Supernova||Book 1 [Wattys 2024]

Episode 12 : The Eren Heir

"Is this a joke?" Nine asked his Manager when he saw the name next to his. "This isn't right right?"

"It is." Manager Kim confirmed.

An instant wave of nausea washed over Nine, and he felt like passing out. "Liam? How is this possible?"

"We got the memo this morning," Manager Kim explained. "There will be a series of ads for the product. As the main ambassador, you will be featured in four. He will have two features, and you will have two features together."

"No." Nine protested, his voice rising. "This wasn't part of the deal. No one said anything about working with him." He looked at his manager with pleading eyes. "Do something."

Manager Kim sighed and walked over to Nine, patting him on the shoulder. "There's nothing I can do. It's just two ads."

"I refuse to do this!" Nine sprang to his feet.

"Nine. Be a professional." Manager Kim scolded

"Are you serious?" Nine wasn't really asking. "You were there. He almost ruined my life. How could you let this happen? I never want to work with him again."

"Are you blaming me now?" Manager Kim was affronted. "The client is free to hire whomever they want as presenters."

"But not Liam!" Nine was incensed "Get me out of it."

His Manager's eyes became large. "Nine. This isn't like you." he said. "I think perhaps you've been in Mr. Jindaya's company too much."

"What? What does Jorah have to do with this?" Nine frowned.

He recalled the day Jorah had come bursting into the room to stop him from signing the contract. At that time he was being part selfish, part stubborn and so he'd refused to listen. Had Jorah known about this all along?

It didn't make sense.Why would anyone hire Liam to work with him after everything that happened between them? It was sure to be a marketing disaster. Even if the focus was on the product, their controversy could overshadow everything.

Helplessness washed over Nine again, and he slowly sank into his seat. "According to the schedule, there will be a pre-launch event two days from now that both you and he will attend," Manager Kim continued, reading from his phone. "After that, you will shoot your ads, then the ads together."

Even though his Manager was less than a foot away, his words sounded like a distant drone in Nine's ears.

He'd deliberately stayed away from Liam all this time. Now they were telling him they had to work together again.

How did it get to this?

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The next two days blurred together, a mix of anxiety and preparation. Before Nine knew it, he found himself pulling up to the venue, nerves on edge

The format for the event was unique.

Rather than arriving at the front and walking the carpet before the press, as the Main ambassador, Nine and his co-ambassador would only be revealed once the event started. So there was an air of mystery before the grand unveiling.

Everything surrounding this event was opulent and if he wasn't so worried about working with Liam again, Nine would have probably been more excited.

For the last two days all he'd thought about was how much he wanted out of this project. Breaking the contract was out of the question so he could only march forward and in less than an hour, he would come face to face with Liam as a co-presenter.