Chapter 5
Tyrone also felt that some things were better discovered or spoken by the person involved, not by him.
But Hazel just found it all laughable.
'Seriously, what's the point of all this? Everyone saw me in the video. Did he really just pretend nothing happened?' she thought.
Aaron was all about hooking up with her, yet had never once slept with Juniper. She didn't know if it was a win. She just found it ridiculous.
Hazel had always known she wasn't even in the same league as Juniper. Juniper was the one Aaron kept closest to his heart.
She never saw herself as Juniper's rival, not even for a second.
There was even a time when Hazel secretly wished Aaron and Juniper would just hurry up and get married. Maybe then, if Aaron had a ring on his finger, he'd finally settle down and stop demanding so much from her whenever he pleased.
Even with all that, Hazel still underestimated just how important Juniper really was to Aaron.
Just because Juniper happened to catch her leaving his office, Aaron would go to such lengths.
Hazel couldn't bear to think about it any further. She quickly turned and made her way upstairs.
Tyrone was about to say something, but Keith cut him off. "Just respect her wishes."
All Tyrone could do was shake his head and drive away, feeling helpless.
Hazel knew she couldn't stick around any longer. If she did, she'd just end up causing Keith even more trouble.
Taking advantage of the moment while Keith was asleep, she gathered up her few things and tiptoed downstairs.
"Nice moon tonight. You out here for some moon-gazing too?"
Turning the corner, Hazel suddenly heard a voice she knew all too well.
"Keith? Why are you here..." Hazel stammered.
Under the cold moonlight, his gentle eyes seemed so soft, so tender, it was almost unreal. Hazel couldn't even bring herself to meet his gaze.
But Keith just gave her a small smile. "I know you too well," he said.
Hazel was always like that, fragile, lonely, and helpless. Yet she was always trying to protect others, taking on everyone's burdens as if they were her own.
'She's so foolish, so soft-hearted... How could I ever let her face everything alone?' Keith thought.
Keith gently embraced Hazel, and the moon cast their long, intertwined shadows across the ground.
On the other side of the city, Aaron sat all by himself, clutching a glass of red wine, bathed in the cold glow of the full moon.
As soon as Tyrone brought him the news, Aaron completely lost it. He smashed his wine glass and everything else on the table in a blind rage.
His fists were clenched so tight his veins popped. Aaron fumed. 'What the hell does that penniless loser have that I don't? Why does he get her real, sweetest smile?'
While he got only coldness and professional politeness.
Aaron had to admit he'd crossed the line.
But when his fiancée said those words, panic surged up in him. He remembered his mother's broken body after falling from that building. Terrified, desperate to make it right, he did everything she asked.
He had those videos scrubbed from the internet and secured new resources for Hazel.
He even stopped blaming her for his mom's death, and dropped a blinged-out two-million-dollar diamond ring on her, way flashier than the one he'd ever given Juniper.
After everything I've done, what right does she have to complain?
"Alright then, if that's how she wants it, she can't blame me for going all out," Aaron muttered, his gaze sharp and ruthless.
*****
"Hazel, sorry, my cash is all stuck in the stock market right now."
"Sorry, sorry! I put money into a movie a while back and got wiped out."
"Hey, I just bought a house, so I'm flat broke. Maybe I can spot you in half a year?"
Hazel just gave a wry, helpless smile.
Back when they were nobodies, Hazel had been the one to help them out.
If she hadn't given them a boost, they'd still be scrambling for bit parts as extras at the film lot. No way they'd be second-rate, third-rate, or even top-tier celebrities now.
But now, they were all avoiding her like she was the plague.
Hazel knew exactly who was pulling the strings behind all this, but she didn't blame them.
Still, she couldn't help but feel a little hollow inside.
Keith handed her a cup of milk, his voice gentle with concern. "How much more do you need?"
The performance contract, the breach penalties, and the compensation all stacked up to a pretty scary number. Hazel had squirreled away a decent amount over the years, but she was still 500 thousand dollars short.
She told Keith the amount, feeling more than a little embarrassed, but he just grinned at her and handed her a bank card.
"Still short by 500 thousand dollars. But it's fine. If I win the next match, I'll get 700 thousand dollars in prize money," Keith said.
"Then you can stand tall and declare you're finally free! My next opponent has already lost to me seven times. No way I'm losing this time!"
The card felt impossibly heavy in Hazel's hand, even though it weighed almost nothing.
Keith came from nothing. He had no family money, no parents to lean on.
After that incident, he couldn't even stay in school. He had to make it on his own way too soon.
Every penny he had, he'd earned with his own fists.
Hazel had heard that when he was just starting out, a single fight might not even get him a hundred bucks.
To save this much, he must have suffered a lot of injuries.