Everdream

Fenella’s POV
“Alright, so what should we consider?”
My hand tucked the strands of my hair behind my ear. The pen moved quickly to write down each point we had discussed together all day. I made a checklist to keep myself on track with what we needed.
“Ready? First, you must legally register the company.”
Laird said quickly as his emerald green eyes looked at me and Jessy. This time he sat quietly on the couch and let me scribble on the paper, as opposed to the usual.
“What do you need to prepare to apply?” I asked.
“I think the first thing is to decide on a company name,” Jessy said back to me.
“Well, if you want to get that detailed, then make a company name first.” Laird nodded his head.
“Gene?” I suggested, looking up from the paper on my desk.
“No. You can’t use the same company name as someone else. Gene’s company is still legally owned by Alan.” Laird rejected the idea.
“What about New Gene? You know, like the New Normal term after the pandemic, remember?” I suggested once again.
“Are you sure you still want to associate yourself with Gene? Gene’s reputation is already bad, and oh, boy, I wish I had no connection to that name at all now.” Jessy scrunched his nose and shook his head with his arms crossed to make an X symbol in front of his chest.
“Ugh, let’s think of another name then,” I blew at my hair that fell in front of my face.
“365,” Jessy suggested.
“All seasons,” suggested Laird.
“FB,” I suggested.
We came up with various names, but none of them were really interesting enough for Jessy and me. Until after an hour passed without success, Laird finally let out a long sigh. Maybe he was exhausted from coming up with name ideas.
“Ok, this isn’t going to work. How about starting from the ground up? Something that is truly your vision.” Laird said with a long sigh.
“What’s a vision?” I asked with a frown on my face.
“Something you want to achieve. Your dream in building all of this. The basic principles that you hold dear in everything.” Laird patiently explained to us.
“Well, I just want money,” Jessy replied with a long sigh.
“Are you sure about that?” asked Laird with one eyebrow raised.
“Why wouldn’t I be? Everyone has their own dreams.” Jessy snorted with his chin raised proudly.
“What do you want to do with that money anyway?” Laird asked again, as if he were digging up all the hidden motivations behind it.
“Pay for my mom’s medication,” Jessica shrugged his shoulders.
“Na’ah, not that. If you didn’t have to pay for your mom, what would you do with the money?”
“Have fun. Eat what I want, buy the fashion items I like, and go traveling around the world.” Jessy counted his fingers as he mentioned everything he dreamed of. Hearing all of his dreams, I chuckled.
“Yeah, those must be good dreams,” I commented with an amused smile.
“Why not? You also have the same dreams like that, right?”
Jessy opened his arms into the air. His eyes looked at me and at Laird, seeking our support.
“I don’t know. Ever since I was a kid, I didn’t think much about my goals. Even after high school, I could only aim to be a dream girl to make Laird like me,” I said with a weak sigh.
Laird looked at me with his twinkling eyes as the corners of his lips curled in pleasure.
“You’re such a hopeless girl instead of a dream girl,” Jessy giggled.
My lips pouted, then the three of us fell back into a long silence, lost in our own thoughts. I thought about Jessy’s words while considering my own inspiration.
“Oh! Oh, I know!”
I jumped to my feet.
“Everdream!”
My eyes widened with my mouth gaping wide. I looked at Jessy and then at Laird. Their eyes blinked in surprise at my idea. I raised both of my index fingers as if I were putting the idea into their heads.
“Ever dream of being rich, financially independent, and building your own business? Ever dream of being a dream girl? Any dream you wish for, let’s work together to make it happen!”
I exclaimed as if I were acting out a commercial ad on television. For a moment, they stared at me. I slowly lowered my enthusiastic posture and stood up as usual.
“I mean, I would never have been here without you both,” I shrugged my shoulders.
They clapped and cheered happily.
“Good! That will work!” exclaimed Jessy with a big smile.
“A little bit icky, but I’d say it’s a good step,” Laird nodded.
I raised both my hands, stared at the empty air above my head, then opened both my hands as if I were writing the name in large golden ink that glittered in the air.
“Everdream Talent Management.”
“Yes! I love it already,” said Jessy with his eyes gleaming towards me.
“Well, let’s move on to the next step,” Laird said quickly with an exclamation of excitement.
“Okay. What’s next?” I echoed.
***
“Hello, Greg, nice to see you,” Jessy gave Greg a quick peck on both cheeks.
I also hugged Greg tightly and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. For some reason, our hug lasted longer. Greg’s warm embrace then turned into tears of emotion, as if we had just been through something big.
“Oh, Fenella, my dear. How have you been?” Greg asked in a soft tone.
“I’m pretty good, Greg. How about you?” I leaned back and squeezed both his shoulders.
“Could’ve been better, but I’m just grateful for everything,” Greg sighed with his eyes blinking.
“I know. I’m sorry, Greg,” I said softly with my eyes starting to burn.
“That’s not your fault.”
Greg shook his head. His hands cupped my face and caressed it gently.
“You did the right thing. I’m proud to be your friend,” Greg then squeezed my shoulders as well. We smiled widely and chuckled at the end.
The three of us sat in a cafe, chatting for a while to catch up with each other. Three paper cups of hot coffee accompanied us as we chatted. At one point, Jessy and I finally explained the purpose of our meeting today.
“Greg, we’re opening a new talent management office.”
“Really?” Greg widened his eyes with an exclamation of amazement.
“Yes. We’re just starting, but we want to do it right together now. I’m saving up some money to build our company.” I explained slowly to him.
“That’s fascinating!” Greg exclaimed.
“Yeah. We’re going to register the company legally, open a new bank account, build all the social media channels, and have a website.” Jessy explained slowly.
“Who is the CEO?” asked Greg, looking at us in turn.
“I’m the head, and Jessy is the operational director,” I admitted with a beaming smile, and my cheeks heated up at that.
“She is also our model and coach,” Jessy giggled while I slapped his shoulder lightly.
“Yeah, that’s a no-brainer,” Greg nodded his head in agreement.
“Well, Greg,” I paused my words with bated breath. “We need a male model.”
“Count me in,” Greg said quickly.
“That’s it?” I asked with wide eyes at how easy it was to get Greg on board.
“Yes. What more do I need? I trust you and your personalities. We’ve worked together for the past seven years. The way I heard you from that case, I know you’ll truly stand up for me all the way if something ever comes out.”
“What about your new agency?” I asked, hesitant.
“I haven’t signed any contracts yet. I thought I’d be a freelance model or actor. But with you here offering me a home, I don’t need to consider much anymore.”
“But I can’t promise you projects or bonuses like at Gene’s,” I once again confirmed the situation to Greg.
“It’s okay. Like I said, I count myself as a freelance model, but finding a home in your agency might be the best soultion for me. As long as you’ll give me the chance to decide on projects to take on, I’m good.”
“Oh, thank God!”
We laughed together with a sigh of relief.
“Come on, tell me more about it. I want to see sparkles in your eyes,” Greg said with a faint smile.