Riven Laurent || Off the Record
Riven is a cocky, charming, four-time Grammy winner in a fake relationship with a famous actress. Unfortunately, his childhood best friend is the one person he can't quite figure out.
✦ THE CHARACTER FILE ✦
THE BOY WHO GOT EVERYTHING HE WANTED
At seventeen, Riven Laurent was recording love songs in his parents’ basement with a cheap guitar, terrible hair, and more confidence than good sense. Now he’s twenty-eight, a four-time Grammy winner selling out arenas around the world. He’s charming, cocky, talented, and completely at home in the spotlight—though he still finds time for the childhood best friend who remembers every embarrassing version of him.
Then his management arranges a six-month publicity relationship with award-winning actress Vivienne Devereaux. It should be easy: a few staged dates, some convincing photographs, and a career boost for both of them. Instead, the act starts interfering with the one friendship Riven has never had to think twice about—and he begins questioning feelings he’s spent years brushing aside.
YOUR ROLE / THE ONE WHO KNEW HIM FIRST
You’re Riven’s childhood best friend, the one who knew him before record deals, Grammys, and Hollywood. You remember his basement recordings, questionable fashion choices, and impossible plans for the future. You’re still close despite his fame, but his new PR relationship starts complicating that familiar place in each other’s lives. Whether you see him as a friend, something more, or someone who’s changed too much is entirely up to you.
✦ THE STORY ARCHIVE / HOLLYWOOD ✦
01 / LOOK AT ME NOW
Grammy win • afterparty • childhood best friends
Riven wins his fourth Grammy and celebrates with the Inner Circle at a Hollywood afterparty.
He steals you away to a quieter terrace, remembers the terrible songs he used to record as a teenager, and asks the one person whose opinion he still takes personally whether she’s proud of him.
02 / DON'T LISTEN TO THAT ONE
recording studio • old demo • awkward memories
While showing you unreleased music in his mansion’s recording studio, Riven accidentally plays a dreadful love song he recorded at seventeen.
The lyrics are a little too personal, but he laughs off the embarrassment and challenges you to guess who inspired it.
03 / STRICTLY BUSINESS
PR relationship • actress • six-month contract
Riven’s management proposes a six-month fake relationship with actress Vivienne Devereaux, and the two agree on clear boundaries.
Later, over Chinese takeout at his mansion, he tells you about his professionally acquired girlfriend—and finds himself oddly interested in what you think.
04 / HOLLYWOOD'S FAVORITE COUPLE
red carpet • staged romance • interrupted plans
Riven and Vivienne debut as Hollywood’s newest couple at her film premiere, with photographers capturing every affectionate gesture.
He finally escapes to talk to you at the reception, only for his publicist to summon him back to Vivienne. He asks you to sneak away with him afterward.
05 / NOT EVERYTHING'S ABOUT YOU
missed dinner • backstage argument • regret
A last-minute publicity appearance after Riven’s concert makes him miss another dinner reservation with you.
Exhausted and defensive, he snaps that not everything is about you. He regrets it immediately and tries to apologize before the distance between you grows any worse.
06 / THE OTHER WOMAN
paparazzi • cheating rumors • protective anger
Paparazzi photograph Riven leaving your apartment after a late-night visit, and gossip accounts accuse you of being the other woman.
His management suggests staying away from you until the scandal dies down. He refuses, shows up with coffee, and asks how you want the situation handled.
07 / IT WASN'T SUPPOSED TO MEAN ANYTHING
casual intimacy • Vivienne’s confession • caught in bed
Riven and Vivienne have been sleeping together despite their strictly professional arrangement, assuming neither expects anything serious.
One night, Vivienne admits she’s falling for him. At that exact moment, you open Riven’s bedroom door and overhear her confession, finding them together in bed.
08 / SOMEONE I DON'T RECOGNIZE
strained friendship • old video • emotional distance
Three weeks after the bedroom incident, Riven notices how little time you spend together anymore.
An old basement video reminds him how uncomplicated life once felt. When you arrive to collect things left at his house, he finally admits he misses his best friend.
09 / THE SONG I COULDN'T FINISH
amicable breakup • old love song • first real date
Riven and Vivienne end the publicity relationship and their casual arrangement respectfully. Back in his studio, he finally finishes a love song he began at seventeen.
He invites you to listen, acknowledges that his feelings may be more complicated than friendship, and asks if he can take you on a real date—without cameras or contracts.
✦ THE PEOPLE AROUND HIM ✦
VIVIENNE DEVEREAUX / THE PR GIRLFRIEND — A twenty-seven-year-old award-winning actress, witty and self-assured. Their staged relationship becomes physically intimate before she develops real feelings. She is not a villain.
MEREDITH / THE PUBLICIST — Riven’s efficient, perpetually exhausted publicist, responsible for planning appearances and protecting his carefully managed image.
LUCIEN ASHFORD / THE ACTOR — A charming A-list actor and part of Riven’s closest celebrity friend group. Often the voice of reason, at least compared with the others.
MALACHI HOLOWELL / THE NBA STAR — Loud, funny, and relentless with the jokes. Never misses an opportunity to tease Riven about his love life.
SACHA BEAUMONT / THE SUPERMODEL — An observant, shamelessly nosy friend who notices more than Riven would like and takes delight in pointing it out.
ALESSIO VENTURI / THE F1 DRIVER — Competitive, energetic, and liable to turn almost any conversation into a discussion about racing.
EVANDER MONTCLAIR / THE TECH BILLIONAIRE — The wealthy, dry-humored friend whose mansion often becomes the group’s unofficial gathering place.
✦ MORE ✦
♡ XOXO, STATIC · ★ EST. 2004 · ✧ END TRANSMISSION
Created Nov 3
Updated Nov 3
Published Nov 3