Chapter 8 · Fired Live, I Rose Higher

Chapter 8

On the very first day Streamline rolled out its new content system, the traffic peak shattered all previous records.Daily active users shot up from eight million to a staggering fifteen million.Brands were scrambling to get onboard, and the biz dev team was so slammed they barely had a second to grab lunch.That day, David did something totally out of character: he sent a message in the work group chat: [Content team, thank you for your hard work.]Then he dropped a cash gift worth 222 dollars.After eight people claimed it, Cathy shot back in the group chat: [Mr. Stone, this wouldn't even cover a team dinner for us.]David just replied: [Expense it.]The vibe in the team was awesome, everyone was working hard, but it never felt suffocating.That was something I'd never experienced in my four years at Radiant Media.At Radiant Media, I was just a tool.At Streamline, I was a partner.The difference was, here, people actually saw me as a real person.That night, I was the last one to leave the office after working overtime until ten.At the elevator, David was waiting too.He was holding a cup of cold coffee, his shirt sleeves rolled up to his forearms.When he saw me, he gave a slight nod."Still here?" he asked."Just finished locking in next month's brand schedule," I replied.The elevator arrived, and we got in, one after the other.Silence hung between us for a few seconds.David glanced at the elevator display. "Just a heads-up, Streamline's holding a funding round press conference next week. I'll need you to present our content strategy.""No problem," I said.He glanced over at me. "By the way, there might be some folks from Radiant Media at the press conference."I shot him a look."What are you getting at?" I asked."One of Beacon Ventures' limited partners is a fund that's tight with Edward. The guest list is public, so there's no way to keep them out.""So, you're saying Edward might actually show up?""Most likely."The elevator reached the first floor, and the doors slid open.David stepped out, then turned around in the lobby to look at me."Does it bother you?" he asked.I shook my head."Let him come," I said.*****The funding round press conference was set for Friday.It was held at a five-star hotel right by the Riverside Promenade, with a reception hall that could fit three hundred people.I checked the guest list, half the investment world was showing up.Plus, there were media reporters, brand reps, and industry analysts.My segment was the second one, right after David's opening speech.The topic was "Streamline's Content Ecosystem Flywheel."I spent the whole week prepping, tweaking my slides seven times.This wasn't a live stream.With live streams, I could just wing it.But standing in front of three hundred investors to talk strategy? There was no room for mistakes.At two o'clock on Friday afternoon, I stood backstage in a sharp navy blue suit dress.Cathy helped me adjust my collar. "Grace, go kill it out there."I smiled.Peeking through a gap in the backstage curtain, I caught a glimpse of the audience.Sure enough, Edward was sitting in the third row, left side, right by the aisle.Next to him were Charles and Emma.Emma was dressed in a white Chanel-style suit, a huge gold logo necklace hanging around her neck, looking around like she'd never been to a fancy event before.Edward, on the other hand, looked totally unfazed, legs crossed, spinning a pen in his hand, like he was just there to watch the show.Whatever.Today, I'd give them a show they'd never forget.After David wrapped up his five-minute opener and the applause died down, the host announced my name."Next up, please welcome Streamline's Chief Content Officer, Grace," the host said.I pushed aside the curtain and stepped onto the stage.Three hundred pairs of eyes turned to me at once.The moment the spotlight hit my face, my mind flashed back to that streaming room from forty days ago.Same lights, same sea of eyes watching me.But this time, I wasn't the streamer who got booted off.I was the one up here, calling the shots."Good afternoon, everyone," I said.My voice echoed through the microphone, confident and unhurried, reaching every corner of the reception hall."I'm Grace," I continued. "Today, I want to talk about one question, who will define the next decade of the live streaming industry?"The room went quiet.Edward stopped spinning his pen.

Chapter 8