Chapter 3

I was lost in thought when I looked down and jumped in surprise.

When did I order so many chicken nuggets?!

The box was overflowing, completely full.

I stopped the guy at the counter, who was about to ring me up. "Wait a minute! I didn't order this much, did I?"

He pressed down on his cap and muttered, "It's fine, just eat."

I can't just accept this for nothing…

No, something was definitely off. A thousand things felt wrong.

Before he knew it, I reached out and flipped his cap off.

"It's you?!"

Stockton Miller, Stephen's rival on the basketball court, a friend I'd met while bringing water to the team.

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "What is this supposed to be?"

Stockton grabbed his cap back, awkwardly putting it on. He mumbled, "I heard about what happened earlier today…"

"Stop right there!" I paid for the extra food.

"Don't do this. I told you it was just a dare."

He pressed down his curly hair that escaped from under his cap. "It's better if it's fake. I was actually pretty happy…"

His voice was too low at the end; I couldn't hear him at all.

After eating my fill, I was browsing the shelves for tampons.

Stockton kept rearranging the shelves next to me.

Ten minutes later, I snapped, "How long are you going to keep rearranging?"

"Huh?" He suddenly realized he'd been lingering in the women's hygiene aisle for ages, and his face immediately flushed crimson.

Stockton suddenly stood in front of me and asked in a low voice, "How about you go out with me?"

"Are you crazy?"

His expression became unusually serious. "I'm not kidding. I like girls with your personality."

I took two steps back. "I'm not kidding either. I don't like how dark you are."

He glanced at his tanned arms, looking a little troubled. "Then I'll get fairer. I can also—"

The bell above the door chimed.

"Go help the customer."

After sending him away, I continued to bend down, looking for my usual pads.

A hand reached over my head, palm open. "Is it this one?"

Yes, it was my usual brand.

Luckily, it was the last pack left on the shelf.

"Yes, that's it. Thank you."

I instinctively reached out to take it, but the person pulled their hand back.

I looked up, meeting a pair of deep-set eyes.

Stephen Hayes stood behind me, very close.

He turned and handed the last pack to the girl behind him.

"Stephen, I can buy it myself… Farmar Davies, you're here too?"

Oh, he was getting it for someone else.

A strange pang of bitterness welled up in my chest, my throat suddenly dry and constricted.

Someone patted my shoulder. Stockton casually put his arm around me. "Let's go. My shift's over."

Stephen looked at the person behind me, his gaze lingering on Stockton's hand on my shoulder.

His expression darkened slightly, but he didn't say anything more.

Torian Stone tugged on his sleeve and said softly, "See? She has a boyfriend. So don't worry about this morning's misunderstanding—"

"Boyfriend?" Stephen interrupted.

Upon hearing that, Stockton rested his chin on my shoulder, looking like he was leaning half his body weight on me.

"You can have a girlfriend, but I can't?"

He glanced at the girl standing in front of Stephen and warned her coldly,

"Torian! Keep your boyfriend in line, and don't cause trouble."

I suddenly stopped short. "Wait." I looked at Stockton. "What did you just say?"

Stockton replied, "I told her not to cause trouble."

No, not that.

I stared fixedly at the girl close to Stephen, asking word by word:

"You called her… what?"

Stockton realized. "Oh, you mean Torian? She's my neighbor, we've known each other for a long time."

Stephen and Torian left quickly.

I leaned against the shelf, my head felt heavy, my legs a little weak.

It felt like a huge hole had ripped open in my chest.

The reason I was so sure Stephen's movie was based on me…

Was because during that interview, Stephen cried silently on camera, and finally revealed the name of the female lead's inspiration.

The subtitle displayed: Farmar.

Anyone who knew us would immediately think of me.

During the toughest times in my previous life, I watched Stephen's movie countless times from my hospital bed, including every behind-the-scenes clip, every roadshow, and every interview with the cast and crew.

The female lead, Maya, was by then a globally renowned A-list actress, and she starred without pay, reportedly to repay a favor.

At twenty-eight, she played an eighteen-year-old girl without any awkwardness, even looking far prettier than my eighteen-year-old self.

And Maya's former stage name before her debut was the same as mine.