Chapter 2
756 Words
I leaned against the icy wall, gasping for breath.
My stomach ached fiercely.
With trembling hands, I dry-swallowed the dust-coated pills, their bitterness seeping into my chest.
'Don't cry, Jenna. You're not the spoiled heiress who can act recklessly anymore. Tears are useless.'
"Jenna, you look terrible," a girl in an extra's costume said as she bounded over to me. Emily was a regular background actor at the studio, and she was always cheerful enough to drag me into chatter between takes.
I forced a smile and said, "It is nothing, Emily. I just went too long without eating. I am feeling better now."
"You are too stubborn," she said. "Hey, Mike asked you to deliver costumes to Stage Five. Do you want me to go instead?"
"Stage Five?"
I had overheard that Luke's shoot was moving there.
"Yeah," Emily continued, fanning herself dramatically. "Mr. Reed is there. Lucky you. You will get to see him up close."
Luke. Three months ago, he had won Best Actor and become the youngest person ever to claim the title.
He was a living legend, and he was the last person I wanted to see. "Thanks, but I will handle it," I said, grabbing the costumes before she could argue. In this industry, our paths were bound to cross eventually.
At the soundstage door, I pushed the
door open. Inside, the lights blazed while the cameras hummed with quiet energy. There he sat beside the director with a script in his hand, and his profile looked so sharp and unreal that he could have been a statue.
He glanced up as I entered, so I avoided his eyes and hurried toward the wardrobe mistress. "Here," I said as I handed her the garments.
She took them with a nod and said, "Thanks."
I turned to leave, but then his voice stopped me cold.
"Jenna."
"Come here," he said. I pressed my lips together tight and obeyed. His gaze swept over me like I was merchandise on display at an auction.
"Have you forgotten me already, Ms. Blake?" I met his stare and said, "Your memory seems excellent, Mr. Reed." He laughed, and the sound was as cold as winter rain. "Miss Blake, how could I forget?"
He should hate me. For three years, I had been a storm that left wreckage in its wake, especially his.
"How much?" he demanded suddenly. "What?" I asked. He gestured at me with a wave of his hand. "Five million dollars. Is that enough?"
Was this his revenge, mirroring how I had once bought his pride like cheap goods at a market? "I am just crew now," I said. "I am not worth your attention."
"Not worth it?" His eyebrow arched up. "The mighty Ms. Blake used to flaunt her wealth all the time.
What's the matter? Not enough? Should I offer more?"
I bit my lip hard. The air grew heavy between us as if a storm was about to break. He stepped closer and backed me against the wall until I was trapped. "I learned from you, Jenna," he said. "Wasn't flaunting your money your favorite thing to do?" He leaned in until his breath was hot against my ear. "Look who is down and out now."
The memories came flooding back all at once.
The first time I saw Luke was at our university's art exhibition. He stood alone in the corner and was completely absorbed in sketching a plaster statue. My heart skipped a beat like I had been struck by lightning.
He was the spitting image of Lucian.
Lucian was the boy next door who had been two years my senior, and he was an art student as well.
I loved his eyes the most, the way they curved up when he smiled like a gentle fox.
During his senior year, his class went on a trip to sketch in the countryside. I threw a tantrum until they finally let me come along.
When Lucian painted, nothing else in the world existed to him. Back then, I could not stand being ignored.
So when I spotted the river, I dove in without a second thought just to get his attention. I was a good swimmer, but the undertow yanked me under the surface like a wild beast. Lucian charged toward me and pushed me to the shore with all his might. He never resurfaced again.
He was only eighteen years old, and he was gone forever. I drowned in guilt and could not move on. Then came Luke.
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