Down on the lower dock of the marina, twenty minutes later, a small motorized dinghy pulled up against the wooden concrete pillars. The sun was hot, and several photographers from local lifestyle blogs were standing near the docks, waiting for photos of arriving VIP guests.
The yacht crew helped Tiffany step out of the dinghy onto the slippery wooden planks. Her sparkling dress was wet at the hem, her hair was completely messy from the ocean wind, and her face was visibly red and swollen on both cheeks.
Reporter 1: Hey, look over there! Isn't that Tiffany Vance? The influencer who posted about attending the Vance yacht gala today?
Reporter 2: Is she arriving in a tender boat?! What happened to her dress?
Camera flashes started going off instantly as the reporters rushed toward the wooden pier.
Tiffany: Stop taking pictures! Get those cameras out of my face!
Reporter 1: Tiffany! Were you kicked off Eleanor Vance's yacht?!
Tiffany: No! I left on my own! Get away from me!
Reporter 2: Look at her face! Did someone slap her?!
Tiffany held her hands up over her face, running down the wooden dock in her high heels, but her foot caught on an uneven board. She stumbled hard, falling onto her hands and knees in front of three filming cameras.
Tiffany: AGH! Someone help me!
Reporter 1: Miss Vance, is it true that Brandon Miller broke off your engagement today?
Tiffany: Shut up! Just shut up!
She scrambled back up, tears streaming down her face, running toward the parking lot where her small sedan was parked. She pulled her phone from her purse, frantically opening her social media account to post a video exposing Eleanor Vance.
Tiffany: I'm going to ruin that old woman... I'm going to post everything!
She tapped her screen, but a red notification banner popped up across her profile: Account Suspended Due to Verification Breach.
Tiffany: What?! Suspended?! Why is my account suspended?!
Her phone buzzed with an incoming call from her talent agent, Sarah.
Tiffany: Sarah! Thank god you called! Someone hacked my social media profile!
Sarah: Nobody hacked you, Tiffany. Vance Global Media bought out our talent agency twenty minutes ago.
Tiffany: What?! What does that mean?!
Sarah: It means Eleanor Vance is now your agency owner, Tiffany. She personally ordered all your social media accounts terminated, and all your brand endorsement contracts canceled immediately.
Tiffany: She can't do that! That's my livelihood!
Sarah: She did it, Tiffany. Your sponsors have already sent termination letters citing moral misconduct clauses. You owe forty thousand dollars in contract default penalties by the end of the month.
Tiffany: Forty thousand dollars?! I don't have that kind of money!
Sarah: Then you had better find a real job, Tiffany. Don't ever call this office again.
The line went dead with a loud click. Tiffany dropped her phone onto the car seat beside her, burying her face in her hands as she sobbed uncontrollably in the quiet parking lot.