He nods. “I’d want to have some other people of color on the show, too.”
“Great, great,” Kent says. “So you’re solid content-wise. Now with regard to promo . . .” He clicks through a few things on his computer. “We need to strategize. I have the two of you talking to the Seattle Times at noon today, and a few online outlets want to interview you, too—BuzzFeed, Vulture, Slate, Hype Factory . . .”
“What the hell is Hype Factory?” Dominic says.
“Clickbait site,” I say. Not the most groundbreaking journalism, but “Fifteen Cats That Look Like Adam Driver (#8 Will Shake You to Your Core)” entertained me for a solid two minutes last week.
“We have to hop on this,” Kent says. “We’re in a unique position here. The podcast had an incredible premiere, and I applaud all of you for that. But it’s also just one episode. I don’t want anyone’s heads getting too big yet. What we need to do is keep this going, continue to build hype around it.
“Do you know how long people’s attention spans last today? Not long. People go wild over a new Stranger Things season for a week before a new Marvel trailer drops, and then there’s a new Disney remake everyone’s talking about. Nothing lasts. But we want to stay relevant as long as we can, really be part of the zeitgeist.”
Ruthie shudders.
“What was that?” Kent asks.
“Sorry, I just have a visceral reaction to the word ‘zeitgeist.’”
I muffle a laugh at this, but Kent doesn’t even crack a smile.
“I understand what you’re saying.” Dominic pushes up the sleeves of his black sweater. “I just don’t want any of it to feel disingenuous.”
Kent’s hand flies to his chest, as though insulted by what Dominic is insinuating. “I’m not asking any of you to be anything except yourselves,” he says, with the slightest lift of his brows.
A bigger reality hits me, settles like acid in my stomach: Ruthie thinks Dominic and I really dated. Making a vow to get to know her better sounds absurd when I’m lying to her simply by sitting next to her.
“Then if we’re good here,” Dominic says, “I’m going to go listen back to the show. See how we can improve next time.”
“Excellent idea,” Kent says. “And truly: Congratulations, you three.”
But I’m still stuck on the other thing he said:
Nothing lasts.
It probably lasts even less time if you’re lying about it.
Twitter
@amandaosullivan
Who else is obsessed with #TheExTalk? Dominic and Shay are so cute I can’t. If any of my exes were like Dom, I never would have let them go!
@elttaes_amadeus
i ship @goldsteinshayyy and @dominicyun on @TheExTalk so hard, can they get back together plz??? #TheExTalk #shayminic
@MsMollieRae17
can i just say it’s so refreshing to hear someone with a REAL sounding voice on NPR? #TheExTalk
@most_dolphinately_
Dominic Yun sounds like a pompous asshole #TheExTalk
@photography_by_shauna
OMG just finished #TheExTalk and I NEED episode 2! does anyone else kinda want shay and dominic to get back together?
@StanleyPowellPhD