Chapter 4

Over the next month, the entire production team operated almost like a closed set. Everyone threw themselves into it, filming from morning until late into the night every day, as if trying to stretch every minute into two.

Not a single piece of news leaked out. There were no behind-the-scenes footage, no set photos, and no updates of any kind. To the outside world, it looked as if the series had already halted production.

Nikita apparently thought so too, so she and Dwayne went all out.

In their social media posts, it would show they were in Marivelle one day, Evermont the next, and Ravensleigh the day after. There were check-ins, couple photos, and captions dripping with all sorts of flirtatious undertones.

I grew sick of seeing those updates every day and ended up blocking both of them.

…

A month later, filming wrapped.

After the final scene was done, Walter stood behind the monitor, his eyes red-rimmed. His voice cracked slightly as he said, "Thank you, everyone. Thank you for seeing this through with me."

A week after the wrap, I received an invitation to a high school reunion. I hadn't planned on going, but our class representative, Maxwell Berner, called personally, saying this was a rare opportunity to get everyone together and that everyone really wanted to see me there.

After giving it some thought, I decided to go after all.

The venue was a hotel downtown. By the time I arrived, the private room was already packed. A few people stood up to greet me as I walked in.

"Jeremiah's here! Our very own celebrity!"

I laughed it off, exchanged a few pleasantries, and found a seat in the corner. I'd barely sat down when the door swung open again.

Dwayne walked in with Nikita on his arm. She was wearing a red off-shoulder top, her makeup meticulously done, and her heels clicked sharply with every step.

The moment they entered, people swarmed around them.

"Hey, Dwayne! It's been a while, hasn't it?"

"Is this your girlfriend? Wow, she's gorgeous!"

"I heard she's an actress? What has she been in?"

Dwayne lifted his chin proudly, still holding Nikita's arm, and said, "Oh, she's been in tons of series. They're all pretty good productions."

Someone asked, "How come I haven't seen any of them?"

Nikita smiled lightly, her tone casual. "I do short-form dramas. The longer series hasn't aired yet."

"Oh, short-form dramas…" the person echoed, nodding.

After a slight pause, he added, "But short-form is great too! Oh, speaking of which, Jeremiah does short-form too! I heard his latest one, 'The Captain's First Love', is gaining a lot of attention. They're having a press conference tomorrow, actually. We should all go check it out!"

Nikita froze. She glanced at Dwayne, then chuckled. "I'm part of that series. It hasn't finished filming yet."

Everyone exchanged puzzled looks.

Nikita patted Dwayne's hand and said with full confidence, "They must have heard we're back and specially arranged the press conference for us. After over a month of cooling their heels, they've finally come to their senses."

Dwayne's eyes lit up. "Really? Then I'll get to go on stage tomorrow too?"

"Of course."

Nikita slipped an arm around his waist. "With how handsome you are, I'm sure you'll impress everyone with your first acting gig! You'll be way more popular than some other people."

Someone nearby asked, "Dwayne has a role in it too?"

Dwayne nodded. "Yeah, I'm replacing the male lead in this series. I've never acted before, but Nikita says I've got potential."

"Wow, a real-life couple on screen—that's going to be amazing!"

"How sweet!"

Everyone chimed in with praise.

I sat in the corner, eating my meal quietly, not saying a word.

…

The next day, the press conference was set for 2:00 pm at the Crownmere International Conference Center.

The Captain's First Love had been online for three days and was already sitting at the top of the popularity rankings by a landslide.