Early morning rays streamed through the window, lighting up the entire bedroom. On the bedside table, a few blooming roses extended gracefully from a vase, releasing a subtle fragrance.
Abby Summers lay on the bed, stretching lazily before tugging the sleep mask off her face. Moving at a leisurely pace, she pushed herself up from the bed.
Grabbing the phone from the bedside table, she casually snapped a few pictures of the roses and posted them on her social media.
Abby Summers_: "Good morning, everyone! Starting the day full of energy! Picture.jpg"
Almost the next second, replies began flooding in.
FallingPiggy: "Morning? What’s ‘good’ about this morning? Seeing someone like you just ruins the mood."
BODMWWZ: "Morning, big sis. So, any update on when you’re planning to quit the entertainment industry?"
BlueBlur: "First things first, I equally despise anyone who doesn’t despise Abby the homewrecker. :
"
MyOTPForever: "The distant sound of bagpipes. *smile emoji*"
...Abby Summers glanced at the screen, thinking, wow, talk about dedication and persistence. These few IDs, rain or shine, never miss a chance to camp under her posts. The moment she tweets, they’re on it, tearing into her like it’s their life’s mission to lead the charge against “homewreckers.”
Honestly, since those scandals broke out about her, the number of people dragging her online was overwhelming. But there’s something about these specific users—they’re so consistent that their usernames are now burned into her memory.
After scrolling through some tweets, Abby tossed her phone aside with a bored sigh. Her agency, Xingyue Entertainment, had completely washed its hands of her. No statements to clear her name, no anti-cyberbullying campaigns—nothing. They even stopped managing her account altogether, leaving her to fend for herself. It was as if they’d decided she wasn’t worth the effort anymore.
Abby had come up through tough times, growing up in an orphanage and making it through college thanks to community aid. After graduation, she’d been discovered by a talent scout and, with her striking beauty, made waves in the entertainment industry. Starting out with minor villain roles and barely-there characters, she clawed her way up. Then, at 23, she became a sensation with a web drama, “Nine Heavens with the Phoenix,” pushing her into semi-A-lister status. The success kept building, and soon, she stood at the pinnacle as one of the top-tier actresses in the industry.
But all that glory didn’t last long—just two or three years of fame before baseless accusations shattered everything she’d worked so hard for.The doorbell downstairs rang loudly, pulling Abby Summers’ wandering thoughts back to reality. She walked over to the window and glanced down, spotting the person arriving. She waved and called out, “Come on in.”
It was mid-September, and although summer was technically over, the lingering heat was undeniable. Downstairs, her assistant entered the passcode and pushed the door open, wiping the sweat off her face with her palm.
The cool air from the air conditioning wrapped around her immediately, and she took a sharp breath. “Abby, I’ve said this so many times—don’t set the temperature so low! If you catch a cold, it’s gonna mess up your work schedule!” Her voice carried a hint of worry mixed with light scolding.
Abby Summers strolled down lazily from the second floor, her fingers casually brushing through her slightly disheveled hair. With a faint, sarcastic chuckle, she replied, “Work? What work? Do I even have work now?”
Since the scandal broke, everything had crumbled. All her endorsements were canceled. Her upcoming show, which was already scheduled, was removed from the lineup. The endless stream of scripts she’d once had to choose from had completely dried up. Gone, just like that.
Six years of grinding hard in the industry, and what was there to show for it? Nothing but bad rumors and empty promises.
Okay, maybe not “nothing.” All those years of effort? They'd gone straight into paying off breach-of-contract penalties. Now she owed a painful eight million to the brands she'd failed to fulfill obligations for. Selling her villa in the suburbs was the only way she could clear it all at once.
So yeah, no job, no money—but hey, at least she had debt.The assistant awkwardly placed the breakfast on the table and hesitated before saying, “Abby, please don’t get upset... Once the buzz dies down, things will get better.”
If it really came to that, she thought to herself, perhaps she could try reaching out to someone overseas who had known Abby for so many years. Surely, they wouldn’t want to see Abby completely abandoned like this...
Abby shrugged, casually opening the food bag on the table, her tone indifferent: “Really? But hasn’t Mr. Riley already found someone to take over my work?”
What she was getting at was clear—as if even after the gossip cooled down, there’d still be no place for her at the company.
“...” The assistant pursed her lips, then said firmly, “Abby, no one can replace you.”
Angrily, she continued, “It’s downright ridiculous! The company’s always had you mentoring newbies, yet they’ve never properly planned your career or connected you to top-notch resources... Fine, if they couldn’t help, but now they’re outright dragging you down! The second things went wrong for you, Mr. Riley wasted no time putting Chloe Bennett in the spotlight. She’s even copying everything about you, from her style to her personality. And now she’s out there pushing that whole ‘Abby Summers successor’ narrative non-stop!”“The most annoying thing is that he handed over those scripts and contracts meant for you to Chloe Bennett. Those were supposed to be yours!”
Her voice was full of frustration, and Abby Summers lowered her gaze slightly. Somehow, her thoughts drifted back to her early days at Radiant Entertainment.
Back then, she was just a young rookie, and the company wasn’t much to speak of either—small, unknown, without many signed actors. The best they could manage were a few low-budget web series scripts for her.
Mr. Riley was her agent at the time—a cheerful-looking man in his forties. He had bent over backward and swallowed his pride for her, persuaded investors and producers, even shielded her from unwanted advances. During holidays, when he knew she’d be alone, he’d invite her over to his home for dinner, bragging endlessly about his wife’s cooking as if it were Michelin-starred cuisine.
Life wasn’t easy back then—there was little work or income—but they managed to get by and find joy in the struggles.
At 21, Abby Summers used to dream, “If I ever make it big, things will be better for all of us.”
Eventually, she did make it. But ironically, things only got worse. She wasn’t oblivious to Mr. Riley's sneaky little tricks behind her back—like telling investors who wanted to collaborate with Abby Summers that her schedule was packed, only to push other artists under his wing instead and snatch the resources meant for her.
Or those photoshoot contracts he’d have her sign, pairing her up with lesser-known colleagues to divert her fame and boost their profiles through piggyback marketing.
When she thought about it, both of them had changed over the years. Abby had grown into a capable top-tier star, and Mr. Riley had evolved into a polished, successful agent.
She used to convince herself not to dwell on it too much, reasoning that change was inevitable. Besides, the bond they’d built over so many years meant something, right?
But in the end, all that history could only buy her betrayal and indifference.
