----[3 Months later] [October]----
The Preston Production House looked more like a crowded college campus than a film studio that afternoon.
Cars lined the parking lot, and production assistants hurried across the courtyard carrying folders, garment bags, and half-empty coffee cups. Inside the main building, the hallways buzzed with conversation as actors, agents, and crew members filled every corner.
Large posters for upcoming projects decorated the walls. In the center conference wing, one room held a long table surrounded by chairs, stacks of scripts, and several racks of wardrobe samples waiting for fittings later in the day.
Jack entered the building with his backpack slung over one shoulder and paused for a moment, taking in the organized chaos.
It was his first time stepping into the big leagues since his reincarnation.
As much as he was excited, he was nervous as hell.
"This feels like the first day of school," he muttered under his breath.
Actors, designers, and assistants filtered into the conference room while conversations overlapped in every corner.
Jack went to the room where the main cast were assembled. Upon entering, he scanned the room with a calm expression that hid the quiet sense of déjà vu sitting in the back of his mind.
Seeing familiar faces from films and television he remembered watching years ago always created a strange moment where past and present overlapped.
'Finally, the day is here,' he thought as he adjusted the strap of his backpack. 'One step at a time, Jack... One step at a time... Be confident and don't be a wuss.'
He walked toward the table.
Near the middle seat, Matthew Perry leaned back in his chair while flipping through a copy of the script. When he noticed Jack approaching, he set the pages down and smiled.
"Well, look who finally showed up," Matthew said in a relaxed tone. "The younger version of me."
He extended his hand.
Jack shook it firmly. "Jack Preston. It's great to finally meet you in person." He smiled with genuine enthusiasm. "I'm a huge fan. I've watched Friends more times than I can count. Chandler was basically the king of sarcastic timing."
Matthew laughed and leaned back in his chair.
"That's the nicest thing anyone has said to me today."
Jack shrugged casually. "I also followed your other work. Studio 60, Serving Sara, The Whole Nine Yards. My dad had a whole movie shelf growing up."
Matthew raised his eyebrows with amused approval. "Alright, now you're making me feel both appreciated and slightly old."
Jack chuckled as he took the empty seat beside him. "That wasn't my intention. I rewatched some of your work to help improve my performance."
Matthew grinned. "I already like this guy."
At the other end of the table, Leslie Mann finished speaking with the costume designer and walked over with a warm smile.
"So you're Jack," she said.
Jack nodded politely. "Yes, ma—"
Leslie immediately waved a hand.
"Please don't call me ma'am," she said with a laugh. "That makes me feel like someone's substitute teacher."
Jack smiled. "Alright. Leslie."
She studied him for a moment. "I heard you've been training a lot for the basketball scenes."
Jack rolled his shoulders lightly and leaned back in his chair.
"I had to," he admitted with an easy shrug. "I didn't exactly go through the normal audition process for this role. My dad is producing the film, which means people are automatically going to assume I got the job because of that."
Several actors around the table glanced up from their scripts when he said it so bluntly.
Jack continued calmly.
"So yeah, people will talk. Nepo kid, favoritism, unfair advantage. I figured the best way to deal with that was to make sure nobody can say I didn't work my ass off once I got here."
Matthew let out a quiet laugh and nodded approvingly.
"That might be the most honest thing anyone has said in this room today."
Jack smiled slightly.
"For the last three months I've basically been living in a gym," he said. "Basketball drills, strength training, studying the script every night. If I'm going to play Mike O'Donnell, I want the audience to believe it."
Leslie rested a hand on the back of a chair and tilted her head thoughtfully.
"That's actually refreshing to hear," she said. "Most people would pretend the nepotism thing doesn't exist."
Jack shrugged again. "It exists. Ignoring it doesn't make it disappear."
Matthew tapped the script against the table with a grin.
"Well, for what it's worth, I saw the early rehearsal footage your dad showed us last week," he said. "You didn't embarrass yourself, which already puts you ahead of half the actors I worked with in the nineties."
Jack laughed. "I'll take that as a compliment."
A chair scraped across the floor as Thomas Lennon slid into the seat across from them. He held a coffee cup in one hand and wore a mischievous smile that suggested he had already been listening.
"So this is the kid playing teenage Mike," Thomas said, pointing at Jack with the cup. "You look far too emotionally stable to be a teenage version of Matthew Perry."
Matthew leaned forward immediately.
"Excuse me. I was a perfectly well-adjusted teenager."
Thomas stared at him for a long moment before slowly shaking his head.
"Your entire acting career says otherwise."
A ripple of laughter spread around the table.
Jack rubbed the back of his neck, smiling.
"I'm trying to find the balance between the high school athlete version and the older Mike personality," he explained. "He's confident and popular, but he's also still figuring things out."
Leslie nodded with interest.
"That's actually the tricky part of the character," she said. "If you play him like a dumb jock, the story falls apart."
"Exactly," Jack agreed. "He needs to feel like someone who had real potential but didn't realize how much he was about to give up."
Matthew looked at him with mild surprise.
"You've thought about this more than I expected."
Jack smiled faintly. "I had a lot of time during training to think about the character while Marcus made me push sleds across the gym."
Thomas raised an eyebrow. "Sled pushes?"
Jack sighed dramatically. "They feel like dragging a car uphill while someone yells at you to run faster or else they will shoot your kneecaps."
Matthew laughed again.
"Alright," he said, leaning back in his chair. "I officially like this kid."
The door opened as Tyler Steelman walked in with a script tucked under his arm. He glanced around the room and spotted Jack.
"You must be Mike," Tyler said with a friendly grin.
"Guilty," Jack replied.
Tyler dropped into the chair before him. "I play Ned. The best friend who grows up to be a billionaire gamer nerd."
Jack chuckled. "That sounds like the dream career path."
"It absolutely is," Tyler said proudly.
A moment later, Michelle Trachtenberg entered, greeting a few crew members before taking a seat near the middle of the table. She was wearing a blue top and black jeans and was carrying a side bag. She gave Jack a polite smile as she opened her script.
"You're the new guy everyone's been talking about," she said casually.
Jack raised an eyebrow. "That sounds slightly ominous."
Michelle laughed. "Relax. Half the conversation has been curiosity, and the other half has been speculation about whether the producer's son can actually still act like he did when he was ten."
Jack leaned back in his chair. "Fair."
She studied him for a moment before nodding. "Well, I guess we'll find out soon enough. By the way..." She took out a book and a pen from her side bag. It was Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. "Loved your book. I'm waiting for the sequel. Consider me one of your fans. Gimme a sign." She held it before him.
She was very direct with her demand.
Jack signed it with a smile and returned the book.
"So, when's the second book coming? And how many books have you planned?" She asked before sitting down beside him.
"The second book is coming this Christmas and as for the future books..." Jack said as he touched his chin and pretended to think for a moment. "Let's just say, seven books and a series of prequels that takes place years before Harry Potter's story."
"You wrote a book?" Matthew asked, looking curious.
"Yeah," Jack nodded.
"You haven't read it?" Tyler asked, raising an eyebrow.
"No, I was really busy with work and going through some health complications. So, didn't really have the time to read," Matthew replied, and then he pointed a finger at Jack. "But, I'm buying that book tonight and promise to give you an honest review."
Matthew Perry was in a period of sobriety and heavily focused on recovery, establishing the "Perry House" sober living center in Malibu for others. After years of severe addiction to alcohol and Vicodin during the 1990s and 2000s, he turned his home into a center to help addicts, though he still faced personal battles with maintaining his health.
Sterling Knight and Hunter Parrish entered together, greeting the room with quick nods before taking their seats. Nicole Sullivan and Melora Hardin followed shortly after, bringing the table close to full.
Jack wondered. 'Where's the younger version of Scarlett O'Donnell? Who is playing the role?'
The noise of conversation gradually filled the room as scripts opened and chairs shifted around the long table.
Jack looked around at the group. He felt a strange sensation in his chest. In his past life, he had seen many of these people on a screen. Now, he was sitting next to them.
Matthew nudged his arm.
"You alright?" He asked.
Jack nodded, "Yeah. Just a bit overwhelmed."
Matthew grinned. "Relax. We're all just pretending to know what we're doing."
The door opened again and one of the assistant directors stepped inside carrying a stack of printed schedules.
"Alright, everyone," she announced as she set the papers on the table. "Let's get started with the first table read."
The room slowly quieted. Scripts lifted. Chairs turned toward the center of the table.
Jack took a slow breath and opened his script to the first page.
Three months of training.
Countless rehearsals.
Endless hours studying the character.
Now the real work finally began.
Suddenly, the door opened, and a young girl with short brunette hair entered. "Sorry, I'm late. Got caught up in the traffic and then got pulled over by a cop."
----
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