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Chapter 1
BENJI
Benji was bouncing around all over the compact kitchen and waving his arms from side to side to emphasize just how tasty his new pasta dish was. This was Benji’s style. Food meant the world to him, and it always had done since he was a kid.
Now twenty-one years of age, food was just as important as ever to Benji. In fact, food was his whole life. Being one of the most up and coming social media chefs was something that made Benji feel super-proud. He had worked hard to gain his following, and was determined to get the benefits of healthy eating habits out there to the world.
But that wasn’t to say that it wasn’t hard work.
Far from it in fact.
As Benji finished explaining the intricate details of his latest pasta sauce, Benji could hear his voice cracking a little bit. He was tired, and often after a long day’s filming he would find his voice straining.
Come on, keep going.
Look happy. Sound happy.
I need to go viral on this one…
Benji finished the take and immediately reached for a glass of water. As he gulped the water down, Benji felt the sweat dripping off his bleached blonde surfer dude hair. It was hot in the studio, and the lights were extra bright too. With his high cheekbones and toned body, Benji looked great on camera and it was undeniably part of the reason why his TikTok, YouTube and Instagram channels had proven so popular.
Benji was wearing a Benji’s Kitchen t-shirt in crisp white, accompanied by a pair of tight red and yellow striped chinos. It was a good look, one that would pop on camera that was for sure.
The idea to produce merchandise had been Tucker’s, and although it meant it limited what Benji could wear on camera, Benji figured it was good for earning some extra money and getting his name out there into the world even more.
In fact, sometimes Benji would get paranoid that his popularity was based more on his looks and image than on his recipes. This thought sometimes even made Benji a little bit sad. With food being such a passion for him, Benji wanted to be known for his skill in the kitchen rather than just the fact that he was kinda cute.
Still, Benji didn’t like to complain. And like his manager Tucker said, without the social media Benji would have to get a regular job and would never be able to get the big recipe book deal he was chasing.
Benji took a look around the studio. It was a small studio apartment in the heart of one of the city’s hippest districts. With its exposed brick walls and sleek, modern kitchen design it really looked great.
Truthfully, Benji didn’t know how he was able to afford to rent it, but fortunately for him it was up to Tucker to sort these kinds of things out.
Finances weren’t exactly Benji’s strong point, so the fact that he had a manager to do all of that for him really took a load off Benji’s mind.
‘Benji, two minutes and then we’re going to film a promo. Got it?’ Tucker said, calling out from the other side of the studio as he tapped away on his laptop. ‘Energy! Energy! Energy!’
‘Okay, got it!’ Benji shouted back, wincing a little. ‘No problem!’
Benji’s throat was really starting to feel sore, but he knew that he had no other option but to plough on. The thing with producing content was that it was a never-ending process. There was no such thing as a maximum amount that could be made, it was literally limitless!
Benji looked at his cell phone to take a look at how his recent uploads had been doing. The most recent video was of Benji attempting to make a jackfruit hoagie while balancing on a skateboard. It was kind of dumb, Benji knew that – but Tucker told him that this kind of gimmick would keep the viewers engaged and entertained.
‘Wow, one hundred thousand views!’ Benji gasped.
But his smile didn’t last too long as he scrolled down and saw some of the comments underneath. There were plenty of very positive comments but amongst them there were quite a few nasty and insulting comments too. These were the comments that Benji would always remember, the ones that would plague his mind late at night.
Benji had always been a sensitive soul, ever since childhood. He knew it was crazy to feel so emotional about anonymous online comments, but Benji just couldn’t help it.
‘Urgh,’ Benji sighed, putting his cell phone down and pouring another glass of water for himself. ‘Why are people so… poopy?’
Benji called out over to Tucker and asked if he could have a longer break, but Tucker replied and said that there was simply no time to spare. Benji would have loved even a twenty-minute break to head out onto the busy street outside and grab a smoothie or even a little caffeine for a treat.
But what Benji would have truly loved to have done was taken a full hour off to get some rest and relaxation in. Benji couldn’t help but let his mind wander and consider exactly what he would get up to if he had the time…
Coloring a big book of dragons, elves, and handsome princes?
Making pretend with a big box of wooden kitchen toys?
