Chapter 157 157 - Test

    Selena''s reaction was different than I''d imagined.

    When I saw Selena trying to convince Laura to become an AJP-signed artist, I had to stop myself from shaking my head.

    From the first time Selena saw Laura, I noticed that she was interested in Laura.

    Especially after she saw Laura''s social media profile and her GAA ranking profile, which showed that Laura was almost a C-rank artist.

    Of course, I don''t want to say that I''m innocent in this, because I also contributed by saying how talented Laura was and that I was sure she had a promising future if she could handle her own stuff.

    But even with Selena''s interest in Laura and her admission that she didn''t have a contract with any agency, I started to notice that Laura was getting uncomfortable with the subject... to the point that she even started to hide behind me a bit while giving evasive answers to Selena''s questions.

    It was clear to me and Selena that Laura was interested in becoming an AJP-signed artist like me, especially when Selena told her that if AJP would only take 20% of her earnings if she became a C-rank artist, Laura got even more excited about it.

    But it seemed like there was something inside her that was holding her back.

    Something she didn''t like, something she didn''t want, but which forced her not to accept it...

    It made me think of Laura doing everything herself about her career, of her asking me to help her get to the test... of her not wanting me to take her straight home...

    ''There''s something wrong...'' I thought as I shook my head and waved for Selena to stop insisting.

    ''What happened?'' Selena made a face at me that clearly asked that question.

    I''ll explain later. I replied with a look that surprisingly worked as Selena stopped insisting and nodded at me.

    The venue for my test was the same place as Laura''s.

    While I talked about this with Selena, I felt Laura''s gaze on my side with great interest.

    Knowing how insecure and talented she was, these words would be very useful if she absorbed them, but I know it would be difficult to change her mind in such a short time.

    At first it was just me and Selena talking, as Laura was still a little intimidated by Selena, but as time went by she started to open up and the three of us started to talk together.

    Although Selena had more knowledge about music-oriented artists, she still knew more about the movie industry than I did, and from what she said, she had "done her homework" before coming with us, so I wasn''t worried about the negotiation part.

    After 40 minutes it was my turn.

    As I entered the testing room, I noticed the same three people who had administered Laura''s test looking at me with interest and fatigue.

    From what I had seen on the day of the shoot, Ms. Parker was the director and writer of the show, while the two men were her assistant directors.

    As soon as she saw me, I noticed her eyes sparkle as she watched me with great interest.

    "I thought you weren''t coming in today, Mr. BlackVelvet." She said, looking me up and down.

    "I wouldn''t miss the opportunity, Ms. Park." I replied with a smile as I looked at Laura and Selena who were sitting on the benches at the side of the room.

    "Well done Mr. BlackVelvet, if it wasn''t for you I wouldn''t have even bothered to come to the audition for such a small role as ''Jack''." She said as she turned her eyes to the paper, making me look a little surprised, but before I could ask her more about it, she just reached out and handed me a piece of paper.

    "This is the script of ''Jack''s'' first interactions in the scene, let''s see if someone like you, who only started learning to act three weeks ago, can surprise me with your performance." She said.

    As I looked at the paper with the lines I would have to act, my mind quickly began to work on how I could act in the best possible way, thinking about Jack''s personality, how I could bring more life to this character, what personality traits he might have that would make my performance more realistic.

    Several different ideas came to mind while everyone else was just waiting for me to get comfortable with the role.

    What I didn''t know was that I was the only one auditioning today who was learning the script that day, something Ms. Parker had specifically requested.