It had been exactly two days since the party and Diana Harlow had been cursing Dakota ever since.

Not had she only dragged her to a conversation with someone she never wanted to meet in the first place but she had done something way graver.

With the way Dakota had acted at the party, one would think she was a fangirl of Diana or something.

But that theory was debunked the next morning when the reviews for her movie came out.

"...You can't possibly find any worse acting in the history of Hollywood. But our lovely Ms. Harlow strikes yet again. Such irredeemably ridiculous acting, pathetically puerile dialogue and facial expressions that are so highly non-existent that it prompts the question, 'Why do we cast models in movies?'..."

Dakota Maier

Chief Film Critic

Startstruck

Suffice to say, Dakota wasn't getting on her list of favorite persons anytime soon.

Another person excluded from that list would be, none other than, Mr. Marcus Van Levi.

She could still picture his face when his wife inquired about them knowing each other.

His ears had gone red and he was tapping his feet on the tile rapidly; clearly unable to answer.

It was Diana who had brought him out of the misery, "I don't think we do. No."

Of course, after seeing their guarded expression the woman didn't seem too convinced but that was none of her concern, "I'm sorry but I didn't get your name last time."

Diana had outstretched her hand. But before the woman could reply Marc had intervened, "Olivia Levi." there was an edge to his tone, "She's my wife."

Diana suppressed a scoff before retracting her hand as Olivia gave out an awkward chuckle. The aura of their conversation had turned sour and everyone could feel it.

'What does he think of me? Some crazy ex who would pour drink all over his precious wife?'

Diana's eyes shifted towards the couple's matching White and Gold outfit. And Marc visibly tensed.

This time she couldn't suppress an eye roll.

'What's up with those outfits? Are they twins or something?'

She had smiled nonetheless, "It was nice meeting you, Mrs. Levi. Hope to see you around."

She was just glad that Sandra hadn't inquired further and hadn't forced her to stay.

In fact, Sandra hadn't called her ever since. Maybe, she was busy but Diana had a feeling that she was purposefully giving her space.

After all, she did tell her a few times about her disliking towards the 'Levi' family without explaining the reason.

She sighed out loud before laying on the couch with her palm supporting her cheek and watched as her Assistant - Amanda- paced around the room, muttering to herself.

Now, Amanda was a fun subject to her. The girl never spoke unless asked question and always gave the shortest answer possible.

Her manager was really not impressed when she hired Amanda as her assistant but Amanda had left no scope for her to regret the decision.

"Amanda?"

"Yes." She stopped pacing.

"You're stressed."

She didn't reply.

"What happened?"

"Your meeting with Mr. Berners just got postponed without further notice."

Diana sprang up from her previous position and did a happy dance, "Thank goodness! I was so not looking forward to meeting that old fart!"

Realizing the end of the conversation, Amanda started pacing again.

Diana walked toward the fridge and opened it to find something to eat. She brought a slice of cheese and some grapes from the fully jammed fridge and set them on the island counter.

Suddenly, someone barged in through the door as she put a grape in her mouth. She greeted her manager with a mouthful of grapes, "Making use of that spare key, James?"

"First of all, don't speak with your mouth full of food." His eyes focused on the cheese slice, "And second of all, is that cheese you're eating?"

'He's still angry I see...' She thought to herself.

"Relax. It's just here to set up the mood." She grudgingly put the slice of cheese back in fridge, "I heard there's some change in my schedule for the day?"

James shrug off his coat, "Yes, but you're still on for that meeting along with Chrissy Tonkin for that sunscreen commercial."

Diana groaned.

"That's it for the day?" She asked hopefully.

"And you'll be meeting an acting coach." He stated casually.

"WHAT?" Diana exclaimed, "Why in the world would I need an acting coach?"

James didn't reply. Instead, he picked up the latest edition of Startstruck and flipped through the pages before landing on a particular one. He showed it to her pointing towards the review, "I'm sure you've read it already?"

"The fans loved my acting." Diana defended herself.

"The fans would love it even if you spat in their face." He sighed, "That's not the point here. Critical acclaim is highly important if you even want a sniff of an Oscar; otherwise you'll forever be stuck with Teen Choice Awards and all that bullshit."

"She obviously wrote negative things about me because she hates me!" Diana continued, "And cut me some slack, it's my debut film."

"Diana..." James grabbed her shoulder before giving a shake, "You CAN NOT ACT!"

Diana tried to retort but James was not done yet, "I told you not to rush! But did you listen to me? No, you just went ahead and signed that shitty vampi-"

Suddenly, the doorbell rang cutting him off, "Who is it, Amanda?" James huffed out.

"Stylist."

James stormed off to the washroom to cool down.

"I don't need an acting coach." Diana declared when he was out of hearing range.

***
Marc was in the middle of a meeting with the board of directors when the thoughts of the party invaded his mind. It wasn't unusual as it had been like that ever since the encounter.

But now was not the time for these. He tried his best to listen to the plan Olivia was explaining but he couldn't focus at all.

At last, he was brought out his misery by the sound of applause around him. He glanced towards Olivia who had just finished the presentation and was looking at him expectantly.

Panic settled in as he realized he had missed the whole presentation. He cleared his throat and glanced towards his watch only to stand up from his chair.

The other directors followed pursuit.

"The presentation was very nicely put together, Mrs. Levi." He paused, "But a few changes are needed. Anyway, we'll discuss about it later as its lunch time already."

Olivia opened her mouth to say something but Marc interrupted, "Not now."

He left the room without a glance with his personal assistant trailing behind. He smiled at the employees on his way to the elevator before boarding it.

"Did you take any notes?" He muttered to Daniel; his PA.

"I also recorded the whole thing, Sir."

"Good job." He got off the elevator as it reached the 21st floor, "You deserve a raise for saving my marriage."

Marc chuckled at his own joke before getting serious, "Any news from the informer?"

"The file's on your desk, Sir."

Marc halted mid-step, "He's quite fast. I hope he didn't leave any traces behind."

"Not a single one."

Marc nodded in appreciation, "Clear my schedule for the next two hours." He hurried towards his office.

Once inside, he loosened his tie and shrugged off his suit before picking up a red file from his desk. He leaned on the desk as his hands itched to just open it and read whatever was inside.

But his conscience was nagging him profusely.

'Am I really stooping this low?'

Almost three years had gone by after his 'breakup' with Diana; if you could even call it one.

The way she had replied to Olivia's question at the party and that icy stare...it was... hurtful.

But he deserved it. In fact, he would've lost respect for Diana if she hadn't reacted that way.

It was still messed up though. Situations had turned him into the antagonist of the story. He sighed.

"No, I won't do this." He told himself.

Marc slapped the file back on his desk in frustration and a small piece of paper slipped out of it. He hunched down to pick it up and unfolded it.

His eyes widened at the eleven digit number written on the paper and he immediately saved it on his phone. His finger hovered over the 'call' button and he realized he did not have the guts to even talk let alone meet.

Anger surged through him but he wasn't sure who he was angry at. Himself or...

Marc crumpled the piece of paper and threw it at the trash can before storming out of his office.

In an instant Daniel was by his side.

"Clear my schedule for the day and take care of the work here." He ordered.

"Should I call the driver, Sir?"

"No." Marc got on the elevator reserved for important staff and pressed the button for the underground parking lot.

It surprisingly didn't take much time for him to reach his destination. He did not know if he should be relieved or wary of the absence of traffic at this hour.

He was currently leaning on his car which was parked in front a preschool. He was waiting for the bell to ring and the flurry of kids to run out.

While waiting, he let his mind drift into thoughts.

He would be lying if he said he had never thought about or even anticipated to meet Diana once again.

He wasn't an ignorant fool. He knew that Sandra had only invited his wife to the party but yet he tagged along; somewhat hoping to get a glimpse of her or to see any sign of her moving on from him with another man.

Anything! Just to make himself fully invested in his own marriage. But...

The sound of a bell ringing cut through his thoughts and he straightened up as a horde of kids zoomed past him.

It didn't take much for him to spot the little boy.

He ran past Marc, head full of ginger curls bouncing along with his tiny backpack. He seemed unaware why he was running. Almost as if he was just trying to blend in with the other kids but he couldn't

Marc clenched his jaw, "Only if he didn't exist...only if..."

***

Back in the office, Olivia stomped past the receptionist- who was trying to stop her- towards Marc's room.

She was not impressed by his lack of professionalism at the meeting. It was so obvious that he had zoned out.

And Olivia hated it when someone dismissed her hard work. She barged into the empty office and looked around in confusion.

The red file on Marc's desk caught her attention and she reached towards it.

"Huh? What is this?"