NOVEL WEB Chapter 8: Bad News
Liam nodded to the judges and turned to face the audience, exhaling slowly. His hands clasped together in front of him to steady his nerves.
Simon was the second to speak after grace, his voice calm.
"Welcome, Mr. West. Tell us a little about yourself—what brought you here today?"
Liam straightened his back. "Thank you. I'm originally from a small town, but I moved to Los Angeles about a year ago to pursue acting."
Grace leaned forward slightly, her encouraging smile not wavering. "What will you be performing for us today, Liam?"
Liam's voice was calm.
"I'll be performing a monologue from A Thief's Redemption. It's a piece that really resonated with me for the past week."
Ethan arched a brow, his expression that of mild interest. "A Thief's Redemption? That's a heavy piece," he said, his tone calm.
Liam hesitated for a moment, then replied. "All pieces are heavy, it just depends on how deep we understand them."
Simon nodded, tapping his pen on the table. "Alright, then. The stage is yours. Let's see what you've got."
Liam took his place at the centre of the stage, his heartbeat loud in his ears.
He closed his eyes, letting the world fade away as he stepped into Victor Callahan's mind.
When he opened them, his expression had changed, his posture was that of a broken person yet resilient.
"I never wanted this for you," Liam began, his voice low, almost a whisper.
The room stilled, the audience leaning in. "Not the anger, not the pain..." He paused, his hand trembling as he raised it as if to reach out to someone just out of reach.
The silence in the room deepened as Liam's voice grew stronger. "I thought I was protecting you by staying away. Turns out, all I did was leave you vulnerable." His words carried anguish, his gaze sweeping the space before him.
Simon's pen stopped tapping. Grace's brows furrowed slightly, her smile fading as she leaned closer.
Even Ethan unfolded his arms, his previous detachment replaced with focus.
"And now," Liam continued, his tone bitter, "you hate me." He let the words hang in the air for a moment before softening his voice.
"You have every right to."
He took a step forward, his shoulders slumping slightly as though burdened by the weight of his guilt.
"But I swear to you, I will make this right... even if it costs me everything." His voice broke on the last word, the emotion surging through the room like a wave.
For a moment, there was silence. Then, a single clap broke it, followed by another, and then the entire room erupted into applause. The audience's reaction was genuine, the cheers and whistles filling the air.
Simon leaned back in his chair, his fingers steepled as he studied Liam. "Well," he said, his tone thoughtful. "That was… unexpected."
Grace's face broke into a warm smile. "Liam, you brought Victor to life. I could feel his pain, his regret, and his determination. That's no small feat."
Ethan nodded.
"It was good. Pretty good. But—" He paused, leaning forward slightly. "Some parts felt a little forced. Not much, but enough to notice."
Liam nodded, taking the critique in stride. "Thank you for your feedback judge," he replied sincerely.
Simon set his pen down and nodded. "Congratulations. You're through to the next round."
The audience erupted into applause again as Liam's shoulders relaxed, a grateful smile spreading across his face.
"Thank you," he said, his voice carrying excitement as he left the stage.
...
Backstage, Liam spoke to the receptionist.
"How will the next round start?" He asked.
The receptionist responded, with a polite smile.
"The rating will be in the ratio of 3:7, with the judge's votes being the 30% whilst the audience will have the larger 70%."
"After every participant performs on stage, there will be a poll sent to the viewers and they will pick who they want to qualify to the semi-finals."
"Only eight people will qualify for the semi-finals, which is extremely difficult. Making it here, already proves that you are a talent worthy of nurturing, so don't worry if you don't make it."
"I see, when will I receive the result?" Liam asked.
"The result should be emailed to you, by tomorrow afternoon." The receptionist said.
Nodding his head, Liam said thanks and left the building.
'This is troublesome, to think that the judges have less of an impact compared to the audience. This isn't good for me,' Liam thought.
He knew that even though his performance was good, the problem wasn't there. It was the niche, not many people would pay to watch an actor act.
"I don't think I will qualify for the next round, Damn it." He muttered, "I just need some coverage, as long as I get coverage and get a role no matter how small... I will only soar from there."
The Super Star System he had gained was incredible, but the problem was its pre-condition. He needed to be acting in a role for him to get skills.
'I need to get a role, no matter how small.' He thought as he rode on the bus.
...
Two hours and a half later, he arrived home.
It took him longer than two hours to arrive home, because of the traffic. It was rush hour, people went out for lunch and whatnot.
> Upcoming shift at StarCoffee
"Shit, I don't have time. I need to get changed quickly," He muttered, as he threw his shoes and ran inside to get changed into his work clothes.
He finished changing in mere minutes. He slipped on his shoes and stepped out to his work.
...
Finishing his shift, he felt exhausted.
He lazily took off his shoes, and headed straight to the bathroom after taking some change, with his shoulder slumped.
He filled the bathtub with some hot water and made a DIY jacuzzi in his bathroom.
As he slowly entered the tub, his face relaxed as all the fatigue melted away from his body.
"Ahhh" He moaned from comfort.