Titan 165
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Yolanda’s eyes were utterly emotionless–she couldn’t be bothered with morons. ‘I really can’t stand dealing with idiots,‘ she thought to herself.
The young talent Sophie Page slipped out and hid herself in the dance studio, crying quietly in the corner.
The studio was lined with mirrors–perfect for anyone wanting to work on their posture or practice their
moves.
Soon, the other girls came over to check on her. “Sophie, what happened?”
“Did someone make you go drinking with them again?”
Sophie frantically wiped away her tears, her eyes puffy and red. “It’s Yolanda again. I told her straight up I didn’t want to do those skimpy photo shoots, and she totally went off on me.”
Everyone here’s used to getting pushed around by those suits upstairs, so whenever the girls hung out together, they’d vent about the higher–ups.
Yolanda had thrown Starlight into absolute chaos lately, so of course everyone started gossiping about her
next.
“I heard someone actually threw acid at her once. Honestly, she totally had it coming.”
“Being a woman herself, you’d think she gets us, but she’s probably just in cahoots with those guys.”
“Sophie, stop crying. You’ve done these shoots before, and hey, at least you get paid. If not, we’ll be totally broke next month.”
Sophie bit her lip, her eyes flashing with anger. ‘Why is Yolanda doing this to me?‘ she wondered.
She quickly got up and went to find Mary Hall, only to hear that Mary had gone to Yolanda’s office.
Too scared to go in, Sophie had no choice but to wait outside.
As soon as Mary stepped out, Sophie rushed over. “Ms. Hall, what did Yolanda say to you?”
Mary creased her brows, noticing just how little respect Sophie had for Yolanda, even though she was the
CEO.
Maybe it was because Yolanda was so young–Sophie just saw her as another pretty face, not the real boss. That’s why she always got bitter whenever Yolanda shot her down.
Mary, though, still got some respect–her age made it impossible to brush her aside.
Mary held up her hand, cutting Sophie off. “Enough with the first names. She’s Ms. Grant, remember?”
Sophie curled her lip. “Ms. Grant? Please. She’s been running the show for like half a month now and still hasn’t come up with a single plan. Honestly, looks to me like she’s just fallen in line with those suits upstairs-
11:15 Mon, Oct 6
can’t think about anything except how to wring every penny out of us.”
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“Sophie, if that’s really how you see things, then stop coming to me for favors. I’m the director here, you’re just a talent. I only treat you kindly because I feel for your situation–don’t mistake my decency for a license to step out of line.”
Sophie’s face went ghostly white and she trembled all over. “Did Yolanda spill something to you?” she stammered, her voice barely above a whisper as she panicked inside. ‘Did Yolanda say something behind my back? Is that why Mary suddenly sounds so cold?‘
‘It’s gotta be something Yolanda said,‘ Sophie thought, her mind racing. Not long ago, she and Mary would rant together about those guys upstairs, but now there was an unmistakable chill between them, like they were total strangers.
Seeing Sophie still didn’t get it, Mary Hall couldn’t be bothered to argue or comfort her anymore–she just stepped right into the elevator and disappeared.
Her eyes rimmed red, Sophie burst into Yolanda’s office, almost in tears.
“Did you trash–talk me to Ms. Hall? Seriously? After all the trust I put in you!”
Yolanda’s face turned icy cold as the door slammed open–the doorknob banged into the wall, leaving a mark.
“Get out,” she said coldly.
Sophie stopped dead, her cheeks burning red, nails dug deep into her palm. “Yolanda! Not helping me is bad enough, but now you’re stabbing me in the back?! Have you got any decency left? Don’t let that CEO badge go to your head–Starlight would be exactly the same with or without you!”
Yolanda picked up the phone and called security, then reached out to a few more people before sliding a termination contract across the desk to Sophie.
Sophie stared at the contract, her eyes wide with disbelief. That deal had always been stacked against her, and now–if she got let go–she’d have to cough up a crazy amount, something like 12 million. There was no way she could fork over that kind of money.
Her face turned ashen, hands trembling as she clutched the contract. “Yolanda, are you trying to destroy me?! I’ve never seen anyone so ruthless!”
She burst out of the office, clutching the contract, tears streaming down her face.
Yolanda stared at her computer. ‘Me? Ruthless?‘ she thought in disbelief.
This was the exact same contract they signed–she hadn’t changed a single word. The ones squeezing them dry were the higher–ups, not her. But now she was the villain, just because her name was on the paperwork?
It was almost funny. ‘I haven’t even done a damn thing yet, Yolanda thought.
Back in the dance studio, Sophie clung to the contract, tears spilling down her face the moment she crossed the threshold.
11:15 Mon, Oct 6
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The other girls crowded around, unloading on Yolanda with furious words, calling her even nastier than the men who ran the place.
“Sophie, seriously, what are you going to do? You owe over twelve million! Where could you possibly get that kind of cash? If the police get involved, would you even end up in jail…?”
“Sophie, maybe you should just expose her online! Someone this heartless deserves to be dragged in public.
“Exactly! Let the internet take care of villains like her and give her what she deserves.”
Sophie’s eyes were red and puffy, but she angrily swiped her tears away with the back of her hand.
“That’s right! I’m putting her on blast online! I’ll make sure the whole internet tears her to shreds!”
So in the end, these girls weren’t clueless–they knew exactly how to stick up for themselves. It was just that with Alex Wilson and his crew running the show, no one dared make a peep. But swap in a female boss, and suddenly they’re brave enough to start a rebellion. Funny how that works.
Sophie didn’t hesitate–she went live right away, holding up her business card as proof and real–name reporting. She announced for all to hear that she was a talent at Starlight Entertainment, had slogged away for three years just to make rent, and now she’d gotten dumped by the company with a twelve–million–dollar penalty.
Real–name exposés were blowing up online lately, and in the eyes of netizens, anyone bold enough to flash a business card had to be legit.
And since it was entertainment industry drama, the gossip crowd swarmed in for the show.
The livestream took off in seconds, rocketing straight to the front page of the app.
Sophie squeezed her business card tight, her lips quivering with anticipation, as she watched her stream roll past twenty thousand live viewers.
“This is what went down,” Sophie said with her voice shaking. “Her name is Yolanda–she’s the CEO of Starlight Entertainment, and she’s the one who’s been bullying me all along. All I’m asking for is justice! Please, everyone, help me blow this up and get the word out!”
Yolanda didn’t see the livestream until three hours had passed, by which time she was already back at Moonbay Estate.
She was trending in the top ten, even though she was a total nobody–more than forty thousand hate comments, and every top reply basically told her to drop dead on the spot.
Ian was the first to call. “Ms. Grant, are you alright? Just saw all the drama online–do you want me to come over and be with you?”
Yolanda lazily swiped across her screen, sounding unfazed. “Don’t worry about me. It’s just people running their mouths–no big deal, it’s not like they’re hurting me. Honestly, all this noise is working in my favor. Just let it be.”
Ian listened to her calm, steady voice, his throat tightening. “If those trolls realized you weren’t bothered at all,
11:15 Mon, Oct 6
they’d be pissed.”
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Yolanda burst out laughing, her eyes soft. “Come on, I’m living in the most lavish villa Downtown, got my husband’s black card, and a drop–dead gorgeous talent like you by my side. Seriously, why would I waste time getting angry over some online haters? Whenever I get a little annoyed, I just peek at that black card in my purse and poof–the bad mood’s gone. Ian, let me show you my new earrings.”
Ian fell silent for a few seconds. When he finally spoke, his voice was husky. “You really were born to drive men crazy.”
Yolanda was rock–solid; as she gradually broke free from the shackles of her marriage, her own brilliance began to shine brighter and brighter–her aura was dazzling, impossible to ignore.
It was so dazzling, you couldn’t help but stare.