Twilight fever hit New Jersey's Garden State Mall on Friday when the movie's stars and real-life pals Kristen Stewart and Nikki Reed signed autographs for 500 fans at Hot Topic. J-14 got an exclusive front-row seat right behind the actresses as the fans filed through one by one.
Right off the bat, it was obvious that fans got much more than just an autograph, they walked away with a memory. "I can¹t imagine standing here for hours on end," Nikki told J-14, sympathizing with the fans. "If you're not going say, 'Hi' to people, you might as well just stamp your name."
Without a doubt, one of the most popular uses of the in-person time was to request that love messages be passed along to their co-star Rob Pattinson. One girl said she was going to marry Rob, and Kristen asked if he knew that. "No, but can you tell him?" she said, and Kristen agreed with a grin. Nikki laughed afterwards. "Rob's got a list of a million 12-year-olds waiting to marry him. If all else fails, he's got a lot of options."
Some fans screamed, others shied away in shock, and several even started shedding tears, like Angelica, 15, from Dumont, N.J. who had been waiting at the mall for more 13 hours. "Two weeks ago, I went to see Rob, but I didn't have this reaction," she said through tears. "They each gave me a hug and thanked me for coming, but I have to thank them for being here."
Other common comments included "Your hands must be tired from all the autographs" (to which Kristen answered, "Surprisingly not!") and "Ohmigosh! You're so pretty in person!" (to which both girls blushed and complimented the fans back).
A few fans used the time to ask questions, like one who inquired about Nikki's blonde wig in the movie. "That's my actual hair," she said. "They bleached it." Others liked Bella, 14, from Ramsey, N.J., raved about their other projects. "I told Nikki she wrote one of my favorite movies, Thirteen, and she told me I was her favorite person here -- that actually made my life."
Although the bulk of the fans were girls, a few guys were sprinkled in the crowd, which always made Nikki a little suspicious. "Okay, so are you a Twilight fan or are you here with your girlfriend?" One guy admitted he loved the movie and got kisses on the cheek from both girls after his girlfriend stepped away. "Don't tell her!" Nikki called after him.
From hugs and kisses to autographs and answers, it's clear that when the movie opens this Friday, it's sure to be a real vampire weekend.