“No, just the dumbasses who call me when I’m on vacation.” He laughs.
I laugh too. “Listen, your dumbass client has a question.”
“I hope it’s a dumb one.” I can hear the smug smile in his tone.
I roll my eyes. “Do you think there’s grounds for suing that prick of my ex-agent? He’s shit-talking about me, saying he dumped me because my career was imploding.”
“Are you kidding me?” He’s serious now. “I don’t know if we can sue him for defamation, your career is actually soaring so he’s not doing you any damage. Not yet, at least. But I’ll look into it, see if there’s something we can come up with. I can’t wait to nail that prick for real. He shouldn’t be allowed to work in this industry. He’s a pain for everyone trying to survive in Hollywood.” He’s in full lawyer mode now.
“Jeez, thank you. He was my agent until two seconds ago.” I chuckle.
“I told you to dump him a long time ago, didn’t I?” he points out.
“Yes, you can say ‘I told you so.’”
He laughs. “Listen I need to get back to my wife before she kicks me out of our cottage. I’ll call you if I have something.”
“Thank you. And apologize to your wife on my behalf.”
***
I walk into Aaron’s new streaming company offices and look around at the colorful walls. I love this place. Since he opened it a while back, I can’t stop thinking that this was the best career move I’ve ever witnessed. The way this man can bring magic to life is incredible.
“What are you doing here?” he asks, looking up from his computer.
I’m on the guest list of people that can come and go into this place without being announced by the security gate guard, and he’s always puzzled when I show up at his door. He’ll probably cancel my name from the list if I keep showing up unannounced.
“I just met Sean Lind and I needed a colorful place to recharge and release my anger.”
His brows knit. “Why would you see that prick?”
I sigh. “Because I casually told Kevin I don’t have an agent and he suggested one of his friends.”
He rolls his eyes. “Of course he did.”
“I’ve never heard a more pompous prick talking.”
“And considering who your agent was, that’s saying a lot.”
Seriously? Why did it take so much for me to fire him? It seems like everybody hated him but me.
“Anyway, I’m still without an agent.” I plop on the chair in front of his desk.
“Why do you need an agent?” He’s genuinely curious.
“What do you mean?”
“You’re not at the beginning of your career; you don’t need to book as many auditions as you used to. Directors and producers come straight to you when they have something good, and you’ve been in this industry long enough to know where to find a good project. This movie you’re in is proof that you don’t need anybody to get where you want.”
“I don’t know. I feel like I’m missing something. That the perfect screenplay is somewhere out there and I’m missing out,” I admit.
He raises an eyebrow. “Or you think you’re missing something because nothing out there is worth your time.”
“So, what, I give up acting?”
“Or you create what’s missing. If you see a gap in the market where you can fit in, don’t wait for someone else to fill that void. Do it,” he suggests, and my heart picks up peace.
Sienna also thinks I can do something as huge as filling that void, and a strange feeling starts to fill my chest. When one person has faith in your talent you feel empowered, but that’s it. You assume they really like you and want the best for you. But when another person has the same faith in your skills, you start to think maybe there’s something about you that you can’t see, something worth trying.