Chapter 16
It's the next chapter and a bit early, too. Good for me lol.
VisineAnt, yes, at some point, he will be a director. I had considered using The Blair Witch Project, but I dropped it after researching its current perception. Needless to say, it's not good so that I will pass on it. That said, the Conjuring Universe - I had forgotten about that, to tell the truth. Thank you, I am going to use that now. If you have any more ideas, please feel free to share them.
Cyniade, I laughed my ass off at your comment, lol. Thank you for that.
Alpha_astro, you are right on two of them, and I think you know which.
Now I remember someone mentioning some Asian films that they wanted me to include in the story, but to be honest, I know very little about them. Please provide a list, and I will review it to determine whether I can add them. If anything, the MC can help bring them to Hollywood.
Now on with the story.
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"And we are back, ladies and gentlemen, with Tiffani Thiessen and her new book, After the Bell, a Tiffani Thiessen story. Tiffani, again, thank you for coming on the show tonight. It has been such a pleasure so far to have you." Howard Stern says to her.
"Thank you, Howard. I am happy to be here today," Tiffani says with a smile.
"And may I say you are looking as hot and sexy as ever," Howard says, eyeing her up and down in her low-cut dress that shows a lot of cleavage.
"Ah, thank you, Howard," Tiffani says, pushing the girls up for him to look at.
"Wow, God, wow, are those real? Those can't be real, right?" Howard asks while shamelessly looking at her tits.
"Howard," Robin says from his side.
But Tiffani is not offended. Having been on the show before, she knew what to expect from the man. "Oh, they are real, Howard. Trust me, it's all-natural here."
"God, you are blessed. Mmmmm, so blessed, but moving on, your book After the Bell has hit shelves worldwide and gives a look into your private life like never before," Howard says.
"It does, it really does. Lots of juicy stories, from my time on Saved by the Bell to 90210 and beyond." Tiffani says with a smirk.
"That it does. Mmmm, you have been a naughty girl, according to this book." Howard says in a playful but lustful voice.
"Only for the right people, Howard," Tiffani responds with a smirk.
"Yes, and two of those people are Caesar Espina and Salma Hayek," Howard states as a fact.
"Oh, I knew you were going to love chapter 13, Howard? Did you read all of it?" Tiffani asks with a knowing look.
"Read it, jack off to it, and repeat," Howard responds bluntly.
Making Tiffani laugh. As that chapter has been blown up on the internet.
"But I need to ask, is it accurate?" Did you really have a threesome with Caesar and Salma Hayek while you were still dating Caesar?" Howard asks.
"Threesomes, Howard. Not just one time." Tiffani says with a smile.
"You are such a bad girl." Howard jokes.
"It's always the quiet and sweet-looking ones, Howard," Tiffani says in a teasing voice.
"You are too much, but I am a little confused: according to your book, you and Salma were not exactly friends back then. So, how did that happen? Can you give us a few more details that are not in the books?" Howard asks.
"Certainly, Howard, that isn't a problem. Let me think…. It began at a cookout at David Fincher's house. Caesar invited me, along with a few of his friends, to go and relax. You know, just one of those things you do. Well, Salam was there, and as you have pointed out, we were not friends at the time. In fact, I could honestly say I hated her." Tiffani says bluntly.
"Was that because of Caesar?" Howard asks.
"Kind of ya, but at the same time, not really. You see, Howard, Caesar never talks about his exes. We were together on and off for the better part of 10 years, and he, of course, dated other women between those times. Yet, not once did he ever talk about them when we got back together." Tiffani says to him.
"Never?" Howard asks, finding that hard to believe.
"Never, I mean, yes, I knew about them, and if I had questions, he would answer them, but as far as comparing me to any of the others, he never did that," Tiffani says.
"That must have felt pretty good. To be with someone who does not discuss their past relationships. Howard says.
"You know something, Howard, you would think so, but honestly, it didn't make me feel good at all. In fact, for several years, I felt very insecure about it." Tiffani says.
"Really, why? I mean no offense, Tiffani, but I am looking at you right now and having trouble not jacking off." Howard says this in a joking voice, earning a laugh from Tiff.
"Ah, thank you, Howard. You are so sweet." Tiffani answers back while laughing. "But no, really, I mean, I guess it was because I am a bitch. On the one hand, I did not want to hear about his past relationships, but on the other hand, I was curious.
"Tiffani, that is very confusing." Howard points out bluntly.
"I know, I know, Howard. You see, I really wanted Salma to be a bitch. Like I wanted —no, I needed — to hear him say she was the worst girlfriend ever. Thus, I might have felt superior to her, but he never said anything like that." Tiff says.
"That asshole," Howard says with a smile.
"I know, right?" Tiffani says back.
"So, how did you deal with your insecurity?" Howard asks.
"Ah, by having kinky sex with my boyfriend," Tiffani answers back bluntly, which gets Howard laughing hard.
"The things you do for your boyfriend. Tiff, I have to ask, would you consider dating me for a while?" Howards asks.
"Howard." Robin scolds him playfully from the side, but is laughing as well.
"Just a couple of weeks, maybe a month or two, I swear," Howard says in his defense.
Laughing loudly, Tiff takes a few moments to calm down and answer, "Sorry, Howard. I am no longer that insecure, and it wasn't solely for Caesar."
She then winks at him, and Howard responds, "You bad, bad girl."
"You have no idea, Howard." She says playfully, but there is some truth in there as well. A lot may have changed over the years between Caesar and her, but well, a woman had her needs after all.
"You said that you were not friends with Salma back then, but you are now. Can I ask how that happened? Did it happen after the threesome or what?" Howard asks.
"Oh no, even after the threesome, we were still not friends. Not even close." Tiff answers.
"So, how did it happen?" Howard asks.
"Well, I mean, we didn't have much of a choice in the end, I guess you can say. My son was born in March 1998, and Salma's daughter was born in early April of the same year." Tiffani answers.
"Oh, right, I forgot about that. That was around the same time as the now-infamous fight at that nightclub, right?" Howard says, remembering the incident that solidified Caesar's reputation as someone you really didn't want to fuck with in Hollywood.
"The same, and despite what the press said later, it wasn't Salma's pregnancy that saw us break up the first time. No, that was because of the club incident." Tiff says, remembering that night all too well and how badly she took it.
It was the day she finally realized how dangerous Caesar really was and how little he truly cared about his own life. Something that, at the time, she couldn't deal with, knowing she was about to have his child. After all, what good was a father who gave two shits a fuck about his own life? Would he even be alive to see their child take its first steps? Yeah, looking back, she reacted very badly to that incident.
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-1997-
"Hmmmm," Was the only thing I could say as I sat across from Tiff and Salma, who had just given me the unexpected news.
I mean, maybe not entirely unexpected, seeing as I was well aware of the risks that came with fucking a woman without protection. I wasn't that dumb after all, and while I never took Sex Ed before I dropped out of school, I had seen enough movies and TV to see the results of being careless. Though in my defense, I had assumed they were both on the pill, seeing as they never asked me to pull out. It seems that was a mistake on my part, but it wasn't one I regretted.
Still, I must ask, "Can you both repeat that, please?"
Looking at me somewhat regretfully, Salma says, "We are pregnant, Caesar."
I nod upon hearing it again. Yes, I didn't regret it at all. In fact, I wasn't sure how I felt at the moment. A part of me was proud of it. Here were two of Hollywood's hottest stars, telling me they were carrying my children. A guy who just a few years ago was homeless and in juvy. On the other hand, I felt like an idiot because, again, here were two of Hollywood's hottest stars carrying my children. Two women who, if I were not careful, could nail my ass to the wall. Regarding the pregnancy itself, however, I did not feel much of anything. I wasn't happy, nor was I sad or upset about it. I just felt nothing. Perhaps that says a lot about me as a person.
Standing up slowly, I go to my living room window and look outside.
"Caesar, I know this comes as a surprise…" Tiff starts to say, but I interrupt her.
"It's not a surprise, Tiff." I look back at the two women and shrug my shoulders. "Well, both of you simultaneously are, but no, this isn't a surprise. I wasn't careful and refused to wear a condom. It's as simple as that."
"I am happy to see you are taking this so well, Caesar," Salma says.
Again, I shrug my shoulders and say, "It is what it is."
Upon hearing my words, their once worried faces now turn to frowns. Perhaps that sounded too uncaring, I thought to myself, but well, it didn't matter. What mattered was what came next, so I am blunt when I ask my next question.
"What do you both want to do about this?" I ask.
"What do you mean, Caesar?" Salma asks.
"What do you two want? I can't marry both of you after all, and while I know nothing about how families work, I don't think it would be good for the children if we can't at least be civil about this," I say to them matter-of-factly.
Then, like a lightbulb went off in their heads, both Tiff and Salma came to a sudden realization. Caesar didn't know what it meant to be a father or have a family. Having never had one before, how would he know how one worked? Something he had been very open and uncaring about from the start. It was easy to forget his mom was a crack whore, and he didn't even know who his father was. They may not have liked how he was responding to the news of them being pregnant, but really, did they have the right to expect more?
Shit, once they really thought about it for a bit, they were honestly surprised that he wasn't taking it negatively. To him, it probably wouldn't be a big deal if a child grew up without a father or mother. Yet here he was, accepting the news and asking them what they wanted to do about it. Making it clear that he would do whatever they decided.
After a few more moments, Tiff asks, "Well, Caesar, do you want to be a part of this?"
That was a loaded question if I had ever heard one. Did I want to be a part of this? After thinking about it for a little bit, I answered in the only way that I could: "I am the father, right? A man does his duty."
Standing up, Salma says, "Okay then. I guess I will call you later than Caesar. Tiffani."
"Salma," Tiff says as we both watch the woman leave.
I had to wonder if either of them wondered at all how we would explain this shit to the media. Shit, I'd better call my agent and lawyer. My interesting life was about to become even more interesting.
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A few months later, after I got the news of Tiff and Salma's pregnancy, I found myself dancing with Jennifer at a club with perhaps the worst type of music imaginable. Living the high life and all that shit and just having an overall good time. Or at least pretending that I was. I honestly never liked the club scene all that much. I only went because they were the kind of places where you could meet and greet young celebrities. It was called socializing and making connections, much like how I had started taking up golf in my spare time. I didn't like it, but the bigwigs played the game, so I had to as well.
To succeed in Hollywood, you need to network and build relationships. And while it could be said that I was already successful, the fact was that I wasn't very well-connected. Right now, my most significant connections are with Warner Bros and New Line, with a few connections to some directors and upcoming stars, but that's it. It was not nearly enough to keep me safe in case of an unexpected backlash or failure. Going clubbing with Jennifer, who was about to make a big splash in the industry, made perfect sense. That and I needed a break away from Tiff and Salma, who couldn't go five seconds without bringing up their pregnancy.
Thankfully, neither of them was showing yet. With filming on Scream 2 completed, Salma decided to take a break from the industry. So was Tiff, who was currently in between seasons of 90210. Filming on the next season is not set to take place until the summer of next year, which was a good thing, seeing as after they calmed down, they realized they were fucking pregnant. No, they weren't just fucking pregnant. They were two up-and-coming stars who were carrying a child by the same man. It was evident that neither of them, nor anyone else, for that matter, who were informed, knew how to manage the situation.
This was the type of scandal that people just loved to read about, and while I would most likely come out of it looking good. Tiff and Salma most likely would come out looking like whores or something along those lines. It's not exactly a good image to have. That put them both on edge, and while things have not come to blows yet. There was a lot of sniping at each other with me in the middle.
That was the main reason I was at the club tonight with Jennifer. The year was nearing its end, and after some wheeling and dealing on the side of New Line Cinema, Urban Legend would be coming out in late November instead of around Halloween, as Miramax had planned. Selena was also wrapping up and was set to be released around the same time as Jennifer's debut album. And, of course, Scream 2 was right on schedule.
Overall, everything was going well, and it was time to relax and have fun. I only wish Sean weren't here. After collaborating further with him on Jennifer's album, I realized that I did not have a favorable impression of him. I didn't like him, just as I didn't like some other people I met in Hollywood. I could be civil and all that, but when you put us in a room together, you could feel our mutual dislike for each other. Like right now. He was on one side of the club upstairs, and I was on the other, and the only reason I was here was, again, because Jennifer had invited me. If she hadn't, I wouldn't have come even if that prick had asked me.
Happy or not, however, the others who joined us were. People like Usher, Lil' Kim, TLC, Halle Berry, and Dr. Dre were all here for one reason or another. People who weren't even friends were here to party together, for connections, for chances, or whatnot. That was why they were happy I was here. I was, after all, the most sought-after screenwriter in Hollywood right now, with deeper connections in the movie business than all of them. They wanted to get close to me in one way or another. There was, however, only one person I wanted to get to know in this place: the man who was currently hanging out at the bar.
That man was Dr. Dre, the founder of Aftermath Entertainment and the only man willing to take a chance on an unknown white boy from Missouri. Sadly, I didn't get to talk with him all that much tonight, but he proved to be an okay guy. Sadly, I wouldn't get to speak with him more about said white boy, because something caught my eye while I was dancing with Jennifer. Two people were arguing not too far from where Dre was sitting.
I did not know who they were, only that a man and a woman were fighting. Maybe they were a couple or just two people talking, and things got heated. Whichever the case, things were getting really heated until they finally exploded when the woman tried to walk away. Only for the man to grab her by the arm, and when she tried to push him off her, he backhanded her across the face. Now I am unsure why, but when I saw that, I just saw red and made my way over.
Grabbing the guy from behind, I turned him around to face me. Then, give him a taste of his own medicine by decking him in the face with a right hook. At my punch, the larger man turned and hit the bar before getting back up quickly. Facing me, he tries to hit me back with a left hook of his own, but I dodge with ease and hit him in the stomach, doubling him over. At this point, things really start to escalate as he pulls out a knife from his pocket. The girls in the crowd scream as he takes a swipe at me. The fucker, however, didn't know who he was fucking with.
This wasn't the first time I had someone draw a blade on me, and I had learned long ago how to deal with them. First, I dodge his sloppy attempt at cutting me. The man was so drunk he didn't know what he was doing. He was able to cut me on my left arm, but only because of how crowded the club was. I then rushed him, tackling him into the bar. That was the thing about knife fights. People are so scared of getting cut that they don't realize the only way to deal with a knife is to step in. Accept that you were going to get cut or stabbed, then fuck up the person who was trying to stab you. I grab the arm that is holding the knife and, with my free hand, start to lay into his ribs and face. At the same time, he tries to pull away.
We both fall over and hit the ground hard. For a moment, he gets free enough and tries to stab me one last time. I let him, and he stabs me in the side of my stomach, where there are no major organs. Now, without a weapon, as it was trapped in my body, I started to lay into him harder. With me on top, I begin to beat his face in. I can hear his nose, jaw, and cheekbone break under my fists. I did not care at all that my hands were getting busted up as I did so. Eventually, the man passed out under me, but I wasn't about to stop and the only reason I do is because a couple of guys pull me off him.
Looking over my shoulder, I see Dre and Usher pulling me off the guy while Sean watches on with the girls some feet away.
"Shit, man, you have been stabbed." I hear Dre exclaim, and he releases me. He then removed his shirt and applied it to the wound, which was bleeding profusely.
That is when the club security finally turns up. It would be about another 10 minutes before the cops arrived and with an ambulance. To take me and the piece of shit who stabbed me to the hospital. Again, I do not care that much about this. Because for the first time in years, I felt good. I felt relaxed. Like when I was still in Juvey, I felt like…..
I felt like I was finally home.