Chapter 3

Her right cheek quickly swelled with a large bump. Her eyes went wide with instant fury. But just as she was about to grab my hair, she suddenly fell backward with tears streaming down her face. "Serena... I just came to try out for the second female lead position... "

"I never intended to steal your leading role. Please, stop... "

Lillian Ross's sudden change caught me completely off guard. "What are you talking about? "

"Serena Winters! What are you doing?! "

An angry shout came from behind me. Gideon had already crossed to stand in front of me and slapped me hard across the face. Intense pain exploded, spreading rapidly from my cheek through my entire skull. My vision darkened. The world spun. Lillian Ross's aggrieved crying reached my ears. "Gideon, Serena saw me and immediately... "

"Maybe she thought I was trying to steal her leading role, so in her panic she... "

Her voice was thin, carrying a timid caution. After speaking, she deliberately revealed the bruised half of her face. Lillian Ross's complete distortion of the truth hammered heavily at my heart. Gideon's expression grew darker and darker. His gaze toward me was cold as ice. "You're lying! Lillian Ross, you're completely twisting the truth! "

"You—"

"What is she lying about! I saw it with my own eyes! "

"Serena Winters, I thought your quiet behavior these past few days meant you'd recognized your mistakes. I didn't expect you to remain so unrepentant. "

Gideon's chest heaved with anger. Even the finger he pointed at me was shaking. "Lillian Ross didn't even press the issue about what happened before, and you still can't tolerate her?! "

I just stared at Gideon's eyes, red from anger. Somewhere in my heart, it felt like a huge hole had been torn open. Cold wind passed straight through, leaving only the whistling sound of wind. "It's like this again, Gideon. Your eyes are wasted on you... "

"You've never believed me... "

I murmured repeatedly, and without realizing it, I was laughing through my tears. "Gideon, are you truly blind in both heart and eyes? You're supposed to be a Best Actor, yet you can't even see through such poor acting. "

"Serena Winters, you're being completely unreasonable! "

"You love acting so much, don't you? Let's see how you perform without any roles! "

My heart sank suddenly, plunging into an icy abyss. Sure enough, the next second, Gideon called over the director. He gave all my scenes to Lillian Ross. Lying in Gideon's arms, Lillian Ross shot me a victor's smile when he wasn't looking. "No, Gideon, you can't do this! "

"This production is very important to me. I can't lose it...! "

I closed my eyes. My mind filled with images of the hospital's payment reminders and my mother lying alone in her hospital bed. "Serena Winters, you only have yourself to blame. "

"This is what you owe Lillian Ross. Consider this role your compensation to her! "

My mind went blank. The terror of losing my mother consumed my entire consciousness. Lillian Ross's triumphant, provocative gaze pierced through my heart like madness. I lost control and charged forward. But a massive force grabbed my arm. Gideon threw me hard to the ground. He held Lillian Ross tightly in his arms, his eyes full of rage. "Serena Winters, have you gone insane?! "

I screamed hoarsely through my tears. "Gideon, can you really not see the truth?! You know how much I need this—"

"Slap—! "

All sound stopped abruptly with Gideon's slap. Through my blurred vision, I saw countless curious and horrified eyes staring in our direction. I could no longer feel the burning pain on my face—only overwhelming humiliation scorching my skin at every moment. "Serena Winters, I can't let you run wild anymore! "

"From start to finish, all I see is your viciousness! Someone, throw her in the water to reflect on her actions! "

Someone held me down and shoved me into the water. Murky river water poured into my nose and mouth. That cold, deadly sensation washed over me again. Tears mixed with river water, drowning out my cries for help. 4. I don't know how much time passed. Just when I thought I would die there, someone pulled me from the water. I vomited up water weeds mixed with mud all over the ground. They tossed me aside in a corner like a drowned dog. Gideon grabbed my jaw, forcing me to lift my head. "Serena Winters, when will you finally understand? "

"Life only gets better when you learn to behave. "

I struggled to open my eyes and saw clearly the endless disappointment and disgust hidden in Gideon's gaze. After speaking, he didn't spare me another glance. He picked up Lillian Ross and strode away. The cold wind lifted the thin fabric on my body. I knelt on the ground, trembling violently. But colder than this wind was the inescapable sense of humiliation from being publicly exposed. I didn't understand why, even after I'd chosen to withdraw, they still wouldn't let me go. Why use my life and my mother's as fuel for their love story? My phone on the ground kept vibrating with a buzzing sound. Following my gaze downward, I saw it was the hospital calling. Ignoring the pain in my body, I hurriedly picked up the phone. "I'm sorry, I might need to pay this time's fees a bit lat—"

"Ms. Winters, because you've been delaying payment for the imported equipment for too long and the surgery couldn't be scheduled in time, your mother... "

"Please accept our condolences. "

"What...? "

Tears and phone both fell to the ground at once. The voice on the other end was still notifying me about funeral arrangements. Tears blurred my vision. I slowly crouched down.