He hung up before I could respond.
The network kicked back twice. First, they wanted the right to use what they callednon-essential background footagewithout individual approval.
I forwarded the email to Pickle and waited.
His response came back almost immediately:Fuck no.
I forwarded that to Lenny. Hard pass.
Second, they wanted footage locked forty-eight hours before air.
I didn't ask Pickle. Just told Lenny:He withdraws consent when he withdraws consent.
Team consent took longer.
Hog responded first. He didn’t ask to see anything. He didn’t negotiate. He wrote that he was fine with whatever Pickle approved — if Pickle trusted it, so did he.
Evan wanted to see everything. I sent him the full cut. Two days later, he sent back a numbered list of exclusions. Seven items. Specific. Non-negotiable. I marked them off-limits immediately.
Jake replied last, and only because Evan texted him twice. He told me not to use the footage of him falling on his ass during warmups unless I wanted to be haunted for the rest of my natural life. Everything else, he said, was fine.
I laughed.
Heath took two days for his answer.
Heath:I don't want to be in it. I'm sorry.
Adrian:No apology needed. You're out.
I deleted his footage entirely.
By day four, I noticed the rhythm change. I stopped working in long sprints. Started pausing to check in. I was slowing down, but the work was clean.
On day five, I walked to get air. Thunder Bay at night: cold that bit through denim, woodsmoke mixing with truck exhaust, and streetlights haloed with fog.
I turned a corner and saw The Drop's neon sign glowing.
Hadn't planned on stopping in, but the windows were fogged with warmth and music thumped from inside. I pushed through the door.
Heat. Noise. Bodies everywhere.
In the back corner: the Storm.
Hog saw me first. He met my gaze.
I walked toward them.
Jake elbowed Evan. "Documentary man. Didn't expect to see you here."
"Needed air," I said.
"Air's outside," Evan pointed toward the door. "This is a bar."
Hog shifted slightly. Rhett's hand pressed against his knee under the table.
"You want something?" Hog asked. His voice was calm. Dangerously calm.
"I wanted to say I'm sorry. For what the network tried to do and for my part in it."
