It's a Hit!

"You wanted to see me?"

Lucy was a little surprised to have received a request from Vanessa, her agent, to meet via video link, when a text would normally have done the job perfectly well. It was either good news, or bad news. From the tone of the greeting she received, it quickly became clear which one it was.

"There she is! The jewel in my crown! The star of the show!" Vanessa was practically bursting with excitement the moment she appeared on screen "I know I'm in a profession where I have to blow a lot of smoke up people's arses, but Naked Mansion is a triumph! Even I'm hooked!"

"I'm glad you are enjoying it!" Lucy smiled politely, a little taken aback.

"All the new characters are masterstrokes - the ditzy bottle blonde in the shower, the sexy witch, the guy glitch, the motherly MILF - all perfect additions. And all of the magical mystery stuff that you've got going on in there is just incredible. I didn't even know the company you were using had the budget for that level of special effects!"

"We actually supply all of our own!" Lucy deadpanned.

"Anyway, I'll cut to the chase. I just got off a Zoom call to California and I already have an offer on the table that is going to make your eyes water, but play it cool and don't jump at it just yet, because we have them eating out of our hands and I'm certain we can squeeze them for more"

"Woah, woah, slow down Van!" Lucy had never seen her usually calm and collected agent acting like this before "What type of offer?"

"They want to stream Naked Mansion to nearly 200 countries, you'd have an audience of millions, guaranteed. There would obviously be a few things you'd be expected to do in return for a deal as lucrative as this, but it would all be really easy and fun stuff"

"Like what?"

"A glitch at a movie premier here, a glitch on a talk show there, a glitch at the Superbowl, heck, maybe even a glitch or two at the next Royal Wedding! The great thing is, there are so many of you and you don't all need to be in the mansion together all the time, so on a corporate and promotional level the possibilities are almost limitless"

"I don't know, we kind of have a lot going on at the moment" Lucy tried to reason, but Vanessa wasn't listening, she was busy scribbling something down on a piece of paper before holding it up to the screen.

"This would be your cut for the first season, but don't worry, I can definitely get it higher"

Lucy could feel her heart racing as she saw the numbers on her screen, She couldn't even imagine how she could ever spend that kind of money. She was struggling to even speak for a while.

"I'll have to talk to the other glitches. We make all or decisions collectively" she finally managed to answer.

"Oh darling, what's to decide? They'll all be millionaires at the stroke of a pen! And that's before you factor in the merchandise, sponsorships, spin off shows, recording contracts.."

"Recording contracts?"

"Do you know who I reckon would make a gorgeous little naked popstar? That Abigail. Or your girl, Leiliani. We could put together a whole naked girlband!"

"I have no idea if Abi can even sing, and Lei definitely can't. She tries to when she showers" Lucy countered.

"Oh, who cares, as long as they can mime and dance a bit they'll be golden" Vanessa batted away the concern "I do have a couple of notes from the studio though. Nothing major"

"Such as?"

"The MILF needs to get her kit off at some point"

"What, April? I don't think she wants to on camera"

"Well, she's not very on brand at the moment. And some of her fans are feeling a little short changed. Also, we hear a lot about Rebecca but we never see her. It would be great if you could get her on the show"

"Okay.."

"Finally, and this one is non negotiable, Tania comes back"

"Tania?"

"Yep, the streaming company loves her. The plebs love her. Heck, I love her. Writing her out was the one serious misstep you've made in a sea of otherwise inspired decisions."

"Tania can be....difficult to work with. And I think most of the glitches feel that way"

"The biggest stars usually are" Vanessa shrugged "You'll all just have to deal with it. I can't see this deal going through unless Tania is back on board"

"Look, Van, this is all amazing, but I really can't make a decision like this on the spot and without talking to the others first" Lucy had so much to think about now, she needed time to process all this by herself before she even began to raise it with the others.

"You know, delaying things for a few days is actually a pretty sweet negotiating tactic. I can make that work. But no longer than that! They are hot for your show right now, but things move quickly in this industry."

"Got it" Lucy nodded "I'll get back to you soon with an answer"