‘They were tossing up between you and Kumiko for a while,’ Murray said. ‘She’s got a better backstory with all her human rights shit, but your narrative arc in the season is going to be stronger overall.’
‘But she made it to the top three,’ I managed to say. ‘Maybe top two.’
‘Yeah, but she hasn’t been that dynamic on screen,’ Murray said. ‘The network doesn’t think she’s going to connect withthe audience. But they lapped up that friend shit that you and Dylan were doing. It’s going to be a featured plot across the season. Then for your season, they’re thinking of using “Out of the friend-zone”, or “This time, she’s the one doing the friend-zoning” or, I don’t know, some friend-zone shit as the tagline.’
I clutched at the verandah railing. I was a bit worried my knees were going to collapse under me.
‘It’s not quite official yet,’ Murray said. ‘If Dylan G doesn’t win this season, then she’ll be in the mix. But between you and me, she’s definitely going to win. It’s all you, kid.’
Black spots were starting to swim in front of my eyes. I was about to lose my shit, right here on this verandah, and no one was going to pick me up and carry me away and calm me down this time.
‘The big worry is, of course, your camera thing,’ Murray said, apparently oblivious to the fact that I was losing my entire mind right in front of him. ‘The network thought carefully about whether they should send you onJuliet on the Beachfirst to get you acclimatised to cameras being around all the time, but they don’t want to lose your narrative momentum. Plus, you got a lot better as the season went on, so it’s clearly something you can work on. They’re going to want to keep you here for a few weeks after filming of this season ends so they can put you through some camera training. We’re going to roll fairly quickly into shootingWherefore, so there’s no point in you leaving.’
‘Can I have a while to think about it?’ I asked.
Murray studied me, folding his arms across his chest. ‘Do you understand what you’re being offered, Cece?’ he said.‘Do you understand how many people come on this show hoping for something like this?’
‘Yes,’ I said. ‘I know. I understand. It’s just… a lot. I need some time to process it.’
‘You can have a few days,’ Murray said. ‘The network isn’t going to want you to sign the papers until after the Dylans make it official, anyway. Just in case it doesn’t go the way we think.’
I nodded. I had pins and needles in my fingers and toes. My heart felt like a shot-put in my chest.
‘But the sooner you make up your mind, the better,’ he said. ‘If you don’t want it, they need to get Kumiko to sign on the dotted line ASAP.’
‘I understand.’
Murray put his hand on my shoulder. ‘You should want it, Cece,’ he said. ‘This kind of shit is a life-changer. You came here for money, right?’
‘Right,’ I echoed.
‘Don’t worry, the show’s not going to tell that story,’ he said, apparently misreading my expression. ‘They won’t want their next Juliet to look like a gold-digger. But doingWhereforeis going to earn you a shit-ton of money. We’re not talking a hundred bucks a day here. We’re talking six figures, just as a sign-on fee.’
I gaped.
‘Low six figures, mind,’ Murray said. ‘You don’t have a profile outside the show. You wouldn’t be making Dylan Jayasinghe Mellor money. But it’d still be decent.’
His words barely registered. I was still trying to imagine what six figures would even look like.
‘Plus the endorsements you’d get,’ he said. ‘And there’s always opportunities to pivot into other fields. Soap operas, for instance. You should ask Lily about it. She’s full of ideas.’
He paused. ‘Actually, don’t ask Lily about it. She wants to doWhereforeand she might bite your head off.’
‘She wants to doJuliet on the Beachfirst,’ I rasped. ‘So she can build her profile.’
Murray looked at me with narrowed eyes, leaning back against the wall. ‘How much does Lily tell you?’
‘I don’t know,’ I replied, taking a deep breath, grateful to be talking about anything that wasn’t my future. ‘Not that much? She offered to be my image consultant. If I paid her. She’s very tit-for-tat.’
He barked a laugh.
‘Mostly, she just calls me a stupid bitch,’ I said.
‘Sounds about right,’ he said, looking off into the distance. ‘Although that might be a term of affection. Lily doesn’t do favours for people she has no time for.’
His eyes refocused on me. ‘On that,’ he said. ‘You and Dylan. You’re square?’
I froze. What did he know?
