Chapter Two: Landing the Role
Anya's friend Mel was the most stubborn woman she had ever met. The two of them had a strong bond that developed from almost a lifetime of friendship, but despite their long history together, they had never really quarreled. They would go to the ends of the earth for each other. At times, Anya even suspected her friend may have wanted to become more than just a friend, but she shrugged it off, believing it just to be a deep, but ultimately platonic, connection.
Anya knew that her friend would be happy to accompany her to the next audition and give her the confidence boost she needed. At first, when Anya revealed her apprehension to perform in the nude, Mel tried to talk her into it; she recognized Anya's desire to be seen as a serious, professional actress, and believed that depriving herself of roles that required nudity would only hurt her in the long run. However, Mel eventually realized that Anya wouldn't be swayed, and promised to support her friend in the second audition.
The pair arrived at the audition and went through the usual motions. Anya was greeted by familiar faces Griff and Sharon, who introduced her to the executive producer, Mitch, who would be with them today. Mitch towered over them, and Anya couldn't tell if he was immensely fat or extremely buff, but in any case, she felt immediately intimidated. When she looked at her completely unfazed friend, however, she knew together they could face him down.
She began by performing another scene from the show. Just like last time, she blew away her entire audience. Mitch was clearly impressed, and for a second Anya thought she might successfully make her demand, until he began speaking.
"Clearly you have the acting chops for this role," he bellowed, "but Sharon and Griff here told me you didn't strip for them. I understand your hesitation, but I hope you understand why this is so important. So before we continue, we need to- "
As he spoke, Anya nervously eyed her friend. Mel spoke confidently, "Anya isn't doing the nudity. But you're still going to give her the part. You know she's better than anyone else." Anya was proud of her friend for being there to help, but she worried that Mel may have been a bit too stern.
Although Mitch did not seem concerned by her statement, the others immediately erupted. Sharon blurted out, "Is that true Anya!? Why didn't you say so last time, you're just wasting our time here!"
Griff screamed, "Mitch, I swear we had no idea! If she was just honest with us last time, we wouldn't have brought her back! We told her it wasn't negotiable!"
Mitch looked over at Anya and saw that she was almost brought to tears, before responding to his colleagues, "What's gotten into you two! This is no way to treat our guest. Out with you both, you're clearly just upsetting her. I'll sort this out." Not wanting to get on his bad side, Griff and Sharon both left the room in a huff. "I apologize on their behalf. They get a bit carried away when things don't go exactly as they expect."
Anya responded, "it's okay... they were right. I really should have told them last time."
Mel supported her, saying "you made the right call. You know you deserve this job, but those creeps would never have asked you back if you had told the truth."
