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Brent Hale gave me one night to save the company’s worst-performing livestream—or lose my job with everyone else in Studio Three.

I wanted the severance package.

So I ignored the script, exposed every product flaw, and told viewers exactly what not to buy.

By the time my boss tried to cut the feed, the chat was threatening to riot—and half our inventory was already gone.

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When Brent Hale handed me the company’s dying livestream, he gave me one instruction.

“Maya Reed, if you don’t sell anything tonight, you and Studio Three are both gone.”

I nodded and sat under the lights.

The first product was a twelve-inch nonstick skillet. I got halfway through the script, looked at the pan in my hand, and gave up.

“It is nonstick,” I told the twenty-seven people watching. “It’s also heavy. If your wrists are weak, don’t buy it. You won’t be flipping anything with one hand.”

Behind the control desk, Brent’s face went green.

The viewer count dropped to twenty-three.

He pointed at me and mouthed, Praise it.

The script said: Besties, buy now. Even a total beginner can flip this pan one-handed.

I tried lifting it one-handed. My wrist dropped, and the bottom nearly hit the table.

“Don’t believe that part unless you lift weights.”

The chat froze.

[Did she just talk me out of buying it?]

[My mom has tendonitis. I almost ordered one. Thank you.]

[Can I buy it if I’m strong?]

I set the pan on the burner, added oil, and cracked in an egg. It slid cleanly once the edges browned.

“If you cook often and have enough stovetop space, sure. It heats fast and the coating works. The handle is thick, though, so small hands may get tired. Also, grease collects around these two rivets. If you hate scrubbing pans, think about that.”

Brent rushed to the monitor. “Maya, do you know how selling works?”

I tapped the heavy base with a spatula. “Good for searing. Bad if you want something light for quick stir-fries.”

Dylan Cho, our operations coordinator, stared at the dashboard.

“Mr. Hale.”

“What now?”

“Add-to-carts are going up.”

I did not look. I wanted the stream dead.

Studio Three was where the company sent clearance stock, slow sellers, and products with ugly return rates. The last host had quit in tears. Before that, another had lasted a week and lost half his sales to returns.

I had worked customer service for six months. Every day, people asked whether our hosts thought customers were stupid. Then rumors of layoffs started. If our department closed, we would get severance.

Instead, Brent transferred me onto the doomed channel and said the whole group would be cut if we failed tonight.

Perfect, I had thought.

Kill the stream. Take the severance. Go home and sleep.

So I did not shout about thirty-second deals. I did not claim the lowest price on the internet. I did not call strangers “family.”

I inspected the lid. “The glass is thick, but the rim is wide. Measure your cabinet if your kitchen is small.”

The chat sped up.

[She’s like the annoying older sister who is always useful.]

[She lists the flaws, so I trust the good parts.]

“Buy it if it fits your life,” I said. “If you only heat soup, you don’t need it. If you cook for three people and fry fish or eggs, it makes sense. And if you already own two pans like this, stop. Cookware is not a collectible.”

Brent reached for the end-stream button.

The chat exploded.

[Don’t cut her off!]

[I still need to know if it’s dishwasher-safe.]

I checked the manual. “Technically yes. Hand-washing will extend the coating’s life.”

Brent’s hand stayed in the air.

Dylan swallowed. “Half the inventory is gone.”

“Half of what?”

“The pans. We sold a hundred and seventy-six in two minutes.”

I kept trying to save people from themselves. I explained that the twelve-inch pan was unnecessary for one person in a tiny apartment. A viewer asked for a smaller one. There was a ten-inch version on the shelf, but it paid a lower commission.

Brent shook his head wildly.

“There is a smaller one,” I said. “The link isn’t up.”

[Put it up!]

[Give us the small pan, boss.]

Brent closed his eyes. “Put it up.”

The smaller pan sold out in thirty seconds.

By the end of the night, both pans and the spatula set were gone. I looked at the HR message on my phone: If Studio Three closes, affected employees will be handled according to company policy.

My heart sank.

The channel was not going to close.