Dying Tigers: A Strange Love Story

Meetings - Part 2

I sat at a table in a local restaurant the company often used to arrange client-agent meetings, watching the rain drizzle outside. I was waiting to meet the problematic pair I might soon be managing for and flipping through their evaluation reports. They weren't flattering. I had spent the week studying the reports and had even contacted some of their past agents to get more detail. The overall opinion: they were a hopeless case. Their agents' opinions ranged from completely perplexed to out-right infuriated. I'd heard everything from "they need a therapist, not the media" to "too damaged to fix" to "arrogant, self-centered bastards." I wasn't quite sure which one to consider the most accurate description. There was one commonality. Everyone I talked to had one similar complaint: they were impossible to schedule for. Whether it be small one-day shoots, or larger campaigns, they rejected or accepted projects in the most random fashion, rejecting far more than they accepted. Moreover, the agents reported on their strange personalities and odd behaviors and how it caused problems all around. And no matter how many times I asked, no one had ever seen their scars, not even a glimpse. They kept their scars as thoroughly hidden as their past. Overall, after looking things over more, a doubled pay didn't seem enough for the trouble I'd get in return. But I had never been one to judge without first-hand experience, so I sat waiting to meet them, reserving my judgment until afterward.

The waiter had just brought out three glasses of water when I saw them walk in the door. The one I recognized as Jareka scanned the room with a blank face while Tareiji talked with one of the waitresses at the c. I raised my hand and waved, catching Jareka's attention. His gaze stopped on me and he nodded in acknowledgement then turned to Tareiji and the somewhat flustered waitress. He muttered something in Tareiji's ear and flicked a hand towards me. Tareiji looked my way and broke into a wide grin, waving vigorously. I waved back with a smile. He spoke again to the waitress who then led them over to my table, still seeming overwhelmed. Not that I could blame her. These two's presence was even more stunning in real life than it was in their pictures.

I stood up and offered a handshake. "I'm Hanaso Naroko. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Tareiji accepted the handshake eagerly, grinning broadly. He was barely taller than I was and I was only five foot. "Tareiji, though you probably already knew that." He said. He had a charmer's voice, high and clear, and vibrating with energy. It reminded me of an enthusiastic young child.

I offered my hand to Jareka, craning my neck to look up at him. To say he towered over both me and Tareiji would have been an understatement, he had to be well over six feet tall. He ignored my hand, instead tucking his hands casually into his back pockets and just nodded. "Jareka." His voice was somewhat deeper than I expected, with a rough quality to it despite its flatness. I let my hand drop and shrugged. It wasn't the first time I'd met a cold client. To each their own.

"Please, sit." I gestured to the seats across from me, and the two of them sat down.

I took a breath to calm myself and then started with what I wanted to say. I had never been one to be subtle, nor one to hedge around the point. I was brutally honest most of the time. It wasn't the best thing to be when dealing with potential clients, but it was how I had always been and it had gotten me this far, maybe it could get me further.

"Alright, to get straight to the point, I want you to convince me I should take you on as clients, because right now I have a lot of reasons not to." I had issued my declaration.

"It would be easier if we knew what those reasons are." Jareka commented mildly. Tareiji was toying with his water glass and looking all around the room, seemingly uninterested in our meeting. Jareka, though, was completely focused on me.

I started ticking off points on my fingers. "Unknown past, random, unpredictable pickiness over projects, needing to schedule only pair projects, scars that have to be accounted for during shoots, and the fact that that you've set a record burning through agents." I fell silent.