Page 84 of The Producer: Aaron

“Are you kidding? It would be an honor to be part of it,” another girl who has remained on the sidelines until now tells me.

When I leave Venice Beach, I have seven email addresses of enthusiastic girls and an idea in mind that I don’t know will ever work. Still, if Aaron is brave enough to clean garbage from his warehouses, I can think of setting up something that could helpus launch this company.

***

When we arrive in front of the address that Tracy sent us, we find the gates closed by a chain that doesn’t have a padlock. The woman next to me looks up and lingers on the shining entrance of the Steel Broadcasting Company, then on the graffiti-covered plywood panels of Aaron’s new company just a few meters away.

“Of course, if he wanted to send a big middle finger to his father, it is loud and clear,” she chuckles in amusement.

I smile because it’s true. There was a never-before-seen uproar when Aaron sold his shares in the company to the competition. They almost cried scandal. Many have said it was his way of taking revenge on his father for not giving him the company, but those who know him know this is not the case. Selling the shares for an exorbitant amount of money was just a way to get the money to buy an entire neighborhood next to his old company and build a new one with his name on it. This is his revenge against his father. The middle finger Tracy talks about.

“Shall we enter? Let’s see if inside he has a neon sign with his name that he will place right next to their immaculate gates,” I suggest, and some of those who accompany us behind me chuckle.

It doesn’t take long to find Aaron in front of the only warehouse with the doors open and hear him swear. When we enter, we watch him kneeling on a pile of rubble in jeans and without a shirt, sweaty, with his hair undone and dirty with dust. I think no one has ever seen him like this, given the shocked faces of those present.

“You know you have enough money to hire labor, don’t you?” Tracy’s voice makes him turn around, startled.

“What the hell are you doing here?” he asks, getting up and wiping the sweat from his forehead. I can’t look away from his perfect body. Tracy notices that I’m staring and elbows me.

“We heard that a new streaming company in the city will start with new productions, and we thought we’d bring our resumes.” I wink at him as he approaches.

“And maybe even a desk where we can put them,” adds one of the technicians behind me, pulling a laugh from everyone.

Aaron looks at the fifty-six faces in front of him, all people who worked in the streaming division he built and carried on from scratch. People who believed in him from the beginning and now continue to support him. His eyes are veiled with gratitude and tears. It’s the first time I’ve seen him so vulnerable in public.

“You know there’s nothing, don’t you? What you see is all that exists of this company,” he points out, making sure that the people here have understood that there is still a lot to do.

“You think about finding the movies. We’ll take care of setting up this place,” says one of the guys who wanders around with his nose in the air to evaluate the situation.

“Also, if you thought you could get this place back on its feet alone, either you went crazy, or you overestimated your skills as a carpenter,” adds another, and, this time, Aaron bursts out laughing too.

“I didn’t go crazy. I wanted to get an idea of what is in here to give clear instructions to the workers. Physical work helps me think.”

The people who have followed us so far begin to look around and evaluate the situation, especially the technicians. At the same time, some of the writers and production assistants are simply curious to see the wagon they are jumping on.

“It’s better if you really find a desk because we can’t work in these conditions,” adds Sarah Webber, one of the executive producers of Aaron’s shows, a big name who could have gone to work for anyone but chose to stay by his side.

“Weren’t you the one who can work anywhere, even in a trailer next to the explosions of a war movie?” he teases her.

“I do, but the little boy, the intern you told me to hire as a writer, needs a quiet place to create magic. By the way, you were right. He’s brilliant. He has fresh ideas that can interest people of the age group we are aiming for.” She nods to one of the guys who is more or less my age.

Aaron smiles. “Did you have any doubts about my ability to understand the potential of people or projects?”

“Do you think I would be here if I thought of such a thing?” She raises an eyebrow to challenge him.

Aaron again lays his eyes on our faces and pauses for a long time as if to understand what we really think.

“Are you sure you want to embark on something like this? There are no guarantees. Christ, I have no idea what to start producing.”

I smile at him. “For that, I have some ideas. But if we are here, it is because we are all convinced. When Tracy and I called them, we explained the situation, and they accepted the challenge.”

The sweet smile that he gives me almost melts me on the spot. I missed him, and I only realized now how good I was at resisting a month without seeing him. His fingers reach out toward me and touch my hand.

“Have you decided to give up the actress career?” he asks me, perplexed.

“No, but no one forbids me to give you suggestions.” I wink athim and see him smiling again.

“Now go take a shower. You stink. I have already rented a conference room at the Hilton so we can get everyone together and make a plan on how to get started. As romantic as it is to have the first meeting here, we need a place to sit, power outlets for our computers, and a table to place notebooks.” Tracy begins to give orders with her usual efficiency.

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