Chapter 2

Eleonora stared at the contract for a full minute, her breathing heavy. She reached out and violently swept the thick stack of papers off the mattress. The contract hit the Persian rug with a dull thud. She slumped back against the soft, upholstered headboard, her muscles tight with frustration.

She grabbed her phone from the nightstand. She unlocked the screen and immediately tapped the blue bird icon for Twitter.

She typed her own name into the search bar. Instantly, a torrential flood of vicious comments filled her screen. The algorithm, designed to push the most engaging and controversial content to the top, showed her thousands of tweets from angry fans.

They used their keyboards as weapons, accusing her of playing with the pure, innocent feelings of the young idol, Izaiah. They called her a predator. They called her a heartbreaker.

She scoffed, a bitter sound escaping her throat. Her thumb swiped rapidly up the screen, scrolling past the baseless accusations. She felt a numb boredom settling over her. It was the same old narrative the media loved to spin.

Her scrolling stopped abruptly. Her eyes locked onto a long article posted by a verified, highly influential gossip blogger.

The headline was blindingly offensive: "Counting Eleonora Carlisle's Rumored Boyfriends: When Will the Hollywood Player Finally Settle Down?"

Driven by a masochistic urge, she tapped the link.

The article was a meticulously curated gallery of her past. It was filled with out-of-context photos taken over the last four years. Pictures of her standing next to male co-stars on movie sets, or accidentally brushing shoulders with male celebrities at crowded industry parties.

She read the text, mocking the blogger's wild imagination in her head.

Suddenly, her fingers, still slightly slick from the expensive silk sheets, lost their secure grip on the heavy phone. The device began to slip sideways from her grasp.

Eleonora frowned in deep annoyance. She reflexively tightened her hand, scrambling to catch the metal casing before it could fall and smack her in the face.

Because her movement was so forceful and uncoordinated, her left hand jerked. Her left thumb, which was hovering over the phone screen, pressed down hard.

Right in the center of the screen, a bright red heart animation exploded outward.

Eleonora froze. Her deep blue eyes widened, staring unblinkingly at the solid red heart.

Her brain completely short-circuited for a full second. The realization hit her like a physical blow to the stomach. She had just used her official, verified account-the one with over forty million followers-to 'like' a malicious hit piece about her own fake dating history.

She gasped, sucking in a sharp breath of cold air. Her fingers scrambled in a panic, desperately tapping the screen to undo the 'like'.

But the mansion's Wi-Fi, usually flawless, experienced a micro-second of lag. The webpage stuttered, froze, and then turned completely blank.

The golden window to fix the mistake was gone.

A second later, the banner notifications at the top of her phone screen began to cascade downward like a violent waterfall.

Millions of users had their push notifications turned on for her account. Their fingers were lightning-fast. The screenshot of her 'like' was captured and shared thousands of times before she could even refresh the page.

The hashtag EleonoraLikesScandal rocketed to the number one spot on the trending list with terrifying speed.

The tone in the comment section shifted instantly. Some users were shocked, praising her for being "authentically bold and owning her past."

But the vast majority of the internet began to celebrate. They wildly speculated that this 'like' was a deliberate, official teaser. They assumed the notorious "Player" was finally announcing that she was ready to settle down for love.

The phone in her hand vibrated violently again.

The caller ID flashed on the screen: "Carrie (Will Kill Me)."

Eleonora bit down hard on her lower lip, tasting a faint hint of copper. A cold sweat broke out on the back of her neck. She felt the primal terror of the incoming storm.

She did not hesitate. Her thumb jammed the volume down button, forcing the phone into absolute silence.

Treating the device like a burning piece of coal, she flipped it over and slammed it face-down onto the nightstand.

She grabbed the edge of the silk comforter and yanked it up, pulling it entirely over her head. She wrapped the blanket tightly around her body, turning herself into a human cocoon.

She squeezed her eyes shut in the darkness. She decided to use sleep as a shield, hiding from the morning that was rapidly destroying her life.