"ARE YOU BLIND?!" Iris yelled. Zoe held back a smile upon hearing it but, of course, didn't show it.Zoe quickly typed a reply on her phone. [Sorry, it was unintentional. And sorry again, I can't talk because my throat is sore.]"Are you sure it's just your throat that's sore? I think your eyes has a problem too! You're not using them properly!" Iris raged, swatting away Zoe's attempt to pat her shoulder.[Sorry, it was really accidental. I'll cover the cost of cleaning your clothes] Zoe apologized again, adding the money aspect because she knew it would make Iris even angrier."Money? I don't need your money! You made my body sticky and uncomfortable!" Iris kicked over the drink Zoe had placed on the floor, spreading the wetness.Zoe regretted not being able to capture the epic scene on video. But Iris's voice was expressive enough."Iris, please don't be angry," Cleo intervened with panic, looking around to see if anyone was recording the scene. Little did she know that Zoe's phone,
"I want to see the face that you consider ugly," Max said, smiling as he gazed at Zoe's face.Zoe felt like she was dying as Max continued to stare at her. Max's eyes rolled, focusing on a spot on Zoe's nose, but that was it.Zoe's heart, initially pounding with panic, slowly calmed and shrank when she didn't see any sign that Max recognized her.Apart from her currently reddened face, Zoe's makeup could be considered heavy—far from her usual simple self. But the freckles on her cheek and nose didn't reflect the real Zoe, as her face used to be clear and flawless."I don't see any flaws here. You don't need to be embarrassed to take a photo with me." Max released Zoe's chin, and of course, Zoe instinctively stepped back.[Sorry, but I am really embarrassed.]Zoe wrote it with trembling hands, fortunately still managing to write it correctly.Max laughed again. "You're so cute," he said."Let's do this. I'll give you my phone number. If you want a more private photo session, just conta
"Have you already woken up? I want to ask you something."Zoe just yawned and wanted to go back to sleep, but reluctantly opened her eyes upon hearing that.Zoe turned and was surprised to see Wolf still sitting beside her. He was still not wearing any clothes, judging by his exposed waist, but he was modestly trying to cover half of his body with a blanket. Zoe noticed a snake tattoo circling his waist. And this was the second time Zoe saw Wolf in bed upon waking up.Zoe pulled the blanket closer, furrowing her brow and raising her hand. She wanted to know why Wolf had awakened her."I want you to hear something and tell me your opinion."Wolf took one of the earphones out of his ear, handing it to Zoe, who immediately put it on. But she asked Wolf for a moment to ask a question, grabbing her phone first.[Why do I have to listen to this?] Zoe wanted to know."You ask too many questions. Just listen." Wolf pushed away Zoe's phone and played a video on his own phone.A song and a pers
"Sara works for my company. Almost all the artists under Wolf consult with her regularly, if needed."Wolf explained as they walked into the building where the psychiatrist's office was located. Not far from Wolf's building—Wolf's own company. The company's name was the same as his own, and it momentarily confused Zoe.[What's your real name?] Zoe asked as they ascended to the tenth floor. Zoe just wanted to distract her panicking mind with a light conversation."You know Wolf isn't my real name?" Wolf frowned.[I'm sure any mother in this world wouldn't name their child after a wild animal.]Wolf chuckled as he read Zoe's writing. "I thought Wolf sounded cool. I chose it carefully."[No. You just chose it to look scary.]"But I am scary, aren't I? I chose that name because my real name is not scary at all. It's too clever."Zoe wanted to know what he meant by a clever name, but they had already entered the psychiatrist's room.Zoe read the name on the door. Sara Salgado. Seeing her n
"Venti caramel ribbon crunch frappuccino, extra banana, extra sprinkles, extra caramel, extra whipped cream, extra ice, extra cinnamon topping, and seven pumps of black caramel sauce."Zoe looked at Sara, who was ordering a colorful drink, with her mouth wide open. She only needed two words to order her drink earlier: warm Americano.The barista behind the counter remained unfazed; she was accustomed to such situations. She even smiled as she handed Sara her vibrant order and Zoe's plain black one."Let's sit over there."Sara pointed to a corner of the coffee shop's patio, and they sat down. The weather was cold, but bearable. What wasn't bearable for Zoe was how Sara could casually consume—eat?—her colorful order with a spoon.Due to the excessive extras, Sara couldn't just sip her drink; she had to use a spoon.[Is our session over?] Zoe asked, writing it on the colorful, cat-shaped sticky note Sara had given her.Sara didn't want Zoe to answer via text but to write it on the stick
"Wolf?""Hm?" Wolf removed the headphones from his head. Becca waved her hand in front of his face to get his attention."What's up?" Wolf hissed. He didn't like interruptions when he was working in the studio, especially during the final stages of deciding whether a song was ready for release or not.This process took time because Wolf was very meticulous—not hesitant to ask for re-recordings or remixing if he wasn't satisfied. Wolf demanded high concentration and despised interruptions halfway through.For almost a week now, Wolf hasn't left the studio, conducting a marathon quality check of many songs scheduled for release next month. His patience was at an all-time low."That Bitch is here."Becca felt no remorse for the interruption; in fact, she cursed whoever it was that came, as anyone earning that nickname was someone she despised."Which Bitch?"However, Wolf couldn't comprehend, as Becca had a long list of people earning that title. Even Iris had called her that when she wa
Sara snorted."If that's her only trauma, she wouldn't be mute. It's another psychological issue. If it's just falling down the stairs, she'll probably be afraid of heights or never climb stairs again in her life. Her muteness isn't because she fell down the stairs. It represents another kind of pain, probably related to a man. Shit! I shouldn't have told you that!"Sara is sharing too much. She shouldn't have mentioned the possibility of a man hurting Zoe."What kind of man?" Wolf, of course, didn't understand. Sara waved her hand, not wanting Wolf to bring up the topic of men again."Look. I just want to say that Zoe's issues might not be easy to handle because she won't open up to me. But that's the core of the problem. She's holding something in, keeping the pain or whatever it is inside her. I won't be able to help her unless she starts opening up herself.""And you're giving up?" Wolf would be disappointed if Sara was truly giving up."I am not giving up, but I need your help. S
Zoe complained because the recording she took a few days ago required a lot of editing. In addition to cutting Max's voice to keep Iris calm, there were also many other voices of people present in the gym at that time.Due to being too focused on Iris, Zoe didn't really notice the presence of many people gathering because of the incident. They were mostly whispering, and of course, it was disturbing because the phone's microphone would pick up all the surrounding sounds. There was a part where Cleo dispersed them, but it was after the final part.Zoe wanted to clarify Iris's voice and remove other voices to make it clearer, but she didn't have the ability to do that. Before Billy found them, Zoe's experience using social media to promote Max and herself allowed her to use video editing to blur faces. But for the voice part, it's usually Max's job. Zoe regretted not participating in working on that part, so she had little knowledge now.Zoe leaned back, supporting her cheek with her ha