Ste''s home, meanwhile, was in utter chaos. The candlelight dinner she meticulously prepared for Lucas had turned into a farce. All that effort went to naught because of the old woman''s meddlesome behavior. Had Beatrice not interfered with Lucas''s affairs, Ste was convinced that he would have visited her after seeing her message.


    "I''m sure Lucas still has feelings for me. I''m sure of it... Just wait for me, Lucas. I''ll ovee any obstacles in my way, even if it involves having to deal with your rtives. I won''t let you go that easily!" she gritted her teeth and dered.


    The red wine trickling down the wall added to the intensity of the atmosphere, making her look like someone who had been driven to insanity.


    When Ste arrived on set the next day, her face was noticeably swollen. She had drowned out her anger with a full bottle of red wine the previous night.


    She took off her sunsses to reveal her bloodshot eyes. Her manager was startled to see her condition. "What happened to you? What did you dost night? Don''t you remember that you have an important scene to shoot today?!"


    The frustrated manager asked an assistant to bring over some eggs and ice cubes. "There''s another half hour before filming starts. Here, take these ice cubes and use them to reduce your awful swelling!" Ste, however, was still worked up because of the previous night''s events andpletely ignored the advice.


    Determined to discover what drove Lucas to ignore her for Melody, Ste initiated an investigation into Melody''s background. She wanted to know just how far Ste was able to win over the olddy''s trust. Clearly, she had underestimated Melody, who seemed to be cunning enough to get on the old woman''s good side. Perhaps Melody''s strategy was to win over Lucas''s elders, even if there was a chance that Lucas might not like her. That could be a reason why Lucas was ying into Melody''s hands.


    Ste drank a cup of americano that her agent handed over to her without batting an eye. Such was her routine to reduce swelling afterte-night drinking sessions, as the water retention made it unsightly during filming.


    Once the filming started, the director-who was very displeased with her condition-berated her assistant severely because he knew he could not scold her.


    "Is this how you manage your stars? How stupid can you be to let her drink her heart out a day before a shoot? Her bloodshot eyes are so darn obvious! How am I supposed to continue filming, huh? I''m supposed to film a girl in the prime of her youth, not a wasted alcoholic!"


    The assistant was already numb to all that scolding. Everyone took out their anger on him. That was a harsh reality of his job, which he had to endure as part of his role.


    Realizing that she was in no condition to continue with the filming, Ste sent someone to buy some coffee and desserts to appease the director. "I''m sorry, director. I know that we had some filming to do today but I just couldn''t declinest night''s invitation. I''m just an actress, after all... You know that..."This is property ? N?velDrama.Org.


    Although the director epted the cakes she offered, he did not let her off the hook. "You''re a big star now. Why do you need to attend all these social events?"


    Ste maintained herposure and responded diplomatically by diverting the situation. "I still have ways to go from bing a star. I''m rtively new in the industry, and I wouldn''t call myself a star. I promise you that my team will ensure such incidents don''t ur again in the future."


    "Fine," the director grunted. "Go get some rest. We''ll reshoot your scene once you look better."