Dramatic Child Stars

Prologue

January 14th, 2015
8:23 pm

Percy Valentine was only half paying attention to the news on the TV. Mostly he was just stuffing his face with tortilla chips and waiting for his chance to shower. His best friend Ryland Brooks was taking a ridiculous amount of time in there, which was typical because Ryland always took forever. 

They had spent the afternoon together at the pool. Percy and Ryland were vacationing in Miami and the resorts pool was mostly deserted because their management had cleared the venue for them. They wanted the two boys to spend a week not working so that their child labor statistics looked better. Employing minors while staying in public favor for the last decade meant that the minors needed highly publicized breaks to prove they were being treated well. As long as they agreed to the smiling photo opportunities, they were given the right to stay in the pool all afternoon. They were also allowed to drink beers and pretend they weren't. Those were just the child star perks.

Now Percy was a little bit drunk, but mostly just sunburned and tired. He was sitting on the sofa in their shared suite, and idly switching between staring at his phone and watching whatever was on the television. He was thinking about skipping the shower altogether and taking an early bedtime. Percy was pretty sure Ryland wouldn't care about that. Ryland had looked tired too, and he was also notably avoiding the frequent calls from his mother. Percy thought Ryland might like the excuse not to answer.

He was engrossed in his phone and barely watching the news program on the television until the flash of red words hit the screen with a faux siren attached. The color lit up the entire living room of their suite with a slight rose glow. It was clearly labeled on the screen as "breaking news."

"This just in: a major scandal in Hollywood that is shaking the general public to their very core."

It was a nice looking blonde lady with heavily made up eyes speaking. It seemed to Percy that every news lady ever looked almost exactly like her; perfect hair and dark eyes with a porcelain face. Even though she referred to the news as "shaking," she was actually just smiling. It was like she was pleased to deliver bad news or something.

"A whistleblower report from an executive secretary at Everlark Studios..."

Percy sat up some, suddenly finding himself slightly more awake. He was very well aware of the name Everlark. They owned the television show he'd been costarring across from Ryland on for the last decade. Everlark executives were the ones organizing the escapade to this resort in Miami.

"...reveals a expansive and complicated string of sexual harassment and abuse complaints against world renowned producer Darnell Chapman. The studio has employed Darnell for the past 15 years, and the report details several payments..."

"Riley!" Percy called out into the suite they were sharing without actually getting off the sofa or looking back. He did put his chips down next to the bottle of Rylands meds on the coffee table. "Riley, get out here! Everlark is on the news!"

He tried to listen for the sound of the water running, but he really couldn't tell over the volume of the TV.

"The report alleges a list of names that the whistleblower claims are known victims of Darnell, with transactional evidence to prove payments were issued and that personnel transfers were made to protect the company."

Ryland made his way in after that. He looked tired, but Percy didn't blame him. He always looked tired, even for a newly 17 year old. He was just like that. Maybe it even had to do with those beers. He wore sweats that Percy was certain belonged to himself and he was notably topless although he had a plain white shirt in his hand that he had probably intended to put on before Percy had called for him.