19 Attention

The venue sits in a reception hall where the registration and fellowship of the guests happen, and the concert hall with a stage and semicircularly lined seats. Where the stage is located in the lower part of the room and the seats go higher as it gets farther from the stage.

But Eunice and her group won't be seated in those seats. Instead, they will stay in the VIP booth located on the second level of the hall. It was like a room with a large balcony. You can see every corner of the hall on that spot.

Eunice remembered that they also stayed at that same VIP booth in her previous life. But she never really looked around and scrutinized the space.

However this time without the distraction named "Zach", she was finally able to appreciate the place. The booth is big enough to accommodate at least ten seats arranged in one row. It is decorated luxuriously obviously to cater to the needs of important guests.

It also has a minibar filled with wine and other beverages for variety. And for this event, there is also some food and snack on a large buffet table on the side. After all, this is still a birthday celebration.

In her previous life, Emily and Victor were seated below among other guests. Although they were located at the very front of the stage, still considered as a special seat with important family backgrounds, being on the VIP booth is still way better.

Eunice only just learned from Emily in this life that she is Ria Li's maternal cousin. That is why she was invited. While the Guan and the Tan family, Jake's family, have business dealings. That is why Victor became the representative of the Guans.

The three of them, as usual, decided to stick together during this event. Eugene wanted to spend time with Eunice but unfortunately, his manager called him regarding the incident with Denise.

Although there are no reporters inside the venue, some celebrities have access to social media. And some photos of Eunice, Eugene, and Denise during the confrontation were leaked.

The captions were mostly against Denise displaying her shameless behavior or mocking her for not recognizing her supposed future husband's sister.

This incident caused a problem for the company. Denise's contract with her previous company will expire soon. And Illuminate is indeed planning to sign her up as their new artist.

Business-wise, it is advantageous for the company to contract the best actress like Denise. But because of this incident, they had to think twice if they still want to go through with it. Meanwhile, Zach and Alice didn't join Eunice's group. They already took their seats looking like they are enjoying their world of two.

Eunice unintentionally glanced at them earlier. Honestly, the sight of them together looking all lovey-dovey, still stings her eyes and heart. And is irritating.

Yet, thinking about it, she also remembered that she was in Alice's current position before. She then wondered if Alice felt the same irritation as she does right now. No, probably even worse. She must have hated her so much at that time.

With that thought in mind, Eunice moved her body so her back is facing the two. Out of sight, out of mind.

Zach on the other hand can only look at them from the side. He wanted to join the three best friends but Alice said she has things she needs his advice on. And since he doesn't have a free schedule any time soon, he agreed.

To his disappointment, Alice's matters don't need his specific advice. Even a blind man can see what Alice's real purpose is. And that is to monopolize his attention.

In the past, Zach never took Alice's feelings seriously although he is aware that she likes him. That is because she never confessed to him and wasn't acting obsessively towards him.

But for some reason, after they returned from country F she became more active in contacting him. She calls him every morning and night. He is also aware that she is monitoring his schedule from his female assistant.

He would be lying if he said he wasn't annoyed and troubled. Especially since he already decided to make a move on pursuing Eunice once she returned. He knows that Alice's ambiguous relationship with him will surely get in the way.

He can only put a distance between himself and Alice hoping that Eunice won't think that the two of them are a couple. Unfortunately for him, his effort is futile. After all, Eunice long thought of them as a couple.

Alice is well aware of Zach's intentions by his minute body language. She can feel that Zach is intentionally putting a distance between the two of them. Before, while conversing with her he would sit straight and proper while focusing on her and their topic.

But right now, Zach is leaning on the armrest away from her. It looked casual yet imposing. No one would think that there is something wrong with his posture. But Alice who knew him since the high school could tell that he is not acting like his usual self. Towards her that is.

Not to mention he is constantly stealing glances in Eunice's group's direction. She would be lying if she said she doesn't feel the threat of Eunice's existence and Zach's obvious interest.

However, Alice won't be deterred. No matter how awkward it becomes because of Zach's unenthusiastic response to her, she still open one topic of conversation after another. As long as she can prevent him from approaching Eunice.

Not long later, Eugene finally finished his call. Anyone can tell from his frustrated look that the situation is not easy to solve.

The first one to notice his condition is Alice. With how desperate she is to keep Zach by her side, she decisively drag Eugene to their conversation. "How was it? Is it about Denise?"

Eugene intended to approach Eunice's group to seek comfort from his sister but with Alice's call he decided to sit down and seek guidance first. After all, this matter is about their entertainment company. Zach and Alice is the best people to share the problem with.

"The matter is a bit tricky. Denise have a fair share of haters in the industry. Some details are distorted. The caption on each posts is more terrible than the other. Her lovestruck image became obsessive stalker. Even my fans started to protest to not let Denise enter the company." Eugene sighed while pinching the bridge of his nose.

"That won't do. You know Denise completely fell out with her previous company because she refused to renew her contact. She even took all the people arranged by them to jump ship. And as the person who convinced her to betray the company who made her the best actress, I will feel guilty." Alice said red eyed. She looked like she is guilty of murder with how panicked she is.

Eugene didn't think that Alice is overreacting. Because he is well aware that with Denise's decision to betray her company, she has nowhere to go aside from Illuminate. They have to take responsibility of poaching her.

"Signing her is not a problem. As long as you lessen the interaction between you and miss Yan, the claim of her being a stalker will gradually stop. Although what she did is unreasonable, it wasn't terrible. We can say she she was blinded by love and jealousy. Just a small interview of her admitting her fault and apologizing will do. When the time comes, as long as you support her apology we can turn the tide towards the people who made the misleading post." Zach offered his own analysis.

"That make sense. Anyway I would be busy with shooting for MVs for the next few months. Most of them are outside the city. As long as we were not seen together this matter will naturally die down." Eugene nod repeatedly in approval. His gaze towards Zach is one part grateful and one part in awe.

"I don't think that would do." Alice interjected in a low and troubled tone. "You see, Eugene asked me if I can find people to be casted in his MV. So while convincing Denise, I offered her the role of Eugene's love interest. That's also her deciding factor to jump ship. I'm sorry. I didn't know this would happen."

Hearing this, Eugene can only slump in his seat in defeat. Seemingly losing his will to live. Even Zach dive into deep contemplation to find solution. Nobody blamed Alice. Still she act fidgety expressing her guilt. But deep down, seeing Zach no longer paying attention to Eunice, she is smiling in gratification. She can't help but praise her own intelligence and resourcefulness.

At this moment, the door of the VIP booth swung open. Revealing the couple Ria Li and Jake Tan with a person that caught both Alice and Eunice's attention.