It was the scene of a cafe and a lot of people were talking among each other. Most people were here with their friend groups or office workers.
But today the atmosphere was a bit different.
Most of them were staring at the TV that was broadcasting the finals of X-Star right now. Aiden was currently performing his song and everyone in the cafe was mesmerised by it.
"He's so good."
"Damn what a song. I feel my soul cleansing just listening to it."
"That guy sings as good as me. I should go to X-Star next season too. I might become like him."
"Dude, shut up. You look like a three day old burger and your voice is worse than a baby's crying."
"I'm not that bad!"
"Shut up, you two. Just listen to the song."
A group of friends on a table talked among themselves like that. All of them have varied reactions to the song but they all felt that it was very soothing.
On another table, two girls were also talking about Aiden.
"He's so handsome and his voice is so calming."
"I've been following him for so long but this is his best song. Now, I'm going to sleep listening to the song."
"Ah, I feel like I'm falling in love."
"Girl, you fall in love every other day. Cupid arrows would have ended long ago if there were more people like you."
On the table to the left, a group of colleagues who had just left their office were also looking at the TV and at Aiden's performance.
"This guy is really good. Why have I never heard of him before?"
"He's an actor I think. I saw one of his movies and his acting was very scary. Made me a fan. Didn't know he was a singer too."
"I follow him on Sparrow. He's very good looking and talented."
All these conversations were also heard by the waitress that was working in the cafe. Her brown eyes stared at the television screen as she looked at the guy she had first met a year ago.
She was actually Michelle who had been with Aiden in X-Star and had been appointed in a group called Symphony. After being eliminated, her group disbanded as they didn't feel that they had a future together and she joined a college and started a job as a waitress.
As for singing, she had mostly given up on it as she felt like she was no good due to her elimination.
The disappointment had hit her hard and now, she would rarely even sing.
But listening to Aiden on the TV screen, she felt like something under her was rising. 'Lost in the Sky' completely mesmerized her and hearing the lyrics, she felt like she was able to relate to the song.
She has faced failures and had always questioned if she was good enough. If her efforts were even worth it but in the end, there was no answer.
Currently, she felt like this song was her answer.
?"Maybe, all the doubts are true."
"But I believe I will make it through."
"Maybe, I'm just reading the page with lots of sorrow."
"So, let's turn the chapter up, trying to reach a better tomorrow."?
As those lyrics hit her, Michelle took a deep breath. Her hands were shaking and there were droplets of tears in her eyes as she tried to imagine the things she had gone through.
'Will I also get a better tomorrow?'
She thought in her mind.
In front of her, Aiden who had been eliminated at the same time as her was doing so well and here, she was being a waitress, completely giving up on her dream.
She felt a bit ashamed of herself at that moment.
"Michelle, are you okay?"
The manager walked up to her and suddenly asked, looking at Michelle. She looked very odd.
"No, I think I will leave the job."
"Huh? Why? What happened?"
"I think I want to try pursuing music one more time."
She said, this time her voice was a bit determined.
***
<The Morning Herald: Aiden Silvereye shines through in the rather lacklustre finale of a record breaking reality TV show.>
<Hollywood Weekly: Christina Barrymore wins the fourth season of X-Star but Aiden Silvereye took most of the praises.>
<Variety Times: X-Star finale is teaching the reality TV industry that they need to bring in more innovation to keep people's interest intact. Other than few moments, everything fell short.>
<Los Angeles Daily: The finale of the fourth season of X-Star comes close to breaking it's predecessor record ratings.>
<The Dawn: 'Lost in the Sky' by Aiden Silvereye sees a spike in daily watchers after yesterday's broadcast of the X-Star finale. The young singer is walking one step at a time to success.>
Seeing the pile of newspapers and tabloids in front of him, Aiden couldn't help but read through each of them. All of them were about the X-Star finale.
The event has really made people talk about it a lot.
It was trending on Sparrow at number one position after the broadcast with Aiden's name coming as close as the third position in the rankings.
This was a very good thing. After the broadcast, 'Lost in the Sky' views also escalated a lot and now, it was very close to crossing the mark of 100 million views.
"All of these newspapers and tabloids talk about me a lot. I got more coverage than even the winner."
Aiden said, picking up one of the tabloids which has his photo on the front.
"Yeah and it's also because I only picked up articles that wrote about you a lot."
As Wade said that, Aiden's face stiffened a bit but he didn't say anything, knowing full well how he was usually.
Currently, both of them were sitting in a cafe that was on the second floor of the building where Bradley Carell productions was situated. Aside from them, Aiden could see a few more actors sitting here and there with their agents.
The audition time was still two hours away and all of them had come early.
"Anyway, let's keep aside all these newspaper articles. What do you know about the director and producer of [Searching for the One]? Or the role? It's kind of hard without a script."
As he heard that, Wade put the tabloid in his hand on the side and got serious.
"You already know about the sitcom, right?."
"Obviously."
[Searching for the One] was a show that Aiden had watched a lot during his days as a taxi driver. Sitcoms were best for some laughs and they could easily make you feel better and not let you think about your bad situations.
This was one of the major reasons why most of the sitcoms are very famous if they manage to click with the audience.
"Well, in the last few episodes, more than the last few episodes actually, the ratings are pretty down and I heard IBC is not really happy. At least that's the rumours that's coming down from the top brass."
For the record, IBC was the channel that distribute [Searching for the One].
"That's why, they are doing auditions for a new character in the middle of the season. Even though they are in a hurry, they have kept things pretty tight lipped and no scripts were given out. I just know it's a pretty quirky role."
"What about the director? Amelia Fryman is directing this season right? What do you know about her?"
TV shows sometimes were directed by a lot of directors. Some directors would just direct some episodes while others would take over for the entire season. For [Searching for the One], there were already four directors over six seasons.
Amelia Fryman was a veteran TV director who had directed the first two seasons before another director had taken over.
"I hear she's pretty good as a director and is great in comedy. Just the typical director. She's good at making feel-good romantic comedies, so she's a big hit in these types of genres."
"Working with her would be pretty fun then. I heard female directors have a distinct style."
"You will know if you pass the audition. Anyway, there's a lot of producers involved in the sitcom, but Bradley Carell is the main one. He's attending the audition too. He was there when the idea was pitched back then and pushed hard for it. That guy is very desperate."
Wade said, telling Aiden every detail he knew.
As Aiden had watched the series, he knew about the tone of the series and what were its main attractions that got people to watch it. All he needed to do in the audition was to impress the main people behind the show.
"You seem to know him?" Aiden asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah, he used to visit my old workplace a lot. Smoked a bit with him. Was a pretty depressed fellow back then as none of his projects were working. [Searching for the One] was the jackpot for him and now, he's a top TV producer. That's why, he is even trying to let the show run for as much as it could."
"You were able to get this opportunity for me because of that."
Wade nodded with a smile.
On the day Aiden was doing the radio show, Wade had met Bradley Carell in the lobby and they had started talking.
Bradley had accidentally mentioned about the show getting another character for a few episodes and how they were scouting for the perfect actor.
The burly agent had managed to show Bradley Aiden's profile and after that, it had been pretty easy as Bradley had liked Kai a lot.
So, his opinion of Aiden was pretty good.
"Don't worry, I think you will be able to impress them. You look handsome, especially in that suit you are wearing." Wade took a look at the black suit he was wearing. It gave Aiden a suave touch. "And remember, this is just the first round of auditions. Basically a look test to see if you fit the feel of the character they have in mind. The real test will come when you meet the cast members. Chemistry is everything in a sitcom."
As both Wade and Aiden talked about the show and the audition, the door to the cafe suddenly opened.
...
Your gift is the motivation for my creation. Give me more motivation!
