Before the A-lister Was Famous

We were already a couple before he became a top celebrity.

After he blew up, paparazzi photographed us together multiple times, but he never admitted to our relationship.

"We're just friends."

Or he'd simply stay silent.

The next day, he was photographed with The Capital's Darling, and he admitted to it right away.

"Yes, I'm pursuing her."

I had to laugh out of sheer frustration. When reporters asked me about the relationship between the A-lister and The Capital's Darling,

I put on a smile. "As a friend, I wish them the best."

1

"Top Star Alistair Hawthorne's New Romance Exposed! Photographed Returning to a Hotel with The Capital's Darling, Raina Rhodes!"

My finger swiped across my phone screen, and the comments flooded my vision.

"Fam, you get it. The Best Actor and the Princess—a perfect match! I'll throw in $1,000, put it on the paparazzi's tab."

"They look so good together even from the back. A truly beautiful couple."

"Didn't the Best Actor have rumors with that Yvonne Sinclair a while back? She probably paid for that press herself. Look, the real deal is here now. A toad should stop lusting after a swan—you're not worthy!"

Below it, a bunch of people were tagging me.

My manager watched my expression from the side. "You have to stay calm. These rumors are just speculation. We don't know what's really going on yet. We can't let these netizens lead us by the nose."

"Don't do what you did last time, rushing onto the set and chewing out the director. You ended up trending the next day, and people are still flaming you for it..."

I didn't hear a word my manager was saying. It was just the same old lecture.

I just silently closed the app and locked my screen.

'Of course I was calm.'

After all, Alistair Hawthorne was my boyfriend long before he was famous.

Back then, I had just graduated and returned home, still at an age where I just wanted to have fun. I didn't want a real job, but my family was pressuring me, so I just signed with a talent agency to become an actress.

And Alistair Hawthorne, back then, was just a junior assistant the company assigned to me.

When I first broke into the industry, I was curious about everything, constantly taking small roles on different sets. Alistair was by my side through it all, meticulously organizing my schedule, staying up all night with me, and helping me run my lines.

We got together naturally after that, and I thought Alistair Hawthorne was the best boyfriend in the entire world.

Later, I recommended him to the agency. He also signed on as an actor, and he shot to fame overnight in a low-budget web series, catapulting him onto the A-list. Not long after, he co-starred with the veteran actor Arthur Everard, won the Best Actor award, and his career completely took off.

Meanwhile, I remained lukewarm. I'd gained some fame over the years, but most of it wasn't good; I was often typecast as the villainess.

It felt like our career trajectories were branded onto our relationship. He had less and less time to go on dates with me. His social obligations increased, and he was often not home.

I had suggested going public, but Alistair Hawthorne always had an excuse: it was the promotional period for his new show, the fans would boycott, it didn't fit his image, he was afraid I'd be attacked...

I accepted every one of his reasons, always smiling and saying I understood.

'But I knew the real reason Alistair Hawthorne wouldn't go public was all because of Raina Rhodes.'

'And the only reason I put up with it, again and again, was because I was holding on to the memories of our time together through thick and thin. I wanted to give him a chance.'

In the company van, I slowly closed my eyes, my mind drifting back to a night in the dead of winter two years ago.

I didn't have a night scene that day, but the director had kept me on set until the middle of the night. I was huddled in the car, waiting in a thin summer dress.

Then the car door opened, and Alistair Hawthorne appeared before me with a wide smile, carefully pulling a steaming plastic bag from inside his coat.

"Your favorite roasted sweet potatoes. I bought them just outside The Studio Lot and ran all the way back so they'd still be hot. Here, eat up!"