Chapter 111 - 109: Too Terrible
It was Andrew Sutton!
He had just stepped out of the elevator when he saw the chaotic scene at the hotel entrance. When he looked closer, he realized the person trapped in the middle of the crowd was none other than Lily Sterling!
He reacted almost instinctively, rushing forward and managing to block a thermos flying right at her. The flask seemed to be full of water; it was so heavy that the impact sent a dull, throbbing pain through his forearm.
’Are these people insane?’
He had no time to worry about anything else. His first priority was to lower his head and check on Lily Sterling.
Driven by a subconscious urge to protect Lily Sterling, Andrew Sutton pressed himself against her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders in a semi-embrace to shield her with his body.
Andrew Sutton’s sudden appearance, coupled with his intimate gesture toward Lily Sterling, instantly pushed the rabid fans’ already volatile emotions to a new, frenzied peak.
"Andrew Sutton! Give us an explanation!"
"Don’t touch her! I won’t let you touch her! Let go!"
"Why did you have to film a real kiss? Why didn’t you fake it with camera angles?"
"Say it clearly! You don’t care about our feelings at all, do you?"
The scene was on the verge of spiraling out of control. Fortunately, Andrew Sutton’s team included several men and two bodyguards specifically tasked with handling fans. The group of them worked together, quickly forming a barrier to separate the people at the center from the crowd.
Drake felt his vision go dark; he just wanted to curl up and die. But remembering his duty, he forced himself to shout, "Everyone, please be rational! Don’t hurt anyone!"
But his lone voice was powerless, completely drowned out by the shrieks and accusations of the female fans.
At first, Andrew Sutton had been willing to explain things clearly to his fans, no matter how unreasonable they were being. But right now, his only thought was to get Lily Sterling to the car safely. He had completely lost any desire to communicate with these people.
Soon, the hotel security guards and the drivers of the talent vans all came out to help. With their combined effort, they finally managed to get Lily Sterling into one of the vans.
"Lily, are you okay? Are you hurt?"
Yuna, who was crying herself, didn’t even take a moment to wipe away her tears before rushing to check on Lily Sterling.
Lily Sterling was clearly shaken, but she still pretended to be fine and shook her head. "I’m okay, Yuna. Please don’t cry."
Yuna, indignant on Lily’s behalf, wiped at her tears and sobbed, "What is wrong with those people? What gives them the right to take it out on you! The second Andrew Sutton showed up, they didn’t dare lay a finger on him. They just bully us because they think we’re an easy target!"
Lily Sterling handed Yuna a tissue and gazed out the window. She saw Andrew Sutton being escorted into his own van by his team. The fans were relentlessly pounding on the windows, demanding an explanation. Some were even a blubbering mess of tears and snot.
Lily Sterling had heard about this kind of toxic fan culture, but only now, seeing it with her own eyes, did she realize just how insane it was.
She couldn’t understand it at all, and she certainly had no respect for this way of idolizing celebrities.
’It’s absolutely terrifying!’
After getting into the van, Andrew Sutton noticed that his sleeve cuff had been torn. His expression darkened as he sighed and said to the driver, "Let’s go. To the set."
Drake was in even worse shape. While shielding Andrew Sutton, his exposed arms had been covered in several bloody scratches from the fans’ nails.
But he didn’t have time to complain. He just looked at Andrew Sutton worriedly. "Andrew, are we not going to explain? We’re just leaving? If that video gets posted online, it’s going to cause a massive public outcry."
"I’ll have the company issue a statement. I have nothing to explain to those people," Andrew Sutton said coldly.
Initially, he had considered that these were, after all, fans who supported him. He hadn’t wanted to run away; he’d wanted to communicate with them directly.
But after witnessing that scene, a chill ran down his spine.
’They don’t see me as an actor at all. They see me as their private property. The moment I do something that goes against their wishes, it triggers their warped desire for control!’
’It’s utterly ridiculous!’
’Especially that thermos, filled with water, thrown so recklessly at Lily Sterling’s head...’
At that thought, Andrew Sutton quickly took out his phone and sent a WhatsApp message to Iris Underwood, explaining everything that had happened. He specifically emphasized that the official statement must include a formal apology to Lily Sterling for getting dragged into the incident.
Yuna also immediately informed Connie, who was in a meeting at the company, about what had happened.
"What?"
After hearing Connie’s report, James Lockwood felt his head start to buzz. He asked urgently, "Is she okay? Lily Sterling wasn’t hurt, was she?"
Connie shook her head. "She’s not injured, but you know her—she’s gentle and timid. She must have been terrified. I’ll fly over this afternoon."
James Lockwood immediately made arrangements. "Take four bodyguards with you. Unless she is on set or in her hotel room, I want them protecting Lily Sterling around the clock."
Connie agreed, but didn’t forget to remind James Lockwood, "You should contact Miss Sterling immediately. Get ahead of this and explain the situation; don’t hide anything. I feel she’s quite rational. This was a complete accident, so she probably won’t blame the company."
"Besides, we can’t hide this. Andrew Sutton’s team will definitely release a statement, and the video will probably blow up online. If Miss Sterling finds out about this from another source, she might be even angrier."
"I know," James Lockwood nodded. He took out his phone and began composing a message to Cecilia Sterling, explaining the bizarre incident from that morning.
Early that morning, Cecilia Sterling had just finished a run on the treadmill with Estelle Goodman in the fitness room.
Charles Jennings arrived again, carrying two large, stacked food containers.
Seeing him silently and neatly arrange a wide variety of breakfast items before turning to leave, Cecilia Sterling quickly shot Estelle Goodman a meaningful look.
Estelle Goodman spoke in a natural tone, "Thank you for going to all this trouble."
Charles Jennings, who had been about to turn, froze. He turned his head back, a bewildered expression on his face as he looked at Estelle Goodman.
With a gentle smile, Estelle Goodman blinked. Seeing his reaction, she couldn’t help but tilt her head slightly and ask, "Is something wrong?"
Charles Jennings snapped out of it and hastily lowered his head, shaking it. "N-no, it’s nothing. I’ll be going now."
"Alright. Be careful on your way out."
Charles Jennings’s body visibly tensed again, but he didn’t say anything more and quickly left Cecilia Sterling’s home.
"So, how was that?" Estelle Goodman looked at Cecilia Sterling and raised an eyebrow smugly. "Pretty natural, right? It wasn’t that I couldn’t say it before, I just never really thought about it. See? I can do it."
Cecilia Sterling nodded in satisfaction, but after a moment’s thought, she couldn’t help but add, "You were perfectly natural, no problem there. But I thought Charles Jennings’s reaction was a little strange."
"He’s always been a bit strange. You’ll get used to it."
Cecilia Sterling smiled. Just as she sat down to eat, her phone rang.