Chapter Text
Your hands trembled in the oversized pockets of your coat; your fingertips were already numb from rubbing them repeatedly against the rough fabric. You looked up at the sky in awe, at the highest point of the tower a huge neon sign flickered brightly.
TV Time
It was crazy, almost bizarre, to finally see this in real life. How often had you and your brother fantasized about what it would be like to stand right here looking up at the huge neon sign high above, at the foot of the tallest skyscraper in the entire TV World.
Your heart skipped a beat.
It all happened way faster than you had expected. Just two weeks ago, Marc called you and told you about a new job advertisement from TV Times Studio that he 'd spotted by coincidence. Apparently, they were looking for a co-host for a new game show, to work alongside the famous Mr. Ant Tenna, the Mr. Ant Tenna, who would be moderating it.
Initially, you were both convinced that thousands of people must have applied for the job and that the chances of Marc even being invited to an interview were very slim, almost non-existent to be precise. But when he rushed into your flat two days later, beaming with joy, to tell you that he had been invited to an interview, you were both absolutely thrilled.
“Here goes nothing. Don't embarrass me in there, okay?”
You nudged your brother playfully with your elbow.
He looked dashing in his black suit, white shirt, tie, and slicked-back hair. Almost a little too slimy. In other words, he looked just like a real TV show host.
“Mom and Dad will have a heart attack when they'll see you on TV soon.”
He sighed briefly.
“Please don't tell me you mentioned the job interview to them..”
“Are you kidding? I would never. Besides, if I had, you would already have 300 missed calls from all our relatives and the whole neighborhood. As you know, Dad can't keep a single secret to himself.”
Marc winked mischievously at you before checking the fit of his tie again. The knot sat tightly around his neck, probably restricting his air supply to some degree.
You hoped that he wouldn't accidentally strangle himself out of sheer nervousness.
“Takes one to know one. You talk a lot too, and keeping secrets isn't your strong suit either."
“Don't get cheeky now, you wouldn't have gotten this far without me. May I remind you that my ‘babbling’ has opened quite a few doors for us in the past.”, you huffed in amusement.
“True”,
he replied briefly before fiddling with his tie again.
You looked at him.
“Wow, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you this –
you paused for a second
- agitated.”
But you knew how important this was for him. How much discipline, hard work and sleepless nights it took him to get here. You’d seen it all.
“Chin up, I know you can do it. If they don't recognize your talent, then they're blind anyway. How about you just consider it a quick in-and-out adventure. No pressure at all.”
You hoped that your little jibes would help ease his nervousness, but it wasn't easy to pretend you were the epitome of calm yourself…. Not when your common goal was so close at hand.
Still, it worked, a faint smile appeared on his face.
“Quick in-and-out adventure. Ha, sounds good to me. After you.”
Marc stepped forward and politely held the door open for you.
You were now standing in a spacious lobby, a rush of warm air ruffling your hair. Framed posters with various slogans and images hung on the walls, most of the programs depicted looked familiar to you. Your shoes sank into the red, fluffy carpet beneath your feet. Right in front of you, you noticed two enormous golden statues of Tenna, the studio's icon. Both figures beamed brightly and were illuminated by overhead lights.
But it wasn't just the statues; his face was simply everywhere.
The lamps on the ceiling, the monitors on the wall, even the tapestry was plastered with his iconic smiles.
Oh, someone here has a huge ego
A receptionist stood at the counter in the middle of the lobby, filing her nails, when your brother politely approached her.
“Good morning, we have an appointment with Susan. Could you please announce us to her? That would be very kind.”
A long, uncomfortable silence followed your brothers request.
The woman at the counter didn’t even think of looking up from her bright, neon green fingernails. Without interruption, her nail file continued to bob back and forth across her nail, nail dust gently trickling down from her finger and landing on the table beneath her.
“Your names?”
she replied dryly.
“Um...” Your brother hesitated.
Wow, what a warm welcome
“Marc and Stella. We're here for the new co-host position.”
The woman picked up the phone on her desk, pressed a few buttons, waited a moment, and said:
“Susan, you have visitors.”
Then she hung up.
Why did she need to know your names if she wasn't going to use them anyway?
You already couldn't stand her.
“You're signed in, take a seat, Susan will be here in a moment.”
The woman pointed with a manicured finger to a seating area, right next to the entrance door. The red faux leather sofa squeaked slightly under your weight as you sat down.
Marc leaned back and exhaled.
“I think she deserves the award for employee of the month.,” he joked quietly.
You looked around the large lobby and discovered details that you didn't notice at first glance. Some lamps hung crookedly from the ceiling, the red leather of the sofa was covered in tiny black holes, dust and lint piled up on the table in front of you, which had certainly not been cleaned in ages.
You ran your finger across the tabletop and left a fine line.
“Yeah, not the best first impression, if you ask me.”
You couldn't shake that gnawing feeling that something wasn't right. You had imagined this place to be a little more… glamorous …and inviting....somehow.
After less than five minutes, you heard hurried footsteps. A stocky woman with glasses, short black hair, a clipboard under her arm, and a headset dangling from one ear came straight toward you. Her hair was tousled, her skin looked pale and there were dark shadows under her eyes.
“Marc and Stella, I presume?”
Wow, she had noticed you AND addressed you by name—the day could only get better.
“I am very pleased to welcome you both here today. I hope you had a pleasant journey.”
She shook your hands a little too firmly before asking you to follow her.
Marc smiled charmingly. Like a well-trained actor, he had already slipped completely into his role.
“Very pleasant indeed. It's our first time in TV World and we're just thrilled. It's not as crowded and hectic here as it is in Cyber World, which is a welcome change.”
You instinctively straightened your back and pulled your shoulders back. First impressions count the most, after all.
“We are very pleased that you are making this meeting possible. Marc and I have been fans of TV Time for as long as we can remember.”
Susan walked faster now, jotting down a few notes as she went.
You had trouble keeping up with her.
“Wonderful. I'll now show you the dressing room and the recording studio, your future workplace, Marc. The show starts in 40 minutes with recording. Stella, you'll be seated in our open-plan office but for now I'll take you both to the set.”
You and your brother exchanged a meaningful glance.
"Excuse me, but is Marc supposed to shoot today? We assumed that today's meeting would be a standard job interview."
You almost stumbled over your own feet.
Susan's gaze burned into your eyes, but she didn't seem to really notice you. It was more like she was looking right through you.
“Please watch out for cables on the floor and do not touch any props on set. We don't want any accidents today.”
Today?
Didn't she hear you just now, or did she ignore you? You couldn't tell for sure.
“Sorry to ask again, but is Marc supposed to be filming today?”
She adjusted her glasses and looked at the clipboard.
“That's correct. I thought that’s why you are here?”, she added.
This is all happening a little too fast for your liking.
“Yes, that's right, but...um…”
Without asking any further questions, Susan added the following:
"Then that's settled. Time is money, and we have to go on air today. I'm sorry, but we can't keep Mr. Tenna waiting. The candidate who applied two weeks ago unexpectedly quit yesterday for personal reasons, so your chances are more than good."
You can't believe it, this is certainly not how you imagined your first day in the TV world.
Marc finally thawed out of his state of shock and expressed his confusion.
“But wouldn't it make more sense for me to get a chance to talk to Mr. Tenna first, get to know the studio, the staff, and settle in before I have to start filming?”
He laughed nervously, trying to remain professional.
“I mean, that's how it worked on my other productions so far.”
Susan remained strictly focused on the clipboard in front of her.
You really had to pull yourself together to prevent snatching the stupid thing out of her hand.
"Please trust me when I tell you that wouldn't be a good idea. Mr. Tenna is...
She bit her lower lip.
“Special... in that regard.”
Without further ado, Susan sprinted down various corridors until you arrived at the recording set. With few other options, you were forced to follow her.
Self-doubt washed over you like a wave, your pulse raced through your veins. Maybe this wasn't a job interview after all, and you had completely misinterpreted the confirmation email you received?
Did you overlook something in the email?
You took your smartphone out of your coat pocket to reread the confirmation email you received when you agreed to today's appointment.
Relieved, you realized that you hadn't misread anything.
“We really don't want to appear rude, but it says here that an interview is scheduled for today, not a shoot. So perhaps it would make more sense if we had a chat first, what do you think?"
You wanted to show Susan the screen of your smartphone, but she suddenly stopped dead in her tracks. You 'd almost bumped into her if your reaction time hadn't been sharpened by years of playing video games.
She looked at you in utter shock, almost as if you had just pulled a loaded gun out of your coat and pointed it directly at her face.
“Put that away if you value your life. Never let yourself get caught with anything that can receive an internet signal on set. The Boss would literally explode and you would condemn us all for the whole week.”
Stunned, you could only stare at Susan with your mouth agape. What kind of place had you stumbled into?
The headset on her ear emitted wild noises, and then everything happened in a flash.
“Okay, our staff will take care of you now, Marc.”
Suddenly, several people came rushing out of a dimly lit corner and tried to pull Marc into the dressing room. He looked at you helplessly as several hands pulled at him and almost dragged him away by force.
Should you intervene? And if you do, will you ruin all his chances?
“Stop, hey, wait a second!”
You wanted to chase after Marc, but Susan stopped you.
“Sorry, only our performers are allowed in there.”
“But I have to stay with him, I'm his manager.”, you said concerned.
Susan looked at you with tired eyes and exhaled loudly.
“Now’s really not the right time for this, we're live in 30 minutes. Please just stay backstage and enjoy the show.”
Perplexed, you stood there spellbound for a few seconds. From where you were standing, you could see what was happening in the dressing room in front of you.
Marc was being fitted with new clothes, made-up, his hair was being restyled, all at the same time. Sometimes there were five people buzzing around him at once, like moths fluttering around a bright lamp in the dark night.
The set was hurriedly prepared, props were moved, the lighting changed, and the sound was adjusted.
You heard a little voice in your head whispering that maybe, just maybe, it was a mistake to come here, but you banished it to the back of your mind.
This could be his big chance. He could be BIG. You can't back down now.
Was this a test? A kind of stress test to see if an applicant could handle the pressure of the film industry without immediately having a nervous breakdown?
Yeah, it had to be.
Nobody in their right mind would shoot a new show with a complete stranger as co-host; that was absolutely crazy and totally preposterous.
You heard his booming voice before you saw him.
“MIKE, dim the lights on position 2 and give me a soundcheck. Are the cameras in position? WHERE are my cue cards? Ohhh.. HA HA, Guys, I just LOVE it how you find new ways to CHALLENGE me every day!”