The door closed behind them.
Aurora remained outside the conference room with Mia.
Leon had been the last to go in.
Before entering, he had looked at Richard.
Then Marcus.
And finally, he had simply closed the door.
Mia watched Aurora for a moment.
"Are you okay?"
Aurora nodded.
"Yeah. Don't worry."
Mia kept looking at her for a few more seconds.
"Okay."
She didn't say anything else.
Inside the conference room, the draft contract lay on the table in front of Leon.
Unopened.
Richard gestured toward it.
"You haven't opened it."
"No."
"Why?"
"I'm not selling the rights."
Richard leaned back in his chair.
"That's why we're here."
"That's why you called me."
Marcus looked up.
Leon continued.
"And that's why I turned down the other two offers."
Richard remained silent.
"I have something else in mind."
"What?"
Leon turned to him.
"If I weren't here to sell you the rights, would you still be willing to hear what I have to offer?"
Richard studied him for a few seconds.
"I'm here."
Ethan opened the folder in front of him.
He pulled out a document and slid it across the table.
Richard picked it up.
Two words were printed on the cover.
MONDO FANTASIA
He opened it.
Aurora had returned to her desk.
Mia stopped beside her.
"Want something to drink?"
Aurora shook her head.
Then changed her mind.
"A coffee."
"For you?"
Aurora glanced toward the conference room.
"For everyone."
She stood up.
As she was preparing the first coffee, the door opened.
Marcus came out with Ethan.
"Aurora."
She turned.
Marcus gestured toward the cups.
"Can you bring four?"
"Of course."
Ethan met her gaze.
Just for a moment.
Then he followed Marcus back inside.
Aurora finished making the coffees.
When she entered the conference room, Richard still had the document in front of him.
Open.
Marcus was back in his seat.
Ethan sat beside Leon.
The draft contract they had started the meeting with had been pushed aside.
Aurora set down the cups one by one.
Marcus.
Richard.
Ethan.
Leon.
Leon didn't turn around.
His attention remained on Richard.
"Thank you," Richard said.
"You're welcome."
Aurora left.
The door closed again.
Time passed.
Aurora went back to work.
She answered two emails, checked a few revisions, and organized the documents left on her desk.
Mia, on the other hand, kept glancing toward the conference room.
Through the glass walls, they could make out little more than movement.
Richard sitting on one side.
Marcus beside him.
Ethan on the other.
Leon across from them.
At one point, Mia leaned forward slightly.
"They're still talking."
Aurora kept typing.
"It's a meeting."
Mia looked at her.
"Thank you, Aurora."
She looked up.
Mia gave her a faint smile.
Aurora turned back to her screen.
More time passed.
Then Mia straightened.
"They're done."
Aurora didn't turn around immediately.
She saved the document.
Only then did she look up.
The door opened.
Richard came out first.
Marcus followed him.
Ethan remained near the door.
Leon came out last.
Richard was still holding the Mondo Fantasia document.
"The proposal is clear," he said. "Tomorrow we'll review it with production, development, and creative."
Leon nodded.
"We'll get back to you as soon as possible."
"All right."
Richard held out his hand.
Leon shook it.
As he let go, he said,
"I intend to get started."
There was no pressure in his voice.
Just a statement.
Richard watched him for a moment.
Then he gave a faint smile.
Leon nodded.
Nothing else needed to be said.
He turned.
Ethan joined him, and the two walked away down the hallway.
Richard remained still for a few seconds.
Then he lowered his gaze to the cover.
Marcus stopped beside him.
"So?"
Richard ran his thumb along the edge of the pages.
"He came in knowing exactly what he wanted and exactly what what he was offering was worth."
Marcus glanced toward the hallway.
Richard handed him the document.
"Tomorrow morning."
"Production, development, and creative?"
"Yes."
Marcus took it.
Richard gave one last look toward the now-empty hallway.
"Let's see if the proposal holds up even without him in the room."
Then he returned to his office.
Outside the building, Leon stopped on the sidewalk.
Ethan had gone to get the car.
Leon slipped a hand into his jacket pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes.
He took one out.
Lit it.
Took a drag.
The smoke lingered in his mouth for a few seconds before he slowly exhaled.
Leon lowered his eyes.
Then he smiled.
A brief smile.
Ethan's car appeared at the end of the street.
Leon dropped the cigarette, crushed it beneath his shoe, and got in.
The general meeting was held the following morning.
The room was full.
The entire creative department, production, development, the story editors.
Marcus.
Richard.
Aurora.
Mia.
Everyone had a copy of the same document in front of them.
MONDO FANTASIA
One of the editors flipped through the first few pages, then looked up.
"Wait. Weren't we supposed to buy the rights from the author?"
Richard shook his head.
"That was what we intended to do."
He leaned back in his chair.
"Leon doesn't want to sell."
A brief silence.
Another editor looked down at the document.
"Then what exactly is he proposing?"
Marcus answered.
"A partnership."
Someone stopped turning the pages.
"So this is an entirely different deal."
"Exactly," Richard said. "We're not considering buying a story. We're considering developing it together with Mondo Fantasia."
Mia was one of the first to speak.
"The projections are solid," she said, flipping through the pages. "He already has a huge audience. And part of that audience is already asking to see the story on screen."
Another editor nodded.
"And he's splitting the costs fifty-fifty. He isn't putting all the risk on us."
"No," Richard said. "Mondo Fantasia brings the story, half the investment, and the project's creative direction. We provide our infrastructure, personnel, and distribution."
Marcus turned a page.
"If we move forward, we'll put together a team with the people best suited to the project. Leon will work directly with them."
They moved on to costs.
Timelines.
The resources they would need.
The numbers were sustainable.
The infrastructure was already in place.
The audience already existed.
And the proposal allowed the studio to enter the project without taking on the entire investment or the entire risk alone.
Marcus looked around the room.
"I'd say the majority is in favor."
Voices of agreement followed around the table.
Richard turned to Aurora.
"You?"
Aurora flipped through one more page.
Then she looked up.
"From a production standpoint, it makes sense. The cost structure is realistic."
Richard nodded.
"So that's a yes."
"Yes."
Aurora closed the document.
"It's a solid proposal."
No one added anything else.
Richard looked around the table.
Then he closed his own copy.
"Let's move forward."
Chairs began to scrape back.
One by one, they left the room.
Aurora stayed behind to gather the documents.
She stacked them neatly.
Last, she picked up the Mondo Fantasia document.
She closed it.
And stared at it.
"I hope I don't have to deal with him again."
The words slipped out quietly.
Aurora lowered her gaze to the cover.
MONDO FANTASIA.
She remained still for a moment.
Then she placed the document on top of the others, gathered them in her arms, and left the room.
Back at her desk, she set them beside her computer.
Her phone vibrated.
Aurora looked down.
An incoming call.
Ethan.