Delicious 1-Shots & Stories

Off screen Part 2

Seneca's POV

It's both exciting and terrifying when you get a new script for the show you're on. Mostly because you don't know if your character is going to stick around or not. Changes can happen at any point. Even main characters have been replaced.

My the-moment-of-truth head ass stared at the stack of white printed paper before me. I had just taken it out of the yellow bubble mailer. It was ready to be seized. I said a quick little prayer and adjusted my glasses before getting into it.

---

I'm tempted to call Lena and ask what in the world she thinks she's doing. But logic kicks in and reminds me it's her show, which means I can either play the part or kick rocks (and be unemployed).

I need to vent. And to a person, not a journal or nothing like that.

Normally I would call Mrs. Hamilton in a case like this because she is a talent manager, but I'm temporarily avoiding her, so she's out. I settle for my industry friends, Juanita and Terra.

"Lena is buggin' y'all," I say when we're all on the phone.

"Did she kill you off?" Juanita panics.

"Nope! Let's not even put that out there."

"Oh, you scared me."

I tell them my character 'Brie' is about to have a romance with 'Hazel.'

"Oh wow," Juanita replies.

"Really?" Terra sounds genuinely surprised. "Damn, Lena." She laughs. "Going for the cheap, huh?"

"I wouldn't say cheap. Now shock value? Hell yeah," I comment.

"Y'all ratings aren't bad, right?"

"We're doing alright."

"Yeah, I know. That's why I'm trying to see why Lena would resort to this. I hate when writers do this, it screams 'I don't know what I'm doing so I'm going to distract you with controversy.'"

"Okay, then. Juanita? What's your take?"

"I think it's fascinating," she says, some of her Jamaican accent coming through. "We don't usually see these storylines explored in our shows and movies. They are in a lot of literature, but not on the screens. So I'm here for it."

"It's about quality," Terra responds. "Just because it's black doesn't mean it's good."

"But how do we know it isn't good when we haven't even seen it executed yet?" Juanita challenges.

"So now scripts can't be evaluated?" Terra challenges back.

"Are you judging the script or the situation itself?"

"What do you mean?"

"Just say you think the arc is perverted and go."

"Um, it is perverted. That's not up for debate, but that's another topi—"

"Okay, moderator is speaking, moderator is speaking," I interject, extending my free arm, even though I know they can't see me. "Silencio!"

Juanita laughs.

"What's so funny?" I reply, honestly curious.

"The way you said silencio all Americanized. Anyway, carry on."

"Girl, bye. This ain't Spanish class. Now, the both of you made good points. That was a juicy little battle y'all had going on..."

"Sen, how do you feel about the storyline?" Terra questions.