Blue Fox Pub, Elffire City.
7:48 PM.
This was a relatively well-known pub around its neighborhood as it gathered customers that filled the place every night.
But it was not too crowded.
And that Sunday night was not different, the place was full of people even though the snowstorm that descended upon the city only ended two hours before.
And that was a particular table where 12 people were talking with big smiles on their faces.
"They sent us the money so fast!" Kate commented in wonder.
"Yeah, they sent us as soon as we sent the footage." Nomura added.
"I never received so much money at once!" Buddy exclaimed excitedly.
The others smiled as they heard that.
They were the crew that worked on Theo's music video.
After finishing their work the day before, they decided to go out to celebrate the work done.
"I just hope that we get hired again." Arabella commented in a hopeful voice.
The others had the same hopeful expressions as they heard that.
Even though they were smiling and celebrating, their minds were still busy worrying if they would be able to get the next gig.
And they were feeling like that ever since they sent the footage to Moonlight the day before.
They could not stop thinking about that!
That was also one of the reasons that they chose to go out that night.
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Especially Helena and Ishii, they were the most nervous of them all.
Because they didn't know if the script of the next project would need actors with their characteristics.
Even if they were amazing actors, they still could not be hired if they did not fit the description of the characters.
For example, if the script asked for a child or an old person, they would not be able to land the job.
And after the two of them felt how awesome it was to work and perform in front of the cameras, they could not stop doing it!
That's even more because it was the first time they felt like they were living their dream.
The others did not have this worry because if Theo decided that their work was good, he would hire the whole crew again.
"Ayia told me that Moonlight will tell us an answer until tomorrow afternoon." Arthur declared as he sipped his beer.
"So soon?" Kaitlyn asked in wonder.
"Right? I think the same thing. After all, they would have to watch and judge the whole footage in less than two days." Obara commented with a shocked face.
As an editor himself, he knew that the amount of work needed to do that would be immense.
He imagined that Moonlight must have an incredibly capable editing team to do the work.
But what he didn't know was that Theo was working alone, and he inspected the footage in only one morning.
If he knew that, he would faint in shock.
But that was normal, after all, Theo's skills were so unique that made him the only person capable of doing that.
"Ah! This wait will kill me!" Kate exclaimed as she munched the fries in the middle of the table in frustration.
"Yeah, even though it is sooner than we expected. The wait still sucks." Arthur smiled wryly.
"Come on! Let's not talk about this now. We came here to celebrate!" Bobby said with a smile as he lifted his beer.
The others also lifted their drinks.
"Cheers!" They exclaimed with smiles on their faces as they clinked their cups.
The night went by as they drank alcohol and ate snacks.
And as they kept drinking, they started talking about their lives.
"Basically, my family despised the thought of me working in the entertainment business as a director. They even wanted to forbid me from doing it. But after seeing that, I thought 'Screw that! I will follow my dreams!'. And that was what I did, I ran away from home and started from scratch." Arthur said with a loud tipsy voice.
The others listened with attentive faces, but actually, they were a little themselves too.
They were all past the legal age, so they did not have problems in drinking alcohol.
In the Sakura Abode Country, a person would be considered an adult when he/she completed 18 years old.
And the youngest of the crew had 19 years old, so it was all good.
But that did not mean that they were strong with alcohol.
"Yeah! I remember when I saw this guy for the first time! He still had this rich look!" Nomura laughed.
"But now, he looks like a poor director!" Buddy exclaimed.
Arthur and the others laughed as they heard that.
"And what about you two?" Arabella asked as she looked at Helena and Ishii.
The two of them who were enjoying their drinks and listening to their stories were surprised by Arabella's question.
"What about us?" Helena asked with a puzzled face as she took a sip of her beer.
"Well, you two are so talented! How haven't we heard about you guys?" Kate asked with shining eyes filled with curiosity.
The others had the same look as they waited for Helena and Ishii's reply.
"Hmm, it's a long story." Helena sighed.
"Yeah, mine too." Ishii smiled shyly.
"We have time!" Kate said with a smile.
"Come on, tell us!" Arabella added.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmHelena looked at Ishii and decided to go first.
"Well, let me tell you guys about mine first." She said as she remembered her past two years.
The others nodded and waited for her.
"I was born in Elffire City and I have been living here my whole life. And since I was young, I was fascinated with what I watched on TV. And since then, I had the dream of working as an actress. When I graduated from high school two years ago, I told my parents about what I wanted to work with."Â
"But they were thrilled about it, they are super protective with me. But they still allowed me to pursue my dreams. I wanted to go to Catadrid to look for jobs as an actress there, but my parents said that if I wanted to go, I would have to become a top actress in Elffire Theater Industry." Helena explained calmly.
The others listened to her story with attention.
Only now do they understand her situation.
They could understand her parents, it was difficult to see their daughter pursue such an uncertain profession, and their suggestion of her becoming a top actress in Elffire City before she went to Catadrid was a good way for them to see if she was up for this career.
Plus, this way Helena could become a better actress.
"The idea was good and I did not mind becoming a play actress. I was still excited even though my dream of becoming a TV actress was still my main objective." Helena smiled.
"After I finished high school, the first thing I did was to apply for an audition for a play that would debut in one of the theaters of the city. I was so excited. And you guys are not gonna believe it. But I got the female lead role! I was so happy about getting the lead in my first work as an actress. I was so excited about my future as an actress. But it was then that everything went downhill." Helena said with a sad smile.
They looked at her face and they could feel her sadness and pain.
"One day after the casting director said I got the lead role. The staff called me saying that I lost the lead role and that I was placed as a supporting character that barely had two lines two say during the play." Helena shook her head.
The others had puzzled faces, they could not understand what happened.
Helena was so talented.Â
How could they take her from the lead role?
"I was confused and lost about why that happened. If the first job I got was a supporting role, I would be happy. But I had the lead role! I could not understand why they demoted me."Â
"It was only one week later that I got to know why that happened. Apparently, there is one director of the Elffire City Acting Association that forbids other directors from hiring people of my skin color to work in lead roles." Helena said with a painful voice.
As soon as she said that, the others had shocked and enraged faces.
"I was enraged about it. I tried to search for justice. But the guy is too powerful in Elffire's acting scene. No one stood up to side with me. Everyone was afraid of being targeted by him. And there was no proof of him doing that because he did everything behind the scenes." Helena shook her head in disappointment.
She was still filled with rage about what happened.
But after two years of being oppressed, she now learned how to live with her sadness.
But even though she felt like that, the others could not contain their rage as they heard Helena.
How dare he do that?