Frank sat back in his chair, his face gloomy. Across from him, his agent, Victor, leaned forward, waiting for him to speak.

"I feel like this guy is going to be a problem for me," Frank finally said, his tone heavy.

"Who?" Victor asked.

"Dayo—or should I say JD," Frank muttered. "I was at Michael's office when his assistant brought up his file. That means Michael's been watching him closely. And you know what it means when Michael is interested in somebody—it means the person has real potential. Can you imagine they had a whole file about him?"

"Imagine the level of interest towards him"

Victor raised a brow. He knew who JD was—he followed the news like everyone else—but he didn't want to say it aloud. Frank was insecure enough; admitting he already knew would only make him more paranoid.

"Who is JD? And are you sure you're not overthinking this?"

Frank shook his head firmly. "No. I know the look in Michael's eyes when he sees a prospect. And I've done my own research. The kid's good, too good. And now that he just announced he's competing in the Global Competition, it's clear he's not just hype. He's serious. This is something I can't ignore."

"And the fact that JD is someone on Michael's radar, how sure are you that he won't ghost on me?"

Victor felt his blood pressure rise, but he kept calm. He'd been working with Frank for two years and knew exactly how insecure he could get. Yes, Frank had talent, but he wasn't a workaholic. He relied too much on his father's connections. His father was a well-known movie producer with shares in a few record labels. Frank had the tools others could only dream of, but he never pushed himself hard enough.

"Okay, Frank, you need to chill. Let me break it down. Within the industry, Michael is a boss, yes, but he wouldn't risk losing a favor just to push JD. That's not Michael. You know very well that if a venture doesn't pay him, he won't commit."

Frank opened his mouth, but Victor cut him off. "Secondly, JD hasn't even signed to Michael's label, so there's no way Michael would prioritize him over you, someone he's already invested in. Calm down. Right now, you just need to focus on improving yourself before the raffle. Even with a claimed spot, if you don't perform, no miracle will save you."

Victor's words seemed to sink in. Frank finally sat back.

"Hmm… you're probably right. I'm just overthinking. I should focus on training, so when I defeat him, Michael's attention will be fully on me."

He stood, looking motivated, and walked out with his shoulders squared, as if he'd just solved a major problem.

Victor watched him go and sighed. "If not for the paycheck, how did I end up with him? Hmm… what we do for the green."

Before leaving, Victor made a quick call to the backer.

"Hello, sir."

"Yes. What's it?" the voice on the other end asked.

"It's concerning Frank," Victor said carefully.

Silence on the other side. The pause meant: continue.

"He's doubting himself because of Michael's attention on another artist."

"And were you able to resolve it?"

"Yes, sir."

"Do you feel this artist is a threat?"

Victor thought for a moment, weighing his words. "Not exactly. From reliable sources, I hear JD already has backing. And Michael, being Michael, will probably wait for the fruit to ripen before he takes the whole forest. He won't invest unless it guarantees him a return."

"Wait… you mean the person Michael is interested in is JD?"

"Uh… yes, sir."

The voice went quiet for a few seconds. Heavy breathing came through the line before the man spoke again. "Alright. Just make sure Frank stays focused."

"No problem, sir."

The call ended abruptly.

Victor sat in silence for a moment. He could sense something brewing around JD, but from experience, he knew not to dig too deep. Some fires were better left alone.

***

Back at JD's label, things were moving steadily. After Dayo traveled to Morocco, he left instructions for Wayne and Valery to update Lois on her album schedule so preparations could begin.

When they broke the news that the release was set for two months from now, Lois's reaction was immediate.

"What? Two months?!" she shouted, her voice sharp. "That's too long! I've been working on this album for months, and the label promised me it wouldn't drag. Why now?"

Wayne stayed calm, his hands clasped. "Lois, this wasn't random. The market is saturated right now. Dayo gave a clear instruction. There are too many albums already dropping this season. If we release yours now, it risks being buried. For a rookie's first album, the timing has to be perfect. Better to wait for the noise to die down, so your project gets the attention it deserves."

Wayne lied, trying to calm her down, because even he was in the dark about the whole situation.

But Lois's face hardened. She wasn't buying it. "Don't tell me about strategy. These songs are fire, and you know it. They'll stand out anywhere, anytime. I don't care who else is dropping."

Valery leaned forward, her tone even but firm. "Lois, listen. This isn't to frustrate you. It's to protect you. If your first album flops because of timing, it won't matter how good the songs are."

Lois let out a bitter laugh and shook her head. "Protect me? Please. This has Dayo written all over it. Was it because of what happened that he is stalling and trying to frustrate me?"

"Lois, no," Wayne said quickly. "That's not—"

But Lois cut him off, snatching her bag from the table. "Save it. I'm not stupid. I see exactly what's going on."

Her agent, Clara, rushed to her side, trying to soothe her. "Lois, please. Calm down. You're overthinking this. Let's just sit and talk it out properly."

But Lois pulled her arm away, her eyes flashing. "No, Clara. I've worked too hard to let anyone play games with me. It's as if they can't see the energy that I put into the song. You were there. I lost weight just to satisfy Dayo when he said I should re-record more than ten times. I would do it without much complaint, and now they are telling me this after promising it wouldn't take long."

She stormed out of the office, Clara trailing behind, still pleading with her to calm down.

Wayne and Valery sat in silence for a moment. Finally, Valery exhaled. "This isn't good. She's starting to act like this even without having her first album. How did her attitude change so much?"

Wayne sighed. "Probably when Dayo chose to ignore her approach and didn't caution her even when she made rude statements toward him."

"Yeah, you're probably right. But one thing I don't get is, even with all of that, where does she have the guts to talk that way about an album that she wrote nit a single song in?"

"I think it's because Dayo put her name on the lyrics so that it could build her credentials outside, so she doesn't look like one of those artists who don't have creativity—while she actually is one."

Wayne nodded slowly, concern written on his face. "Yeah. And if she keeps going down this path, it's going to be trouble."

"Yeah, for all of us."

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