Do you have any idea who this is?” Susan inquired taking a sip of her coffee.
“Forget who is behind that mask, let’s get down to business. I want you back as my manager.”
Susan was all smiles, her grin made Ivy smile in response. She did miss the old days when Ivy told her she was quitting her career. Susan tried persuading her, but she insisted. She didn’t tell her the reasons though; she just told her she can’t continue anymore, and they parted ways. If she had told her it was because of a man, she knew exactly what Susan would say… ‘Men are deceptive.’ Susan too got her own share of heartbreak and betrayal.
“I would love to be your manager again only when you promise me you will not take a hiatus without prior warning or reasons.”
Ivy smiled, “I promise.”
“Are you really married to Zack Anderson?” Susan was holding in her excitement.
“That’s old news,” Ivy casually said.
“OMG, how did it happen? I mean, I thought he was gay. He never spared any woman a glance.”
“It’s a long story.” A really long story she has buried in the ditch. She didn’t tell her about Dave since their relationship was kept secret from the media. “I’ll send the contract over to your email, and I’ll also find something nice for you.”
“Thanks.” They shook hands, and Ivy just rolled her eyes. There was no need for formalities; Susan knew how to strike a balance between informality and formality.
On arriving home, Ivy found Zack sitting in the living room with his legs crossed, swaying his glass casually. His eyes glistened with the shimmering chandelier hung up above, and his perfect posture was breathtakingly graced on the exquisite sofa. He had the aura of a king which made Ivy pause to take a good look at him. Does he have to be so stylish? He was just drinking wine, not shooting a commercial. She scrunched her face as her mind flashed back to their last conversation. He wasn’t supposed to be home by this time…
“I thought you said you would be gone for a month.” Ivy was quite surprised to see him so early; he left just a week ago.
“You don’t seem happy to see me, wifey,” he said, still in his posture.
Ivy chuckled at the ‘wifey.’ He was so unfathomable; it was actually the first time he called her wifey. ‘It wouldn’t hurt to play along.’
“Hubby, I didn’t mean that,” she said as she sat beside him. “You don’t mind me joining you for a drink, do you?”
“I don’t mind.” He poured her a glass and handed it to her.
“Thank you. I’m happy you are in a good mood today.”
“Is that what you think? To be honest, I’m in a very bad mood.” Ivy stopped her sipping halfway, squinting at him in case his face showed seriousness so she could make her way to her room.
“It seems you aren’t bored as I thought.”
Ivy frowned, ‘did he come back home thinking I was bored.’ “I’m not bored.”
“Really. I always felt bored whenever I come back to this place. The whole place feels empty, but it changed a little when you came.” He said as he turned to face her.
Ivy smiled, “I’ll take that as a compliment.”
A phone call ruined their couple moment, and Zack excused himself to answer the call. At the same time, her phone rang.
“**Susan**”
She answered the call, and Susan’s voice was heard at the other end.
“They will be holding a press conference soon, and that impostor will be appearing in front of the media. Don’t tell me you are going to sit back and watch things unfold.”
Ivy was tempted to laugh at Susan’s obliviousness. Did she think she was just going to sit back and watch her doppelganger bask in her glory.
“Susan, can you help with something?”
The press conference was deeply anticipated by both reporters and fans of the once-famous Ivy hale, who was finally making an appearance after her three-year hiatus. For the reporters, they couldn’t wait to grab a new story about her comeback and, of course, the recent shocking news that was still on top of the entertainment news. The fans were too excited to see her appear on the screen after so long. Their star actually started acting at the age of seventeen. She featured in one of a popular series as a supporting character. From there, she was scouted by Omega Entertainment, which led to her major progress in her acting career as she was continually booked for major roles in big production films. Due to her talent and fame, she was awarded the best outstanding actress for the year at nineteen.
Suddenly at twenty-one, she left the industry without giving any reasons. Many articles of defamation by the media surfaced, yet it didn’t totally dwindle her fame.
At the press conference for ‘Wedding Catastrophe,’ the so-called Ivy Hale wore a checkered dress sitting beside the female lead who was constantly batting her eyes at the sole focus of the media. She knew who would have the media on their tails after the event. As the major star of the film, she felt it was supposed to be her time to shine. Honestly, she wasn’t at the level of the top-notch fame.
After the speech, all the reporters immediately swept to their main focus of the event. It was very obvious to the production team the media’s purpose of their attendance.
It was really good publicity for their new project, though.
The other actors were shoved to a corner, watching the reporters scrambled after the ‘outdated actress,’ as many of them called her, walking struttingly out of the venue. Within a few seconds, she was already crowded by reporters all asking the anticipated questions.
“Are you taking this opportunity to announce a comeback?”
“Can you give reasons for your hiatus from the industry three years ago?”
She was just staring at them with a wide grin, preparing to give a satisfying answer. As her mouth opened to speak, she noticed their gaze was fixed elsewhere, to be precise behind her.
“What the…” One of the reporters gawked at the sight in front of them. “Woah.”
They all darted their eyes back and forth in confusion at the apocalypse…
Instantly, they changed the question they had been saving before the press release. It was certainly going to blow the internet.
“Who is the impostor among the two of you?”