Free Web NovelChapter 29: Press Confrence
His tone softened, like he thought he was doing me a favor. "Valerie, I know this is hard. But what we had is over and I mean it. You don’t need to hold onto grudge or anything against Amara. She is innocent in all of this."
Apparently it had taken him a matter of days to close the door on five years like it was nothing.
"And I am not innocent?" I said. "Everything I gave up, everything I sacrificed, none of that counts for anything with you? Even a dog wags its tail for someone who is kind to it."
"Watch it," he snapped. "We were both in this by choice. I never asked you to give up so much. That was on you."
I didn’t answer. There was a knock at the door and the makeup artist stepped in. I had nothing left worth saying to him anyway, so I got up and went to let her in. He turned to leave, pausing at the door just long enough to fire off one last order at Quinn.
"Keep an eye on her. Make sure she doesn’t do anything out of line or cause trouble."
"Understood," Quinn said, nodding.
The event started at nine, with my segment scheduled for nine thirty. Standard order, a company rep would open things up before the guest was brought out. By the time I was ready to go on, the show was already underway. I’d gone with a silver deep V dress, hair swept to one side in soft curls. Nothing overdone. I never needed drama to make an entrance work.
"Valerie, get ready, you’re up soon." Quinn’s voice had an edge to it, nerves she wasn’t quite hiding.
"We’re right here." Nicole squeezed my arm.
I nodded at both of them. There was nothing to be nervous about. Today I was firing the first real shot at Xova, and all I needed was a clear head and steady hands.
"Go," Quinn said, and walked me out.
The hall itself wasn’t huge, maybe two hundred seats, but I knew the real audience went well past the room. People were watching from their phones too, waiting for me to embarrass myself endorsing something worthless. They wanted a spectacle. They were about to get one, just not the kind they were expecting.
The host’s introduction rang out and I walked to the front of the stage. It had been a long time since I’d stood under a spotlight like this one, and for a second I let myself feel it settle back over me.
"Our Valerie really does have those legs! Let’s start things off with a few words from her."
He handed me the mic and I turned to face nearly two hundred people, breathing steady.
"Hello everyone. I’m Valerie."
"Welcome, Valerie! We’re honored to have you here, especially with how much your popularity’s been climbing lately. Thank you for coming out to support us." He kept the energy high, practically bouncing. "Can I ask you something?"
"Go ahead."
"I understand you’ve used our product personally. Could you tell us how it made you feel?"
Used it. I let the faintest frown cross my face, just for a beat.
Online, the stream comments were already flooding in, calling me a sellout, throwing up edited images, wondering how many people would actually fall for it. None of it surprised me. I already knew exactly what was waiting for me out there. I glanced at Liam, then at Quinn and Nicole, found my angle in front of the camera, and opened my mouth.
"First, I want to thank my agency, Xova Entertainment, for arranging my appearance at an event for a product I’d never even heard of before today."
The room shifted.
"Second, even though I was put on this stage without any real say in it, my integrity as a model is still mine to keep. I won’t endorse something consumers can’t trust. So to be clear, I have not used this product, and I would not recommend it."
I let that sit for exactly as long as it needed to.
"And finally, thank you to everyone watching. Even if this costs my career something, I’m not compromising on what I stand for."
Three statements, delivered fast enough that nobody had a chance to jump in or steer me off course. Before the room could fully catch up with what had just happened, I leaned back toward the mic one more time.
"I, Valerie, would like to use this moment to officially announce my comeback. Something much bigger is coming. Thank you all for your support."
I bowed into the stunned silence and walked offstage without rushing a single step.
Liam’s face had gone completely rigid. Quinn and Nicole, standing just off to the side, looked like they were fighting to keep their expressions neutral while something electric buzzed underneath.
Online, it exploded.
Did Valerie really just say that? I need to rewind this five times. How is she so calm?
I came here ready to drag her and she flipped the whole thing around on me. That was a straight up slap to the face.
Who else has the nerve to call out their own agency and client at a live event? Only Valerie.
She’s making a comeback? I am SO ready. Cannot wait.
The host’s face when she finished talking. Priceless. I’ve watched that part four times.
So glad I didn’t give up on her. She’s the only model I’m rooting for from here on out.
It wasn’t just her fans, either. Popular accounts clipped the two minute segment and had it spreading everywhere within minutes. Every ounce of bad press that had been piling up around my name got swept off the table in one clean move.
But stepping off that stage didn’t get me applause. Liam and the client were already coming straight at me, and the client jabbed a finger toward my face.
"Is something wrong with you? Someone at your level actually had the nerve to pull this in front of everyone?" His voice shook with fury. "Did you think this was your own personal press conference?"
