The ceiling-to-floor length window allowed the warmth of the sun rays, to soak into the oddly quiet room. The golden hues created a soft glow on Rina’s face and she closed her eyes briefly, allowing it to go through her. If the situation had been any different, she might have left a comment about how the location of the production company seemed to have been strategically placed, that even though the room was bare, save the sparse furniture in the middle, it still gave that warm aura it was meant to. The chill she had felt first in the room had been dispelled by the sunlight, and Rina found herself relaxing.
But not George. He had stared at the watch on his wrist a million times already, wondering when the meeting would commence. His eyes darted to the door at intervals, waiting for the person the rest of the team had mentioned they were expecting. But it remained shut, the fine polish enjoying the glow of the sun too. He sighed in his seat, albeit inaudibly so he wouldn’t ruin Rina’s chances. But she could feel how displeased he was. Rina hated waiting too, and usually, she would have been out the doors by then. But something in her kept her seat, waiting for the outcome of the meeting.
The members of the executive team watched her intently as if trying to decipher something. If it was meant to unnerve Rina, it did nothing of the such as she stared back at them, angling her head under their scrutiny. At intervals, her eyes roamed to the clock and back on their faces, wordlessly informing them that waiting wasn’t her greatest forte. They seemed to get the hint as after a while, the young man who had addressed her first cleared his throat noisily and scooted to the edge of his seat.
“I guess we will just get right into it, pending the time the director gets here. I hope you wouldn’t mind us retracing our steps at her entrance because she is very keen on details and would want to hear it on the spot rather than have the team brief her later on. You see, she is quite concerned about ensuring everything we say here today meets your approval before going forward.”
Rina rolled her eyes inwardly, wondering why the director wasn’t there in time if she wanted to be a part of the conversation. But she nodded curtly at the young man, allowing him to begin.
“Following the correspondence between Allure Production House and your manager here, George, we fixed this meeting to brief you about what is required of you the moment you sign our contract. There are two important things you need to take note of, and I tend to call them the silver twin.”
Rina found herself rolling her eyes inwardly again, while the rest of the team snickered about the inside joke. She didn’t think it was as funny as they made it to be, but the young man was probably in a higher place of authority than the rest of them, hence, it was their duty to always laugh at his jokes. It was the first red flag Rina noted, but she was willing to stay put to listen to it all.
“First,” the young man cleared his throat noisily and began. “We chose you to work with and for us because we understood you wouldn’t find the first important rule strange. It is about your appearance online. You see, many people would attack you when you start working here, but it is important for you not to grant them any response, only if they are willing to pay for it. We monetize every single thing that comes under our purview, and we would love for you to take that into consideration. Since…you know…with everything going on about you and the stories about … you understand what I am trying to say right?”
“We are not entirely sure,” George muttered, taking charge of the conversation like always. “But you can proceed to the second ground rule, while we circle round to this when we have dealt with the importance of the other.”
The man nodded to the only female on the team and she grinned sheepishly, like she had just been handed a million dollars to do anything she wanted to do with it. Rina thought it was obvious she had a crush on the young man, but said nothing about her. Her job there was to stay quiet and be perceptive.
“You should also know that confidentiality here is of utmost importance,” she said, a false octave in her voice. “Your phones were taken away from you at the lobby for this very reason. Every meeting that takes place in this room or any other room in this building must not get to the attention of the public until when we deem fit.”
Rina smirked at the irony of the situation, knowing her phone was lying in her purse. Due to the strangeness of the situation, she had hit the record button before sliding her phone inside a while ago before getting into the room. Rina wasn’t sure what she hoped to find, but she just had a feeling that the discovery would be worth it.
That was supposed to be her ticket back to people’s screens, to the limelight, to debunk the rumors about her, but Rina found it hard to accept. There was just this nudge at the back of her head, telling her that something was going terribly wrong.
But George didn’t feel that as he was already moving on in the conversation. “Before we take your rules into consideration, we need to know the payment schedule and the type of movies Ms. Power would star in. You already mentioned you had a role for her. Could you please elaborate on that?”
“Of course,” the young man said with too much excitement. “The plot is about a girl who goes from being a total novice to being a boss at the game. The intricate details will be provided once the contract has been signed and the deal has been pushed forward.”
But Rina wasn’t sure that was all there was to the role from the look in his eyes.