Chapter 29

Cast in scene: Olivia Lopez as Amelia Nilson

Zoya Eldeeb as Aurora

[INT. AMELIA'S KITCHEN - EVENING]

(Amelia is standing in the living room, pouring herself a glass of wine. She looks tense and exhausted, still wearing her work clothes. As she takes a sip, Aurora walks in and approaches her, resting her hand on Amelia's shoulder.)

1, 2, 3, and... Action!

Aurora: (softly) Rough day at the office?

Amelia: (sighs) You could say that again. I swear, if one more person asked me to stay late, I might lose it.

Aurora: (sympathetically) I'm sorry. You've been working so hard lately.

Amelia: (smiling weakly) Thanks. It means a lot coming from you, I know I have been putting too much on you lately.

Aurora: (gently) You know, you don't have to carry all this weight on your own.

Amelia: (tearfully) And who will carry it with me? (slight pause) I am so overwhelmed.

Aurora: (Grabbing her forearm) I get it. But you have me, if you ever need to talk.

Amelia: (nods) You are such an angel, you really made everything easier lately.

Aurora takes a deep breath and smiles weakly at Amelia as she takes a step back hesitantly.

[FADE OUT]

Zoya's POV:

I walked into my room after the shooting was done, unable to keep a straight face any longer. It's ironic that I'm an actress, yet I can't act nonchalant in this situation. Everyone was whispering, Olivia had been acting reserved, and Ezra and Ava were watching me like hawks. It's true that I wanted things to work with Olivia, but not like this. I would never risk her career and marriage. It needed to come from her. This is a game that I wasn't willing to play, and I don't want to win by playing it. I want Olivia to want me and to try to make things different for me, but I'm delusional.

I sat in front of the mirror and started wiping off my makeup. I wanted to get out of here and go home as quickly as possible. I wanted to talk to Sebastian, but after what Ezra said, I decided to remain quiet. I was even scared to think about Olivia.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door, causing me to startle. Before I could respond, Ava entered, closing the door behind her.

"What do you want?" I asked, feeling annoyed as I continued to clean my face.

"The question is, what do you want?" she said, leaning against the mirror with her arms crossed.

"Right now? To remove my makeup, go home, and not listen to whatever you have to say," I retorted, exasperated.

"I'm not here to fight with you," she said, her eyes never wavering from mine.

"I didn't say anything. I'd never do this to Olivia," I stammered, struggling to hold back tears.

"Maybe not intentionally. You're new to this world. Maybe you talked to the wrong person, were careless. There are a million ways things can go wrong when you don't understand how this world works and how far paparazzi are willing to go for a story," she said calmly.

"What's your point?" I asked, unable to hold her gaze; I felt trapped beneath her scrutinizing eyes.

"My point is if you truly care about Olivia, you'll back off," she concluded, rising and uncrossing her arms.

"Why don't you tell that to your friend? She was the one who kissed me," I retorted, my tone edged with anger.

"See? It only took you two seconds to tell me that Olivia made the first move, something I didn't know. What if I was the one who tipped off the paparazzi?" Ava leaned closer, resting her hand on the back of my chair.

Realizing she had a point, I bit my lip and stared at my hands in my lap.

"Are you?" I asked, my voice faint.

"No, I'm not. But you have no way of knowing that, and I have no way of knowing it wasn't you either." Ava started pacing around the room, eyeing my belongings.

"What happened to that girl you were dating?" She inquired when I didn't respond.

"Nothing. We weren't dating. We just went out once or twice," I admitted after a moment, my mind clouded with thoughts of Cadence.

"Maybe you should be seen with her more often," Ava suggested.

"Why?" I queried, puzzled as to why Cadence was relevant to our conversation.

"If you're dating and Olivia is seen with Elijah as usual, the rumors will die down eventually," she explained.

"Is that what Olivia wants?" I asked weakly.

"It's what Olivia needs. What she wants is none of my business, or yours for that matter. It's what being in this industry means. Olivia will come to her senses," Ava explained.

"How can you not care about her happiness? You're her friend," I challenged, genuinely wondering how she could disregard Olivia's struggle.

"I do care about her and it's for that reason I'm telling you to do this. I'm not asking," she stated as she walked toward the door.

"But to put your mind at ease, Olivia will tell you the same thing if Ezra and I ask," she said before leaving the room and closing the door behind her.

I stared at my own reflection in the mirror for a couple of seconds before I started sobbing, feeling my heart clench with pain. What did I get myself into?

Olivia's POV

I left my room with the intention of going home as soon as possible to talk to Elijah. I could only hope he had already gone back home. However, as I turned the corner, I was taken aback to see Ava leaving Zoya's room. She gave me a puzzled look, and I realized she wanted to speak privately. I followed her to my car, and once inside, I turned to her, waiting for an explanation.

"We will talk to Elijah together," she said, catching me off guard.

"Why? What's going on?" I asked, feeling confused.

"I don't want this situation to spiral out of control," she replied, her tone serious.

"This is something between my husband and me. You shouldn't interfere in this conversation," I said, leaning back and massaging my temples, feeling a headache coming on.

"I am like family to both of you, and I know you want me there. So, stop being stubborn," she responded, scrolling through her phone.

"What were you doing in Zoya's room?" I inquired after realizing she wasn't going to bring it up.

"I was cleaning up the mess you made," she said coldly.

"What did you tell her, Ava?" I asked, trying to control my anger.

"Relax. I didn't hurt her feelings. I told her how to handle the situation to prevent it from worsening," she explained, putting her phone back in her purse. "I also set up an interview with the journalist who published the article," she added.

"You could have at least warned me," I complained, feeling annoyed.

"Warn you for doing my job?" she asked, and I didn't respond. She was right, but it was still frustrating.

The rest of the car ride was slow, and I kept checking my phone every few seconds, hoping for a message from Zoya. However, I knew she wouldn't text me. If our positions were reversed, I wouldn't have texted either. I knew she was disappointed, and she had every right to be.

She led the way into my house, but my feet dragged behind. I had no idea what to expect, and I wasn't looking forward to this conversation.

Once inside, I noticed Elijah's keys on the table. He was home, and this conversation was inevitable; there was no turning back.

We walked towards the living room and saw Elijah standing by the bar, pouring himself a drink. Ava walked towards him with open arms and gave him a hug. He hugged her back, his eyes fixed on me.

"How are you feeling?" She asked, rubbing his arm. He gave her a slight nod and sat down, still overlooking me.

"Did you sleep with her?" Elijah finally asked, breaking the long silence. Ava shifted uncomfortably.

"No," I quickly answered, shaking my head.

"Did you kiss her?" He asked, swirling the drink in his glass.

"Elijah, I didn't intend for any of this to happen," I explained as I sat across from him.

"To cheat? Or for me to find out?" He scoffed angrily.

"For any of it. I don't know how it happened. Just to be clear, this has never happened before. But then she came into the picture, and I..." He cut me off, raising his finger.

"Are you in love with her?" He asked, his voice cracking.

"Y..No..I don't know. I don't know what came over me," I said, putting my head in my hands.

"So what? Are you gay?" He asked one question after the other, as if he had thought them all through and needed answers to each.

"Elijah, I do not know," I said, seeking a quick glance at Ava for help.

"I don't think Olivia has all the answers to those questions, Eli, as much as it is your right to demand them," Ava intervened, sitting down next to him and rubbing his knee in comfort.

"So what now? Do you want me to divorce you so you can run towards the rainbow with your new girlfriend?" He said as he put his empty glass down.

I looked up at him, but even to that question, I had no answer. I didn't know what I wanted or what I expected. I was not ready to throw everything away for Zoya.

"Well, I am not divorcing you. You are not leaving me for someone else, definitely not for a woman!" He said as he stood up and went upstairs, leaving me and Ava staring at each other in silence.