Chapter 129: How Did It Go?
Hayley’s POV:
Lost in thought, Trista quickly grabbed my arm. “Hayley, hurry up! The audition starts in 20 minutes, and we can’t be late.” As she spoke, we stepped into the elevator, where a man wearing a baseball cap instinctively lowered his hat when he saw us. I found the person in front of me somewhat familiar but couldn’t place them until we exited the elevator. As soon as Trista spotted a poster in the hallway, it hit me—the person in the elevator was probably the rising star, Joseph Lloyd.
“Excuse me, where’s the audition for the Mars Colonization cast?” Trista asked a staff member, who pointed to the right. “Just follow the hallway all the way to the end. It’s the last room.” Trista thanked the staff member and pulled me along.
The audition line was long, and Trista grabbed her number—somewhere in the 50s—indicating we’d likely have to wait two or three hours. “If I had known it would take this long, we should have come later,” she said.
I tried to comfort her. “It’s fine. We have plenty of time for you to go over the script and get ready.” Trista looked at the new script in her hands. “Let’s go over there. You can help me practice my lines.” We made our way to a quieter rooftop area, where Trista focused intently on the script.
Christophe POV:
I put down the script for Mars Colonization, sank onto the couch, and started playing a game when my manager suddenly started complaining. With a worried look, he said, “Christopher, look at how much your stats have dropped. You’ve fallen out of the top five on both the popularity and activity rankings. You used to be in the top three, and now your song search index is over 20!”
I replied calmly, “Caesar, this is perfectly normal. The entertainment industry moves quickly, and we have to accept that, don’t you think so?”
Caesar was furious. “What do you know? The most important thing for a star is its commercial value. Your fan base is still pretty solid now, but it’s clearly shrinking. Look at all the new celebrities in the company who are starting to make a name for themselves. If you don’t work harder, you’ll probably become a nobody in two years or less.”
As Caesar paced back and forth, he said, “I asked you to write a new song. Have you made any progress?” I casually replied, “Don’t worry, I’m working on it. Just stop rushing me; if you keep pushing, I might just lose my inspiration.”
“You need to collaborate with Siete and have him write a few new songs for you right away. You also need to engage with your fans more online to strengthen your fan base.”
I stayed silent, lost in my game. Once Caesar stepped out with his phone, I finally put mine down, my earlier indifference fading away. I logged into my Twitter account and browsed through my fans’ comments. After writing something, I hesitated for a long time before ultimately deciding not to post it, saving it to my drafts instead. “Never mind, just forget it,” I sighed, getting up to leave.
As I walked out, the company staff greeted me respectfully, “Christopher.” I merely nodded slightly, walking past them with a neutral expression. Just then, I caught a glimpse of Hayley standing on the balcony. Next to her was a taller beta girl, which suggested that this Omega was more popular than I had thought—beta girls were willing to befriend her. It was probably due to her recent victories in the tennis tournament and the Math Olympiad.
I didn’t approach her right away; instead, I quietly observed her. “Hayley, I find this line a bit awkward. It’s so hard to say,” the girl next to her complained. Hayley glanced over and suggested, “Try breaking it down into smaller parts, and it might be easier to memorize.” The girl followed her advice and recited the line again, and sure enough, it sounded much better and less awkward than before. It seemed that Hayley was quite a clever Omega.
Noticing they had stopped talking, I approached and greeted them. “What are you doing here?” I blurted out, catching them off guard. Hayley looked surprised but showed no real joy at my arrival, while the girl next to her lit up with excitement. “Y–You… Christopher!”
“Hi, I’m Trista Wright, Hayley’s friend,” she said, her tone brimming with enthusiasm. I was used to being recognized, so I smiled and replied, “Nice to meet you!” But Trista could hardly contain her excitement. “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I’m seeing Christopher! Um…” She started pulling out her phone, asking, “Can I take a selfie with you?”
I nodded. “Sure.” Trista was so excited that she could hardly contain herself as she leaned in, holding her phone up to snap a few pictures of us. Once she was done, I noticed that she immediately posted the photos online.
Hayley then turned to me and said, “I came to accompany my friend for the audition.” I asked, “How did it go?” Hayley replied gently, “It hasn’t started yet. I think we’ll have to wait a little longer.”
As we were talking, my agent, Caesar, came running over. His face lit up with joy. “Christopher, what are you doing here?” While speaking, he glanced at Hayley and Trista, nodding with a smile to greet them. I turned to Hayley and said, “I’ve got to go. Something came up. You two carry on.” Then, I followed Caesar as we turned to leave. “What’s so urgent that you’re in such a hurry?” I asked, looking at Caesar, who appeared anxious.