Be My Superstar?

Chapter 5: Bean Bag

Alex POV

It was one of those mornings that had me laying in bed staring at the ceiling just waiting until my alarm went off. The twins had taken the news of their move to a new daycare much better than expected. Telling them that Janet would be with them and that I would be in the same building most of the time helped a lot. They did ask who hurt their 'Bubby' when they noticed the big ugly bruise adorning the left side of my face. Later in the evening, I caught Jeremiah following me around wearing my aviator sunglasses and carrying a toy baseball bat, when I asked him what he was doing he simply told me he was my new bodyguard and that I should pretend he wasn't there. It's was cute in a way, but my six-year-old brothers shouldn't have to worry about my safety.

At a quarter till five, I decided I might as well go ahead and get up. I hopped out of bed and headed down to the kitchen, but was surprised to find my Dad sitting at the counter eating the plate of dinner I had saved for him last night.

"How was the first day of work?" Dad asked not looking away from the laptop he had sitting beside his plate.

"Eventful," I told him while pouring myself a cup of coffee. I noticed that Dad looked older today. His once jet black hair was becoming that salt and pepper color that dark-haired men get as they age. I'm sure it was caused by the stresses of work and the ungodly hours he put in. His once full frame was just a bit slimmer than I had ever seen and frown lines seemed to be permanently etched in between his brow.

"It was my decision to reassign Allie," Dad said after he had taken a drink of his coffee. It wasn't like him to have a chat with me about work, but I'm not one to complain about how we spend our small amount of bonding time.

"I get that Allie was the easiest one to blame, but she can't control Devin. Allie gave him a script with very specific instructions before the radio interview and he chose to ignore them."

"I know," Dad said nonchalantly, "I also know that Mr. Waters is closer to Allie than anyone else in his circle. When I spoke to her yesterday I told her how close the board was to dropping Mr. Waters as a client. The story of his run-in with the law in October was supposed to stay buried. By the end of our call yesterday, she had told me that it was her fault and that she accepted full responsibility for the latest incident. Loyalty is generally a good thing in this industry, but I felt she was only hindering Mr. Waters in the long term."

"I'm worried I'm not prepared to replace her. Loyal to a fault or not, she was very good at her job."

"Allie told me that she believes he enjoys your presence. That was all but confirmed when I found out he had hired the twins' sitter to ensure your ability to continue working for him. Replacing Allie with someone that he trusts is paramount, that's why you are the only possible replacement for the time being, do you understand?"

"Yes father, I understand."

"Good, failure isn't an option," Dad said putting on his suit jacket and tapping me lightly on the head before walking out the door.

I finished a cup of coffee and tried to ignore the anxiety building in my chest. I've tried not to disappoint my father my whole life, I'm not about to start now.

The sound of my phone chiming pulled me out of my thoughts. I glanced down quickly knowing it could only be Kai who would be texting me this early in the morning.

Bro Bro
Ay, you up?

Me
Yeah sorry I didn't
call last night. I got
a promotion and had
to explain some
changes to the twins.

Bro Bro
Promotion on your
first day? How are
the rug burns on
the knees?

Me
Haha very funny.
Allie got reassigned
and Dad wants
someone Devin 'trusts'
to replace her.