JJ talks about a time she fell in love and how the relationship worked out.
Script
JJ: Look at them all lean in as I tell this story. It starts out sickeningly sweet. I was in a musical, Cinderella. I was Cinderella and the guy who played the prince and I started to date.
We got pretty serious. He was trying to get rid of an ex who kept bothering him and so he decided to come to Japan to teach English. All during the summer we had plans you know, I would come and visit and that kind of stuff.
We were really excited about it and he was a model at the agency. At the same agency where I was an actor and… so we had the same agent. He went to Japan and was teaching and we were writing
back and forth, “looking forward to seeing you” all that kind of stuff.
I was having lunch with my agent one day and telling her that I had started taking Japanese and I had been planning out my trip. I was very excited about this whole thing and she says, “JJ, I don’t know how to tell you this.”
I’m thinking,”Oh, my God! What?”
And she says, “Yeah, Richard’s ex-girlfriend flew out to Japan and they got married.”
Jessica: Oh, my God!
JJ: Married!
Jessica: Oh, no!
JJ: Yeah! Yeah!
Jessica: How did you feel?
JJ: Like I needed a ladder to get on a piece of paper. Really, I mean it was a devastating. You know that first broken-love kind of thing, but..
Jessica: Did you hear from him afterwards?
JJ: Yeah, we were always just friends apparently. Yeah, so not only adding the “insult to the indus..”. What I meant to say “insult to injury” was him just saying that we were always just friends.
Vocab
Learn vocabulary from the lesson!
sickeningly sweet
It all starts out sickeningly sweet.
If a situation is ‘sickeningly sweet’ it is so sentimental or romantic that it is difficult to watch. Notice the following:
- They are sickeningly sweet together.
- Her love songs are so sickeningly sweet that I almost can’t stand to listen to them.
get serious
We started to date and we got pretty serious
If a relationship ‘gets serious’ it becomes more intense and looks like there is a future for long-term commitment.
- How long before you two got really serious?
- I think this relationship is going to get serious.
get rid of
He was trying to get rid of an ex who kept bothering him.
If you ‘get rid of’ something you are finished with it and you want it out of your life. Notice the following:
- I am getting rid of a bunch of clothes.
- She is still good friends with her ex.
writing back and forth
We were writing back and forth, telling each other how excited we were.
To ‘write back and forth’ is to communicate through letters, e-mail or another form of written speech. Notice the following:
- We wrote back and forth for a long time before we met.
- She communicates mostly through writing back and forth.
add insult to injury
He added insult to the injury by saying we were always just friends.
To ‘add insult to injury’ is to make a situation worse by making an additional horrible comment or action.
- To add insult to injury he started dating her best friend.
- To add insult to injury the stupid thing broke two weeks after I bought it.
Quiz
Answer the following questions about the interview.
1) What was she acting in? 
a) Romeo and Juliet b) Cindrella c) Sleeping Beauty
2) Where was she going to go?
a) Japan b) New York c) Disneyland
3) Who told her about the marriage plans?
a) Her mother b) Her friend c) Her agent
4) How did she feel after she found out about the marriage?
a) Head over heels b) Very low c) Very high
5) Did she talk to Richard ever again?
a) Yes b) No c) She does not remember
Show answers
1) What was she acting in?
a) Romeo and Juliet b) Cindrella c) Sleeping Beauty
2) Where was she going to go?
a) Japan b) New York c) Disneyland
3) Who told her about the marriage plans?
a) Her mother b) Her friend c) Her agent
4) How did she feel after she found out about the marriage?
a) Head over heels b) Very low c) Very high
5) Did she talk to Richard ever again?
a) Yes b) No c) She does not remember