CHAPTER 123: BUILDING CHEMISTRY (1)

At that moment, I knew I was lucky today because my co-star wasn’t some clueless newcomer.

"Buy me a new one? It’s not that easy!" I raised my voice, though I tried to keep Mia’s trembling pain in it. "I’m tired of pretending everything’s fine, Dion. I’m tired of acting like your little jokes don’t hurt!"

Tommy—no, Dion—looked taken aback. His brows knitted, guilt flashing across his face. "Mia, I didn’t—I didn’t know they were still bothering you."

I let out a bitter laugh and shook my head. "Of course you didn’t. You never do. You just stand there, watching them, saying nothing, like that makes you any less cruel."

At that moment, Dion finally realized that his friends were still bullying Mia, even though he had told them to stop. The whole argument was just a big misunderstanding, but both of them were too immature to talk it out.

"Mia, it’s not—"

"Enough, Dion." I dropped my shoulders and looked at him softly. My voice turned quiet, almost like a whisper. "I shouldn’t have helped you back then. I’m sorry for stepping into your life. I promise I won’t bother you anymore after this."

Dion reached out, trying to grab my hand, but I had already turned away and walked off. After that scene, Mia never went back to school. She accepted her uncle’s offer to study at a girls’ boarding school overseas, and she didn’t see Dion again for more than seven years.

"Cut!" The producer’s voice broke through the air. "Good job! Now, let’s move on to the next scene..."

I glanced at Kai as Eric explained what we had to do next. To my surprise, Kai’s eyes had never left me. He watched me closely, like a lion stalking a doe from behind the bushes.

He didn’t say a word, but his stare alone was enough to make my skin crawl. I could almost feel the darkness behind his gaze, or maybe it was just me, remembering how Lando kept warning me to stay alert around him.

Before, I never felt anything strange about him. I used to think he was just a charming, polite rich guy—well, maybe not always. Sometimes, his vibe did feel off, but since I never heard anything bad about him, I brushed it off.

I should have listened to my gut even back then.

"Helcia, do you understand?" Eric asked, snapping me out of my reverie.

I blinked a few times before nodding. "Yes! The scene where Mia helps Dion get the cola that’s stuck in the vending machine, right? Got it!"

I took a few deep breaths, getting ready for another scene that felt painfully childish.

In this part, Mia was a new student. While walking to class, she saw Dion struggling with a vending machine because his drink got stuck.

Being the kind person she was, she helped him by shaking the machine until the cola came out. She thought she was doing a good deed, but she didn’t know it would be the start of her nightmare.

Not far away, Dion’s close friend Anya—the girl who secretly liked him, though everyone already knew—saw them and got jealous, then bullied her.

When I first read the script, I thought it was ridiculous. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized bullies never need a real reason to pick on someone.

Back in high school I was bullied by a group of mean girls because the handsome guy their leader fancied ended up having a crush on me and even confessed.

Even though I rejected him, somehow they still tried to make my life miserable. They once dumped a bucket of water on me in the bathroom. Did I cry or run? No, I beat them with that damn bucket and got suspended for a week. It was worth it.

But unfortunately, not everyone can fight back against their bullies, and it’s not their fault. After all, no one in this world deserves to be bullied, not even the weakest person.

Eric clapped his hands together. "Alright, everyone, let’s reset! Tommy, you’re up. Helcia, take your mark by the vending machine."

I nodded and walked toward the prop. The fake vending machine looked old and dented, like something straight out of a rundown school hallway.

"Ready?" Eric called.

Tommy and I both nodded, so he immediately said, "Action!"

We began the scene just as Eric instructed. The more we acted together, the smoother everything felt. Our chemistry grew stronger with each take, and soon, it didn’t even feel like acting anymore.

Tommy was still a little awkward sometimes, but since I always tried to stay calm and easygoing during the audition, he eventually relaxed too.

Eric had us do at least five scenes, and in the last one, Mia comforted Dion after he found out that his sister had committed suicide because she was bullied by her classmates.

Yeah... it was heartbreaking. Honestly, the writer should probably just turn this story into a full-blown drama instead of calling it a romance.

Because what do you mean his sister committed suicide because she was bullied?! Isn’t that basically foreshadowing that Mia could’ve done the same thing back when Dion and his friends bullied her?!

"Cut!" Eric shouted, clapping his hands before I could think any further about the plot. "That’s the last scene for today!"

A moment later, everyone began applauding. I wiped away the fake tears still wet on my cheeks, and Tommy did the same, though he looked like he was still caught up in the emotions of the scene.

"The chemistry between you two was incredible!" Eric said, grinning from ear to ear. "Honestly, I almost want to ask you to shoot the whole drama already!"

Among everyone there, my eyes only focused on Kai. He was clapping too, but he didn’t say a single word, acting as if he wasn’t even in the same room.

Eric and the rest of the team continued praising us one by one until he finally said, "Alright, we’ll move to the private evaluations. Tommy, take a few minutes to calm down. We’ll call you back later."