your pose. You look like a kid." Dez huffed, pouted and folded his arms like a kid in a tantrum.
'Well, the fun begins tomorrow,' the both of them thought.
-end-
A/N: Thoughts?