Chapter 60: Chapter 59
The female idol snapped, "How dare you ask! If you hadn’t been such a troublemaker, seducing people left and right, why would Charlotte have been shelved by the company!"
The female idol’s name was Mia Underwood.
She and Charlotte Underwood were good friends. They had gone to an audition together, and luckily, both were chosen. Charlotte became a bit more popular than her, signing with a company and moving into the company dorms.
They had far fewer opportunities to see each other. Several times, she tried to ask Charlotte out, but she was never available.
Then, just two days ago, Charlotte had suddenly called her, crying that she’d been shelved.
Mia Underwood anxiously asked what happened, and Charlotte said she was being bullied by a roommate named Joanna Kennedy.
Charlotte claimed Joanna Kennedy had hooked a sponsor and had the sponsor shelve her, taking away her endorsements, gigs, and everything.
Charlotte had been crying so pitifully that Mia Underwood spent a long time comforting her and promised she would definitely help her.
Mia Underwood looked like she was here to avenge her dear friend.
People that loyal to their friends were rare in the entertainment industry. Too bad her loyalty was misplaced. Charlotte Underwood clearly didn’t consider Mia Underwood a friend.
Otherwise, she wouldn’t have twisted the facts to get Mia Underwood to fight her battles for her.
Joanna Kennedy finished the last grain of rice in her bowl. "She brought that on herself. What does it have to do with me?"
Shelving someone like that was Simon Lockwood’s style.
Joanna Kennedy said, "It’s kind of me not to have gone after her already. And thank you for reminding me."
Otherwise, she really would have forgotten about Charlotte Underwood.
After all, it was Charlotte Underwood who had tricked her in the first place; otherwise, none of the subsequent events would have happened. So much had occurred afterward, and she’d been so wrapped up in her own emotions that she truly hadn’t thought about Charlotte Underwood at all.
Mia Underwood was taken aback, her anger flaring uncontrollably. "What do you mean by that?!"
She didn’t believe a word Joanna Kennedy said.
Joanna Kennedy had no desire to explain herself to someone so brainless. "It means nothing. I wasn’t the one who got Charlotte Underwood shelved. But if she gets beaten up in the future, that might be my doing."
"You!"
The director called for them just then. Mia Underwood swallowed her words and could only shoot Joanna Kennedy a hateful glare. Joanna Kennedy just shrugged, her expression completely innocent.
Perhaps because she was so furious, Mia Underwood was distracted all afternoon during the recording. The director chewed her out several times.
Joanna Kennedy performed as usual and was the best among the group. However, Mia Underwood’s final score was so low that it dragged down the entire team’s average.
One could imagine that, barring any malicious editing, Mia Underwood would be torn to shreds by viewers after the show aired.
After the recording ended, Joanna Kennedy was struggling with how to convey her sincere gratitude to Simon Lockwood.
Just then, her phone rang. It was an unfamiliar number. Thinking it was a crew member calling with an update, she answered it directly.
Before she could even speak, she was cut off by a man’s voice on the other end who got straight to the point. He seemed to be deliberately keeping his voice down, as if afraid of waking someone.
"I’m a friend of Simon Lockwood’s. He’s drunk at a bar. You need to come get him, quickly."
After what happened last time, Joanna Kennedy was much more cautious. "Who is this? How did you get my number?"
"My name is Sean Grant. Hurry up and get over here... Holy shit, Simon—"
’Sean Grant?!’ He was her current boss.
The panic in the man’s voice made Joanna Kennedy’s heart sink. She wanted to ask more, but the line had already gone dead.
Joanna Kennedy flagged down a taxi and told the driver to follow the address Sean Grant had sent.
She had been recording all day, and the weather was hot. The ointment she’d applied had just melted, feeling sticky and uncomfortable inside her pants, so Joanna Kennedy had simply stopped applying it.
It still hurt a little now.
She was suddenly reminded of the ugly expression on Simon Lockwood’s face last time when her wrist was injured.
It was quite a coincidence. It seemed like every time she got hurt or was in trouble, Simon Lockwood happened to find her.
Joanna thought, ’Thank goodness Simon won’t be able to find out about this injury.’
Following the room number Sean Grant had sent, she went up to a VIP room on the sixth floor. She knocked a few times, but there was no answer. She gave the door a light push, and it swung open.
"...Boss Grant?" In the dimness, Joanna Kennedy didn’t dare to step inside, remaining by the doorway.
She called out a few more times, but no one answered. It was completely silent.
The light from the hallway slipped through the crack of the open door, revealing the vague shape of a person half-lying on the sofa.
The gold-rimmed glasses on the bridge of the person’s nose glinted slightly. Startled, Joanna Kennedy hurried over. "Simon Lockwood?"
She fumbled for the light switch in the room. As the lights came on, the person on the sofa furrowed his brow but didn’t wake up.
Joanna Kennedy quieted her breathing and walked over to crouch down. She could smell the heavy scent of alcohol in the air. Several empty bottles were scattered on the marble table.
She first felt Simon Lockwood’s forehead. His temperature was normal. Joanna Kennedy let out a sigh of relief.
She didn’t know why Simon Lockwood was here all by himself. She didn’t try to wake him, subconsciously cherishing this rare moment of peace.
Joanna Kennedy remembered that Simon Lockwood didn’t need glasses. The gold-wire frames covered his handsome eyes and brows, separated by a layer of glass.
Joanna Kennedy didn’t like it. She gently took the glasses off.
They were non-prescription.
’Deliberately wearing glasses to look like a mature, elite professional.’
Her eyes curved with a smile that quickly faded.
’Why pretend?’
Because back then, when Simon Lockwood had just started his business, he was too young. The sharp, ambitious glint in his eyes was impossible to hide. Others subconsciously felt that his early success had made him too proud and impatient, and he lost many business opportunities because of it.
The smell of alcohol on Simon Lockwood was strong. Even in his sleep, his brow was tightly furrowed. His lips, neither too thin nor too full, were pressed together, losing some of their usual high-and-mighty coldness.
Joanna Kennedy smiled and reached out to pinch his cheek. It was soft, yet firm.
’Even the coldest person has a soft face.’
The night breeze blew through six years of their lives. A Simon Lockwood with his guard down was still so pinchable.
And she still couldn’t keep her hands to herself.
After pinching him, Joanna Kennedy saw the faint red mark she’d left and felt a pang of regret. She gently rubbed it with the pad of her finger. The sleeping Simon Lockwood seemed to sense something. His furrowed brow relaxed considerably, and he even nuzzled her finger slightly.
’He’s... not so invincible after all,’ Joanna Kennedy suddenly thought.
But why? He was now the president of Southland Group. At such a young age, he had built a business empire with his own two hands.
Countless people feared and admired him, so why did he seem so unhappy?
She was an anomaly in the original plot, a burden who had forced a young Simon Lockwood to work desperately hard and exhaust himself tutoring her.
Without her, according to the plot, Simon Lockwood’s path should have been smooth. He should have risen to meteoric success, secured his high position, and found success in both his career and love life, living happily ever after.
But now, she could see no joy on Simon Lockwood’s face, let alone any so-called happiness.
Joanna Kennedy began to wonder: Was her decision really the right one? Was it right for the "system" to forcibly make people follow the novel’s plot?
A person with their own thoughts and soul was trapped in the cold plot of a novel. And she was an accomplice.
Joanna Kennedy’s eyes reddened, and a single tear fell from her eye, landing on the back of the man’s hand.
Simon Lockwood’s fingers twitched.
