Chapter 10: Chapter 10
The casting director was quite nice and thoroughly explained everything to Francesca and Alvin. Apparently, the marketing team of Silk Shampoo had been watching the auditions the whole time and decided to change the story, making it feature two leads instead of one.
They also very much appreciated the fact the Francesca had understood what brand she would be promoting and they felt that that fact was quite important for their new ambassador.
After everything was settled with the Silk commercial, Alvin decided to take Francesca back to Ver Industries office to tell Edward about their fruitful day.
The sun was already setting by the time they managed to return to the office, but it was still buzzing with activity. Francesca learned that despite being a smaller agency, Ver Industries was extremely busy. They still had several artists that were very popular, thus there was a lot of work to do.
Edward was in a sleek black suit studying some documents when Francesca and Alvin arrived at his office. He looked up and smiled, he was pleasantly surprised by their visit.
"Manager Alvin, Francesca. I hope your day was more productive than mine." Edward said with a laugh.
"Very." Alvin said proudly.
"Oh, do tell." Edward said as he placed down the documents and gave them his undivided attention.
"She passed both auditions. For the TV show, Francesca did so well that Direc John gave her an even bigger part!" Alvin boasted.
"Good job Francesca, I knew you were something." Edward said. "And the second?"
"Oh right, for the commercial. We were initially led to believe that there was only one lead role when in fact there are two. She'll be sharing the spotlight with a new artist from Lights Entertainment." Alvin reported.
"That's good. You can show people that you can hold your own even when you're next to an artist from the biggest agency around. This is a good opportunity." Edward said as he nodded in approval. "Try to get her some modeling gigs. I think her figure is perfect for high fashion."
"Alright, I still have some contacts in the industry. They will be more than happy to give me a slot." Alvin said as he excitedly dialed a number on his phone and stepped out.
"How are you adjusting?" Edward asked, his eyes full of concern.
"I'm happy." Francesca said with a sweet smile. "Thank you Edward."
"It's no bother. You're a beautiful woman, it seems you were born for this industry." Edward praised as he placed a hand on her cheek.
Francesca felt a little awkward with what he was doing so she gently placed her hand on his and took it off her face.
"Did I overstep?" Edward asked.
"No, I'm just bothered by what some girls said at the audition, that's all." Francesca lied.
"What did they say?" Edward asked, his eyes full of concern.
"Well, they said I was probably some mistress or girlfriend of a high ranking executive that's why you signed me and gave me Alvin to be my manager." Francesca summarized, sparing Edward from the other cruel words the girls said.
"It's normal. They're jealous of how pretty you are." Edward said with a laugh.
"It's not untrue." Francesca said with a shrug. "My dad thinks you're courting me."
"You don't need a rich backer to do well in this industry, you're extremely talented." Edward said as he smiled at her.
Before Francesca could say anything Alvin returned to the room, smiling from ear to ear.
"Guess what." He said proudly.
"What?" Edward said, entertaining his game.
"I got Francesca several runway shows." Alvin boasted.
"I don't know how to model." Francesca suddenly realized that she could act but she had never modeled in the past.
"Don't worry. I'll hire someone to teach you." Edward promised. "I think it would be best if you developed another talent as well. What do you think of singing?" Edward asked.
"No. I cannot sing. It will rain if I sing." Francesca laughed.
"Dancing is always a good option." Alvin suggested.
"I can try. No one has ever said I sucked at dancing." Francesca said with a shrug as she considered the proposal.
"Great. Let's do street dance." Alvin said with a grin.
"Can we work it around my class schedule at the university?" Francesca asked, she knew her family would be furious if she placed her acting career ahead of her studies. Plus her father didn't even know that she was in the industry.
"Are you sure you want to continue going to University? You know that it will slow down your acting career, there will be roles you can't take and events you can't go to." Alvin asked Francesca.
"Yes." Francesca said with a nod. She was already defying her family, she wanted to at least give them her diploma so that in the future if her acting career fails they can't blame her and tell her that she should have gotten her degree.
"Alright. I'll make the arrangements." Alvin said as he began to type away on his phone.
Alvin suddenly stopped and looked at his artist. "Do you mind waiting for me? It might take awhile to arrange everything." Alvin asked Francesca.
"Why don't you ask someone to give Francesca a tour of the office while waiting for you?" Edward suggested.
"That's a good idea. I could ask the assistant you assigned to me." Alvin said as he called someone up.
After a few minutes a short but adorable young woman knocked on the door and came in.
"You called for me Mr. Lazaro?" The woman asked.
"Yes, yes." Alvin said as he waved her over. "Francesca, this is Karen. Mr. Edward assigned her to be the assistant to all of my artists."
"Nice to meet you Karen." Francesca said with a smile.
"Wow, you're really pretty Miss Francesca. Don't worry I'll look out for you." Karen said with a wink.
"Karen, please give Francesca a tour of the office. I'll be in mine if you need anything." Alvin said as they walked out. "Thank you Mr. Edward." Alvin said as they left.
-- Gift
received