Chance dresses me better than I do myself. The pink and black theme she picked matches my style and several brands that are popular for athletic wear. My yoga pants have pink leg stripes from outside ankle to hip ending in a pink waistband on a black field. My shoes are white with black and pink banding, and the top looks more like lightweight Kevlar than workout clothes. The tight, zip-front vest has pink front and back panels the front shaped like a truncated diamond and the back like a tower shield, with panels on my sides and the seams, stitching and hardware are also black. Combined with the cropped black rash guard underneath, I look like I’m out to run in the cold, but also to collect some gazes with an unseasonably bare midriff.
Sabrina is standing in a park near the millennium bridge, a sight she picked that is iconically London, with a route that spends a good amount of time skirting the river. About ten people are standing in the park with her next to a refreshment table, a good blend of sexes and ethnicities, and two people that look a little overweight—besides me that is.
I walk over and hug my friend. “Hi Sabs! This is so exciting.”
“It is! And you are looking cute and sporty today. How long did it take to find that outfit.”
I scoff and swat her leg. “My assistant picked it out after asking me if I’m prone to being cold.”
She laughs with me, “It looks like you like working out that’s for sure. I guess we’ll all see how good you are at acting.”
“Ugh, I know. My plan is to run behind Lucy so I have the proper motivation.” I waggle my eyebrows.
“You are shameless, but I already knew that about you. How’re you two doing?” She asks, taking a sip of her water as though she ran her. She probably did.
“Pretty great. She’s been tolerant of my periods of disappearing for game testing and my busy schedule, but I’m super nervous she’s going to get tired of my schedule? That said, she hasn’t been wanting to get intimate with me despite the obvious attraction.” I pout and cross my arms to emphasize my great misfortune.
“Oh, she must be serious then.” I lock eyes with interest. “Sellie, it’s not my story to tell. She has a thing that she does when you’re important to her. Don’t rush it though, okay? I know you’ve slept together before, but sex tied to emotion is different.”
I add grump to my pout. It’s not like I don’t know that, Sabrina, I just haven’t been a regular in the ‘sex with feels’ zone in a while.
“Definitely don’t make that face on camera.”
“Asshole. Are we going to get a briefing before we start?” I attempt to change the subject.
“Coward. And yes, but only on the route. Everyone that has a role in the ad other than running has already been talked to. You just have to be you, be in the same shot as Lucy and either me or Cameron a few times and we’ve got the rest.”
I shouldn’t complain about not having more work to do, but it seems a bit thin. Granted, Sabrina literally told Lucy and me that she wanted the focus to be her and Cameron, but we are needed to get Ophelia to consider the add spot.
I feel a hand slide around my middle before I get a kiss on the cheek. “Sabrina, what did you say to make my girlfriend frown.”
The term and commitment to our relationship shoots through me, burning off whatever I was just sad about. I turn grab her face and give her a quick kiss before bouncing around like a caffeinated squirrel.
“If she explodes, is it going to be like a pinata full of candy, or just super gross?” Sabrina chuckles.
“Mm, sushi and tres leches if her eating habits are any indication,” Lucy says with mirth in her voice.
/You called me your girlfriend!/
\Should I not have?\ Lucy responds.
/Oh definitely should. As often as possible./
“At least you two aren’t matching today. Is that a footie pullover, Lucy?” Sabrina redirects.
“Kind of? I really like snug, long-sleeve pullovers, so Elitas sent me some kits when I asked. I do think they just took the advertisements off the kit they give the London Lionesses though.”
“If only I could shill as hard as you.” Sabrina sighs with exasperation, placing the back of her hand against her forehead in melodramatic fashion.
After a brief review of the route, and preferred positions of her and Cameron (basically one of the two running up front with lucy at all times) we start jogging. When they speed up to create a less dense pack, I fall back because it seems the right thing to do rather than pacing with the lead group. They really are taking it easy on us.
Running is boring. Running behind my girlfriend in those joggers, less so, but my mind wanders constantly through repetitive metronome of my feet hitting the ground. My thoughts drift to Marcrest and my farm, Melody will have had most of a month to find contractors to build my kiln and forge. Hopefully the mill wasn’t too big of a hassle, but I still need to make the crystal laden grinding plates when I get back. I’ll attempt to hit crafting hard to see if it’s a viable leveling route to 20.
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Sabrina and Cameron drop back, and on auto-pilot I drop back too. Lucy runs back to grab my hand and pulls me along.
“Oh my goddess, what are you doing?” I laugh as I stumble before I can match her pulling force to my turnover rate.
“You’re going to mess up their shot Sellie. They’re going back to the bench to motivate the two actors to join back in.” She’s smiling, as though I did something wrong, but did it cute? I’m super confused. “Just keep running lady. Once we get back to the starting park we’re done and we can grab water and snacks.”
“You should have led with snacks, babe.” That gets her laughing and I definitely feel like I’m winning now. A bright smile and sheen of sweat on that beautiful face? Winning for sure.
We get back to the park in another fifteen minutes of chatting while we jog, which is significantly less boring than normal running, and the promised water and snacks are there to greet me.
“Selena,” Lucy says while I’m mugging a granola bar, “I thought you didn’t exercise.”
“Uh, I don’t usually here? But I’ve been doing a lot of manual labor in Alaris Eternum. I guess that since that world is my permanent address, the ATC AI has been giving me the benefits like some IRL work gets people here.”
“Maybe, but girl, we weren’t running slow before Sabrina and Cam dropped back. You should be dying right now.”
I shrug, “I mean, I don’t run the place, I just act like it.” I elbow her and get a soft smile, “but are you going to complain that you might have gained a cute running partner?”
She looks me up and down slowly, taking enough time that it feels inappropriate in public.
“I can see the benefits.” She grabs my butt with one arm and pulls me close. I squeak in surprise only to be muted by a firm, but tame kiss.
After the kiss, her hand slides slowly up to my bare middles as she stands up straight with a decidedly feline grin. Well now I’m flustered and sweaty! Maybe she’ll take a shower with me.
“I’m going to remember you said that when I wake up at five am for a run after I stay over.”
Noooooo. Wait, does this mean she’ll stay over more often?
“We’ll see if you can make it worth my while.” I give her butt a light pat and she chokes on the water she was sipping. My triumph feels as good as her posterior.
***
“Ophelia, Lucy and I are in like half the shots.” I point my chopsticks at my boss after she showed me the spot that Sabrina filmed after the VP’s media team got a hold of it.
“You and your girlfriend should be less photogenic when flirting then. The parts where you are chatting while running over Millenium Bridge were a hit with our intended sponsors. Granted, Sabrina and Cameron going back for the chubby actors is a good image, but it’s not in keeping with Elitas brand. Lesbian footballers is. Mebok is interested in that spot, but if we get the attention of Elitas and Artemis Sport? We go with it.”
“Fuck.” The spot was supposed to feature my friend and get them a sponsor, not make me and Lucy more popular. I look up at Ophelia glaring at me. “Sorry, I wanted to help Sabrina, not get more for me.”
“Your word choice and timing could use some work,” she accuses before grabbing her tiny sake cup and sips it slowly. “People have noticed her. Dedication has a different draw that both charisma and potential. Sabrina will get an offer from Mebok, but Elitas is willing to pay to keep you from joining the Artemis brand.”
“What sense does that make?!” Pay to squash a sponsor? What the fuck?
“It’s uncommon, but your chemistry with Lucy is obvious, and to prevent you from publicly appearing as her friend/partner and a supporter of their closest rival, they are willing to provide a yearly wardrobe, but no money.”
“Eh, I don’t hate it, but I don’t love it. If they pick clips that I’m in with Lucy for their spots, someone has to benefit.”
“They do of course, but you have zero athletic credibility.”
“So pitch it that they either ally with Orion, or that Lucy gets 25% more for each spot where they pick our duo instead of her single. Obviously talk to Lucy, but if I’m not nobody, and not somebody to them, lets find a price for whatever that is.”
She glares at me a moment, then points her chopsticks at me. “This is why I have lunch meetings.” Ophelia stabs a nigiri like she was spear fishing and jabs it into her mouth, smiling in triumph the whole time.
The next half hour passes in a companionable silence of food, drink and comments on those alone. That is until a nagging question plagues me.
“Is Orion pushing for me to engage in Alaris media?”
She studies me for a moment, “It’s been mentioned. They don’t pay for any of your other gaming sponsorships but Fathoms of Fates, so they don’t have much to work with. Especially after Martyr spelled your name differently on every document the team has. It will be the last month before the Open Beta before Orion Black appears at the FoF mid season invitational.
“Be aware that Orion would link your identities and have you work akin to a glorified NPC if they could get away with it.” She says absently as she dips a piece of nigiri in soy sauce.
“No offense, but why would you tell me that? Don’t you benefit if Orion benefits?”
She sighs and puts down her utensils and collects herself as though she has to reframe her whole position for a child.
“Selena. I am responsible for Orion PR, but also Orion brand management, to include our personalities. You and Darth Hamster are among our top five earning personalities. As much as I am pushy about some of your spots and content availability, I would not throw away what trust we have for one engagement. I will file this lack of faith under the auspices of not understanding how branding and engagement make money.”
“Yes please, I really don’t understand.”
She takes a deep breath and finds some calm before talking again. “Then it is a good thing that Jesse agreed to work with you. Side note, I do plan to use your cute Troll persona to get some ‘lifestyle’ shots of Alaris Eternum, but as part of a race-class montage instead of a focus piece.”
I shrug in defeat, “I’m the only Troll in like a thousand kilometers beside the Capitol of the Empire I live in, so take that as you will.”
“I’m almost willing to think you are trying to make my life difficult.” She breathes in and huffs, “No matter. My team will find an angle in time.”
She essentially ends our meeting with that statement. I finish my meal and lay some cash on the table as I walk out to change clothes and game for the afternoon.
