The sun had just begun to peek over the horizon as people started to stream in and out of the Disney studio. Wearing a baseball cap and carrying a rolled-up newspaper, Matthew showed the security guard at the entrance the access card he'd received from his first audition and stepped inside.
He had never heard any of Britney Spears's songs, aside from her biggest hits. To be honest, his musical tastes were still firmly planted in the 1990s pop scene of his ho country, and he'd rarely listened to music in foreign languages.
For this audition, he had made a point of buying a Britney Spears album, and while he wasn't much of a music critic, he could confidently say he liked the song "Sotis."
Based on the latest information he'd gathered, Martin Jackson wasn't planning to shoot all the scenes in the studio and add the backgrounds in post-production.
"Here so early?"
A man appeared in the hallway—one of the assistants from the first audition. Matthew offered a natural smile. "Good morning, York."
The assistant, York, nodded. "Good morning."
He rembered this actor from the audition but couldn't recall his na.
"I'm Matthew," Matthew said, acting as if they were already familiar. "We spoke in the hallway during the last audition."
"Ah, right." York tapped his forehead, rembering now. The guy had made a good impression on him. "You were the fifth one to audition."
Matthew nodded. "And you were encouraging
back then."
He said it deliberately, hoping to build a rapport.
York gave Matthew a warm smile. "Co on, I'll show you the way."
Matthew followed, asking as they walked, "Are you the first one from the crew to get here?"
"Yeah, I'm on the early shift today." York glanced over at Matthew. "You actually beat
here by a minute."
Matthew followed him down a corridor toward a lounge area. "I was too nervous to sleep," he explained. "Kept thinking about today's audition, so I figured I'd co in early."
"The more nervous you are, the worse you'll perform," York advised. "You need to relax."
"Easier said than done." Matthew glanced at a door they were passing—Britney Spears's private dressing room. "Is this where Britney hangs out when she's free?"
"Yeah." York simply assud Matthew was curious. "You know how it is with stars—they get special treatnt. That's her private lounge. No one's allowed inside except Britney, her assistant, and her agent."
Continuing past Britney's lounge, York unlocked the door to a waiting room. "You can wait in here," he told Matthew. "There's yesterday's newspaper on the table if you get bored."
Matthew stepped into the room, then turned and said, "Alright."
York left shortly after. Matthew waited in the doorway for a mont, then walked back down the hall to Britney Spears's dressing room. He took out the newspaper he'd brought with him and slid it through the gap under the door.
This was his preferred approach. If it didn't work, he had a backup plan.
With his limited resources, Matthew could only devise two plans, both of which required a good deal of luck. If they failed, there would be no one to bla.
He then returned to the waiting room, picked up the copy of yesterday's paper from the table, found a chair, and began to read.
After he'd finished with the paper and was just waiting, he heard the sound of hurried footsteps in the hall. He pulled out his phone, only to see that there was still a little while before the audition was scheduled to start.
A mont later, the door opened, and Amanda stepped inside.
"You're finally here." Matthew breathed a sigh of relief when he saw her. "I was starting to think you'd bailed on ."
"Sorry, Helen held
up." Amanda walked over and sat down next to Matthew. "I have news for you."
Matthew stopped his grumbling and asked, "Is Britney coming today?"
Amanda nodded. "She'll definitely be here."
Matthew asked again, "Who's auditioning first? Does Helen know?"
"She knows. Barring any surprises, you'll be second." The effort Matthew had invested in his friendship with Amanda over the past few weeks was clearly paying off; she genuinely seed to consider him a friend. "Jas Blunt is first, you're second, and Michael is last."
After a mont's thought, she added, "From what Helen can tell, Jas Blunt's chances are slim. The final choice will be between you and Michael."
Matthew nodded and said sincerely, "Thanks, Amanda. You've been a huge help."
Amanda smiled sweetly. "We're friends. I hope you're the one who gets it in the end. That Michael guy is so irritating."
"Did he do sothing?" Matthew asked.
"Hmph!" Amanda snorted, then said with disgust, "He tried to hit on
a while back."
Really? Matthew figured Michael was trying to imitate his strategy of networking everywhere, but it seed he had overplayed his hand with Amanda.
Where Matthew ca from, unless you were so kind of legendary heartthrob, putting on an "I want you" act in front of a young woman was a surefire way to get shot down.
Matthew never made obvious moves on the won who could be professionally useful, and he was far better at concealing his intentions than Michael was.
Seeing the look of disgust still lingering on Amanda's face, Matthew leaned in with a smirk and lowered his voice. "I'll tell you sothing, but don't repeat this to anyone..."
He leaned close to Amanda's ear and murmured sothing. Her eyes widened, her mouth fell open, and a mont later, she slapped her hands over it in astonishnt.
"Really?" Amanda couldn't believe it.
Matthew gave a slight nod. "Have I ever lied to you?"
Amanda burst into a fit of gleeful, unstoppable laughter. All her previous irritation with Michael vanished, replaced by pure, unadulterated scorn.
"Oh my God, that's pathetic." Then, her expression shifted to one of concern. "But won't this affect you? The director is backing Michael, after all."
"That's why," Matthew said, giving Amanda a hopeful look, "I need your help. Otherwise, I'm finished."
Amanda imdiately grabbed Matthew's hand. "Don't worry, I'll work with you. I can't let that creep win."
Matthew gave her a thumbs-up. "I knew I could count on you."
Now he was certain he had her full cooperation.
The hallway outside gradually grew busier, and after a short while, the other two actors entered the waiting room. Matthew waved at Michael, who was still walking with an awkward gait, as if his "injury" was still bothering him.
Michael nodded back, his face flushing with embarrassnt when he saw Amanda. He didn't approach, instead finding a spot to stand off by himself.
"I'm going to head in," Amanda said. Noticing that Michael seed afraid to even sit down, she just smiled. "I'll let you know when Britney arrives."
Matthew nodded, checking his phone again. "It should be about ti for makeup soon. You know where to find ?"
They were speaking so quietly only they could hear. Amanda waved a dismissive hand. "I know my way around here better than you do."
After Amanda left, the three actors waited for another twenty minutes or so. Then Helen arrived with an assistant and led them to the makeup room to get ready for their screen tests. Once they were inside, Helen left again.
The three of them shared a single dressing room. Since he was first on the list, Jas Blunt went into makeup first, while Matthew and Michael tried on their costus. The crew had laid out light-colored tracksuits made from a decent, comfortable fabric.
Since it was just simple, basic makeup, the artist finished quickly—a far cry from the painstakingly long sessions on the set of Gladiator. By a little after nine, all three n were done with makeup and had been fitted by the stylist. They had to remain standing after changing, however, to avoid wrinkling their clothes.
The audition wasn't scheduled to start until 9:30, so Matthew had no choice but to stand and wait in the dressing room.
After a while, a knock ca at the door. The makeup artist opened it and then turned to Matthew. "Matthew Horner, your agent is looking for you."
As Matthew headed for the door, the stylist reminded him, "Be careful with the costu and makeup. Don't ruin them."
"I'll be careful," Matthew assured him.
Watching Matthew leave the dressing room, Michael started to worry. Why was Helen looking for him now? Could it be...
No way. He shook his head. Just yesterday, he had spoken with the director, Martin Jackson, who said he'd recomnded him to both Britney and the record label. Neither had objected. The male lead role was as good as his.
In the hallway outside the dressing room, Matthew followed Amanda. Seeing that they were alone, she whispered, "Britney should be here in about two minutes."
Matthew nodded. "Let's go to the waiting room."
They quickly slipped into the empty room. Matthew waited inside while Amanda stood by the door, keeping an eye on the hallway.
"Where's Helen?" Matthew asked curiously. "She doesn't seem very concerned about this audition."
"She's with the record label executives." Amanda shrugged. "Helen told
yesterday that the outco of this audition is out of her hands. Whoever wins is still her client, so why should she worry?"
That made sense to Matthew.
"Matthew," Amanda whispered urgently. "Britney's here!"
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