Chapter 128: It Is My Decision
Willow adjusted her freshly styled hair and stood up, balancing effortlessly on her four-inch heels. “Since you’re my agent now, you should focus solely on me. The company shouldn’t distract you by making you manage other artists.”
Both Willow and Olivia were under the same agency, with Daniel as their shared manager. However, unlike the unnoticed Olivia, Willow was a former influencer discovered and signed by the company. She was currently their rising star and cast as the second female lead in this drama.
“Oh well, that’s a company decision…” Daniel responded with a flattering smile, making no effort to hide his disdain for Olivia.
Willow glanced at Olivia briefly. “Whatever. She’s just an irrelevant minor actress and won’t require much attention.”
“Exactly. She is just a small-time artist, not in your league at all,” Daniel chuckled.
Compared to Olivia, Willow was undoubtedly the company’s priority. Busy attending to Willow, Daniel left Olivia on her own, tossing her the script and instructing a makeup artist to prepare her before following Willow out of the room.
Sitting in her chair, Olivia flipped through the script in her hands. Her character, Penelope Yaxley, was a country girl who moved to the big city and quickly became dazzled by its glamour. She ditched her childhood sweetheart, clung to a wealthy playboy, and lived a hedonistic life as a gold digger. Eventually, the playboy fell for the female protagonist, and Penelope, unwilling to be cast aside, schemed to frame her. In the end, her misdeeds were exposed, leaving her utterly ruined and disgraced. Penelope embodied every cliché of the villainous female character, a manipulative, self-serving antagonist.
“Take off your glasses,” the makeup artist demanded curtly.
Olivia looked up to see the makeup artist holding a palette of jet-black eyeshadow, looking ready to apply it to her face. “You’re using that color for my makeup?” Olivia asked, raising an eyebrow.
The scene she was filming today was Penelope’s arrival in the big city. It was a moment when she was still an innocent girl from the countryside. A smoky black eye makeup for an innocent country girl? Is this a joke?
The makeup artist gave her a condescending glance. “You failed the audition last time. Daniel said this is your first scene, so you need to make a strong impression on Mr. Jos. How can you do that without looking your best?”
“You’re sure this will leave a good impression?” Olivia asked dryly.
In her past life, she’d gone along with this makeup artist’s work, showed up on set with a garish look, and ended up being screamed at by Jos for thirty straight minutes.
“Of course! I’m a professional makeup artist. I know what I’m doing. Can you stop wasting time and let me do my job? Didn’t you hear what Daniel said?”
The makeup artist’s patience was wearing thin. She’d done Olivia’s makeup on multiple sets before, and Olivia had always followed instructions without question. Why is she acting differently today?
Olivia closed the script and said calmly, “Put your stuff down. You can leave now.”
The makeup artist thought Olivia had come to her senses but froze when she heard those words. “What… what did you just say?”
“I said you can leave,” Olivia repeated, taking the eyeshadow palette and brush from the artist’s hands. “The door’s over there. Feel free to see yourself out.”
The makeup artist stared at her in disbelief. “Olivia! What’s the meaning of this? The company hired me to do your makeup. What gives you the right to dismiss me?”
Arms crossed, Olivia leaned back with a faint smirk. “You’re here to do my makeup. Whether I need you or not is my decision.”
The makeup artist glared at Olivia, struggling to comprehend why the usually docile actress was suddenly standing her ground.