The Drumbeat Years (girlxgirl)

14

14

7th. October 2005

Three men sat across from her and she felt dirty from sitting in the same restaurant. Two wore expensive suits, the kind that roared wealth. Large gold watches on their wrists proclaimed that, yes, they damned well can afford everything on the menu and they could prove it. The other man pretended to appear far more laid back. One of the people. Tina wasn't fooled at all.

The large gold ring on his little finger spoke volumes. The baseball cap, intended to look casual, Tina knew would cost a hundred dollars, or more. The jeans were name brand. Another couple of hundred dollars. Same with the open shirt and the t-shirt beneath. Sandals upon his feet probably cost more than her first car.

Everything about the three men showed that money mattered to them. To impress everyone they met. It didn't work with Tina. Even now, she still bought basic jeans and t-shirts. At over thirty years old, she had no intention of changing now. She could see their badly hidden glances at clothes that they wouldn't give away to charity. Though she doubted any one of them had ever given anything away in their lives.

Kyle had dressed for the occasion. Or, at least, attempted to. He also wore a suit, but not one that cost anywhere near what the two suited men wore. He had even tied back his hair, though it looked strange to Tina. Ever since taking on the job of her assistant, Kyle had shown a remarkable talent for keeping her affairs and meetings in order. He took to the job as though he had done it all his life.

"So, what we're thinking is, and stop me if you disagree, we go big. Like, so big! Bigger than those Lord of the Rings movies. Bigger!" One of the men leaned forward, hands open as he rested his elbows upon his knees. "A trilogy like the world has never seen."

"We've already scouted locations in Latvia, Mongolia and Ireland. We want epic and we're damn sure we're going to achieve it!" The other suited man had leaned back, resting his arm across the back of the sofa. "The world wants this. You'll be remembered forever."

They continued to ramble on, mixing metaphors, spitting superlatives, engaging in hyperbole. Tina looked out of the floor length windows to the city, which stretched out as far as her eyes could see. Los Angeles. Never, in her life, had she ever thought she would find herself here. It felt like a dream. No. Not a dream, but not a nightmare, either. It felt oddly cold and impersonal. Much like the words coming from the two movie executives across from her.

The third man, the casual one, played with his phone, making the occasional glance towards her, or towards his companions, or towards Kyle. It wasn't that he seemed uninterested, only that it was all things he had heard before. This was not new to him, even though his fellows acted as though this was the first time they had ever pushed for a movie deal. They acted too excited. Too eager. Tina didn't like it.

"So, we understand the second book is doing well in England and it will launch over here in the States within a couple of weeks, right?" Leaning Forward man gave her a wide-eyed, expectant look. "I say we capitalise on that. Announce the movies at the book launch. We'll get it on all the news networks. The websites will pick it up. It'll be enormous. Huge!"

"The UK." Kyle interjected, trying to keep up with the energy of the Leaning Forward man. The man furrowed his brow at Kyle, caught short by the interruption. Unabashed, Kyle continued. "It's like if you release one of your movies and someone says it's out in California, but it's actually out all through the US."

"I don't get it." Laid Back man shook his head. "The book's out in England, right?"

"Yes, but, England is only one part of the UK. The book's out everywhere in the UK." Passing his eyes from Leaning Forward man to Laid Back man, Kyle's voice trailed away. "Because it's all one country."