Television Romance

Soccer

INT. WRITING ROOM FIVE - NIGHT

The three of them had been working for about an hour when Bill stepped outside to take a break. He ducked into Five briefly, looking for Vian, but Hugo said she had gone to grab a glass of water.

"You got anything good?" Bill asked before he left.

"Cannibal Crayons," Hugo said. He was wearing a hat Bill didn't think existed in real life-- one of those caps with different colored pie-wedge sections like a beach ball and a little propeller on the top.

"I can't wait." He meant it.

Hugo's intelligence was correct; Vian was in the kitchen, but not alone. Bill paused, confused watching their conversation for a moment. Nat walked up beside him.

"Is it just me or is Vian talking to the host all by herself?" Bill asked her. At six foot two, Bill was almost a foot taller than Nat. In actuality, they were probably as different as two people could be: Bill was tall, white, straight, and almost constantly anxious while Nat was short, Latina, gay, and eternally chill. But because Nat was incredibly caring and Bill was good at his job, they got along well.

"It's not just you." Typically it took at least a few months to become jaded by all the star power that passed through the show but they looked incredibly casual.

"She seems alright," Nat said.

"Now? Or in general."

"Both."

"Did you Sam make you talk to Michael and-- The intern, what was his name?"

"Aditya. No, they seem to have it taken care of."

"Any idea what that means."

"I think they're both keeping their jobs. Michael started the fight so Aditya won't get fired and Michael... Well, Michael is Michael."

"And the amount of teenage girls watching would crash."

"And that."

"Okay, I'm going to see if Vian needs saving." He made a movement with his head toward her and the host.

"Good luck," Nat said, giving him a firm pat on the arm as a send off. He walked up to the pair. They were engaged in animated discourse, it seemed, though it paused courteously as he approached..

"Hey, how's it going?" he asked.

"Hey, Bill, right?" the host said, "You're great." Her hair was tied in a tight ponytail and it swayed from side to side as she talked.

"Thanks, you too. Big fan." He had learned her name a week ago.

"We were just talking about the next season," she continued, "Turns out Vian knows a lot about pro."

"I played for a bit in college. Right midfielder," Vian shrugged, flustered. Bill nodded with a blank smile. He had very little idea what that meant. He knew almost nothing about soccer, actually, being a basketball guy, so he changed tracks as quickly as possible to avoid revealing that fact.

"Awesome. Sorry to barge in, I was just going to grab some food and I wanted to see if you wanted any."

"Didn't I just see you with a pizza like an hour ago?" Vian asked.

"It's for Juliet. She never eats when there's an athlete"--he looked up at the host--"No offense." The host put her hand up dismissively to indicate she felt no indignation.

"Anyway, I figure maybe if I dangle some food in front of her she'll eat."

"I'm all good."

"Want anything?" Bill offered the host.