"But…"
"This minute!" I cut him off with firm persistence, already standing and walking out of the office. "If I have to sign these, I'll do it in front of him. Otherwise, he would think I'm not serious about paying it back now, wouldn't he?"
Anderson's eyes widened for a second as he observed me for a moment before nodding once. "Very well."
The drive to the venue wasn't long, but the energy shift was instant the moment we arrived.
The audition hall was alive with movement, a restless ocean of aspiring performers hoping for a breakthrough.
The air was thick with anticipation, murmurs of rehearsed lines and nervous laughter filling every corner.
Some people paced back and forth, running over their scripts.
A few leaned against the walls, lost in thought, their lips moving as they whispered lines to themselves.
I took it all in. The sheer determination in the air was almost suffocating.
However, I felt goosebumps prickle my skin, something tugging at my attention.
Like a very strange feeling.
My gaze shifted, scanning the crowd, and that was when I saw him.
There was a man sitting inside a Renualt Traffic van beside the venue's fence, partially concealed behind tinted windows.
The man has been staring at me with intensity. But it wasn't just the stare…it was what he was doing that sent a prickle of unease down my already rigid spine.
He wasn't just looking at me. He was looking down at something in his van, then back at me, again and again, as if comparing something.
My fingers involuntarily curled around the document in my hand. I don't know what the man was looking at, but I knew I didn't want to find out.
I turned to my heel, stepping farther away from that spot, and pushing further into the crowd.
Even if the man wanted to attempt some silly stunt, he wouldn't be able to while people were here. And where the hell is William?
= = =
Inside the van, the man's eyes widened in astonishment.
His hard and tired demeanor was immediately replaced to excitement and so was his voice when he exclaimed,
"I've found her! I've found the Yun Na that I've been looking for!"
= = =
Out of sight and away from the prying eyes of that man in the van, I finally let out a relieved breath.
My gaze swept across the crowd, searching for any silhouette that belonged to William, but I was met with another round of disappointment.
Had Anderson lied to me? Or was he acting on William's order? He cared
My steps came to a slow halt when I heard someone whisper, my ears automatically peeked up to listen.
"Did you hear?" A female blonde that came for the audition whispered to someone else.
"Hear what?"
"So it means you've not heard?" The voice was laced with surprise, making me frown and listening even more attentively.
What was she going to say that had her all worked up like this?
"I heard that the CEO of Helm's group is here."
I hear gasps, followed by something I couldn't quite place, well not yet, because I know I'll find out.
Soon enough, the voice spoke again. "Really? Woah, who is he here for?"
"I don't know, maybe a candidate."
"Oh my… why couldn't it be me?! That candidate is surely to become the next screen goddess in no time with his backing."
"Yeah. I really wish it was me!" exclaimed the blond girl.
"And what makes you think you're up to his standard?"
"Well, because I'm beautiful, talented and—"
"What? And to think that I'm even more beautiful than you are. He's supposed to be mine!" The other girl counters, followed by more arguments.
My frown deepened. So William is really here, but for who?
"What do you mean you're more beautiful and—"
"Hey, hold up…" Without waiting another second, I walked up to them.
For some reason I could quite place, I didn't like the way they gushed at William or made him look like an item on display.
And moreover, my ears hurt from all the banters and I didn't want to hear more of their them.
Their eyes met my squinted ones that gleamed beneath my raised eyebrows, and they subconsciously drew back.
"And…who are you?" The girl with a blond hair was first to ask. It seems like she was a curious type of person.
"I am…" I went to speak, but refrained from doing so.
I didn't want to appear like a wailing housewife who couldn't sit back at home and await her husband's arrival.
"Well, who I am isn't important. What's important is the kind of conversation I want us to have." I smile at them.
"And what conversation are you talking about?" The blond haired girl still asked.
I looked at the other one and her arms are crossed across her chest as she listened in. She doesn't seem like an over the top person like the blond haired girl, I noticed.
"First off," I started, now gaining their full attention. "The girl the CEO came here for, what's her name?"
The blond haired girl squinted her eyes, raising them up in contemplation. "Well, I think it's Clarissa… something I don't know. I mean, her first name."
So William was here for a woman while I waited like a fool in his office? The thought had my hands closing, clenching into tight fists by my side, but I didn't let them show.
"Thats it? The conversation you said we'd be having? A name of some girl?" The girl's disbelieving voice drew me out of my reverie.
The corner of my lips twitched up as I exhaled, rolling my shoulders back like I hadn't just clenched my fists a second ago.
"Well, I noticed that you guys are almost fighting over a man that doesn't even know you exist. But that's not the point." I say, flinging my hair to my back using my free hand.
Their faces are now a mixture of anger and curiosity.
"And what's the point?" Again, the blond haired girl asked, shaking her head. Irritation and annoyance was boldly written all over her body.
"The point is who the CEO of Helm's group, and owner of W&A came here for," I say, planting more seed of curiosity in their hearts. "Like you said, she's next to being the screen actress, but what about you girls?"
"With his backing, do you think the audition means anything to her?" I pressed further. "She could have already signed the contract even as we stand her for all we know."
I let my voice drop a little lower. "Or maybe this audition is just nothing but formality, don't you think?"
I watched as the girls shook their heads, realization dawning in and my lips lifted up in a smirk.
Clarissa wanted to play the mind and Cunning games? Then I'll tell her that I've mastered the art of cunning.
Now, I wonder how these girls are going to see her. And gossip travels so fast. One person must surely tell one other person, right?
"But do not be disheartened," I sucked my teeth. "Maybe it's not like that and I must have misspoken. And why are you not auditioning?" I ask, completely curious.
"For reasons we didn't know," the second girl finally said something for the first time since I said the first words. "The director suddenly wanted a break. So, we are waiting for the break to be over."
"Oh, that was it…" I muttered more to myself.
"Alright then, do your best, and I'll be rooting for you!" I tell them, however…
"Do you think you've already secured the lead role for this drama, Clarissa?"