Paris, France. The date is April 2nd.
After finishing their west to east honeymoon along the Mediterranean coast, spring had arrived in northern Europe. Simon and Janette, still full of energy, flew to their manor in the western suburbs of Paris for a temporary stay.
As the black sedan pulled into the manor, which spanned over 50 acres, Madonna couldn't help but look around through the window, her eyes filled with envy.
Madonna was also someone who loved buying property, but she knew in her heart that she could never afford to casually buy an estate in the Paris suburbs like Westeros, only to stay there for a few days a year.
After several attempts, Madonna finally managed to schedule a meeting with Simon today to discuss her upcoming 'Blond Ambition' concert tour, which was set to open on April 13th.
During the filming of 'Pulp Fiction', Simon had promised to make a guest appearance as a guitarist at her concert. As his power and wealth continued to grow, Madonna wasn't sure if he would still fulfil that promise.
Fortunately, Westeros had no intention of backing out.
Upon receiving Simon's confirmation, Madonna couldn't wait to reveal it in an interview, which immediately drew intense attention from fans. Simon's guest appearance was a huge gimmick for the upcoming tour. Thus, even though it was the most critical period of concert preparation, Madonna decided to personally fly to Europe to talk to Simon face-to-face.
The car wound through the roads for a moment before finally stopping in front of the manor's grand main villa.
The driver opened the door, and Madonna stepped out. A young woman in an office style professional suit walked over from the front of the villa and said politely, "Miss Ciccone, I'm Claire. Please follow me".
Madonna was curious about the woman's identity. Following her inside, she saw another tall woman in similar attire in the living room and roughly understood what was going on, yet she grew even more puzzled. Janette Johnston, well, Janette Westeros now, must be very open-minded to keep such beautiful eye candy around her man.
Thinking this, Madonna followed Claire to a study on the first floor. Simon, Janette, and another middle-aged couple were huddled around an architectural model on a workbench, discussing something in low voices.
She took a quick glance.
The model on the workbench seemed to be a building, but it was circular and appeared to have no windows on the outside, looking very strange.
Seeing her enter, the four ended their conversation. After brief greetings, the middle-aged couple took their leave.
"C, please see Mr. Stone and Ms. Anderson out, and have D bring some drinks. By the way, Maggie, what would you like to drink?"
"Just coffee for me, please".
Simon nodded, gave Claire a few instructions, saw the couple out of the study, and motioned for Madonna to sit on the sofa.
Once the couple left, Janette also said, "You two chat, I'm going upstairs to rest for a while".
Madonna quickly stood up and watched Janette leave. Left alone with Simon, she sat back down and found a topic. "C and D? Are there an A and a B?"
Simon sat opposite Madonna and smiled. "Yes, they went to the city. You'll meet them when they get back".
Sensing from his tone that Simon was still the same big boy and hadn't distanced himself because of his change in status, Madonna relaxed and joked half-seriously, "A, B, C, D... isn't Janette worried at all that something might happen between you and them?"
"Jenny thinks that if the maids were too ugly, it would be even more embarrassing if something happened between me and them".
Madonna thought about it; it seemed to make sense. However, something still felt off. Noticing the model on the workbench, she changed the subject. "What is that? A building?"
"A doomsday bunker".
"Huh?"
Simon repeated, "A doomsday bunker. A place to take temporary refuge in case of unexpected disasters like nuclear war, famine, or pandemics".
Right.
Madonna felt that she and the man before her might not even be on the same plane of existence.
After his serious explanation, a smile returned to Simon's face. He added, "You should know, the higher the social class, the more people suffer from doomsday phobia. It's not because they're more afraid of death than ordinary people, but because they know the world is far less safe than ordinary people imagine. Catastrophic disasters could happen at any time".
Recently, after months of negotiations with the Tasmanian government, Simon had finally acquired the 6,000 square kilometres of land on the island. Including his previous purchases, Simon now owned nearly 10% of Tasmania.
When he had jokingly discussed building a doomsday bunker in Tasmania with Janette, Simon had almost forgotten about it afterward, but Janette had remembered.
Janette, who deep down actually looked forward to the end of the world, didn't have doomsday phobia. She just thought it was fun, so Simon let her hire people to start planning.
During their month-long honeymoon, the two of them, like children playing with Legos, designed the bunker model on the workbench with the help of a professional team.
The bunker was planned to be built in the mountains of Tasmania, at a depth of over 50 meters, which could indeed withstand a nuclear strike.
The internal space and stored supplies were enough for 10 people to live self-sufficiently for five years, with an initial estimated cost of $20 million.
Although everything was very professional, in reality, it was just a big toy created by Simon and Janette on a whim.
For instance, now, after hearing Simon's explanation, Madonna tried her best to suppress the 'you rich people are so bored' look in her eyes.
Another woman entered with a tray, knelt by the low table to place a glass of orange juice in front of Simon, poured a cup of coffee for Madonna, and then quietly left the study.
A, B, C, and D; Allison, Becky, Claire, and Deborah. These four women were flight attendants chosen when Janette ordered the Boeing 767. Besides their good looks and educational backgrounds, Janette had arranged for them to undergo various types of training, from flight attendance to nursing, which were still ongoing.
Because they were so handy, Simon simply turned them into full-time maids.
Of course, Simon was also very generous with their salaries.
The four women only needed to work full-time for Simon for five years. In addition to a high annual salary of $200,000, there would be a bonus after five years equal to the total salary of the previous five years. In other words, they could earn $2 million in just five years, a sum most ordinary people couldn't make in a lifetime.
For privacy reasons, Simon's properties in Europe and North America no longer casually employed young girls as cleaners based on his past whims. Instead, a more professional service team was established under the Housekeeper's management, all signed to strict non-disclosure agreements.
Once the woman left, Madonna took a sip of coffee and got down to business. "Simon, did you look at the concert materials I sent over the other day?"
"Of course", Simon leaned back on the sofa with his orange juice. "Four months, 60 concerts, an average of one every two days. You're really pushing yourself".
According to the schedule Madonna provided for the 'Blond Ambition' World Tour, she would hold 60 consecutive concerts in over twenty cities across Japan, North America, and Europe from April to August, a non-stop pace.
A frequency of one every two days was a major test of a singer's stamina.
Madonna smiled and followed his lead. "So, why don't you help me out with one more guest appearance?"
Simon was easy-going. "No problem. Let's talk about the appearance fee".
Madonna immediately backtracked.
You've got to be kidding.
Simon Westeros's appearance fee.
The promise to guest as a guitarist was only a verbal agreement. Madonna had actually considered this before coming.
If Simon really wanted an appearance fee, she likely couldn't afford it. The average box office revenue for each of the 60 planned concerts might be less than $1 million. If Westeros only guest-starred in one, even the entire box office might not be enough if he really wanted to get technical.
Simon was only joking.
He stood up, went to the desk, picked up a folder, and handed it to Madonna. "Here's a song. Including the upcoming guest appearance, we'll be even. You won't have to come looking for me like a debt collector every time. As for the guitarist gig, I'm returning to North America in a few days, so I definitely can't make it to Japan. Which specific show I'll guest in depends on my schedule. But don't worry, once the date is set, I'll set aside a few days for rehearsals".
While Simon spoke, Madonna eagerly opened the folder.
The original agreement: two songs and one concert guest appearance as a guitarist.
Simon had already given her 'Celebration,' leaving one song. She had mentioned it a few times before, but he had always brushed it off, saying he needed inspiration.
Now, the debt was finally being settled.
The first thing she saw was the title: 'Bad Romance'.
Bad Romance.
Just the title alone made Madonna feel it perfectly suited her style.
Then came the lyrics and the score.
After a quick browse, Madonna unconsciously started humming and realized the song was perfect for a stage performance. She began brainstorming the stage design while humming.
However, as she looked further, she suddenly hesitated.
This song could definitely carry an album.
Perhaps it should be the lead single of her next album; she could even name the album 'Bad Romance'.
Although the concept of a viral hit didn't exist yet, Madonna could sense that this song would definitely become popular. If done well, it could easily be another ten-million-selling record.
She really wondered how many more things were hidden inside this tantalizing young man.
Thinking this, Madonna finally looked up at Simon. "Um, I see the word 'Gaga' used a lot in the lyrics. What does it mean?"
Simon explained casually, "I forgot where I heard it. It's from some lyrics in a song, and it felt like it fit the rhythm here".
Exactly.
'Bad Romance' was indeed a song by Lady Gaga from many years later in the original timeline. It wasn't surprising that the singer's name appeared in the lyrics.
As for the specific origin of the word 'Gaga,' Simon vaguely remembered it being from a song in recent years, but he didn't bother to look into it.