Chapter 470 Fiction Into Reality
At the set, the crew had just commenced work on the rain sequence where the downpour was to batter furiously upon the extravagantly dressed Wendy and Lucas.
With eight cameras trained on the male and female leads, everyone had been looking forward to this as it was the finale.
“Why did you lie to me? Why?” Drenched by the rain till her face turned pallid, the look in her eyes reflected the equivocal feelings she felt for the emperor. “You were the one who destroyed my country, yet I did everything to help you ascend to the throne. I’ve even managed your harem as well as bore you children!”
“Return to my side.” The dazed emperor spread his arms as he looked at the woman.
The woman removed the hairpin from her crown and regarded the man with tears of hatred while the guards held their positions with arrows loaded and bowstrings drawn. Then, the woman did the most unexpected.
She plunged the hairpin into her left breast, dyeing her own robes a fresh shade of crimson.
“No!”
The emperor clutched the woman in his arms and broke down in anguish, yet he was unable to rouse any sort of response from his beloved.
All those present at the location watched as their eyes welled. As soon as the director yelled for a “cut”, the masses broke into rapturous applause.
So deeply immersed in his role was Lucas that he was unable to recover from his crying immediately.
When she roused within Lucas’ embrace, the slightly self-conscious Wendy tried to coax him, “Come on now, Lucas. Look, I’m not dead yet!”
Seeing Wendy’s smile did somewhat help him recover a little better from that state of grief he was in.
Not too far away from them, Natalie looked on at the interaction between Wendy and Lucas with a contented and matronly smile.
Less than two or three months in without seeing them, these two seemed to have gotten into it for real. The affection within their eyes was definitely not part of the act.
As an award-winning thespian, Lucas had always conducted himself impeccably, impressing others with his acting chops, and seldom, if ever, counted on controversy to draw attention to himself.
Although a newcomer, Wendy was gifted at her craft and extremely hardworking. She had held her own as the female lead and carried this production in a way that far exceeded anyone’s expectations.
If the two of them were to come together, it’d be a match made in heaven.
Wendy and Lucas only noticed Natalie after they got back onto their feet. Then, they shrugged off the down jackets their assistants brought them before they hurried over.
“Ms. Nichols…” Wendy’s initial impulse was to hail Natalie as Chairman, but it did not seem appropriate to do so in front of the others. Hence, she switched up her approach. “Natalie, you’ve here! Why didn’t you tell us that you were coming by today?”
“Better late than never. I got here just in time to catch that last closing sequence.” Natalie presented bouquets to both Wendy and Lucas. “It was wonderful. Congratulations on completing the filming!”
Wendy and Lucas were all smiles when they received the flowers. “Thank you.”
Being the show’s leads, Wendy and Lucas were expected to be the busiest ones when wrapping up the filming. Hence they took the effort to have their assistants prepare a bountiful pile of snacks and treats, in case they became too occupied to attend to Natalie.
While Natalie ate the macaron and chewed on the sweets sponsored by the gorgeous pair, she was buzzing inside and did not feel at all neglected.
At nightfall, a celebratory dinner was held together with the film crew and Natalie followed up by throwing another after-party for Wendy and Lucas.
The setting would be a private room, a secluded space where the latter two would be able to let loose from their public persona.
“Mr. Becker could not be here with me because he had to accompany his wife to a prenatal,” said Natalie while she produced two sets of monetary gifts. “He got me to bring this to you though, and wishes to convey his congratulations on a job well done.”
Wendy and Lucas smiled appreciatively when they received the gifts.
When the former needed to use the restroom, Natalie was left alone inside the suite with Lucas.
Natalie shuffled closer to Lucas as she wanted to lean into his ear.
But when she recalled what Samuel said to her just earlier in the morning, she repeated them to herself as a reminder and chose to maintain a healthy distance instead.
Then, she withdrew her hand sheepishly and coughed.
“I assume that you wanted to ask whether I had any feelings for Wendy, isn’t that right, Ms. Nichols?”
