"Elliott, you've set the entire internet ablaze."
Skylar looked down at his phone once more, his eyes wide as he scrolled through the endless feed, before quickly throwing it aside and connecting it to the big screen, his hands almost shivering with excitement as he read out the comments and the rising trends that were blowing up in real time.
Today was supposed to be the day Clara finished Elliott, the day she had planned to push him out of the entertainment industry!
But instead, against every expectation, Elliott had risen even higher- far higher than Skylar or anyone else had thought possible. If someone had told him yesterday that this would happen, he would not have believed them or even dared to dream. But here it was!
Hurriedly, almost tripping over his own words, he updated Elliott, who was even now sitting calmly in his chair, his eyes closed as though none of this mattered in the slightest.
How this man could always be so calm was beyond Skylar's comprehension.
Even in the middle of chaos, when the entire world seemed to be shouting his name, Elliott behaved as though he were half-asleep or meditating while Skylar felt as if he were sitting on hot coals. But Skylar didn't have the time to ponder about all that now, the trends were climbing too fast and he was too excited.
"Look at the hashtags, Ell! Out of the top ten, five are related to you. #ReachingForYou is trending. #ElliottRoss is trending. #EllVan is also trending. Even #VanessaGrantReturns is climbing, and faster than anyone can keep up."
Skylar rubbed his hands together, his nervous energy practically spilling out of him, and sent his boss another quick look. "You've seen the script, right? The people who read the book have already hyped it up so much! Even I want to read the script!"
"And the reaction online for your selection is even better than I dared to hope. Honestly, I thought that given your image of always playing the fragile man, the quiet one, the tragic one, the audience might not be able to accept you in that role. I was worried the fans would protest, that there would be petitions and angry comments, you know…"
He let out a shaky laugh, as he thought of how he had spent the last night, after seeing the contract that Vanessa Grant had sent over.
"But with that shirt today, and the photo she made you share last night… this is perfect! The fans are saying that when you dropped the picture yesterday, they had already started to guess it was for Reaching for You because the picture was the same as the book's cover... Some even pulled out comparison shots- the sheer dedication of these people is terrifying!"
Skylar shook his head in disbelief, then turned back to the big screen as he contnued excitedly, "Listen to this-one of the strongest critics, @cinephile09, just commented: 'Elliott in Reaching for You? Finally, someone with actual range.' Look at the likes, man! They're already soaring into the thousands within minutes. You couldn't pay for this kind of publicity!"
Just then, another trend started to rise, climbing steadily up the list. Skylar blinked and froze as he read it in his head- #ElliottSexyBack.
He coughed, hesitated, and decided it was probably better not to mention that one… but curiosity got the better of him. Clicking into it, he could not help but wonder what on earth was wrong with these fans.
The industry had seen people go crazy over an actor's abs, chest, or even a hint of thigh, but Elliott's fans were losing their minds over his back. His back! Skylar stared at the flood of memes and pictures being shared under the hashtag and hurriedly closed it before Elliott could see any of it.
These fans had some real wild imagination. One even had him photoshopped onto a runway with angel wings, his back glistening like he was a model straight out of a fantasy. Another had him as a statue, his back carved from marble. And then there was the worst one- Elliott turned into an ice cream, complete with a line about 'licking season starting early.
However, Skylar realized it was already too late when he turned off the television. Because Elliott, of course, had already seen the worst of it. His boss was staring at the edited image with a killer look in his eyes. The man had no sense of humor really! And no idea how 'thirsty' his fans were.
Skylar gave him a grimace that he hoped would somehow pass for a smile and said in a weak voice. "Don't be angry, okay? All this is good publicity… it's… it's engagement. That's what matters, right?"
Elliott raised his head slowly and gave him a scathing look that left no room for doubt about what he thought of it. "Arrange a meeting with Clara and Starlink in an hour."
***
On the other side of the city, Clara Bates was on the edge of her seat as she stared at her boss, Ethan Clark. He looked furious enough to throw something at her head, and she knew better than to open her mouth first so she could only stare at her own hands.
"What were you thinking, bringing such a project to him!" Ethan's voice was sharp, each word heavy with restrained anger.
"Haven't I told you time and again that I want the company's resources directed to Dominic and Lynette? They're going to debut soon, and this project would have been perfect for them! Instead, you pitched it to Elliott!"
He slammed a file shut with enough force to make her flinch. "Instead of ruining him like I told you to, you've shot him to new heights! Do you even understand what this means? Do you know how this will end up for Dominic?"
Clara shook her head quickly, as she looked at the man in a panic, "I don't even know anything about the project. How could I have pitched it?"
"It's said that Vanessa Grant has kept the entire thing under wraps and not even her own assistant knows about the casting. Elliott never mentioned it to me. I had no idea he had been approached or he had auditioned at all, much less accepted!"
Her voice rose but Ethan simply dismissed her and watched her leave, his hands clenched.
Why did Vanessa announce the project so soon? Hadn't they decided that they would start looking at it after their engagement. He needed to have a word with her...