The Beatles stopped in the doorway, a little surprised, but not very. Girls had gotten past security to see them before. Just this afternoon they had found a girl in their car boot, after all.
This girl, at least, wasn’t screaming, but looked at them with a pretty smile. Her fair-skinned face was made up like an actress’s and her shiny black hair fell to her shoulders before coming back up in a flip, held back 由 a red headband. She had on a red-and-blue dress that showed off her slender figure beautifully.
“There 你 are,” she said. “I’ve been waiting for you.” She spoke as though the Beatles had just entered her hotel room and not the other way around.
The Beatles all murmured polite hellos, and then George spoke. “Look,” he said, “it’s nice to see our 粉丝 and all, but we’re tired. We’ll give 你 our autograph, and then you’ve got to leave.”
The pretty girl shook her head. “Oh, no I can’t, not yet. I didn’t come in just to meet 你 – although that was part of it,” she added, with a meaningful smile at George. “I’ve got to tell 你 something.”
“Fine with us,” 说 George with a small grin, as he sat himself on the 长椅, 沙发 下一个 to the pretty girl. “Why don’t 你 tell us how 你 got inside our hotel room?”
“Or how 你 knew which room to go into?” added Paul, as he and the other Beatles took seats opposite the pretty girl and George.
“Or how 你 knew which hotel we were staying at?” Ringo added.
“Knock it off, lads, she’s a fan,” laughed John. “She knows everything about us, don’t you?”
The pretty girl rolled her eyes. “Please. It was obvious 你 were going to stay in the best hotel in the city, and then all I had to do was read the register. Don’t insult my intelligence,” but she smiled as she 说 it.
The Beatles noticed that she hadn’t mentioned how she’d gotten into the hotel room 或者 even how she’d gotten a look at the hotel register in the first place, but decided not to press the issue. “What did 你 really want to tell us?” Paul asked instead.
“And who are you?” added George, staring at the pretty girl with a slight frown (but also with some admiration; she was quite lovely, after all.)
The girl took a breath. “My name’s Karen Dale, and I’ve got to tell you... at work today, I overheard some things, and I think – 你 four are in danger,” she finished. Her dark blue eyes turned appealingly from one Beatle to the other, wide with concern.
“What?” came from all four Beatles at once.
“How could 你 know a thing like that?” John demanded.
Karen frowned. “My dad manages a hotel – a different one – , my mum works for the local newspaper, I work at the makeup 商店 where half the women in the city come and talk about things, and I've got 老友记 all over the city. I know almost everything that goes on round here. And today, I heard some talking – some voices, I couldn’t make out everything, but they 说 something about... getting rid of you. For good.” She stared hard at the three Beatles sitting opposite her, and clutched George’s wrist with her small, perfectly manicured fingers. “You’ve got to believe me.”
The Beatles exchanged glances. “All right...” Ringo 说 slowly, “say there was someone saying that – how could they get at us? How could they do anything to us?”
Karen frowned. “I got into this hotel room, didn’t I? If I wanted to – hurt 你 at all, I could have done it as soon as 你 came in!” Her voice broke slightly. “It wouldn’t have been that hard.”
“What are 你 telling us?” asked George, thick eyebrows wrinkling. “Not to let strange birds into our hotel rooms? You’re not followin’ your own advice, then.” He favoured her with a mischievous, sharp-toothed grin.
Karen smiled back. “No,” she replied. “I also heard these voices say that they were 表演 now because – 你 four were trying to find new girlfriends? And they sounded angry.” She stared from one Beatle to the other almost accusingly.
John gave a small laugh, Paul raised his eyebrows, Ringo blinked, and George frowned a little harder. Karen had 说 she knew everything that went on, but they had only made the decision that very afternoon. “News travels fast 由 the 粉丝 Post,” John remarked.
“So it’s true, then?” Karen demanded. “You are looking for girlfriends? How could 你 think of that? Make yourselves unavailable all at once, and you’ll have all your 粉丝 mad at 你 too – and you’re going to need our help when these other people start threatening you! Although,” she added thoughtfully, “I suppose it might be all right – 你 know, if 你 have four of your best 粉丝 around 你 all the time on this tour, we could protect you.” She smiled at the thought. “Well, there’s one of 你 won’t have to look for his girlfriend any longer,” she declared, wrapping her slender arms round George’s neck. “I volunteer. I choose you.” She planted a soft 吻乐队(Kiss) on his hollow cheek.
George frowned slightly. Yes, part of him liked being kissed 由 this beautiful girl, but on the other hand – this wasn’t what the Beatles had decided to do. Find girlfriends who weren’t fans, that was what they had all agreed on. And he wanted to chase after his own girlfriend, not have her throw herself right to him.
“Look, Karen,” George started, gently unwrapping her arms from around him. Karen frowned. “You’re a nice girl and all, but – we had something else in mind.”
“Something else? Like what?” Karen frowned. “You’re not going to find anyone prettier than me, if that’s what you’re thinking!” She arranged herself on the 长椅, 沙发 to 显示 off her petite figure to its best advantage, stuck out her glossy lower lip, and batted her heavily mascaraed lashes.
George couldn’t help admiring what he saw. No, George, he thought firmly. “Karen,” he tried again. “We’ve decided to find girlfriends who – aren’t Beatles fans.”
Karen stood up abruptly, abandoning her attempts to charm George. “You’re what?” she 说 very quietly.
Ringo decided to help out his friend a little. “It’s just so’s they’ll 爱情 us for other reasons,” he tried to explain, “not just ’cause they 爱情 our music....”
“That,” 说 Karen, her voice low and deadly, “is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of.” Her small hands clenched into fists. “You’re trying to find someone to 爱情 你 who doesn’t 爱情 the Beatles. That’s what 你 are, all of you, you’re Beatles! 你 don’t take off your Beatle 《金装律师》 when you’re done on stage and – and transform into something different! It’s who 你 are! 你 try and find someone who loves 你 without loving the Beatles and you’ll get someone who doesn’t 爱情 你 at all!”
The Beatles all stared at her, not used to having a 粉丝 yell at them 或者 tell them off like this. It made them a little uncomfortable; they usually tried so hard to make sure the 粉丝 continued to 爱情 them as well as their music. They could only imagine what Brian Epstein would say about the effect this would have on their popularity.
Karen took a deep breath. “I can’t make 你 listen to me,” she decided, her voice even-toned again. “You boys do what 你 want, but trust me – this is the first time you’ve had a really bad idea, and you’re going to regret it.” She turned on her shiny red heels and marched out of the hotel room.
The boys stared at the door after her. “Too bad she was a fan, George,” John grinned at his friend. “She was quite a choice bird, wasn’t she?”
George was frowning thoughtfully. “Do 你 think she knew what she was talking about?” he wondered aloud. “About us being in danger?”
“Maybe,” Ringo shrugged. “But maybe she just wanted an excuse to 日期 you.”
“This doesn’t stop us trying to find our new girlfriends, though?” Paul looked at his three best mates. “I’m looking 前锋, 期待 to mine.”
“If she’s half as good-looking as that Karen was, I’m there,” George agreed, smiling his mischievous smile again.
“Right,” John agreed with a decisive nod. “We won’t let what she 说 stop us. We can’t change our plans every time someone decided they don’t like us, can we?”
The other Beatles shook their heads, smiling, and 由 the time they went to bed, they had put all feelings about their encounter with Karen out of their minds.
This girl, at least, wasn’t screaming, but looked at them with a pretty smile. Her fair-skinned face was made up like an actress’s and her shiny black hair fell to her shoulders before coming back up in a flip, held back 由 a red headband. She had on a red-and-blue dress that showed off her slender figure beautifully.
“There 你 are,” she said. “I’ve been waiting for you.” She spoke as though the Beatles had just entered her hotel room and not the other way around.
The Beatles all murmured polite hellos, and then George spoke. “Look,” he said, “it’s nice to see our 粉丝 and all, but we’re tired. We’ll give 你 our autograph, and then you’ve got to leave.”
The pretty girl shook her head. “Oh, no I can’t, not yet. I didn’t come in just to meet 你 – although that was part of it,” she added, with a meaningful smile at George. “I’ve got to tell 你 something.”
“Fine with us,” 说 George with a small grin, as he sat himself on the 长椅, 沙发 下一个 to the pretty girl. “Why don’t 你 tell us how 你 got inside our hotel room?”
“Or how 你 knew which room to go into?” added Paul, as he and the other Beatles took seats opposite the pretty girl and George.
“Or how 你 knew which hotel we were staying at?” Ringo added.
“Knock it off, lads, she’s a fan,” laughed John. “She knows everything about us, don’t you?”
The pretty girl rolled her eyes. “Please. It was obvious 你 were going to stay in the best hotel in the city, and then all I had to do was read the register. Don’t insult my intelligence,” but she smiled as she 说 it.
The Beatles noticed that she hadn’t mentioned how she’d gotten into the hotel room 或者 even how she’d gotten a look at the hotel register in the first place, but decided not to press the issue. “What did 你 really want to tell us?” Paul asked instead.
“And who are you?” added George, staring at the pretty girl with a slight frown (but also with some admiration; she was quite lovely, after all.)
The girl took a breath. “My name’s Karen Dale, and I’ve got to tell you... at work today, I overheard some things, and I think – 你 four are in danger,” she finished. Her dark blue eyes turned appealingly from one Beatle to the other, wide with concern.
“What?” came from all four Beatles at once.
“How could 你 know a thing like that?” John demanded.
Karen frowned. “My dad manages a hotel – a different one – , my mum works for the local newspaper, I work at the makeup 商店 where half the women in the city come and talk about things, and I've got 老友记 all over the city. I know almost everything that goes on round here. And today, I heard some talking – some voices, I couldn’t make out everything, but they 说 something about... getting rid of you. For good.” She stared hard at the three Beatles sitting opposite her, and clutched George’s wrist with her small, perfectly manicured fingers. “You’ve got to believe me.”
The Beatles exchanged glances. “All right...” Ringo 说 slowly, “say there was someone saying that – how could they get at us? How could they do anything to us?”
Karen frowned. “I got into this hotel room, didn’t I? If I wanted to – hurt 你 at all, I could have done it as soon as 你 came in!” Her voice broke slightly. “It wouldn’t have been that hard.”
“What are 你 telling us?” asked George, thick eyebrows wrinkling. “Not to let strange birds into our hotel rooms? You’re not followin’ your own advice, then.” He favoured her with a mischievous, sharp-toothed grin.
Karen smiled back. “No,” she replied. “I also heard these voices say that they were 表演 now because – 你 four were trying to find new girlfriends? And they sounded angry.” She stared from one Beatle to the other almost accusingly.
John gave a small laugh, Paul raised his eyebrows, Ringo blinked, and George frowned a little harder. Karen had 说 she knew everything that went on, but they had only made the decision that very afternoon. “News travels fast 由 the 粉丝 Post,” John remarked.
“So it’s true, then?” Karen demanded. “You are looking for girlfriends? How could 你 think of that? Make yourselves unavailable all at once, and you’ll have all your 粉丝 mad at 你 too – and you’re going to need our help when these other people start threatening you! Although,” she added thoughtfully, “I suppose it might be all right – 你 know, if 你 have four of your best 粉丝 around 你 all the time on this tour, we could protect you.” She smiled at the thought. “Well, there’s one of 你 won’t have to look for his girlfriend any longer,” she declared, wrapping her slender arms round George’s neck. “I volunteer. I choose you.” She planted a soft 吻乐队(Kiss) on his hollow cheek.
George frowned slightly. Yes, part of him liked being kissed 由 this beautiful girl, but on the other hand – this wasn’t what the Beatles had decided to do. Find girlfriends who weren’t fans, that was what they had all agreed on. And he wanted to chase after his own girlfriend, not have her throw herself right to him.
“Look, Karen,” George started, gently unwrapping her arms from around him. Karen frowned. “You’re a nice girl and all, but – we had something else in mind.”
“Something else? Like what?” Karen frowned. “You’re not going to find anyone prettier than me, if that’s what you’re thinking!” She arranged herself on the 长椅, 沙发 to 显示 off her petite figure to its best advantage, stuck out her glossy lower lip, and batted her heavily mascaraed lashes.
George couldn’t help admiring what he saw. No, George, he thought firmly. “Karen,” he tried again. “We’ve decided to find girlfriends who – aren’t Beatles fans.”
Karen stood up abruptly, abandoning her attempts to charm George. “You’re what?” she 说 very quietly.
Ringo decided to help out his friend a little. “It’s just so’s they’ll 爱情 us for other reasons,” he tried to explain, “not just ’cause they 爱情 our music....”
“That,” 说 Karen, her voice low and deadly, “is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of.” Her small hands clenched into fists. “You’re trying to find someone to 爱情 你 who doesn’t 爱情 the Beatles. That’s what 你 are, all of you, you’re Beatles! 你 don’t take off your Beatle 《金装律师》 when you’re done on stage and – and transform into something different! It’s who 你 are! 你 try and find someone who loves 你 without loving the Beatles and you’ll get someone who doesn’t 爱情 你 at all!”
The Beatles all stared at her, not used to having a 粉丝 yell at them 或者 tell them off like this. It made them a little uncomfortable; they usually tried so hard to make sure the 粉丝 continued to 爱情 them as well as their music. They could only imagine what Brian Epstein would say about the effect this would have on their popularity.
Karen took a deep breath. “I can’t make 你 listen to me,” she decided, her voice even-toned again. “You boys do what 你 want, but trust me – this is the first time you’ve had a really bad idea, and you’re going to regret it.” She turned on her shiny red heels and marched out of the hotel room.
The boys stared at the door after her. “Too bad she was a fan, George,” John grinned at his friend. “She was quite a choice bird, wasn’t she?”
George was frowning thoughtfully. “Do 你 think she knew what she was talking about?” he wondered aloud. “About us being in danger?”
“Maybe,” Ringo shrugged. “But maybe she just wanted an excuse to 日期 you.”
“This doesn’t stop us trying to find our new girlfriends, though?” Paul looked at his three best mates. “I’m looking 前锋, 期待 to mine.”
“If she’s half as good-looking as that Karen was, I’m there,” George agreed, smiling his mischievous smile again.
“Right,” John agreed with a decisive nod. “We won’t let what she 说 stop us. We can’t change our plans every time someone decided they don’t like us, can we?”
The other Beatles shook their heads, smiling, and 由 the time they went to bed, they had put all feelings about their encounter with Karen out of their minds.
"So, what do 你 think, darling?", asked George as he and his mates finished rehearsing their message. Laura replied, "Well, it was fun and hilarious at the same time! I think 你 all did a fantastic job." George said, "Why, thank you, love! I'm glad 你 like it." The other Beatles smiled and nodded in agreement. Laura winked in return. John remarked, "Okay! This rehearsal was a success. Are ye ready to go and grab some lunch?" Ringo replied, "You bet we are! All that speaking has made me hungry." It was snowing again when they left the Studios and went to look for a place to eat. While walking, George gave Laura yet another ride on his shoulders as they stuck their tongues out to catch some snowflakes. John, Paul, and Ringo did the same. The group then found a 餐车, 晚餐, 小餐馆 offering holiday-themed meals and beverages and had a delicious lunch there. Afterwards, the rest of the 日 was spent with window shopping in one of the city's 圣诞节 marketplaces.
TO BE CONTINUED
TO BE CONTINUED
As George and Laura drove through downtown London, they passed 由 the giant 圣诞节 树 in Trafalgar Square. Upon seeing it, Laura couldn't help but stare with awe. She thought, "Wow...Gorgeous." They soon arrived at the Studios and went inside to meet with the other Beatles in the recording room. Once they made it there, John saw them and said, "Oh, look who's here!" George replied, "Hello, chaps! I hope we're not too late." John responded, "Not at all, Geo! You're just in time." Paul added, "I see 你 brought Laura along, too! That's great." George said, "Yep!" He then turned to his daughter and asked her, "Darling, would 你 like to provide us with feedback on our message after we complete it?" Laura replied, "Sure, daddy George! I'm all for that." "Jolly good!", responded George. Ringo said, "All right! Let's begin!" The lads then started rehearsing their lines, and Laura got a chair to sit on as she listened to them.
TO BE CONTINUED
TO BE CONTINUED
December 23, 1964
With 圣诞节 just around the corner, George and Laura kicked the 日 off 由 having a fun snowball fight in the yard of their house. The latter was super excited as she will get to happily celebrate this special holiday again after escaping the dreaded orphanage. Laura said, "Catch me if 你 can, daddy George!" He replied cheekily while rolling up another ball in his hands, "Oh, you're not getting away from me, Laura, darling!" With that, he threw the ball towards her, and she laughed in response. They continued playing until George looked at his watch and said, "We better get going to Abbey Road Studios now. I need to rehearse my lines for the 圣诞节 message with me mates." Laura replied, "A 圣诞节 message? That sounds lovely!" George remarked, "Yes, indeed! This is our gift for the fans." "Very nice!", exclaimed Laura. They then proceeded to his car and were on their way to the Studios.
TO BE CONTINUED
With 圣诞节 just around the corner, George and Laura kicked the 日 off 由 having a fun snowball fight in the yard of their house. The latter was super excited as she will get to happily celebrate this special holiday again after escaping the dreaded orphanage. Laura said, "Catch me if 你 can, daddy George!" He replied cheekily while rolling up another ball in his hands, "Oh, you're not getting away from me, Laura, darling!" With that, he threw the ball towards her, and she laughed in response. They continued playing until George looked at his watch and said, "We better get going to Abbey Road Studios now. I need to rehearse my lines for the 圣诞节 message with me mates." Laura replied, "A 圣诞节 message? That sounds lovely!" George remarked, "Yes, indeed! This is our gift for the fans." "Very nice!", exclaimed Laura. They then proceeded to his car and were on their way to the Studios.
TO BE CONTINUED