Emma sat down on her dark, chocolate colored couch. Then she sort of stayed there until the couch sunk under her buttocks. She felt both a bit tired, but also a bit of amused with what had happened to her in the mall. She even felt a little excited even.
Her house was very simple. There were barely any house decorations in it. She just didn't have the time to do it. Her apartment was plain and simple. It had no curtains and there were no flowers or vases or even picture frames. There was a flat screen though, but nothing much there, not even a rug. It looked as if no one was living there and that someone was just moving in.
Emma laid back and closed her eyes as she rested. She didn't really have a care in the world. She remembered the Mars Mall incident again and laughed. She thought it was hilarious. Then her phone rung. She reached her purse, opened it and then read the screen. It was her cousin, Emilio's name on the screen. She picked it up.
"Yes?" Emma asked.
"Are you home?" Emilio asked her. She laid down on her couch.
"I just got here. What, do you have me timed or something?" She asked him. Emilio looked at his watch.
"Not really, but I am glad I was able to reach you. Look, I just want to let you know that the footage has been edited. I didn't want to put on YouTube until you saw the edits," Emilio said.
"Okay, great. I'm going to turn my computer on now and check them out and call you back ASAP," Emma said. She walked to her "office" which was actually just the dinning room. She didn't eat at her table anyway. She used to eat in her couch and watched T.V. She had terrible habits. Emma yawned and took off the skirt that was driving her crazy. She was going to just toss to the floor, but she decided to do something else with it. She opened her window and threw it out. The skirt flew out her widow gently as it navigated with the wind. At a strange pace, the skirt went down until it reached the front steps where the so called "men" were still there.
"What the fuck?" said Kano. Emma couldn't hear him, but she did close the door before he looked up at the apartment building to see who the hell had thrown the skirt out. In her panties, she walked to the dinning room, sat on a chair and switched her computer on. She turned on the Internet and then checked her email to see the edits. She played them and noticed everything. Once it was done, she called Emilio to talk to him about her opinion.
"Emilio, I like it, but I think we should add that camera dude who was a deuce," Emma told him.
"I was thinking of adding that to another video," Emilio said.
"Two videos? I think that's good," Emma replied.
"Okay, great. So what do you think about the edits?" Emilio asked her.
"They're good, but I wonder if there's a better shot of Alexander," Emma told him.
"No. I'm sorry. I was lucky to have that take," Emilio said. Emma accepted it.
"Okay. I think it's fine. Alexander's shot isn't the best, but if this is the best that we have, then we'll have to use it," Emma told him. Emilio nodded although she couldn't see him.
"Great. So, do I post it?" Emilio asked her.
"Yeah. I think we're good to go," Emma replied.
"Great," Emilio said and hung up the phone. Emma called him up again.
"Yes?" Emilio asked when he answered the phone.
"I have a plan and you didn't even listen me out," Emma said.
"Oh. I forgot. I thought you were kidding about that," Emilio said.
"No. I wasn't kidding about that. I really do have a plan for us," Emma explained.
"I hope this doesn't have to do with what happened today, does it? That whole charade…" Emilio asked worriedly.
"No. Look, we need to sell fake news," Emma said as a matter of fact. Emilio was caught by surprise and shocked by this.
"What?" Emilio asked. He couldn't believe what she was saying.
"You heard me. We need to start selling fake news. We'll do it little by little. It's the only way to gain quick cash," Emma said. Emilio just couldn't believe what he was hearing. What the fuck was going on and who the hell was this person?
"Emma, what the fuck? You're a reporter. You're not supposed to be selling fake news. You're supposed to be reporting the truth. It's what you get paid for," Emilio replied with an annoyed edge in his voice.
"Look, I can't have you in my team if we can't do this. I need you to support me, not to give me shit," Emma replied.
"Emma, it's not a good idea. We could get sued for libel or something. We just don't have the resources to deal with that issue if it does come. Look, I know you're frustrated with this whole Mancinni thing. I know you think there's no justice or whatever-"
"There is no justice! Emilio you saw what happened. You heard the verdict and the reaction of the press and the worst thing about all of this is that people believe in bullshit and not in the truth. It's what fucking sells. Now, I'm tired of my situation and I want my money. I want my shit. I want to leave to Paris. This is the way," Emma replied interrupting him. Emilio sighed. He didn't like this one bit and he was trying to reason with her.
"Emma, please be reasonable. If we get caught-"
"If we do it right, we won't get caught and if there even is a slightest possibility of getting caught we'll be out of the country by then. Emilio, I have two months of debt on my apartment. I just received a second eviction letter. I am trying to do everything I can do keep afloat, but this shit just doesn't hold water anymore. We need to do this if we want to have big rating numbers and get out of here," Emma replied. Emilio was silent for a while and his hesitation was making Emma anxious. After a moment of silence, she couldn't take it anymore, so she broke the silence between them.
"Emilio?"
"What kind of fake news are we talking about here?" Emilio asked reacting to her question.
"It's not going to be a big deal of it, but we do need to add some of it. It's just, stupid shit," Emma replied.
"Like what?"
"Look, I'm letting go the Mancinni thing, but we need to come up with excuses for some people, maybe for politicians. We might even go a little sensationalist," Emma replied.
"Politicians? Are you serious? These are the fucks who have this city all fucked up and you want to excuse their bullshit? Sensationalist? What the fuck? Why? Nobody's going to take us seriously if we take that route," Emilio said He sighed again. This was making him feel stressed. It was so wrong in so many levels. The whole point of making the videos was to report the truth, clean the city with accurate information.
"Emma… I don't know. I honestly don't agree with this and frankly I didn't expect this from you. You know that we were raised Catholic, I mean… I know we're not perfect and shit, but this is just… it's not right, Emma," He said. He pulled his hair a bit. He didn't like what Emma was saying. It almost made him feel sick to his stomach and he couldn't understand why Emma wouldn't just enter into reason.
"It's not getting us anywhere. What am I supposed to do? Should I just abandon my apartment and go be homeless or something? We don't have a lot of choices here and I can't have two jobs. I just can't," Emma replied.
"Who said anything about having two jobs. I never mentioned that alternative, although I don't… never mind… Look if this is about money, I could lend you some," Emilio said.
"Emilio this isn't about some money. This is about a lot of money, a ton of it. Look, I need you and I can't do this alone, that's the truth. This is just… look… it's just… look at it as if it's entertainment. Nobody's going to believe us anyway, at least, nobody that matters," Emma replied. Emilio sighed again before he replied. She didn't seem to be accepting reason or logic. He was beginning to feel that maybe this whole argument was just pointless. It made Emma nervous and she started shaking her leg under the table. It was her nervous tick.
"Well?" Emma said, almost breathless. Her heart beat fast. She hoped Emilio wouldn't say no.
"If it gets out of hand, we'll end it. That's the deal and if it doesn't end, I'm gone," Emilio said.
"Okay. I agree," Emma said. Emilio raised an eyebrow suspiciously. She couldn't see him of course, but it was his natural reaction.
"Okay… But I want you to know that I don't like this idea one bit," Emilio said.
"Okay," Emma said.
"I want to be sure that if anything happens Emma, I won't be held responsible. I want it written," Emilio said.
"Okay. I'll write a disclosure for you," Emma said.
"Okay. Bye," Emilio said hanging up. At first Emma sort of felt guilty about it, but then she just pushed that guilt aside. This was no time to act like a whuss. If she wanted money, she was just going to have to take it and as for Emilio, she thought that as soon as he saw the money coming in he would realize that she was right and that her whole plan made more sense than what he gave her credit for.
"Ah… fuck it. It's time for us to get paid. We'll be fine," she said. Then, she closed her laptop, went to take a quick shower and headed straight to her bedroom. She was so tired that she didn't even wear pajamas. That night, she just laid in her bed and covered herself, but under the sheets she was naked.