A week had passed since their zoo outing. Zenia and Justin had seen each other  almost everyday. He had taken her lunch one day while she was at work, dressed in baggy clothing, sunglasses and a hat to disguise him. He discreetly dropped it off at the front desk with a cute note. Her co-workers at the clinic she worked at were all wondering who this new man was in her life. Zenia wasn’t one to gossip much with her co-workers as she tried to keep things professional. However, that was about to change.

She walked into the clinic on Monday morning after a relaxing weekend with Grace and Justin, oblivious to the whispering going on around her. She found it odd that none of the staff had acknowledged her, but chalked it up to being a case of the Monday’s. She settled into her office, pulling up her e-mail account as she did every morning while drinking her Venti Caramel Latte that she made sure to grab at the Starbucks across from the clinic.

Her phone buzzed and she pulled it out of the pocket of her scrub jacket. It was Nora. She thought it unusual that Nora would call her at this time of day. Somewhat confused and worried, Zenia answered.

“Hello?”

“Hey, Z. Sorry to bother you at work..” Nora trailed off.

“It’s ok, Nor. Is something wrong?” Zenia asked, panic evident in her voice.

“I’m fine. Everyone is fine. Um, so I was browsing the web this morning and landed on TMZ to catch up on some headlines or whatever.. well remember that trip to the zoo with Justin?”

“Yea…” Zenia was extremely confused now and just wished Nora would get to the point.

“There’s pictures of you and Justin kissing in the parking lot and an article about you both. I just wanted to let you know,” Nora explained.

“What? How? There was no one there!” Zenia exclaimed, thinking back to that day trying to think of anyway that someone could have taken pictures of them without their knowledge. She knew that Justin was a public figure and that eventually this may happen, but she was not ready to have her face and business plastered all over the internet.

“It was probably a staff member wanting to make some extra money so they took pictures and sold them to these news sites,”

“This is unbelievable, Nora. I’m not ready for this shit,” Zenia complained. “Please tell me there are no pictures of Gracie.”

“I didn’t see any. Just you and Justin. I’m sorry, Z.”

Zenia was so relieved that Grace was in the car already at that point, and that no pictures were obtained of her.

“It’s fine, Nor. Thank you for telling me. I’m going to get back to work,” Zenia sighed.

“Okay. Love you, girl. Talk to you later,”

“Love you. Bye,” Zenia hung up the phone and immediately went on her computer and went straight to the TMZ website.

Justin Timberlake’s New Fling?
An insider claims that Justin Timberlake and his new girlfriend who’s name is unknown at this time, we’re spotted lip locking outside of the LA Zoo. The insider claims that Mr. SexyBack had the zoo to himself for 2 hours and walked around with his new girl. They held hands and seemed very friendly and eventually kissed when leaving the establishment. Is this the rebound after Jessica Biel or just a distraction until the two get back together? 

Zenia looked at the pictures of herself and Justin kissing and her heart fluttered. She had to admit they looked so good together. Seeing the picture brought back the memory of his kiss. Even though they had shared several more since this particular kiss.

When she glanced back over the article, she was quite annoyed that it insinuated that she was a rebound or distraction to Justin. She tried her best to not let it get to her.
She stood up from her desk and grabbed her stethoscope, ready to get this day started. She headed to the exam room of her first patient.

—

Zenia slid into her car, slamming the door behind her. The day only seemed to get worse after Nora called her with the news. Being the only practitioner in the clinic that day, she was overwhelmed with patients. Her staff seemed to be distant and aloof towards her and it seemed as though she could never find supplies she needed. Not to mention, she had not heard from Justin all day. She could only assume that he had seen the article posted about them.

She drove straight home, relieved that Grace was staying with her mother tonight. She planned to go home, take a long shower and drink several glasses of wine.

Her shower was hot and soothing, washing the events of the day off of her. When she emerged,  she put on a black and white silk pajama shirt and short set and put her hair atop her head in a messy bun. Surprisingly, she felt somewhat better.

She had just poured her first glass when she heard a knock at the door. Her heart jumped, hoping it was Justin. She glanced through the peephole just in case and couldn’t believe who she saw.