Page 17 of Scoring Chance
Six
“Now this…this right here…this is King Jeffrey.”
Sydney glanced up at the monstrous toy stuffed giraffe. “You big.”
Demand of Sydney’s work generated buzz throughout L.A. because of her preview and she scored her first high-profile client – Major League Baseball’s pitcher king, Quinn “The Answer” Riordan.
Quinn was an enigma of sorts. He came from the armpit of Kentucky where all he knew were ranches and cows. He gained his muscular physique by being a farmhand and thought gyms were a waste of money. He saw no issue drinking a protein shake as he snacked on McDonald’s fries. He would head-bang to Metallica before he serenaded a sweet song by the Backstreet Boys a minute later and ending his set by spitting bars from his favorite Drake album.
And then there were his quirks. He loved Legos so much, he had an entire room in his palatial estate just for them. His obsession with giraffes carried through to adulthood and while he didn’t want to own one, he made it a point to visit the zoo on a bi-weekly basis to look at them in person. His Instagram feed was full of him cheesing next to giraffes at various zoos all over the world.
On the diamond, however, Quinn was a beast. His 24-year-old arm didn’t show signs of slowing down anytime soon as he averaged 90 mph. No batter could ever prepare for him and he was notorious to switch it up and create new pitches just to psyche out his opponents.
He was called “The Answer” due to a now-infamous interview response:
“When the batter steps up to that plate, they ask me a question. They never mouth it, they never actually say it, but they do suggestive things like point their bat to the sky behind me, or give me a wink. You know what that question is? Do you think you’re going to strike me out? And of course, I always give them a deafening answer.”
And he was Sydney’s new client.
Word-of-mouth quickly spread about Sydney’s art show and Sydney scored a major contract with Quinn. At first, Sydney thought it was a prank caller because the voice on the other end was so masculine and authoritative, a stark contrast to his Instagram feed where he was cheesing like a boy on Christmas morning in every picture.
In Quinn’s world, every day was Christmas morning.
“This is so…” Sydney struggled to say the right words. She didn’t want to come off as a pompous bitch. “…neat.”
“It’s okay, Syd,” Quinn chuckled, “I know it’s weird. You can actually say the word.”
Sydney gave a sheepish smile. “I’m trying to process the guy on the baseball diamond with the man next to me.”
“Ah, that’s the magic!” Quinn continued walking and Sydney followed. “You never want your opponents to think they know you. You always have to switch it up somehow. The moment they know you, is the moment they start messing with you.”
“You’re pretty wise for your age,” she noted.
Quinn led Sydney downstairs to his spacious back yard with pool, waterfall, a sitting area around a fire pit, bar and grill, and an additional dining area. For a man who had a room dedicated to a giant stuffed toy giraffe, it was a rather luxurious sight. “You know what it’s like to get everything you want after dreaming about it for so long?”
Sydney knew all too well. “Tell me about it.”
“This…” Quinn looked out into the bright California sun. “…this is heaven on earth. The beauty, the magic of it all. I just finished readingThe Art of Warand while it’s complicated at times, it’s pretty good. I highly recommend you check it out.”
Sydney’s eyes almost crossed each other in bewilderment. Quinn, who just demonstrated how he plays with his Legos with personal sound effects, just finished a complicated book? Now she understood why his opponents couldn’t figure him out. He was simply inexplicable to the normal brain.
Yet, she somehow understood him. Every genius needed an outlet. “What do you have in mind for your mural?”
“Me,” he turned to her. His blue eyes danced with delight. “Not a portrait but something that represents me. I want to see it and be amazed by the brilliance of it. I want others to be in shock and awe by it. I want it where if I’m 50 years old, and retired, it’ll stand the test of time. I don’t want it to be something I was into at one point, you know what I mean? I want something that represents me – period.”
Sydney slowly nodded. “I think I have a few ideas. I might need to see you more in action to get to know you better.”
“Like a shadow?” He asked.
“Yes,” she agreed, “I’ll be silent and whatever you don’t want me to see, I won’t. But if you want a piece about you, I need to get to know the man behind the diamond.”
“I like that!” He pointed to her. “And maybe you can meet my friend, Bobbi.”
“Bobbi?” Sydney asked. “Who’s he?”
“She,” Quinn corrected, “she’s a special friend of mine.”
“Ohhhhh,” Sydney smiled and chuckled as Quinn blushed. “Is she your girlfriend?”
