Chapter 111

Isabelle Laurent was the type who'd choke on her own pride before letting a single tear fall—no one would ever catch her vulnerable.

She barricaded herself in her apartment, silencing every notification, waiting for the storm of the night to pass.

She’d lost this round, but surrender wasn’t in her vocabulary. One day, she’d make them regret crossing her.

After a sleepless night, dawn crept in. She swiped on her makeup, unlocked her phone, and braced herself for the fallout at work.

The second her screen lit up, it exploded with messages.

Isabelle scoffed. Probably another obsessive fan of Sebastian Hart, somehow timing their call the moment she powered on.

But no—it was the agency.

A Twitter alert blazed across her screen:

"SCANDAL: The Twisted Love Triangle That Will Shock You"

Isabelle had become the sacrificial lamb.

Was last night’s livestream just a ploy to sic fans on the manager and shift blame?

Two-faced Sebastian, cuckold king Adrian Cross, and Seraphina Delacroix—queen of mixed signals.

The whiplash of the trending topic left her stunned. She tapped into Twitter, only to find the platform ablaze with explosive headlines.

At 7:30 AM, right as rush hour kicked off, two gossip accounts had dropped bombshell videos—leveraging last night’s drama to set the internet on fire.

Isabelle’s grip tightened on her ringing phone. The agency’s VP roared through the speaker—this scandal had torpedoed three of their biggest cash cows.

"Isabelle, did you orchestrate this?"

Her laugh was ice. "If I had that kind of power, I wouldn’t have waited until morning."

"Just get to Sebastian’s place. We can’t reach him—you two need damage control."

She polished her car keys with deliberate slowness. "Our contract’s terminated. His mess isn’t my problem."

"You—you built his career! How can you be so ruthless?"

"Oh, absolutely. I’m the villain here," she drawled.

A pause. "...At least delete last night’s post."

Isabelle’s smirk sharpened. "My account, my rules. And no—I’m keeping it up."

She’d been framed. Erasing evidence? Not a chance.

Let those fans marinate in their idol’s betrayal.

Not only did she leave the post live—she enabled comments.

If she didn’t fan the flames now, she’d be failing everyone who’d stood by her.

The only allies she could think of? Team A-list. She grabbed her bag, professionalism armor-clicking into place, and headed for Julian Blackwood’s agency.

Despite the early hour, the internet was a warzone.

Netizen 1: So Seraphina was locking lips with Sebastian, playing star-crossed lovers, then swapping spit with Adrian, claiming he’s her soulmate? This is a "peaceful breakup"?

Netizen 2: I’m officially lost. This trio’s dynamic is a psychological thriller.

Netizen 3: Wait—so when Seraphina dumped Sebastian, she was "forced"? But why—

Netizen 4: Too scared to piss off the real puppetmaster. Classic bully—picks on the weak. I knew the manager was right. What agent lets their rising star date?

Netizen 5: The script blame was a setup?! Never judge a saint by their halo, folks.

Netizen 6: Isabelle tried sparing us from that cringe-fest on stage. Too bad we saw Sebastian and Seraphina’s soap opera anyway.

Netizen 7: Thank god she got free. That movie’s crowded enough.

Netizen 8: I was mid-rant against the agent when this dropped. My draft is ashes.

Netizen 9: I RECOMMENDED THEM TO MY BOOK CLUB. My credibility is DEAD.

Meanwhile, Seraphina—passed out in the guest room—jolted awake to chaos.

Her head throbbed. The bed was empty. Relief.

Then the noise registered. She stumbled to the door, desperate to muffle the commotion before Sebastian woke upstairs.

Peephole check. She yanked the door open. "Do you know what time it is?!"

Her assistant shoved a phone at her. "Mira—emergency!"

Two familiar videos. Trending tags. Comments like knives:

Netizen 10: My "humble, hardworking" idol? A fraud.

Netizen 11: Cheater. Manipulator. Adrian’s just her backup plan.

Netizen 12: All three should be blacklisted. They’re a moral hazard.

Seraphina’s hands shook. "This can’t be happening—"

Worse? She’d slandered Terrence in that footage.

If he saw this…

She bolted upstairs, the entourage scrambling after her. "Sebastian! Disaster!"

Breakfast Table Intel:

The Blackwood family was mid-bite when Evelyn Sinclair suddenly choked on her orange juice.

Nathan Blackwood arched a brow. "Darling, did the scandal break before your coffee?"

She wiped her mouth, grinning. "Oh, it’s better than caffeine."

Across town, the trash fire raged on.