The call was ended immediately after that last remark from Tori, letting the beeps of the end call echo louder and louder for Jade as she lowered the phone and tossed it towards the couch with an irritated scream. She picked up the wine bottle from the counter and stormed off to the bedroom as she took several large gulps and tried to drown her frustration and regret in alcohol like every other time. There she remained for the rest of the evening, drinking until the bottle ran dry and then grabbing another until she eventually passed out in bed while trying to find something online or on tv to distract herself.
Tori quickly went inside and handed Cat her phone and patted her on the shoulder before taking a seat next to Beck and scooping Nyx into her lap. "So? What did they say about the audition?" Cat asked eagerly.
"Hm?" Tori said curiously, she took a moment and put on a bright smile, and said, "Oh no, it wasn't your friend, it was someone trying to sell you some junk from Sky Mall. They were very sweet though, seemed pretty cool."
"Oh, well let me know if you wanna ride with me to the audition! I can take you when I go to work, or I can take the day off and we can go shopping or something after!" Cat said excitedly.
"What's this about an audition?" Andre asked curiously while taking a sip of his water.
Cat then went on and on for the next couple hours talking about how she managed to convince Tori to try and audition for some vocal parts in some upcoming projects, going over every facet of the studio and all of the friends she managed to make there and anything else she could think of. The group tried to redirect her a few times but the damage was done due to the sugar high she was on and the best thing to do was to let her burn off the extra energy. Tori sat back in her seat and quietly petted Nyx, taking in everything from her short chat with Jade while putting up the front required to keep the others from worrying or noticing anything was amiss. Her gaze kept gravitating towards Beck as she tried to think of a time and place to confront him about his talk with Jade. She had to know what was said and needed to know his insights, he was once the goth woman's best friend so he had to have some guidance for her on what to do, or so she hoped.
The hotel phone on the nightstand went off just as Jade requested for her early morning wake up call, but the sounds did little to help with the hangover she was dealing with as she loudly groaned and picked it up, cut off the person on the other end with a quick utterance of thanks and then slamming it back down on the receiver. She rolled over in bed and heard a glass bottle fall off the mattress and onto the wooden floor where it rolled and clinked with another empty bottle. The memories of last night's conversation flooded back all at once and solidified Jade's mood of utter disdain for everyone and everything. She angrily tossed the covers aside and made her way to the shower and tried to be quick, knowing if she was late, she'd receive a very loud lecture from her agent and manager Mary. Neither of which would be appreciated right now.
Thirty minutes later she was fully dressed with her hair slightly curled, make-up applied, and dressed to kill. The mounting pressure from her hangover and the bright light from the sun outside worked against her but she quickly took some pills and grabbed her sunglasses and bag and left the room to make it down to the lobby. Luckily, she managed to catch the elevator and have a full ride down with no stops and no unwanted annoyances and strolled into the lobby where Mary was waiting for her.
She had met her in New York a few weeks after she moved at a coffee shop working as a barista. They immediately hit it off when Mary chewed out someone for trying to cut in front of Jade and the entire line of customers and they became friends quickly after as Jade kept coming back to the shop to work on her stories and plays. Mary studied business and economics at NYC and graduated with honors around the same time Jade started to become a bigger name in the world of literature. Jade offered her the job but declined at first due to not having any experience in entertainment but after talking it over, eventually joined and has stuck with Jade ever since, learning everything there is to know about the industry and approaching it with a shrewd calculating perspective. She had darker skin and bright hazel eyes and a confident smirk on her lips. Her hair usually left down and wild was combed and tied back in a bun as she adjusted her suit and pulled out her phone as she started to walk with Jade towards the front doors where their car was waiting. "You look like shit."
"Good morning to you too. Wanna give me the rundown for today or do you wanna pick apart my entire image since we seem to have the time?" Jade shot back.
Mary smirked as she scrolled on her phone and said, "I can multitask."
The gentleman at the car opened the door and ushered them both in and closed it as Jade said, "Oh great. Then save the sass and just tell me what I need for today. I'll fill you in on the rest later."
"Whatever you say, boss," Mary said as she opened up her bag and grabbed a bottle of water for Jade and handed it to her and said, "Drink. That's an order. Now for today, all we have is just the meeting with Blackhawk Pictures. I've pretty much handled all the financial things through your contract so you're set to direct but they wanted to go over a few things and then have you sign to make things official."
"They really couldn't have just let me fax them a signature then fly out? What the hell is so important they wanted to discuss face to face?" Jade said as she took the water and sipped it while looking out the window.
"Honestly, I'm not too sure myself. I'm guessing they want to meet since this is your first full directing gig and they're nervous," Mary said.
"Yeah, but I've directed plays and stuff like that, shouldn't that be enough?" Jade said, clearly annoyed and fighting the urge to not have the car turn around so she can nurse her aching head in solitude.
"Weren't you the one who told me those are two completely different ballparks?" Mary said, earning a glare from Jade which only made the business savvy woman smirk. "Look, just let me handle all the business stuff, nod and answer their questions and we'll be in and out before you know it. It's probably all formalities anyway."
"It had better be, I'm not in the mood for this shit," Jade said as she leaned back with her sunglasses on and tried to close her eyes to rest a little.
"So, you going to fill me in, or do I have to start guessing?" Mary asked as she put her phone away and tapped Jade's side.
"Later." Jade said dryly, "When my head isn't killing me and I'm not in the mood to strangle someone. Deal?"
"I'm holding you to that," Mary said, closing the conversation and letting her friend rest as they were driven across town to the studio lot of Blackhawk Pictures.
The studio itself has a history of taking risks and being a maverick amongst its peers in the film industry. Numerous stories of their behind the scene exploits were known throughout Hollywood but none could deny that they knew how to produce a solid film, regardless of the source material, time, or budget. Their pioneering and driven attitude is what led them to be one of the key players in Hollywood despite not honing in or specializing in one or two genres of films like most other studios did. No, for Blackhawk, if they wanted to do a project and could get the people behind it, it would be done with the same quality and passion every time. It was the reason Jade was originally on board for doing a film with them anyway, she knew their history and knew they wouldn't tamper with her vision too much as some other studios would. Their car pulled through the front gates after stopping to check in with security was then directed to a series of office buildings in the back corner where their meeting was to be held. Mary did most of the talking on the way in and managed to get Jade out of talking or having to deal with overeager production assistants trying to offer her anything she could want as they were led down several halls to a larger boardroom with several people in suits chatting.
The first one, Jade recognized through some research and some video calls in the past as Ryan Blackhawk, the madman behind the crazy studio. He was an older gentleman in his mid-forties and dressed in a more casual suit with no tie and his short brown hair gelled and kept neat. He smiled and approached and said, "Miss. West! So good to meet you in person instead of through a screen, come have a seat. We'll get started so we don't take up too much of your time. I understand you grew up around here so you probably want to go visit friends and family."
The two women took seats across from him and the two other individuals after shaking hands and Jade said, "You've done your research. Yeah, if possible, I'd like to not be here for too long. I'm kind of curious about why we're even having this meeting. I thought Mary covered everything already with you guys."
The older gentleman, probably in his early sixties, spoke up and said, "Yes, we did and we have the final draft of the contract here and ready to sign. We just needed to cover the recent alterations and a timeline for production. Miss. Alarie here also wanted to talk about a few things too." He said and gestured over to the other side of Ryan to the woman. She was around the same age as Ryan but had a paler complexion and calm blue eyes but a thin smile. Her blonde hair was cut short, ending just at the end of her neck and she cleared her throat and said, "Miss. West, I have to say that I am just a big fan."
Jade fought the urge to roll her eyes at that comment, the woman was most likely genuine but every time Jade heard that phrase, she knew there had to be something coming that she didn't like. "I am going one of the producers on this project and I prefer to be rather hands-on with these sorts of things, but on top of that, I also handle the music and sound department. I know that this is essentially your baby but I needed to check and see how extensively you wanted to be involved."
"Are you serious?" Jade asked, annoyed that such a thing passed her lips. "Look I get that this is my first time directing a feature film but I plan on being involved in every facet of this thing. That book was a big passion project for me so getting the chance to work and make this into a film, with this studio, is a big deal for me. So, I don't exactly appreciate being questioned on that."
There was a long silent pause in the room, Jade hadn't raised her voice but the intensity was there that made Mary almost audibly groan and put a hand to her head, already dreading the damage control she'd have to do. As Mary was about to apologize and swoop in to try and mend things, the three higher-ups of Blackhawk Pictures laughed and Ryan clapped a little as he stood and said, "That is all I needed to hear, Miss. West. Sign here and we can get preproduction underway."
Mary and Jade looked at one another and then back at the three smiling individuals and Jade spoke up and said, "Was that a test? You were testing me over something like this?"
"Kind of," Ryan said as he handed the forms over to Mary to sign and slide over to Jade. "We fully planned on getting things started today, we've got most of the crew selected and we have several writers ready to meet with you tomorrow to revise and finalize a script. We just wanted to see how passionate you were about this!"
The man let out a laugh as he came around the side of the table and sat on the edge of it as Jade smirked and signed on the dotted line and said, "I knew I liked you guys for a reason, you're a bit crazy but I'm used to a little crazy." Memories of her old drama teacher flashed through her mind which brought a smile to her lips.
"You kind of have to be to work in entertainment," Ryan said. "Tonight, Miss. Alarie here will email you all the things we've got started on already and a schedule that she's had her people work on. She'll be the one mainly working with you on this so I hope you two get along and kick some ass! You have my contact info so feel free to reach out if you need anything or if something comes up, I'll be updated every week on your progress."
With that, he and the lawyer took their leave after saying goodbye and collecting the last bit of paperwork. Jade ended up speaking with Miss. Alarie about the schedule and casting almost immediately, catching the young author by surprise. The ink hadn't even dried and the woman was already discussing casting choices yet hadn't even shared her first name. "How about you give me your name, then we go over this stuff once I've had a chance to look over what your team has put together already and once I have the finalized script for us?"
The older woman stopped her rambling and blushed a little and said, "Oh, I'm so sorry, you can call me Jenna! I'm sorry I just get very distracted and swept away by my thoughts once we start a project I'm excited about!"
"I don't mind, it's kind of refreshing to be around people that give a damn about what they do," Jade said as she walked with the woman out of the office and down the hall with Mary in tow. They ended up finalizing the schedule for the next day and Jenna invited Jade to join her for the early auditions she was having for the orchestra and vocals, noting that Jade's musical skills would greatly help expedite the process.
"Well, this is my ride! I'll see you bright and early tomorrow!" Jenna said as a golf cart pulled up with a familiar bubbly redhead in the back seat talking with some guy as they looked at a PearPad.
"Cat?!" Jade said as Jenna took the passenger seat of the cart. Cat looked up and her eyes went a little wide from seeing Jade in person for the first time in years. She waved a little and said, "Hey Jade, what are you doing here?"
"Cat? Do you know Miss. West?" Jenna asked, using a more authoritative tone of voice and glaring at her for having addressed Jade by her first name. Jade took notice of that and stepped in and said, "She does actually, Cat's one of my oldest friends. I haven't seen her since I moved to New York."
Jenna apologized immediately and said, "Oh I had no idea! Well, how great! You two will get the chance to work together, that's so exciting! Cat? Why don't you take the day off and catch up? We don't really need anything from wardrobe yet anyway."
Cat looked between the producer and her old friend and nodded before hopping off of the golf cart and watching it pull away and out of sight as it got lost in the crowd of people moving throughout the busy movie lot. Jenna waved goodbye as it left and reminded Jade of the times for the next morning, leaving the three women alone outside the office building.
The two of them stood apart, unsure of what to do, but Mary stepped in and offered her hand to Cat and said, "Hey! I'm Jade's manager, Mary. I haven't met any of her California friends, she's told me a bit about you."
Cat shook her hand and said, "I'm Cat, I work in the wardrobe department. It's nice to meet you."
Jade was surprised by how calm and mellow Cat was, compared to her usual hyperactive nature, and said, "Mary, why don't we meet up later? I'll get a cab back to the room. I kind of want to talk to Cat. Alone."
Mary caught the not-so-subtle instruction to go away and nodded as she said, "Of course, don't forget though, you still have to meet with me later to go over that other stuff."
Jade nodded and stood there with Cat until Mary was a fair distance away and said, "So Kitty Cat…want to get some food?"
Author's Notes:
Hello again! Thank you again to everyone who has been taking the time to read and review, it's been a lot of fun to read through your thoughts, theories and messages! I'm gonna try to get another couple of chapters by the end of the week or the start of the next once since I'll be out of town for the weekend.
I hope you all have been enjoying the clues sprinkled throughout the chapters and the small little playlist I've been leaving at the end of these notes!
Songs Used for Inspiration:
1. ?
2. "She Got the Best of Me" by Luke Combs
3. "Miss Missing You" by Fall Out Boy
4. ?