Chapter 81: Jessica's Rejection

"Hey, Jessica, can we talk?"

In the afternoon, outside the club, the crew had just finished filming. Luca called out to Jessica, who was getting ready to leave.

"Sorry, Luca, I have a date later. Bye-bye!"

With her signature smile, Jessica flipped her hair and got into her car, driving away.

"Fuck!"

Luca angrily waved his hand. What's wrong with this girl? He wasn't even trying to hit on her, so why was she acting all defensive? He was really tempted to smack her on that little perky butt of hers.

"Hey, Luca."

A Chevrolet slowly lowered its window, revealing a half-aged baby face with a skin tone like Obama's and features resembling Curry's. Flashing a bright white smile, with a few wrinkles on his forehead and graying hair at the temples, it was his agent, Ed.

"Haha, Lima just left, and you're already trying to two-time her?"

Ed leaned against the car window, grinning wide.

Luca chuckled, getting into the passenger seat.

"Am I two-timing? Didn't you see that girl run off?"

"So, an unsuccessful attempt? Haha~"

Luca shook his head, sighing, "Ed, stop joking around. I had something serious to discuss with her."

"Serious?"

"Yeah, it feels like that girl has something against me, and it's seriously affecting my mood during filming."

Luca sighed and recounted the situation.

"Emmm~"

Ed furrowed his brow thoughtfully. "I think I know why."

"You know?!"

Luca was surprised. Ed had been busy with other model clients lately and hadn't been around the set much. How could he know?

Ed nodded, "Luca, I overheard some negative rumors about you at a party last night."

"Some?"

Luca was intrigued.

"Yeah, Luca, you're rising too fast, and that's making a lot of people jealous."

Ed gave a helpless smile.

"I figured as much."

Standing out too much always brings problems. His rapid rise was bound to step on someone's toes, triggering envy. It's like the neighbor's kid—innocent, but hated simply because they're used for comparison.

"So, what's the gossip?"

Luca reclined his seat and asked lazily.

Ed shook his head, "There's a rumor that when you saved that person last year, you didn't actually get injured. 

"Some are claiming that a doctor's report proves it. Spinal fractures are supposedly more painful than gunshot wounds, and no one could endure that kind of pain for so long and still walk three fashion shows. 

"And you left the hospital way too early. Normally, someone with a spinal fracture would need at least three months of recovery, but you were out in just one month. 

"So, the rumor says that your fainting and hospitalization were just a ploy for sympathy."

"Fuck!"

Luca rubbed his forehead and chuckled softly.

The rumors weren't entirely wrong. A spinal fracture is indeed incredibly painful—far worse than anything he'd experienced, more than appendicitis, more than getting kicked in the groin.

Thinking back on it now, he still found it hard to believe how he'd endured it.

Was it the $2,000 appearance fee? 

Was he afraid of missing out on an opportunity? 

Or was it pure stubbornness, competing with himself or the person who sold him the meds?

He couldn't figure it out.

The memories of that painful time were often accompanied by dizziness. He'd been in a daze, moving like a zombie. If it happened again, he wasn't sure he could handle it.

And then there were the doubts about his quick recovery.

Luca had no explanation for that either.

He didn't know if it was because his body had an unusually strong ability to heal or if something else had caused the rapid recovery. 

Either way, it was something to be happy about.

"Ed, is there more?"

"Of course!"

Ed continued with the second rumor.

"They're saying that during Fashion Week, you deliberately took something before your shows to create that shocking effect, all for the sake of getting attention. And it's being called a shameless stunt."

"Hahaha~"

"What's so funny?"

Ed paused to ask.

"Someone's already said that to me before—a very interesting person."

Luca smiled, his lips curling.

Ed didn't ask who it was. Instead, he shook his head and said, "The rumor is that in such a focused state, it's rare for a man to... react the way you did. But you had a very noticeable reaction."

Ed stopped for a second, then looked at Luca with a grin, "Luca, how did you pull that off? I'm curious."

Luca rubbed his chin, thinking, and replied, "Ed, have you heard of Seduction perfume? I might've been sprayed with that."

"What?"

Ed was taken aback.

"Yeah, I think it was that model named Ben Hill. Right before we went on stage, he suddenly sprayed me with some perfume. At the time, I didn't think much of it, since I wasn't familiar with perfumes. 

"But recently, I've learned more about it from Kate and Lima. Turns out all the big brands have a perfume like that."

"Is that so?"

Ed paused, then burst into laughter.

"Ben Hill wanted to embarrass you, but instead, he helped you out. Not only did he make you famous, but you also stole his endorsement. Hahaha~"

Luca smirked. If Ed spoke , he would've definitely shouted, "He tried to play a trick, but it backfired!"

"Any more rumors?"

"Of course!"

Ed collected himself and said, "The third one is the juiciest."

"What?"

"The rumor says that the car sex scandal was entirely your doing."

"Wow~"

Just as Fanny had suspected.

"They're saying that you deliberately seduced Britney during the shoot, tricked her into getting in the car, and then arranged for someone to take pictures. Otherwise, how would they capture everything so perfectly?"

Luca smiled slightly. Such suspicions were normal.

Staging something like this was easy and had massive effects. Many stars had risen to fame using tactics like this.

In this case, both he and Kate had benefitted greatly, so it made sense that people were suspicious.

Luca crossed his arms and rubbed his chin, asking, "So, Ed, how do people see me now?"

Ed grinned and said, "Emmm, you're seen as a Julien Sorel type. On the surface, you appear innocent and gentlemanly, but deep down, you're ambitious and willing to do anything for fame. Some are even comparing you and Britney to Julien and Madame de Rênal."

Luca found this amusing—he had become some kind of scheming character.

Could this be why Jessica was so wary of him?

"Luca, be careful in the coming days. If someone tries to provoke you with these rumors, don't lose your temper and hit anyone," Ed warned.

"Oh, Ed, do I seem like that kind of person?"

Luca laughed heartily, then jumped out of the car.

"Luca, how about coming to my place for a rest?"

"No, thanks. I... well, how do I put this? I'm a little scared of Nina."

"Scared?"

"Yeah, every time Nina sees me, there's this murderous look in her eyes. It freaks me out."

"Murderous intent? Hahaha~"

(End of chapter)