This is the ninth part in a series, so if you have not already done so, you might want to read Part I, Part II, Part III, Part IV, Part V, Part VI, Part VII, and Part VIII before continuing.
Eliza could barely contain her excitement until she ended the first call with her very own agent. As soon as she was sure they had hung up, she let it rip and started whooping and dancing around her tiny dorm room. There wasn’t much room for dancing, but she did what she could, including jumping on her bed to burn off the extra energy that had accompanied her adrenaline rush.
Once she had sufficiently calmed down she called Angela.
“Guess who just got hired by NBC?”
“George Stephanopoulos,” Eliza said without hesitation.
“Very funny,” said Angela. “It’s me, you goof! They just offered me a job!”
Eliza whooped, this time for her friend. “Congratulations! What’s the job?”
“Mostly what I’ve been doing, but now they’ll actually be paying me for my work and they’ll assign me to an executive to assist.”
“Oh! Which executive? Is it the cute one?”
“I don’t know yet who it’ll be, and frankly I’d go for the one that would be a good mentor over the cute one.”
“And which one would that be?”
“I can’t say. I don’t want to jinx it. So what’s new with you? Have you figured out yet where you’re going after graduation?”
“L.A. That’s why I called. I just got off the phone with an agency that wants to represent me.”
“What?” Angela practically screamed into the phone.
It only heightened Eliza’s already peaking excitement. “I know, right?”
“That’s amazing!”
“I know!”
“Wow.” This time Angela’s voice lowered to just above a whisper.
“I know,” Eliza said, calming down as she mirrored her friend’s voice.
“This is really happening.”
Eliza grinned, but kept her voice low as she agreed. “Yeah, I guess it is.”
“Well, congratulations! I just realized I hadn’t said that yet. It was implied in all the screaming.”
Eliza laughed and thanked her.
“I’m so happy for you,” said Angela.
“Thanks. I’m happy for you.”
“Thanks. This is the beginning isn’t it?”
Eliza chuckled. “The beginning of our stellar careers as TV stars?”
“Yeah.” Eliza had been half joking, but there was no mirth in Angela’s voice. Just awe.
“Yeah, looks like it,” said Eliza. “I mean, we have to start somewhere, right?”
“Right. But I thought you’d be waiting tables for at least a few years before you got your big break.”
Eliza snorted into her phone. “Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence.”
“I have every confidence in you, it’s just such a tough business. There are plenty of successful actors who did their time in the service industry before they got to where they are. You’re so lucky. And talented,” she hurried to add. “But also lucky.”
“I am,” said Eliza. “I can’t believe how lucky I am. And you! Getting a job just like that.”
“I know. I was so glad to get the internship last summer and I was hoping it would lead to a job offer, but you never know.”
“We have got to get together for drinks to celebrate,” said Eliza.
“Agreed.”
To be continued…
Thanks for reading! If you like what you see here, you can sign up for my newsletter at the top of this page. You’ll never miss an update and you’ll get a free short story every month that won’t be posted on the website. No spam, I promise!
2 Comments
Comments are closed.