Behind The Spotlight Chapter 268
Collin left the studio building and found Jennifer Randon standing fidgety at the entrance. She was wearing sunglasses and a cap to hide her identity, but passersby still glanced at her.
"...Based on your expression, it didn't end well." Jennifer smiled bitterly, and Collin mirrored her expression.
"Let's talk away from this place." He lowered his voice, aware of the people around them.
"I know a nice bakery next door. I always asked my assistant to bring me coffee and cakes from there." She kind of missed the bakery now that she had stopped hosting the show.
"Let's go there." Collin agreed and followed Jennifer.
Once they reached the bakery, Jennifer ordered a slice of sponge cake and a cappuccino, while Collin had black coffee.
"They didn't want to renew your contract... I'm sorry." He said it gently and watched her reaction.
"Nah, it's alright. I already expected it, to be honest. No one from the production team contacted me after what I did. I knew that my time there was over." She smiled faintly. She had already accepted it, but it was still painful.
"Phew, it's fortunate that I already cried a lot, so I don't feel too bad anymore. Thank you, Collin, for being there for me." Her shoulders relaxed as she exhaled.
"I didn't do anything." Collin felt guilty about it.
"You were there and protected me from Shawn. I don't know what would have happened if you weren't there," she said, sipping her drink and letting the warmth calm her nerves.
"Also, tell Axel and the others that I'm fine. They're busy, so I didn't want to disturb them," she added. Her friends had called her over the past month, and she felt happy about that, reminded that she wasn't alone. Still, she had never talked to any of them in person, not even Princess Chantal or Isabella, who had called her multiple times. She was afraid that she might break down. She had already cried enough in front of Collin.
"I will do that," Collin promised.
"Well then, I guess I'm going to return to my hometown," she said lightly.
"Huh? What are you talking about?" Collin was confused.
"Isn't it obvious? I'm done." She shrugged.
"What do you mean you're done? I already prepared a job for you. Now that you're here, are you interested in starring in Unnatural? It's a horror TV show." Collin pulled a folded paper from his pocket and handed it to Jennifer.
"Eh?" She was surprised. She hadn't expected Collin to already have something lined up for her. In fact, she had assumed her career was over now that her contract wasn't renewed.
"Just like I said, I have ways to revive your career. Just trust me, and you will become the host of another talk show, a better show than that shitty Morning with Kimberly," he said confidently, still mad about what had happened.
Jennifer burst out laughing and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. Indeed, Collin was just that type of person. He was reliable.
"Thanks, Collin. I guess I have to contact my parents." Her voice sounded lighter now.
"You can assure your parents that your career is not over."
"Dummy, I have no reason to tell them that." She rolled her eyes playfully.
"Alright, you can tell that to your boyfriend instead," he teased.
"We already broke up. I have no reason to contact him," she said casually.
"What? Since when did that happen?" Collin was shocked.
"Just a week ago. He called me and said that our relationship would never have a happy ending, so it was better to break things off before that happened. He's actually right, our relationship was never that serious anyway." She looked down and stirred her cappuccino.
"That bastard... He's starring in a movie under Uni-versus Pictures, right?"
"Yes."
"I will ask some people to give him a hard time." Collin's smile turned sharp.
"Collin, you're a devil." Jennifer giggled. "Make sure he cries blood."
...
...
...
The power of connections.
Even though Jennifer lost her position as the host of Morning with Jennifer/Kimberly, it didn't mean that her career was entirely over.
Collin was not the same talent agent he was a few years ago when he lacked the influence or connections to keep his clients relevant. He had grown.
Back then, Axel didn't have a safety net to fall back on. But now, Collin had Unnatural to leverage in order to keep his clients in the spotlight.
In this industry, if a celebrity didn't appear on screen for about a year, people would forget them, and their fame would vanish.
Unnatural was a horror TV show directed by Director Tom, who was Arnold's client. The show revolved around two siblings who fought supernatural beings.
Using Arnold and Tom as leverage, Collin successfully inserted Jennifer into the show for Season 3. Yes, Unnatural had just started its third season, and it brought in a good number of viewers during every broadcast. The producer only agreed when Collin promised that Axel Gunner or Princess Chantal would make a cameo in the show.
Collin closed the deal at $13,000 per episode. Jennifer's character would star in the show for about five episodes before being killed off for plot development. Of course, that could change if the audience liked her character. She could stay longer on the show as long as the viewers took a liking to her.
Jennifer could act. She was an actress before she became a TV host, having starred in a few movies previously.
She had no problem stepping back into acting once again. She even found it fun.
If there was something Collin was worried about, it was the fact that Jennifer and Madison hated each other.
For a reminder, Madison Morgan was once Collin's client, but she had switched agencies when she realized that Collin couldn't bring her massive opportunities at the time.
Madison and Jennifer knew each other, and they hadn't liked each other from the start.
Collin was afraid that the two women would cause trouble in the studio. He was particularly concerned that Jennifer might make a scene.
Unnatural was not their territory, and Madison was one of the main leads in the show. She was practically the queen of the production team, as she was the most prominent female character in the series.
[Thank you guys for reading this novel.]