Rise To Stardom - Chapter 176

Chapter 176: Step By Step
[Prom Perfect 3].

A rom-com teen movie that Kyle had originally auditioned for last year but fortunately…? wasn’t picked by the Director as at the time.

And luckily so at that!

Because, in all fairness, anyone who watched it could only say three good…? things about it;

Hot guys.

Hot chicks.

Smexy scenes.

That was it. Period.

That was where everything good about the movie ended.

As for its negatives…

Oh boy were they countless.

The plot was cliché and subpar.

Cringy as fuck interactions were numerous.

Too much irrelevant drama.

Unresolved plot points.

And most of all;

It should’ve never been a franchise.

This was just a few among the many glaring issues the movie had…

In fact, if Kyle could reappraise the script now, especially for the second and now upcoming third movie, he’d have been horrified by the way his system would’ve absolutely demolished the darn thing.

And yet…

Yet…

For some crazy ass reason or the other…

The teenage demographic, seemingly loved these guilty-pleasure teen movies and just couldn’t seem to get enough of them.

It was almost as if the movies, had earned the ‘It’s so bad it’s good’ reputation, enough that the first and the second movies ended up becoming successful box office hits that individually brought back triple the revenue invested into making them each time!

And for the greedy Film Studio Execs from Lighthouse Films greenlighting each new installment to the franchise, money was all they cared about.

Everything else was secondary.

Even then, the Execs of the mid-sized film studio had really believed that this time, they had truly outdone themselves by planning to release the movie on February 14, 2021.

Valentine’s Day, next year.

Wondrous, wasn’t it?!

Fantastic, wasn’t it?!

For Lighthouse Films, at least.

But, for [Level Up 2] which was planning to be released on February 14 too as an anti-thesis to the Red Day’s mushy nonsense, the Execs at Silver-Line Studios were in the same exact sour mood as Danny and Sean currently were the moment they heard the news.

Considering Silver-Line’s Studio’s Marketing Team and Data Analysts had pulled up several data and reports showing that there were more and more single people on the rise each year, with most, not even the least bit interested in celebrating Valentine’s, they had suggested releasing the movie on that day as many, would rather avoid anything romantic and want something fun to experience instead.

But unfortunately for Silver-Line Studio’s, now that [Prom Perfect 3] was going to be released on the same day as theirs, they couldn’t help but feel cornered.

Still, they had to follow through with their plan since it was something they’d planned down to a T for close to a year now.

It was now a ride or die scenario for Danny, Sean and the Silver-Line Studios Execs.

Whether their movie crashed and burned by tanking, or they ascended and soared like a phoenix against all odds to become a success at the Box Office…

That was yet to be seen.

The Box Office clash was inevitably, going to ensue either way.

* * *

[See! I told you! You should’ve chosen [Prom Perfect 3] back then! Now that nonsensical dance movie you oh-so-much wanted to involve yourself with is gonna tank at the Box Office!!] Bianca, Sharon’s agent shouted from the other end of the phone.

“Is that why you called?” Sharon on the other hand nonchalantly asked, her tone clearly unperturbed and obviously, disinterested in her agent’s typical tantrums.

[This… bitch.] the pissed voice from the other end of the phone, muttered audibly.

[You know what, it’s none of my business if you don’t get any scripts for the next few months after the movie tanks at the Box Office. I have much more talented actors under me so it’s fine.] Bianca’s tone suddenly turned into one full of mockery, a noticeable gloat in her tone.

“That so. Bye then.” Sharon nonchalantly stated, ready to cut the phone call when she heard the agent talk again.

[Well, that’s on the side for now. As for why I actually called, the agency wants you to get a plastic surgery from one of their invested companies to keep up with the tren-]

“Fuck! That!” Sharon defiantly disagreed without even letting Bianca finish up her statement!

[You darn bitc-]

The phone transmission was cut off almost immediately.

“Peace and crackers.” Sharon let out a relieved sigh, tossing her phone onto the bed.

Ever since she had defied her agents’ orders that one time with Kyle, Sharon had started getting more and more brave with her defiance.

Sure the agency was now more or less starting to blacklist from quite a lot of opportunities here and there but honestly, Sharon had realized she’d much rather be at peace with herself.

At the same time, just because she figured Kyle would honor his promise, didn’t mean she was going to be twiddling her thumbs waiting for him.

If she could defy her agency without too much repercussions, she’d decided she’d start from there instead of just kowtowing to their vile practices.

“Plastic surgery my ass. I’m sexy just the way I am.” the lady gazed at herself in the mirror with a gaze of absolute pride, after which she then asked herself in deep confusion;

“Honestly, how exactly did Kyle, keep his hands off me?”

“One of the many mysteries of the world, that man…” Sharon sighed in resignation, knowing fully well Kyle never even had any thoughts of such towards her.

No sooner had those words left her lips though, the lady soon heard her doorbell ring, a slight frown on her features.

‘Did I order anything?’ Sharon couldn’t help but ponder to herself as she moved towards the door.

Considering she lived in one of the most secured areas for Hollywood Stars in Brooklyn, New York, Sharon knew it wasn’t a rabid fan… or her agent at the door.

The HQ was quite far from here to say the least so getting here within that short span of time was impossible.

Also, since she had no appointments with anyone whatsoever, she wondered if she’d ordered something a while back that was just getting to her.

Upon opening the door though, she was instead, met with a postal delivery woman who had her, sign that she had received her order before finally, handing over the fairly heavy parcel.

Carrying the parcel into her living room, curious about what was inside, the lady soon ripped open the packaging… only to watch as a bundled stack of fresh new comic books greeted her.

“What…?” Sharon blinked her eyes in genuine confusion a few times.

However, it all made sense to the lady when she saw the singular note, attached to the first of the comic books that read;

Step by step, Sharon. That, I promise.

That really, was all it took for the lady to know whom it came from.

And it was also because of that, that the lady, despite not knowing Kyle’s plans for her or even been a comic book reader in any sense of the word, got excited and opened the first comic book.

Considering she wouldn’t be getting as many roles as she used to from her agency, or even staying in the spotlight for that matter due to her recent acts of defiance, Sharon had a whole lot of idle time to burn.

That was how the lady, although she had no idea as of the moment, became a die-hard fan of [Tech Wiz] in the coming months.

However, for Kyle, this really was just the first phase of his many plans to draw the lady out of her agency’s clutches.

One that Sharon would end up realizing much later, down the line.

* * *

(Two days later…)

| Passive skill, [Bleeding Effect] has fully analyzed, Lance Knight! |

| High-grade passive skill, [Choreography Master] has been awarded! |

| Keep dancing and acting to improve your skills! |

Not particularly surprised by the sudden alert he was getting, Kyle casually pulled up the details of the new skill he was awarded, his gaze focused on something else though.

___________________________

Passive Skill – [Choreography Master]

Gain all the necessary ideas and insights into creating interesting and complex, dance routines.

___________________________

‘Hmmm…’ Kyle, despite a serious amount of information involving dance routines flooding his brain, was instead, squinting his eyes at the words on a poster on the wall through the window pane of the rehearsal space of his recording studio, his sight a bit blurry.

The fact that even after gaining [Peak Human Conditioning], he still needed to use his glasses to see things fairly faraway was something the young man found curious.

And yet, it was also because of the same [Peak Human Conditioning], that the surge of information to his head, hadn’t bothered him one bit.

Still, the mystery regarding his myopia and astigmatism, wasn’t resolved.

‘Probably because I was born with it, the skill doesn’t see it as a defect…’ Kyle could only speculate with a slight shrug as he donned his glasses.

Regardless, he didn’t mind.

Sure contacts were something he had now gotten used to but, at the end of the day, Kyle still loved using his normal glasses.

He felt very much at home with them.

Now paying full attention to the new skill, Kyle smiled in excitement, the wonders he could do with it, coming to mind.

‘Hmmm, it’d be a waste if I didn’t at least, try to make a good dance music with a great choreography, right…’ Kyle mused to himself, mentally jotting down another idea for his album.

Now he only had three more song ideas left to think of.

‘That said, better get back to you.’ Kyle glanced at the music sheet in his hands.

–

Frozen in time, wish I had the words to say!

Caught in your gaze, like a, s-s-static shock!

I’m tryna move, but my feet are glued!

She has me electrified, electrified,

E-e-electrified!

–

It was a half of the chorus of the first song he was working on.

A song, obviously titled, [Electrified].

It was also the pop-rock song he had been ruminating on ever since the mini-tour with Carl Finch had ended.

A song about the overwhelming feelings of being captivated by someone.

Safe to say, Kyle took a page out of Carl Finch’s [Dancin’ On The Edge] to make his own unique, pop rock song.

Casually picking up the electronic guitar again, Kyle then strummed the strings for a few minutes, the base rock-inspired tune of the song he had already created, punchy and infectious.

It still needed a lot of polish though.

And help was already, on the way…

“So, here’s a summary of the report regarding the game’s progress.” Owen casually walked into the recording studio, stacks of paper in his hands as he gave Kyle a brief rundown;

“They said the rest of the soundtracks you sent in were great so no issues on that front. Everything’s going along swimmingly.”

“All things considered, according to what Carlos told me, it should be in a fully polished state by early January next year.” Owen added, continuing with his report as Kyle whom had stopped strumming, nodded satisfactorily.

“Also, you have an appointment tomorrow with a fashion brand to model for them.” his assistant added casually, only to watch in confusion as Kyle shivered in fear.

He still had a bit of PTSD from the entirety of the Gala Preparations a few months back.

“It’s from a shoe brand though.” Owen spoke again, finding it slightly amusing as Kyle heaved a heavy sigh of relief.

No sooner had that happened though, the doors of the studio opened again and this time, Christina bolted in, ran right past Owen, straight into the rehearsal space… all to give Kyle a warm hug.

And then she gave him a fluffy punch in retaliation for teasing her last time, earning a light, hearty laughter from Kyle.

“Hey Christina. Missed you too. How’s the novel coming along?” the young man then asked curiously, one to which the lady signed in response with a warm smile;

<Splendidly. Halfway through too.>

<Really?! That’s great to hear.> Kyle signed with an excited smile, much to Christina’s glee.

Before a bamboozled Owen could even ask what was going on, or whom the lady was, Maria and Jennie walked in.

“Hi!! I’m back!” the red-haired lady grinned in excitement, one to which Kyle reciprocated with a light grin of his own.

“Glad to have you on board, Jennie!”

“Glad to be on deck, captain!” the lady saluted proudly, earning a light smile from Maria and a hearty chuckle from Christina.

Yes, Oliver, one way or the other, did his voodoo magic and finally got Jennie to be Kyle’s full-time audio-engineer.

That was one more addition to the team.

Owen once again was a bit confused, wondering whom all these new faces were… although he was starting to remember seeing Christina a few times here and there.

However, just before he could actually introduce himself, the doors opened again, and this time, Owen could not believe his eyes.

“Kyle. What’s this about making a part-time boyband?” Carl spoke, he and Allen walking in alongside Ryan, Steven and Joe, all of whom had been guided to his Studio’s location by Oliver whom was the last to walk in.

“Oh hey guys. Glad you could all make it.” he waved to them from across the rehearsal studio, a pleasant grin on his lips.

“And yeah. I meant what I said. Let’s be a part-time boyband for a while.” Kyle stated, a noticeable glint of excitement in his eyes.

To that, Carl arched an eyebrow, and so did Ryan, Joe and Steven, hands folded across their chests in genuine curiosity.

“Do pray tell, I’m listening.” Ryan excitedly commented to which Joe and Steven added similarly;

“What do you have in mind?”

And without further ado, Kyle, instantly played the infectious pop-rock tune he was practicing previously while singing a few of its lyrics for a few seconds!

That was all it took for all four to feel a wave of pulsing excitement hit them like a thunderbolt!

The song that Kyle had created…

It wasn’t even fully polished and yet…

It was already a banger of a pop-rock song!