"Good morning!" Debbie greeted Isa as soon as she walked out of their room.
It was an unusual sight for Isa. Debbie was always late to wake up and prepare for work. Today she was already at the dining table going thru their messages and emails.
"Good morning." Isa greeted her sister back. "Wow, you even cooked." Isa was impressed.
Debbie showed her laptop to Isa, "look here." There are numerous emails from different brands and messages from fans in their social media handles. "Can you see how many more I haven't read yet?" She excitedly told her sister.
"That's great, get them all as sponsors so we can get this over with!" Isa blurted out in enthusiasm.
"Condoms, cheap motels, strip bars. No, sis, we can't just accept everything. We still need to select to protect your brand." Debbie sounded like a real manager.
"Seriously? So, I think the aura of sultry and mystery is working." Isa analyzed how they are drawing in sponsors.
"Yes, there are even news centers trying to pry open your identity. They all think it is a good scoop." Debbie chuckled, showing her the messages. "This is crazy." She added and browsed some more. Debbie paused and glanced at the ceiling. "I think I should focus on this and resign from work." She said and blew out her cheeks.
Isa's eyes grew big, "Ahm, well that is such a big decision… that is your dream job, how can you leave it just like that?" She did not want her sister to jump the gun while they were just starting their gig. She gasped as she thought of a good idea. "We could hire additional help while the workload is too much for you."
"Okay, but we have to make sure that one could keep our secret." Debbie was more concerned about possible leaks of Bella's identity rather than leaving her job.
Isa smiled at Debbie. She's got the perfect person in mind. "I got it, just give me the log-in details." She urged Debbie to continue with her work.
"Sure, I might drop by at your store later after. I've sold dad's car so we'll be going home by bus tonight." Debbie said and stood up as if she was in a rush.
***
"Good morning, my dear friend Jack!" Isa said as soon as she opened the door. She looked around, and it was perfect timing as there were no other customers inside the store.
Jack knew exactly that Isa was onto something. "Hmm, your gorgeous friend is here. What can I do for you?" He asked Isa, who was bringing a cup of coffee for him.
Isa explained everything to Jack and he instantly committed to helping her. "This isn't even a job for a naturally nosy person like me." Jack said as he browsed the messages Bella received. "Hmm there are a lot of men in here" Jack smirked at Isa… "Oh, and some women too." He continued browsing the messages.
Isa just laughed it off and left Jack with the tedious task of screening possible business deals her handles received. "There are witty messages here, topics for your future podcasts. Girl, they are all dying to meet you." Jack was just blown away by how Bella just went viral.
"I did not expect it to get viral that quickly. I wonder what made it a hit?" Isa could not put a finger on it. It becomes especially hard for them to replicate the success since they are not really sure what made them successful in the first place. She started browsing trending topics and, to her surprise, she got the top four trending topics: #MoreBellaMoore, #LoveOrLust, #LoveGuru, and the top one was "BellaNatics.
Isa was left speechless. Never in her wildest dreams had she expected such a number of people are actually talking about her and the show. It only built up more pressure for her to live up to people's expectations.
Jack sorted the messages so Debbie could contact the businesses that were offering sponsorships for the podcast. But there was one particular fan that caught Jack's eyes. "You have a persistent fan over here, girl." He said and looked in Isa's direction. "His name is Cayden."
Isa's jaw dropped. "What? Can you say that again?" She asked Jack, as she walked towards him to check out the profile of the person he was talking about. "What is he saying?
Jack handed Isa the laptop. "Hmm, it is just an alter account. He says nothing much, he just sent praises to you and rants about how he loves listening to everything you have to say." He chuckled at the irony that most men prefer women to stop nagging.
Isa's heart was beating too strongly. Deep inside, not knowing if she wishes this is the Cayden she knows or not. She explored the profile page and Jack was correct. It was a dead end; no past posts and just a default profile photo. The weird thing also is that he does not follow any other artists other than her. It is as if he dedicated this profile to Bella solely.
"I'm here." Debbie unnecessarily announced her arrival, which made Isa and Jack laugh mirthlessly. They were closing the store for the day. They were just waiting for Debbie so they could go home.
"Sis, this is the person I was telling you about earlier. His name is Jack." Isa introduced Jack to her sister.
Debbie looked at Jack from head to foot, as if analyzing if they could really trust him with their secret. She did not mind if her stare was uncomfortable for Jack.
Jack felt every inch of Debbie's stare, but it did not bother him that much. He actually laughed at Debbie's antics. "I like your sister already." He said while Debbie was walking around him.
"Hmm, I just want to make sure my sister is in safe hands." Debbie said in a serious tone. "Hmm, okay, approved!" She finally said with a thumbs up gesture to Isa.
The entire scene was confusing for Isa. "Just how would you know that by just looking at him?" She asked Debbie.
"I didn't. I trust your judgment. But I just wanted to know if he was crazy enough to put up with me." She blurted out and laughed.
***
Ten minutes before live, Debbie handed Isa a list of sponsors she approved and paid for tonight's live podcast. Isa browsed the list and was surprised how random their sponsors are. "What type of ads are these?" She asked Debbie.
"The ones on the red box are the major sponsors, you should use their brand seamlessly during discussions and the ones on the green will just be mentioned as credits." Debbie explained to Isa.
Isa nodded and confirmed she understood Debbie's instructions. Debby knew Isa's level of wit and she was sure that she would be able to incorporate them into the live streaming. She sat in her chair waiting for Debbie's countdown.
"Three, two, one!" Isa looked in Debbie's direction as she gave the cue to start. "Hello there loves. This is your favorite love guru, Bella Moore." Isa turned to Bella with a snap of a finger. Suddenly she was talking in a different mood, as if Bella swallowed Isa whole. "A little bird told me that some boys and girls have been naughty since last night." She chuckled. "I appreciate all of your love. Enough drama now. Let's get into action. I've prepared a good discussion for tonight. In this time and age, are looks still the main selling point for a relationship?"
Debbie casted the stream numbers to Bella. Less than a minute in and they already have more than five thousand viewers. Bella smiled, seeing they were back on track. "Loves, our listeners are now around five thousand. I'm proud of my Bellanatics. Can we get more?" She thanked her fans.
Debbie signaled to Isa that there was a caller waiting in the line. "Hello, Ms. Bella? My name is Felicity. I want to answer your question."
"Oh, hello there, Ms. Felicity, sure please do." Bella gave the woman her airtime. She sounded young and classy. Not the typical type who would tune in on a podcast like this.
"Physical appearance as the main selling point. Yes, it is. However, for a lasting one, it is what is inside that matters most." She poured her thoughts.
Bella expected this beauty contest type of answer, "Hmm, so you are telling me your boyfriend looks good but is bad in other departments?" She needed to urge her caller to spill some tea to make the conversation more interesting.
"Well, I would not say bad per se, rather, he is lacking in some department," Felicity said. She paused, as if thinking if it would be wise to continue.
"Ooh, Interesting. Lacking in what department? Is it the bedroom department?" Bella threw intrigues into the conversation.
Felicity instantly answered defensively. "No, of course not. My fiancé is actually the best sex I've ever had."
"Then, what is the problem? Is he poor? Or perhaps a criminal?" Bella wanted to dig deeper.
Felicity laughed out loud. "Oh, gosh no. He is rich, filthy rich. It's just that our relationship does not feel right." Her tone suddenly changed.
"Are you the other woman?" Bella was straight to the point.
"No. His job comes first, so it certainly feels like I'm the other woman," Felicity said in a low voice.
Bella looked in Debbie's direction, and she looked ecstatic. Their views just doubled. "Well, I think you are giving so much of your time to him that you feel like he is lacking because he can not match it. Why don't you try not giving it to him too? See if he misses you the way you do." Bella was positive about her advice.
There was a few seconds of silence between them. "You are right, I am a busy woman and I will show him what he is missing." There was a slight boost of confidence in her voice. "I got to go. Thanks for listening." She ended the call.
"Let's hope Ms. Felicity calls us back for an update." Bella made her listeners look forward to the next podcasts. Debbie transferred another caller to her.
"We have another caller. Hello Love, tell us your name." Bella said to the second caller.
There was heavy breathing on the other side. "I love how you called me Love." He paused. "My name is Cayden."