Plagiarismo

"Mitchell, breakfast!" Cam called out.

"I'm coming," Mitchell replied, emerging from their bedroom wearing a nice suit.

"You look great," Cam said with a wide smile.

"Thank you. I'm just worried; I want this interview to go well," Mitchell said, worry lacing his face.

"Mitchell, you practically already have the job. The interview is just a formality." cam said.

"But—" Mitchell started to say.

"No buts. Now eat, I made your favorite," Cam insisted.

[Commentary]

"I quit my job a few months ago," Mitchell began. "And I've been looking for a new one ever since."

"It was fun to be a stay-at-home dad and be with Lily, but—"

"We have no money now," Cam chimed in.

"Yes, we have no money," Mitchell confirmed. "My dad did recommend me to this guy, but I decided to take up an offer from Mary about being an entertainment lawyer."

"Since I have begun my journey in Hollywood," Cam began to say.

"Since Mary and Daniel mentioned they would have an opening for a lawyer," Mitchell continued.

Cam gave Mitchell a look.

"And Cam has begun his journey in Hollywood," Mitchell said, exasperated. "I decided to take a few classes and shift my focus to be an entertainment lawyer. And today I have an interview with Daniel's agent, Lucy."

"It's basically his first day. Daniel has already promised him the job," Cam said dismissively.

Mitchell looked annoyed.

[End Commentary]

"Okay, I'm leaving," Mitchell said to Cam, who was holding Lily.

"Say goodbye to Daddy, Lily," Cam said, waving Lily's little hand at Mitchell.

Mitchell smiled, gave Lily a quick kiss on the forehead, and headed out the door. "Wish me luck!" he called back.

"You don't need it!" Cam replied, beaming with pride.

Mitchell arrives at the headquarters for Infinite World Publishing. The building is impressive, with a sleek modern facade and an elegant interior. The lobby is spacious, adorned with contemporary art pieces, and the floors are polished marble. Sunlight streams in through large windows, giving the space a welcoming glow.

Mitchell feels a bit intimidated as he takes in his surroundings. 'Daniel did mention they moved to a bigger building,' he thought.

He approaches the receptionist, a professional-looking young woman with a friendly smile.

"Hi, I'm here to see Lucy my name is mitchell prittchett" Mitchell said, trying to keep his voice steady. "I have an interview with her."

The receptionist's eyes lit up in recognition. "Of course, Mr. Pritchett. Just a moment, please."

She picks up the phone and makes a quick call. Moments later, a woman steps out of the elevator and walks toward him. She has a warm smile.

"Hello, Mr. Pritchett. I'm Emily, Ms Wallace's assistant. I'll take you to her office," she said, extending her hand for a brief shake.

"Nice to meet you, Emily," Mitchell replied, shaking her hand.

Emily leads Mitchell to the elevator, and they ride up to the second floor. The elevator doors open to reveal a corridor with a couple of large offices. The names on the doors are clear and professionally engraved, except for one door that remains blank.

Mitchell can't help but glance at the names as they walk by. They stop in front of one of the offices, and Emily opens the door, gesturing for him to enter.

"Right this way, Mr. Pritchett."

Mitchell steps into the office, where Lucy stands to greet him. Her office is well-organized, with a large wooden desk, comfortable chairs, and bookshelves filled with various titles. A window behind her desk offers a stunning view of the city.

"Mitchell, it's so nice to see you again," Lucy said, extending her hand.

"Thank you, Lucy. It's great to be here," Mitchell replied, shaking her hand with a grateful smile. "I think it has been almost a year since we last saw each other."

"It's been a busy year; barely had time for a vacation," Lucy said. "Please, sit," she added, gesturing to the chair opposite her desk.

Mitchell sat down, feeling a mix of excitement and nervousness.

"How are Cam and Lily doing?" Lucy asked.

"They're doing well," Mitchell replied. "Cam is as enthusiastic as ever, and Lily is growing up so fast."

"Good to hear," Lucy said with a smile. Then her expression turned serious. "Now, let's get down to business."

"Let's," Mitchell agreed, leaning forward slightly.

"Well, Mitchell, I don't know what to say. We've interviewed several candidates, experienced ones as well," Lucy began.

Mitchell's body went cold. He had been told he would get this job on the spot after he completed his courses. He couldn't hold a candle against experienced lawyers in this field.

Lucy looked at him in silence for a moment, then burst out laughing.

"You... you," Mitchell began to say, realizing he had been pranked.

"I'm sorry, Cam had me do it," Lucy said, still laughing.

"I knew he looked so pleased with himself this morning," Mitchell muttered, shaking his head.

"But seriously, the job has been yours for months. Alexandra will not be leaving till the end of this year, so you will be working under her," Lucy explained.

"That's great! So, can I start today?" Mitchell asked eagerly.

"Yes, the paperwork is done. Just read it and sign it," Lucy said, pointing to a stack of papers on the table. "And after that, meet me in Alexandra's office. I'm sure you saw it. We actually have a big problem that legal will have to take the lead on as soon as possible. You joined at the perfect time," Lucy said seriously.

Mitchell nodded. "Thank you, Lucy."

Lucy stood up with a smile and left, leaving Mitchell to do the paperwork.

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As the movie wrapped shooting, my time was spent working on the script for Superman, finalizing the first book of 'A Song of Ice and Fire,' series and spending time with Haley. We made it work even though my time in school had ended. She would spend more time at my house than before, as she convinced her parents I was helping her study for her SATs. Well, we studied alright, but if Claire found out that my mother was not home for the last month, she would never have let Haley come over as long as she did.

My thoughts about time spent with Haley, especially yesterday, were broken by Sam calling me.

"Daniel, Daniel," Sam called from my side.

"Yeah, sorry, I just zoned out for a moment."

I was in the editing room of the studio. Sam and Dave were going to edit the movie. Dave, Ron, Sam, and I sat looking at the large screen where a clip from the movie played.

"What do you think?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, looks fine. I think we should keep it this way," I said, giving my opinion.

"Good," Ron said, then they turned back to the screen again.

The editor's room was a hub of technology. Multiple monitors lined one side of the room, displaying various scenes from "12 Angry Men." Computers with high-end editing software were set up, their screens filled with timelines, video clips, and audio tracks. The walls were adorned with soundproofing panels to ensure the best audio quality, and a large, comfortable couch sat against the opposite wall for viewing sessions, on which I sat while the others were near the screen.

I began scrolling through my phone and started texting Haley.

D: Editing is so boring right now. 😒

H: I'll make it all better when I come over today. 😉

D: Looking forward to it.

D: Aren't you in class?

H: "Well, yeah. When has that stopped me?

D: "You have a test today."

H: Oh, yeah. 😅" 

She sent a picture of the test.

H: Could you help me plz

I stopped responding and put my phone away, focusing on the three sitting in front of me.

"How does this look, Daniel?" Dave asked, playing back a scene where Juror 8, played by Tom Hanks, confronted Juror 3, played by J.K. Simmons.

I watched intently as the scene unfolded on the screen. "I think the tension is just right here. Maybe we could hold on Juror 3's face a bit longer to really capture his reaction."

Ron nodded in agreement. "Good call. Let's extend that shot by a few seconds."

Dave made the adjustment, and we watched the scene again. The room fell silent as everyone focused on the small changes, ensuring every moment conveyed the right emotion.

After a while, I went out to get something to drink. By the time I came back, they were still discussing the same scene. 

I sighed. I tried to think of an excuse to leave, wait a minute wast Mitchell supposed to join today

'Might as well go and meet him.' i thought

They were playing the scene where Juror 10, played by Gary Oldman, delivered his intense racist monologue. The camera work, close-ups, and lighting had to be perfect to emphasize the character's escalating frustration and isolation.

"What do you think, Daniel?" Ron asked, turning to me.

I took a moment before responding. "I love the framing, but maybe we could bring down the background noise just a tad to make his voice even more prominent."

"Got it," Dave said, making the necessary adjustments.

"Hey guys, I just got a text from my agent. I have to go," I said.

"Oh, will you be back?" Sam asked.

"No, I think you guys have this covered," I said.

"Well, see you tomorrow then," Ron said.

"See ya," I said quickly, walking away.

Leaving the studio, I got in my car and began driving to the new offices of Infinite World Publishing. We had moved to a new office as I decided to have both the HQ of the publishing house and the offices for my agent, assistants, and other staff in the same building. With how much I was worth now, moving to a larger building was easy. It was close to the studio as well, so I could drive there quickly.

Arriving at the new building, I parked my car and walked to the entrance.

"Mr. Adler," the doorman said, holding up the door for me.

"Hey George, how are the kids?" I asked.

"Daughter loved the autographed copy of your book, thank you for that," the man said warmly.

"No need to thank me, George. Did a redheaded man come in today?"

"Yes he did, looked very nervous too," George said.

"Good. Bye George."

"Have a good day, Mr. Adler," George replied as I entered.

Arriving at Lucy's office, I found Mitchell, Lucy, Alexandra, and a few others of my legal team in discussion.

"Hey hey hey, the boss is here," I announced.

"Aren't you supposed to be helping to edit a movie?" Lucy asked, still reading through the papers. The others, including Mitchell, greeted me standing up.

"Yeah, but it was boring."

I quickly went and greeted Mitchell. "Hey Mitchell, how are you settling in?"

"Great," he said, looking at the others.

"You guys look busy, so I'm going to take a nap in the other room," I said, trying to leave.

"No, sit. Something has happened," Lucy said, still reading through the paper in her hand.

"What is it?" I asked and walked over and poured myself a glass of lemonade Lucy had on her desk and sat down. "You guys look serious."

"Someone has accused you of plagiarizing their work.," Lucy said.

This caused me to almost spit out my drink, and I began to cough.

"Say that again," I said, still coughing.

"Someone has accused you of plagiarizing their work."

She then gave me some papers. On it was a comparison between the Percy Jackson series and another story called Adventures of Theseus.

"What the fuck," I muttered as I read through the papers.

I began reading through the similarities. It was a children's book about a demigod named Theseus in modern times, fighting and defeating monsters. There were similarities with Percy Jackson. There was a camp where all the demigods lived, they fought monsters for their parents, the gods.

It wasn't even a novel, just a children's book.

"It was only released in Greece, and now the author claims you plagiarized his work."Lucy said.

'I plagiarized... I mean, I borrowed from Rick Riordan, not some guy in Greece,' I thought as I read through the papers.

"Have you ever traveled to Greece?" Mitchell asked.

"Yes," I said, to everyone's surprise.

"But, after I released Percy Jackson, there's no way I plagiarized from this guy." I said looking at them slightly panicking.

'Just Rick Riordan,' my mind said.

"Well, the easiest way is to settle with the person," Alexandra said.

"But why?" I asked. "There's basically nothing here."

"In our business, it's best to avoid things like this. For now, it is not public. We contact the author and find out what he wants."

"And if he is not willing to cooperate?" I asked.

"We'll see," Alexandra said.

I nodded.

Was this karma? I had gotten over the whole borrowing-from-my-previous-life thing years ago, especially after the money and fame came rolling in. 

Was the universe trying to correct itself or something?

Maybe I was just overreacting. 

This is just a small hurdle; I can't panic at something like this. I have a great legal team. 

Yeah, they will fix it.

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