Rewind With A Superstar System

<🎧 Song Recommendation: drivers license by Olivia Rodrigo>

...

"I’ve been trying to wake you up for five minutes now. You’re such a deep sleeper."

Von sat up on the desks and rubbed the back of his neck. He looked out the window and saw that it was late at night already.

His body felt much better. He had gotten enough sleep, so it was finally time he made his return to the hotel.

"Thanks for waking me up," Von told her, jumping down from the makeshift bed.

"You’re welcome."

"I should get going soon. What about you? How will you be going back to your hotel?"

Chloe smiled and casually waved her hand. "That’s not a problem for me, I came with a car. What about you?"

"I don’t really know. I might just have to trek."

Von replied, but Chloe didn’t approve.

"What? Why would you do that? It’s very late already! I could just drop you off. Where do you stay?"

"Uh," Von thought about her proposal. "Where’s your hotel? I’ll know whether it’s close to my place."

"The Grand Beverly."

"Oh? That’s really close. You can just drop me off there, and I’ll find my way home."

"Really? Let’s go then!" Chloe smiled brightly.

She reached out, grabbed his hand, and pulled him along as they headed for the main exit of the hallway building.

As they walked out to the front of the campus, Von couldn’t help but find it ironic.

The school gates from the entrance side were wide open, and he had climbed the ten-foot fence earlier for no reason.

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Her car was parked just outside the gates. It was a clean, white 2020 Honda Accord.

Chloe unlocked the doors and got in the driver’s seat, while Von sat next to her at the passenger’s seat.

The roads of Los Angeles were mostly empty due to the quarantine, so the ride was really smooth and quiet.

As they drove, Von began to wonder about a lot of things. How was she going to get back inside? Wouldn’t she get into trouble if she just drove past the hotel security, or would she lie? And how was she even pulling this off without getting caught?

It seemed like he wasn’t the only one wondering things. Chloe kept glancing at him from the corner of her eye before finally voicing a question she wanted to ask.

"What were you even doing in the school by that hour?" Chloe asked, keeping her hands steady on the steering wheel. "Isn’t there a lockdown going on in the city?"

Luckily for Von, he already had a response in mind for this exact question. He lied smoothly.

"Well, I was sent by the management to do a final clean up because some people will act there soon... It’s only me because of the imposed social distancing rules, so the staff are taking turns with the cleaning."

Von didn’t find his lie very convincing, and he internally hoped she didn’t press him any further on the details.

"Hmm," Chloe said, keeping her eyes focused on the empty road ahead. "Well, I’m lucky I could meet you."

"I can say the same, too," Von replied with a small smile.

But then his expression turned serious. He shifted in his seat to look directly at her.

"But... aren’t you meant to be quarantined?" Von asked in a lower tone. "There’s a deadly virus out there, and you’re sneaking out. Don’t you think that’s wrong?"

Chloe instantly felt uneasy at the question. Her grip on the steering wheel increased, but she eventually waved a hand dismissively.

"Nahh, I’ll be fine. I won’t run out again after today."

"No," Von wasn’t smiling anymore. "That doesn’t forgive what you did."

His harsh tone made Chloe to flinch, but Von didn’t relax.

"I don’t know how much you’ve heard, considering how disconnected you probably are from social media. But Chloe, the virus is real and it’s killing thousands every day. It isn’t right to endanger yourself and the whole film production just so you can rehearse. What’s the point of a rehearsal if you catch the virus and die?"

Chloe didn’t say anything. She just stared at the road, her breathing picking up.

"And you didn’t even know me," Von added, pushing the reality of the situation onto her. "Yet you made close contact with me on several occasions tonight. Do you want to get infected?"

It was at that moment Chloe made the car screech to a sudden halt, so she could have some time to realize Von’s words.

The reality of her careless actions were finally crashing down on her.

Suddenly, tears began leaking from her eyes. She covered her face with her hands as her voice trembled.

"I’m so sorry. I feel so bad for my actions... I was so stupid, and now I might even be infected because I was selfish."

Von could see her shoulders shivering as she said the last part. She was really in fear.

Von let out a soft breath. He unbuckled his seatbelt and reached over, holding her shoulder gently to comfort her.

"Listen to me, I don’t have the virus," Von assured her, keeping his voice calm.

"But that’s not enough of a safeguard in the real world. You made a mistake tonight, but at least you know now, and you can help it by not repeating it. There’s danger everywhere right now, and as the smart actress you are, it’s best you avoid it fully."

Chloe sniffled loudly. She leaned over and wiped her nose right on the sleeve of his blue janitor clothes. Von just sighed, letting her do it.

"Thank you, Mr. Janitor," Chloe muttered, her voice muffled against his arm. She pulled back and wiped her eyes. "I’ll do more than this. I’ll fix everything. It’s a promise."

Von didn’t know exactly how she was going to fix things, and he didn’t bother to ask. He just patted her back a few times before she put the car back in drive, and they continued down the road.

A few minutes later, they arrived just outside the iron gates of the Grand Beverly Hotel.