Two and Half Men - Reborn as Jake Harper

Chapter 108 

One month had passed since the premiere of My Big Fat Greek Wedding. It was now July, the heat of summer wrapping Los Angeles in its usual buzz.

I was sitting in a modern but cozy meeting room at one of our office buildings, sipping an iced tea as I looked across the table at Pepper.

"So, in one month, the movie made $83,576,526 in gross revenue domestic and $52,777,170 international, with a total of $136,353,696 worldwide," I said, glancing at the numbers on the report in front of me.

"And we'll probably let it run for another two months in most theaters," I added. "After that, the number of screenings usually drops a lot."

"And Paranormal Activity ended with $298,954,542 worldwide," I continued. "Oh, come on, Pepper, we couldn't just buy a few more tickets to close it at 300 million dollars?"

Pepper looked at me and ignored the question completely, changing the subject without missing a beat.

"So you're really not going to the premiere?" Pepper asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nah," I said, shaking my head. "And it's not because of the theme," I added, referring to the upcoming Brakebroken Mountain premiere.

"I don't plan on going to Lost in Translation either, or the horror ones like The Conjuring and Annabelle."

They're good movies, sure, but not the kind I want to watch a second time. Even if they might be slightly different from the originals.

I shrugged and smiled. "I only went to Paranormal Activity and My Big Fat Greek Wedding because I knew some of the actors."

Pepper shook her head. "You're unbelievable."

I rolled my eyes and said, "Everyone keeps saying that. That became too repetitive..."

Pepper continued, "I sent you almost all the scripts that the Writers Guild of America has for sale. Title and a brief summary. You can pick the next movies to be released."

I looked at her and nodded.

Pepper probably knows I have some kind of future prediction or something like that. Well, anyone with a brain better than a sitcom comedy would feel suspicious about the two movies being dark horses, the songs all being hits (not a single flop), obscene returns on stock investments. And the cherry on top, the absurdity of the bets (with a probability of success close to a lottery ticket).

She knows that I know that she knows. But she never confronted me about it. So it's basically like we have a tacit agreement not to bring up the subject to avoid making things awkward.

And we are winning in this relationship. She leans way more toward power, while I lean toward money. Even though the relationship between money and power is symbiotic, people end up having their preferences. Money without power is looking for trouble, and power without money is fragile. So, even if you choose one, you still need the other.

Pepper broke my train of thought. "About Marshmello, we are going to launch the album next week," she said.

I nodded. "Yeah, you would have to be a recluse not to know. It's being advertised everywhere."

Pepper just confirmed, "There will be eighteen songs, more than usual for an album. Analysts are already predicting it will be the best-selling album of the year."

I nodded again without showing much reaction.

Doesn't surprise me. They're massive hits from the biggest names in electronic music in my past life...

Pepper continued, "We have already closed a deal with the next big singer. Christina Aguilera. And we are opening negotiations with Britney."

Then she added, "After that, we can release the premium version with both of them," making an "okay" gesture.

"Aye, you demon capitalist," I said.

"Says the one who loves money. And we already told everyone that the premium version would come later..."

---

After the meeting, I drove back to Uncle Charlie's house.

I found him in the living room, watching TV with a beer in hand.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"I'm working," Charlie replied casually.

"You still do that?" I asked, weirdly surprised.

"From time to time," he raised an eyebrow and answered.

Yeah, like almost never, I thought. Uncle Charlie barely worked when I first got here, and after I helped him make even more money, he worked even less. From what I can tell, he still does a jingle or two once in a while (maybe to kill the boredom).

Gramma still works. She probably loves it, and it's a way to interact with people. Dad just works the bare minimum, seeing only a few of his longtime patients—the ones he actually likes. Since he doesn't have to pay alimony (not that it would make any dent in my or mom's expenses), he's basically carefree.

He also partially moved back into our old house—the one Mom and I were living in before. It's a great place, even if it's nowhere near the level of my house in Santa Monica. We had done a lot of renovations last year and earlier this year... (except for the pipes).

I said partially, because he still lives here, with Uncle Charlie. That's because I said I didn't want to move out of here—so, on the days I stay, he stays too. They won't admit it, but it brought them closer. Turns out, living alone all the time can be pretty lonely.

Alan then walked in and said, "Hey Charlie, wanna come to the movies with us?"

"He can't, he's working," I said.

Alan looked at Charlie, sitting with his beer, and said sarcastically, "Oh what, liver failure?"

"Wonderful. Now I have my doctor here," Charlie replied, unamused.

Well, they still bicker, though...

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