Contract Marriage: The Replacement Groom

After the competition ended, Brian and Pink were about to leave when the organizers called them into a private room.

Sitting in front of two men and one woman, Pink looked quite bored, so Brian hastened the meeting.

"We never expected that the competition would get the popularity that it had today. We realized too late that it was your doing, which was why we gave you two some screen time. However, we know that it’s not enough, so for that, we thought of asking you to be the ambassador of–"

"I’m sorry, we only came here to enjoy the sport which we did. It was pure coincidence that my fans saw me and blew up the event that it became so big..."

"Still, we want to reward you," the woman spoke.

Brian shook his head, "My fans should be getting the reward, not me... besides, I’m taking a rest from work, so I can’t do anything for you."

"Ok, that’s fine. How do we contact your fans?"

"My fans have an official group. I can help you drop a message, and the admins will come to you," seeing them nod, Brian brought out his phone and sent a message to the admins of his fan club.

A few seconds later, his phone exploded with messages from the overwhelmed fans. Ever since his account was added to the club, Brian had never sent them a message or replied to any message before that they all thought he wasn’t interested in the club, but seeing his message now, the guys went crazy with excitement.

"I’ve done that, they’ll be at your company in two days," he said.

"In two days? Why not schedule it for tomorrow?"

Brian shook his head, "My fans are human with lives to live. The admins I chatted with said they’ll be available tomorrow, so I can’t force them to ruin their schedule. It might affect their lives negatively."

Brian lied when he said that. When he asked the admins when they’ll be able to visit the organizer’s company, they told him they could go anytime.

It is obvious Brian is presenting his fans as people with dignity that aren’t

"Now, that is settled. We still wish to do something for you, Mr. Brian. Thanks to your presence and your fans’ contribution, this event hit an unimaginable height. We never thought that there’d ever be a time where our car racing event would ever witness hundreds of millions of live streaming and see hundreds of thousands of audience in the stadium," one of the organizers said with emotions lacing his tone.

This was their family business that was going downhill. They organized this competition as the last resort to pull in one or two investors, or else they go bankrupt. Who would have known that Brian’s appearance would make them a massive fortune?

As it stands now, they’ll be one of the biggest in the car racing industry after today.

"Anything aside from being an ambassador will be enough, " Pink finally spoke. She could see that her son was not interested in working for them. Although it’s a giant leap for his career if he agrees to be an ambassador for a car company, she can’t get involved in his decision.

"Ok, how about gifting you one of our latest sports cars?" the woman suggested.

Brian looked at Pink, "What do you think?" seeing Pink nod, Brian smiled, "that’s much better," he agreed.

The organizers were relieved when Brian finally accepted. But before Brian left with the car, they brought up the idea of an ambassador again.

"If you ever change your mind, we will be honored to make provisions for you."

Standing by the door, Brian paused and said, "Should I recommend you another Celebrity who will do a better job than me?"

The organizers were excited and immediately agreed.

"Jeslyn."

The organizers were stunned. Jeslyn? They know who Jeslyn is. Although she has attained the A–list role, she’s still a newbie.

"Why do you recommend her?" the woman asked.

Without wasting time thinking, Brian responded, "If you find me good, she’s better..."

"Anything else you’d like to convince us with?"

"Men love the sport more and your audience should be men. Jeslyn is beautiful, and she’s known to attract both men and women. As a singer, she has the highest number of male fans in the industry. What would happen if she became an ambassador for a male-dominated sport? Think." With that, he walked away.

After Brian left, the organizers discussed among themselves and decided to hold a board meeting to iron the matter out before making a decision.

...

It was night time and still, Brian and Pink were seen at a karaoke bar, having fun. The two would be rather seen as happy siblings than friends or mother and son.

After singing, they sat on a long couch and resumed drinking.

"It’s late, you don’t want to return home?"

Brian, who was a little tipsy, shook his head. "I don’t want to."

"Your parents will be worried," Pink didn’t want him to go either, but she couldn’t just take a huge step that would ruin her plans.

"Worried? They know I’m safe in the City. They have guards lurking around me like flies. I can’t take a step without being watched, and it’s tiring," he said sadly and drank from his bottle.

"You don’t like being with them?"

"My dad is great, but he seems to be scared of my mom. I want to live without that woman, but I can’t."

"Why? You can make your decisions, right? You’re her only son."

Brian shook his head, "She’s overprotective and can be evil sometimes."

"Then how did you escape from her to live in the Capital for so many years?"

"I don’t know what Dad did, so Mom allowed me to live with her stepsister, the First Lady. I wanted freedom from everyone and everything, so I threatened to take my own life a few times. I bet that was my mother’s weakness.