CHAPTER 49: CHAPTER 49: BORN OF ADMIRATION

Dylan pointed at Quinn Lockwood’s face, frowning with concern as he asked.

He never imagined she would make such a request on her own initiative.

He saw Ariana Lynch’s slap just now; it was so forceful that it’s hard to believe she has no grudge against Quinn. No one would believe it if it were said otherwise.

"It’s fine, just a slap; it’s not really an injury."

Quinn Lockwood forced a smile to pretend to be strong.

She knew very well that Ariana Lynch’s slap was full of force.

But now they were filming, and she couldn’t bring in her personal feelings; plus, today’s slap was what she asked for, so she had no right to blame anyone else.

"You’re really something. I never thought you’d ask to be slapped for real. I bet many male actors would feel ashamed."

Dylan said in a low voice, lowering his head. For an actor, although acting is their duty, mixing the real and the fake is rare. Not many are willing to make fiction reality, and even men would find it unbearable.

"So are you talking about yourself?"

Quinn Lockwood joked with a smile, deliberately trying to lighten the mood.

"That’s true."

Dylan looked straight at Quinn Lockwood, genuinely admiring her, not just for requesting a real slap earlier but also for her strength, even when disliked by so many, expressing his admiration sincerely.

"Are you filming a night scene today?"

Feeling the burning pain on her face, Quinn Lockwood shifted the topic; she didn’t want to show her vulnerable side to others or sell a pitiful persona.

"Yes."

Dylan smiled, knowing she was doing it on purpose and ceased mentioning the previous incident.

"Then you’ve come quite early."

Quinn Lockwood glanced at the sky, noticing it wasn’t even evening yet.

"Nothing to do anyway, might as well come early to familiarize myself with the set, and I can keep you company."

Dylan said casually; in fact, being the lead in this drama was quite stressful for him, but he never showed it in front of others, always putting on an outgoing and warm persona.

This was the persona set by the company for him.

"You make me sound so pathetic."

Quinn Lockwood joked with a smile. However, she indeed was alone.

The smile was so broad that it made her facial muscles start to ache.

"Hiss～"

Dylan burst into laughter at her helpless and amusing expression, and Quinn Lockwood laughed along, spending the afternoon happily together.

Elsewhere, feeling frustrated having not seen Elias Sinclair while negotiating the contract, Freya Caldwell stormed into Sinclair Group, disregarding the barriers and barging straight into Elias Sinclair’s office.

"I’m sorry, Mr. Sinclair, I couldn’t stop her."

As soon as the door opened, security immediately explained to Elias Sinclair.

Seeing it was Freya Caldwell, Elias Sinclair slightly waved his hand, and the security tactfully left.

"Why are you deliberately avoiding me?" Seeing Elias Sinclair in the office made Freya Caldwell even sadder, confirming he was indeed avoiding her.

She glanced around, searching for signs left by Quinn Lockwood, believing that Elias Sinclair was avoiding her because of Quinn Lockwood.

"Miss Caldwell, please mind your words."

Elias Sinclair frowned, clearly displeased.

"Don’t play dumb; you say you’re not avoiding me. Didn’t you say there were matters at home? Then why are you here?"

Freya Caldwell questioned Elias Sinclair directly, assuming herself as the hostess.

"Where I choose to go doesn’t need explaining to you."

Elias Sinclair said coldly; it was precisely now that he realized what her words implied. It must have been Joyce Kramer who gave her such an excuse, not expecting her to come storming in.

He walked past Freya Caldwell without much ado, starting to deal with the documents on his desk.

"You, you actually have this attitude toward me?"

Freya Caldwell looked at Elias Sinclair in disbelief, yet he gave no response, instead treating her as if she were air.

She became even more convinced of her earlier thoughts, that he went to find Quinn Lockwood.

"If you keep avoiding me, I’ll have my father tear up the contract and refuse any further cooperation with Sinclair Group."

In a moment of desperation, Freya Caldwell thought of using the recent collaboration to threaten Elias Sinclair.

What she didn’t know is that Elias Sinclair despised being threatened the most of all.

Sure enough, as soon as Freya Caldwell finished speaking, Elias Sinclair irritatedly slammed the door and left.

For a young, inexperienced girl to dare wager the company’s interests, if it weren’t considering her status as the Caldwell Group’s heiress, he would’ve had her thrown out by bodyguards.

"I’ll leave it to you."

Exiting the office, Elias Sinclair came face to face with Joyce Kramer and took the opportunity to have her handle Freya Caldwell while he left the company.

Just returned from Caldwell Group, finishing her work handover, Joyce Kramer immediately realized what had happened when Freya Caldwell ran up, calling Elias Sinclair’s name.

Joyce Kramer sighed, quickly stopping Freya Caldwell.

As expected, Freya Caldwell was once again left outside. She looked at the towering Sinclair Group building, her young face full of unwillingness. Why is it that even when Savannah moves away, Elias Sinclair still can’t see her?

No, she would never give up!

That evening, returning to The Lowell Family, Quinn Lockwood tiptoed back to her room to not worry Mrs. Lowell and Mr. Lowell, covering her face with her hand.

In her room, she finally breathed a sigh of relief and took out an ice pack to apply on her face.

Her face still throbbed in pain, a testament to how harsh the slap from Ariana Lynch had been.

Even knowing that Ariana Lynch bore a personal grudge, she couldn’t complain, as it was her own request.

Quinn Lockwood sighed gently, diving once again into studying the script.

Despite the director’s approval today, she knew her acting still had significant flaws. To change others’ perceptions of her in the future, she had to work even harder.

Just then, her phone rang with a new message.

"Check the news."

It was from Dylan, with just three words.

Quinn Lockwood furrowed her brow in confusion, then opened her computer to go online.

As soon as she logged on, she saw news about herself coming right at her, about the scene where she was slapped being uploaded online.

Quinn Lockwood let out a bitter laugh, realizing she really had a knack for attracting heat, creating topics wherever she went.

Yet, at the same time, she was also the easiest target for negativity. With resignation, Quinn Lockwood scrolled through the comments, which were unsurprisingly filled with insults, with only a handful of supporters.

"Knock knock."

At that moment, Cameron Grant knocked before entering, gently placing a glass of milk on Quinn Lockwood’s desk. "You must be tired from a long day, have this and rest early."

"Thanks, bro."

Quinn Lockwood responded, trying to muster a smile.

"Don’t worry too much about others’ negative opinions. I saw today’s news, and you did very well."

Cameron Grant couldn’t help but comfort her, seeing her pretending to be strong while reading the comments.

"I’m fine."