April 12, 2016
Over a week later…

On one lazy afternoon after practice and lunch, the residents of the Monarossabergie House are lounging around their house. Nick Ritchie is on the sofa by the window in a deep sleep. Brandon Montour is sitting by the circular dining table on his laptop. Sitting direction across the table, facing the living room, is Joseph Cramarossa, who is on his laptop.

He has headphones on his head and his eyes glued on the screen. Yet on his face is a massive, closed smile.

Brandon peers up from the screen of his laptop, quickly spotting his roommate’s rare expression. This scary moment reminds him of the time he had the nightmare of his roommate singing and dancing happily. Oh no, not my nightmare…my nightmare can’t be coming true…!

He clears his throat, ready to make sure his roommate is still himself. “Um, Joey?”

Joseph perks up from his laptop, immediately switching to a chilled expression. “Yeah?”

He narrows his eyes at him. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah.” Joseph’s smile morphs into a massive smirk.

“What’s up with that-that—” He points to his face. “—look.”

Joseph promptly turns his laptop around and pushes it toward him. Brandon pushes his laptop aside leans toward the other laptop. Displaying on the screen is a YouTube video.

Joseph hits the space button and the video begins to play. It is a trailer for the documentary, Ice Guardians, containing clips of interviews, ice rinks, and the game of hockey. One clip is of Brian McGrattan, one of the San Diego Gulls, suiting up in the Gulls’ locker room.

Joseph immediately hits the spacebar, pausing the scene. He points his finger to the right of the screen. Brandon follows his direction, spotting a small Joseph in his own stall.

“See right there?” He taps on the screen. “See?”

Brandon nods his head. “Yeah, yeah—”

“That’s me.” He taps the screen some more. “I’m in a trailer.”

Brandon slowly raises his eyebrows. “That’s cool.”

“I’m in a movie…” Joseph then pulls his laptop back to him as he slides back into his chair.

Brandon continues nodding his head with uncertainty. “Nice…” He then pauses as he spots his roommate with a haughty expression. “You want me to tell you won an Oscar?”

“Well…” He spins his laptop to face him again. “…I am in a trailer.” He then hits the spacebar and continues watching the trailer.

“Does that make you a movie star?” Brandon asks him flatly.

“Yeah.” He doesn’t tear his eyes from the screen.

Brandon peers behind his shoulder to look at Nick for help. Nick is still snuggled on the sofa, snoring.

With a sigh, he turns back around to face his cloud nine-bound roommate. “It’s just a trailer…and you’re in the background. You don’t even….!” His voice fades off as he spots Joseph’s face fuming with sharp eyes on him. “Ummm…”

“Are you trying to wreck my dreams, Monty Muffins?” he growls with a hint of mockery.

“Well, I’m just trying to tell you the truth.” He shrugs with his hands out at him. “What do you expect: being in the background in one scene for a trailer will automatically bring people knocking at your door—?”

Knock knock knock, sounds the door.

Brandon lets out a huff. “I’ll get it.” He gets up to his feet and ambles into the foyer. He opens the doors and immediately freezes with wide eyes.

On the other side is a small crowd of news reporters with cameramen, the sound crew, and photographers.

A newsman with a suit and tie steps up to him. “Does Joseph Cramarossa live here?”

Brandon gawks at him. “Uhhh…”

Joseph then slides into view from behind Brandon. “Yes.”

Immediately, the photographers begin snapping pictures as microphones are shoved in his face while reporters throw him questions:

“MR. CRAMAROSSA, MR. CRAMAROSSA DO YOU—?”

“HOW DO YOU—?”

“WHAT DO YOU—?”

“One at a time, please,” Joseph tells them calmly with his hands up.

A news reporter slips up next to Joseph and talks into a camera. “We are here live with world-famous movie star, Joseph Cramarossa.” He turns to the skater. “Mr. Cramarossa, how does it feel being world-famous?” He sticks his microphone toward him.

“It feels great,” Joseph tells him in the microphone dully. “Y’know, I’ve been waiting for this moment for my whole life because I’ve been playing for a while and it’s about time you guys show up.”

The news reporter switches the microphone back to him. “And how about your co-star, Nicholas Ritchie?” He flips the microphone back to him.

“We don’t talk about him because you guys are here for me.”

Another reporter rushes to his other side and sticks her microphone at him. “Mr. Cramarossa! How does it feel being part of the trailer as—?”

Brandon quickly steps in between his roommate and the microphone. “That’s all the time ‘Mr. Cramarossa’ has for the day, come back soon, byeee!” He then pushes his roommate backward into the house with himself and slams the door shut.

Joseph sharply rips himself out from his grasp and whirls to him furiously. “Wha—what are you—?”

“What was that all about?” Brandon cries out, throwing his hands in the air. “There were like a million news reporters wanting you—!”

“Because I’m famous—world-famous.” He then struts off into the kitchen.

Suddenly, Joseph’s phone begins emitting notification sounds from his shorts’ pockets: Bah-dah-bing! Bah-dah-bing! Bah-dah-bing! Bah-dah-bing! Bah-dah-bing! Bah-dah-bing! Bah-dah-bing!

Joseph halts in the middle of the circle of furniture. He pulls out his lively phone and peers down at it.

A long row of Twitter notifications is on his lock screen. He navigates his way to the Twitter app. On his profile, it shows that he finally has three thousand followers.

He raises his arms up, soaking in the glory.

Brandon eyes him from the steps of the foyer. “What?” He makes his way to him and peers at what his phone is displaying. “Oh, congrats on the three thousand.”

Joseph gazes at his phone again. His followers’ number is now at four thousand.

Brandon gawks at the screen. “One thousand in less than a minute?”

Joseph looks at his phone again. His phone is showing his followers count continuing to rise by thousand: Five thousand, six thousand, seven thousand, ten thousand...

“Ten thousand followers?!” Brandon shouts to the phone. He looks up at him. “You outdid Nicky!”

The phone is now showing twenty thousand followers for Joseph.

“And the Gulls!” Brandon adds on.

The phone now displays thirty thousand followers.

“At this rate, you’ll have more followers than the Blackhawks!” Brandon tells the phone with raised eyebrows.

“I will have more followers than the Blackhawks,” Joseph states confidently.

A call then pops up on his phone. Joseph accepts it and puts the phone to his air. “Hello?” He pauses. “An interview?” He pauses again. “Yeah… Right now?”

“Interview?” Brandon cries out. “Right now?!”

“Sure,” Joseph speaks into the phone. “Come over, I’m bored.” He pauses. “Okay.” He then lowers the phone to his eye level and presses on the screen.

He faces to Brandon. “I’m gonna have an interview right now.” He then turns around and begins making his way out of the living room and toward the foyer.

Brandon follows him with his eyes. “But we can’t have an interview right now! Nicky is sleeping!” He points to his right, where Nick is still snoozing on the sofa.

Joseph frowns with knitted eyebrows at him. “So?” He then continues strolling through the hallway.

Brandon is left standing in the living room in silence. “Oh man…”

Suddenly, he hears cheering and yelling and chanting coming from outside:

“Joey! Joey!”

“Crammer!”

“Cramberry!”

“We love you!”

Brandon makes a bewildered expression. “What’s that?” He rushes over to the window by the television and pulls the blinds away from the window, peering outside. His eyes fly open at the sight.

On the front lawn and spilling into the sidewalk and road is a sea of fans, holding up signs with Joseph’s name in different variations and hollering.

Brandon immediately rushes to the foyer and throws the door open.

The fans begin to scream: AHHHHHHH—!” Once they catch sight of who emerged from the house, they all say disappointedly, “Oh.”

Yet in the middle of the crowd, Jasmine Uofar crazily waves her hands in the air. “MONTY MUFFINS!” she exclaims with hearts drifting from her.

“Ummm…” Brandon scans warily at the fans. “Joey’s not here—”

Suddenly, Joseph swaggers next to Brandon, wearing a spiffy attire consisting of sunglasses, a leather jacket, black pants, and black shoes.

“I’m here,” he states flatly.

“AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!” the fans scream in response.

Brandon drops his jaw.

The fans continue shouting:

“Joey! Joey!”

“Crammer!”

“I love you!!!”

“Marry me!!!”

Then an interviewer with a suit and tie steps up to Joseph with a cameraman right behind him.

He slips up by Joseph and states to the camera: “And here we have world-famous movie star, Joseph Cramarossa, with us!”

Joseph calmly nods to the camera.

“He is the actor in the upcoming documentary, Ice Guardians, as the extra hockey player in the background.” He turns to the interviewee. “So Joseph, tell us a bit about the filming of Ice Guardians.” He points his microphone at him.

Joseph leans toward the microphone and says, “Well obvious people pay more attention to the background in movies, so my role was significant and I had to put a lot of thought into it.”

Then from the street, a car honking is heard: Honk, honk!

The people part of the interview peer up at the source of the sound.

Parked in front of the house is a grand, black limousine. The chauffeur steps off from the vehicle and rounds its front, into view. It is Corey Tropp in a butler’s outfit.

Corey halts in front of the passenger’s door and opens the door. “Your ride to your mansion is here!” he bellows with reverence.

Joseph shouts a disdainful expression at him: “What are YOU doing here?”

“I’m your chauffeur.”

Joseph rolls his eyes. “It’s about time.” He then pushes past the interviewer and his cameraman and steps down the patio and into the path through the front yard and fans.

The fans make way for him, screaming and yelling his name in excitement.

Joseph then steps onto the sidewalk, approaching the limo. He ducks as he climbs into the passenger's seat of the opulent vehicle.

Corey then closes the door, rounds the car, steps in, and guides the limo away from the house and down the road.

The fans face the escaping limousine. “AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!” They chase after the rolling vehicle.

Brandon is now left all alone on the porch in still silence. “Uhhh…” He moseys back into the house and closes the door. “What was that all about?” he mutters to himself with complete confusion.

He makes his way into the living room and toward the dining room. “Joey has a mansion? He has fans? THAT many fans? How-how is this even possible?!”

He halts in the dining room, catching sight of Joseph’s opened laptop. He steps over to it and peers at the screen.

The screen is displaying the Ice Guardians’ trailer.

Brandon eyes it with suspiciousness and a hint of jealousy.

Notes

E.15 "Fame For A Day"
Part 1/2
Episode 15/20