Is this trying to blow up the entertainment industry
The penthouse living room at Azure Tower was a sea of cool grays, but the three young men scattered across it were anything but calm. Leo Foster was sprawled on the leather sofa, a lazy smile on his face as his fingers flew across his phone screen in a blur.
Beside him, Zachary Bell's phone hit the coffee table with a sharp crack. He'd just gotten wasted in-game. "Leo, what the hell?" he snapped, shooting him a dirty look. "You just stood there! I got wiped out before I could even fire a single shot."
Leo didn't even look up from his screen. "I'm handling something for Dexter and Julian," he said, his eyes still glued to his phone. "If I pull this off, Dexter promised he'd personally set up a team for me. A guaranteed win."
"What?" Zac pushed himself up and hopped over, plopping down right next to Leo. "How desperate does Julian have to be to give a job to *you*?" He threw an arm over Leo's shoulder, craning his neck to get a look at the screen.
"Get lost," Leo grumbled, elbowing him away.
"Seriously, what did Julian ask you to do?" Zac asked, his curiosity getting the better of him. He knew Leo. And considering what a screw-up Leo usually was, Julian must have an insane amount of trust, or desperation, to give him a job this important.
Ethan Rhodes, who'd died a full two minutes before Zac, tossed his own phone aside and slid onto Leo's other side. "Weren't you just in Westlake City for a shoot a few days ago? Is that Maya Laurent really as hot in person as she is in her videos?"
"She's okay, I guess," Leo replied casually. "Not as good-looking as the second female lead."
Zac and Ethan leaned in. "Second female lead?" they asked in unison. "Who's that?"
"She's a newcomer," Leo said. "Julian and Dexter both want to sign her, but she doesn't seem interested in Stellar Media. Dexter told me to bring her in."
Zac was floored. "No way, Leo. A rookie who couldn't even land the main role in a web series is getting this much attention from Julian? That doesn't sound like him at all."
Leo finally looked up, a sly glint in his eye. "Zac, do you know what separates us from a guy like Julian?"
Zac fell silent. Damn. What kind of existential gut punch was that? Julian was the gold standard for their generation. Even a seasoned pro like Dexter Reed was happy to do his bidding. Comparing themselves to Julian felt like a joke.
Leo didn't wait for an answer. "This new actress has a master's in medicine and is taking the Bar Exam in a few days. She's not like those other girls who just get by on their looks."
Leo, who often felt like he was just faking it till he made it, had a strange admiration for people who were the genuine article.
It was something his friends, all from similar backgrounds, understood without needing to say it.
They might mess around, but they all had a deep-seated respect for real talent.
And sure enough, when Leo dropped that bomb, their eyes went wide.
"Holy crap," Ethan said, stunned. "A master's in medicine? Taking the bar exam? *And* acting? That's not a triple threat, that's a prodigy. The entertainment industry is full of people faking a 'brainy' persona, but an actual genius? That's a first."
Someone like that would have way too much self-respect to just mess around in show business.
When Avery still hadn't replied to his message after a few minutes, Leo tossed his phone onto the couch.
"Dexter told me she's apparently in some kind of trouble."
He shrugged. "But still, someone like her probably has three different backup plans for any problem. When I was on set, I saw what a real multitasker looks like. She'd be listening to the director explain the scene with one ear and have an earbud in the other, listening to a Criminal Law lecture."
"Criminal Law?!" Zac and Ethan yelped.
"What is she planning, a hostile takeover of the entertainment industry?" Ethan muttered.
"Zac, pull up the flights from Westlake City to New York for tomorrow afternoon," Leo said, stretching out and sinking into the couch until he looked boneless.
"Do I even need to check?" Zac replied. "There are only two. One gets in at two-thirty, and the other lands after seven."
"The two-thirty, then." Leo's eyes were closed. "Wanna go with me to pick her up tomorrow?"
"To pick up the genius?" Ethan teased.
Leo just hummed in response. He had to nail this for Julian and Dexter. If he did this well, he could stick with them and maybe catch some bigger opportunities down the line.
As the last slivers of sunset faded into a deep blue twilight, Avery Hayes followed her brother, Cole, back to his home in Westlake City. The second she walked through the door, she was hit with the rich, savory smell of something cooking.
Cole had bought the new three-bedroom apartment a year ago, and the renovations had just been finished a few months back. Since Avery had finished medical school, she'd only visited twice. It was just too far from the hospital.
"Uncle, Aunt..." Avery set her suitcase down in a corner of the living room and called out toward the kitchen.
This time, the words came out steady, without the hesitation that used to trip her up around them.
The awkwardness she'd felt after being taken in had finally faded, replaced by a quiet sense of belonging.
It was as if the older couple bustling in the kitchen really were her own family.
"Avery, you're back! Are you feeling any better?"
A slightly plump woman rushed out of the kitchen holding a basket of vegetables. Mrs. Hayes set the basket on the table, wiped her hands on her apron, and immediately pulled Avery close to feel her forehead.
"Your brother said you took a hit to the head," she fussed. "Something that serious happens, and neither of you thinks to call home? If your Uncle Silas hadn't mentioned it, we would've never even known you got hurt."
The woman was nearly seventy, and her palms were rough, but their touch felt strangely grounding. The simple, unconditional concern was a feeling she wasn't used to, and it sent a pang of bittersweet warmth through her chest.
"That's right. Your aunt and I are still around. You two don't have to carry everything on your own," Mr. Hayes said, walking out of the kitchen with a spatula in his hand.
He was wearing a comically out-of-place floral apron.
He must have been a soldier in his youth; despite his gray hair, his posture was perfectly straight, and his voice carried a natural authority.
"I was already at the hospital, and it wasn't a big deal," Avery said with a small smile, pushing down the wave of emotion. "I didn't want to worry you."
"Your brother mentioned the people who hit you offered fifty grand to settle," Mr. Hayes said, handing the spatula to his wife so she could check on whatever was simmering on the stove.
Avery met his gaze. "I didn't take it."
Mr. Hayes huffed, a flicker of pride in his eyes. "Good. You were right not to. We may not be rich, but we certainly don't need their money."