Post by Grisha on Sept 5, 2021 15:27:00 GMT -8
They were in a hovercraft again, traveling somewhere. Gazing out the window, Grisha knew that they weren’t going to the barber or shopping. He was completely adorned in Muscle Fuel merchandise today: cap, sunglasses, muscle shirt, sweatpants, and sneakers. The clothes were comfortable, and so Grisha had no complaints. Judy sat across from him wearing a light-blue tank top with black and dark-grey leggings, which were also property of Muscle Fuel. She could see the curious look on Grisha’s face, and she smiled at him.
“This is going to be your first time at a fitness expo. You may have some fans there,” Judy said.
“What is expo?” Grisha asked.
“It’s a public event. The theme of this expo is fitness and so there will be various athletes, nutritionists, dietitians and celebrities there. We need to represent Muscle Fuel so we can attract more business. It will be fun, Grisha—probably the most fun you will have so far since you started working for us.”
Fun? It was going to be fun, he wondered. He hoped Judy’s definition of fun was the same as his. The vehicle landed alongside a curb for temporary parking. The driver exited the vehicle and walked around to open the door for the two. Judy stepped out first, and then Grisha. Before them were several men and women—old and young—heading toward a building covered in windows. Grisha and Judy started to follow the crowd. They skipped the admission line, meeting a few Muscle Fuel staff members who had secured a booth at the expo. They presented Grisha and Judy with special access badges and lanyards.
“Don’t lose that badge Grisha. You have to wear it for as long as you’re here,” she told him.
Grisha held the badge up, focusing on the letters that Ms. Bridget had been teaching him.
Muscle Fuel Guy?
Grisha looked up from his badge and saw a young bro staring at him with eyes shining with hope. Judy beamed and nodded. “Yes, that’s him. His name is Grisha,” she introduced.
“Hey! It’s Muscle Fuel Guy!” the young bro shouted over to his friends.
Soon Grisha was surrounded by gym bros who were gawking at how tall and big he was. “Dude, he’s so much bigger in person.”
“He’s enormous!”
“That shark video. Dude, did you really punch one? They said it wasn’t edited.”
Grisha blankly held up a fist. “Shark try to eat me. I punch it.”
“SICK!” they cheered.
“I can’t believe he’s really here. Dude, quick. Get a photo of me and him,” one bro told his other bros.
The bro stood before Grisha curling his arms and flexing. He grinned up at Grisha who found his enthusiasm infectious. A broad grin expanded on Grisha’s face, and he too, raised his arms, flexing along with the bro. Judy laughed, watching all the bros each take their turn doing some silly pose with Grisha.
“Yes! Dude, this is so awesome! Oh shit, wait. Can you do the power thing?” he asked.
Grisha gave the boy a blank stare. It had been years since he recorded his first commercial. Judy reminded him, “You remember Grisha. It was your first commercial where you screamed power.”
“I remember the lines! If I say them, will you do the roar?” the bro asked.
Grisha believed that he somewhat remembered the commercial. “Okay,” he agreed.
Power running! Power lifting! Power sleeping! Power dating! Power eating! Power laughing!
Grisha’s eyes widened behind his sunglasses. He remembered. It was all coming back to him, and he felt the anxiety and excitement building inside of him as he waited for the bro to say the line.
Try Muscle Fuel, the energy drink that gives you more…
Grisha threw back his head and roared, POOOOOOOOWWWWEEEEERRRR~!
For five seconds, all noise, hustle, and bustle halted as Grisha’s bellow resonated throughout the expo. Everyone turned to look at him, and soon fans who had remembered the videos were shouting, Muscle Fuel Guy! Hey! It’s Muscle Fuel Guy! Muscle Fuel Guy is here!
While the bros were hopping up and down like monkeys thrilled about having captured the video of Grisha roaring, the crowd thickened around him. Judy was suddenly standing in front of Grisha like a bodyguard as fans closed in taking pictures of him.
Muscle Fuel Guy!
Oh my god! He’s really here!
A mysterious man in a shark costume shoved his way through the crowd and stood in front of Grisha with its comically, large triangular teeth chomping at him. Grisha stared stupidly into the shark’s mouth, seeing a pair of glasses.
Punch it!
Punch it!
Punch it!
The crowd started to chant. Judy, fearing that Grisha actually would, turned to face him and warned, “Grisha, you better not! There’s a person inside that shark. It’s just a costume!”
A costume? A skin? That explained everything. Grisha cranked back his arm with an amused grin and slowly threw a punch at the shark. He froze right when his fist connected with its jaw. The shark dramatically leaned back as though punched, pausing for the hundreds of cameras to capture the reenactment. Judy had to hide behind Grisha to keep from getting caught within the photos.
Grisha is more famous than we expected. We need backup, she thought, while she called Mr. Spatzleburg. She raised her cell phone to her ear, pressing a hand against Grisha’s back as though he were a concrete wall. “Hello! Mr. Spatzleburg! Can you hear me?”
“Woah! The expo is very busy today, isn’t it?” Mr. Spatzleburg laughed.
“Mr. Spatzleburg, that is the sound of Grisha’s fans!”
Stefan’s eyes shrank into little dots in shock and disbelief. “A-re?”
“I said they’re Grisha’s fans! We’re surrounded!”
Mr. Spatzleburg abruptly stood from his office chair and spat at his phone with greed, “Are you guys at the booth?”
“Uh, no. We were trying to head there but-”
“GET THERE NOW! START HANDING OUT MERCHANDISE! GO, GO, GO!”
“Uh-uh, y-yes Sir!”
Mr. Spatzleburg hung up the phone and ran out of his office in delight. “Diane! The chopper!”
The secretary playfully saluted. “On it, Sir!”
Meanwhile, Judy knocked on Grisha’s back as though it were a door. The giant peered over his shoulder to see her. She pointed for them to go. “We need to go to the booth!” she yelled above all the noise.
The great thing about being tall was that Grisha could see over the heads of most of his fans. He saw the Muscle Fuel booth and recognized the logo before he read what the words meant. He started for the booth without a care for the people in front of him. They opened a path for him with Judy keeping her hand against his back so as not to lose him. Fans were herding behind them. When they reached it, Judy sighed in relief once she was safe and behind the table. She looked up at Grisha and pointed to a metal folding chair.
“Your job is to sit and write your name on whatever the fans want you to sign and make them happy.”
Grisha stared at the permanent marker and made a face. He knew how to write his name at least. If they asked him for more than that, then they were going to be upset. He pulled out the chair and sat in it. A line immediately formed, snaking toward the doors of the expo. Judy couldn’t believe how popular some old videos had become over the past two years.
Grisha signed multiple things from mugs, cans of Muscle Fuel, T-shirts, hats, et al; and he had taken more selfies than he could count (and he couldn’t count much). His brain felt like it was simmering in a pan within his skull. This was no longer fun. It had become a job, and Grisha was growing tired of doing it. His expression over time went from happy, to tired, to irritable.
A father set a T-shirt before Grisha and asked, “Hey, can you make this one out to my son? His name is Bradley. He doesn’t know I’m here. He would have come if it wasn’t exam week.”
Grisha wrote one word: Grisha and handed it back. The father stared at the T-shirt and then smiled sheepishly, trying not to seem rude. “Uh, this wasn’t what I asked.”
Grisha stared at the father through half-lidded eyes. Judy noticed a problem and she stepped away from the other Muscle Fuel staff members who were handing out merchandise to see the frustrated father. “Hello Sir, can I help you with something?”
“I want him to dedicate this shirt to my son, but all he did was sign it.”
Judy could see the sparks dancing above Grisha’s skull. I think he needs a break, she thought. She took the T-shirt from the father and wrote the dedication above Grisha’s signature. “There. Sorry. I think Grisha needs a break.”
She placed an out-for-lunch placard on the table and apologized to the customers, “Sorry! Grisha is taking a break. He’ll be back in a few hours!”
The crowd sighed and fussed as they started to disperse. Grisha crossed his arms upon the table and slammed his forehead down upon the top. It had felt like torture writing so much. “I’m sorry Grisha. You’re probably exhausted. We don’t have to return later. I think Muscle Fuel has gained more than enough sales.”
Stop! Right there!
Judy instantly straightened and bowed when she noticed Stefan marching toward her. He had walking next to him a young woman with blonde, flowing hair and two visible bodyguards behind her. The rest had the entire recreation center surrounded. She was wearing a pink tank top with grey yoga pants. When she arrived before the Muscle Fuel booth, she was staring down at the giant who was resting upon the signing table.
“Mr. Spatzleburg; I am surprised to see you here,” Judy said.
“I’m glad I came. I happened to run into Perry Milton on the way in,” Stefan shamelessly bragged.
It’s Perry Milton!
Miss Milton!
The blonde put on her best, practiced smile and waved at her fans, while the bodyguards kept them at bay. Tossing some blonde locks over her shoulders, she crossed her arms before her chest and said, “Is this the man who you want me to do a commercial with? You do know I charge extra for being seen with Muscle Heads, right? The media tends to think we’re dating and that’s a difficult problem to erase from my reputation.”
Judy elbowed Grisha. “Don’t be rude. Introduce yourself.”
Grisha sighed and sat up in his chair. He gave the blonde a tired and indifferent look before his eyes slid over to notice Stefan, motioning for him to remove his cap and sunglasses. When Grisha removed his shades and hat, Perry felt her heart seize in her chest. His slate-grey eyes met her glittering blue ones, causing her cheeks to pinken.
“My name is Grisha,” the giant introduced himself as he had learned in language class.
Perry noticed that his common tongue sounded almost scripted. “Is he foreign?”
“He comes from a village in the south pole, so you might have noticed his accent,” Stefan explained.
Handsome and exotic, Perry thought as she mentally cackled to herself. She cleared her throat and raised her nose into the air. “Ahem. I may make an exception for Grisha. It’s not everyday foreigners get a chance to meet a celebrity like myself. In fact, working with foreign models may be what the industry needs.”
Perry held out her hand, palm downward like a noble and said, “It is very nice to meet you Grisha. I look forward to working with you.”
Grisha, unsure what the girl was expecting, took hold of her hand in his. Perry was surprised at how large his hand was. His hand is so warm, large, and rough. He must train a lot. You know that’s not what you mean Perry! A shadow fell over Perry’s face. She retracted her hand all the way to her chest. “I suppose his etiquette could use some work”
Stefan nervously smiled and bowed, “He didn’t mean anything by it. We’ll make sure he knows how to greet you properly next time.”
Grisha had a blank and confused look on his face. Had he done something wrong? Judy was giving Perry a stare of exasperation. She sounded like a pain to be around, and she could see the oblivious look on Grisha’s face. She patted his shoulder to reassure him everything was fine before she informed Perry and Stefan: “Grisha is taking a break. Can we discuss the commercial later?”
An impish smile secretly curled upon Perry’s lips. “A break? Do you mean to lunch? I haven’t eaten, and I would be glad to go with Grisha somewhere. Afterall, I would like to get to know my future business partner.”
Both Stefan and Judy seemed to tense at the idea. “Uh, we were going to just order delivery. Grisha still has some autographs to sign.”
Grisha looked at Judy with further bewilderment. “Judy say Grisha no have to come back.”
Stefan’s right eye twitched as he looked at Judy, “Oh? Is that what Judy said?”
Judy trembled at the look Stefan was giving her. He was trying so hard to keep up his happy façade. He never liked when anyone got in the way of his money. Perry waved her hand dismissively at all the talk.
“Why order cheap trash when there are so many wonderful restaurants out there? If Grisha doesn’t have to come back to the expo, then he can just accompany me for the day.”
“What time would you like to set up a meeting to discuss the commercial?” Stefan asked.
“I don’t know what my schedule looks like off the top of my head. I will just call you later when we’re on our way.”
Stefan resisted the annoyed face he wanted to make. His entire life was controlled by his schedule. He didn’t like when appointments randomly inserted themselves. The director calmed his nerves some and told Judy, “Judy, give Grisha a credit card.”
“No need. I’ll handle it,” Perry stated. “Let us go Grisha.”
She held out her hand to him, and when Grisha rose from his chair, the model actress was shocked to see how big he really was. If she hadn’t taken his hand, then she might have gone weak in the knees. Grisha glanced down at the small hand that suddenly gripped his. Hm? he thought. He glanced at Stefan and Judy who were weakly waving.
“Have fun!” Stefan bade.
“Behave yourself Grisha. If you run into any trouble, call me.”