"It's alright," Coco refused. "The news has been taken down, anyway. Besides, I'm not a celebrity. It's not like everyone knows my face. I'll get dinner for myself or order takeaway. You don't have to travel so far to send me food."It was an hour and a half drive from here to Minnie's place."Okay, then. Take care of yourself," Minnie sighed. "Call me if you need anything. I'll talk to the director. Perhaps you can go back to the set in a few days." "Alright," Coco responded.After her best friend left, Coco was left alone in the 40-square-foot apartment. A sense of loneliness surrounded her.Coco grabbed her phone and searched for Lucas' name in her contacts. After hesitating shortly, she made the call.The call connected, and there was a low voice on the other end of the phone. "Hey." Feeling nervous, Coco involuntarily tightened her grip on the phone. "Hey… I don't know if you know, but the story about my past was on the news.""Yeah, I know," Lucas replied, his voice pra
After the call was ended, Coco put on her mask and cap and headed to the grocery store with only her phone and purse. Minnie and Coco had talked about this before. Although she did make the news occasionally, she was not a celebrity. No one would recognize her in a small town like this.Even so, Coco could not help but worry about privacy, especially when Lucas suggested having a meal together. What if the public recognized them? She could not imagine the trouble they would be in for causing a commotion.Coco grabbed some groceries in the supermarket. Knowing she had to spend a few more days in the apartment, she bought more for the rest of her stay. After that, Coco returned to the apartment and began the preparations. She washed the rice and rinsed the vegetables and meat, ready to cook.By the time Lucas arrived, Coco was still cooking. "Wait a minute. There's one more dish to go. Food will be ready soon," Coco greeted Lucas and told him to have a seat first.Lucas sat in the
"Well… I didn't mean it that way…" Coco began to stammer. "Umm, no, that's not what I meant. I mean…""Even if anything had happened, you seem to be one on the losing end, and…""Besides, you certainly wouldn't hurt me, I think…" Coco mumbled, her face turning even redder as she tried to explain herself.'Pfft!' Lucas could not resist, and a laugh escaped him. Coco was so cute and funny, especially with her reddened cheeks and hand movements, which reminded him of a squirrel.Coco froze when she saw the clear amusement reflected on his face. Lucas would usually wear a polite, small smile, but this time, his smile was genuine."What?" Lucas asked, looking at the way she was staring at him blankly."You have a beautiful smile," she complimented, her hand instinctively reaching out for his cheek. Coco had an urge to draw his smile at this moment. She wanted to use her eyes to record his genuine smile; he could melt glaciers with that smile.Lucas stared at Coco, wondering if he s
"You won't hurt me," Coco said, trust evident in her eyes.Lucas narrowed his eyes dangerously. "What makes you think I won't? I'm a man, you know.""Because you promised, so you won't hurt me. I trust you," Coco said. She knew Lucas had another woman in his heart, and everything he did with Coco was for the one he loved.Something flashed in his eyes. A short silence later, his lips parted to speak. "Don't trust me too much. I'm not like what you think.""Oh," Coco responded, her eyes bright and confident.Lucas could see the unquestionable trust in her eyes. Her faith was a weight pressing down on his body, threatening to crush him.-Loke came to Minnie and demanded immediately, "Where's Coco?""Why should I tell you, huh?" Minnie scowled at Loke. "Haven't you caused enough trouble for her? It's all your fault! She can't even go home now! Now, the reporters are coming for her because of what you did!" "So, she hasn't been home for the last two days, right?" Loke asked shar
Over the next few days, Coco did not see much news about her online. Her alias was mentioned during the promotion of the TV series, but it did not garner much negative attention. Realizing that the storm was over, she let out a sigh of relief.Coco knew this was all because of Lucas' help. Without him, the storm would have grown and lasted longer. Fortunately, the worst had passed quickly.On the days they agreed to date, Lucas came over and spent time with Coco in the serviced apartment. He would sit on the sofa, either reading books or watching TV shows while she drew him in her sketchbook.If Coco was fast, she could finish a sketch of him within fifteen minutes. If she took her time, she would take half an hour to finish.Coco loved to draw close-ups of his face, focusing on his chiseled features. Lucas was so mysterious, yet so strangely attractive. The more she tried to understand him, the less she could read him. Although he seemed cold, his eyes were full of stories, all ki
She was stunned at his next words. "I will never have children of my own. I won’t be able to understand what you’re saying," Lucas said as he lowered his head, almost as if he was blocking off contact with his surroundings. -A week later, Coco moved back to her place and joined the film crew according to her schedule. She began to help Tracy, the screenwriter, with the script. However, she could feel strange gazes on the first day on set. After all, the rumors about her had spread like wildfire a few days ago. Even though it was quickly replaced by other trending gossip, almost everyone in the crew knew what had happened. But, what they learned online wasn’t the truth. "That’s her, the bully in university. It serves her right to be bullied in the end!" "I thought that she was a lovely person when I read her comics, but she deceived everyone." "I think Stella regrets picking her comic. Others would be way better than hers." Coco could hear their murmurs even though they were w
Coco looked at Loke coldly. "I don’t need you to do anything for me. If you’re feeling guilty, I hope that you don’t show up in front of me again. That’s the best thing you could do for me." Loke turned pale. "Do you hate me that much?" "Do you expect me to be happy to see you?" Coco asked sarcastically. "Would I have to go through all these things if it wasn't for you using me to win over that girl you liked? Would my name appear on the trending news if you hadn’t done that?" "I know that I hurt you very deeply back then, but Coco, I hope that you can give me another chance to make it up to you," Loke said sadly. "You don’t have to do that!" Coco refused. "I must make it up to you, because…" Loke paused as his voice trembled. However, Coco didn’t bother talking to Loke anymore. She got up and wanted to leave the room. She would come back later when Tracy was done with Ash. Loke stepped in front of her and stopped her from leaving. "Wait, please listen to me, Coco," he pleaded.
"Yes! Are you satisfied now?" Coco used Lucas as a shield.Loke pursed his lips. "Lucas isn’t the person you think he is. Your relationship with him won’t last long. Don’t make a life-regretting decision just because you’re angry with me, Coco!" "It was never because of you that I got together with him," Coco said expressionlessly. Then, she pushed him away and left the room. Loke looked heartbroken as he wondered if he still had a chance to be with Coco. There was a crowd not far away from Coco, and they were being rather loud. Coco was confused. Someone from the film crew walked up to her and patted her shoulder. "Hey, Coco. Ash is looking for you." "Ash is looking for me?" "Yes, he’s over there!" The crew pointed to the crowd. Coco moved nearer to the crowd and noticed people holding beautifully packaged festive cookies in their hands. She wondered if it was Christmas cookies, but it was still far away from Christmas. When she got closer, she noticed a lot of people were