Before long, the sisters were holding a rather rushed eting at Alexandra’s house.
The house suited Alexandra far too well. It was spacious, elegant, expensive, and arranged in a way that made it feel less like a ho and more like a stage designed for her to appear on whenever she wished. Everything was tasteful. Everything was beautiful. Everything had been chosen with intention.
Katherine sat in one of the expensive chairs in the living room, her legs crossed as if comfort were her birthright. One hand propped up her cheek while the other lazily twirled a spoon through coffee lightened with cream.
She was alone, though her phone rested on the small table beside her, already filled with missed calls and delayed obligations. Alexandra had not exaggerated when she said it was urgent. Katherine had canceled several etings on short notice to co here, which was sothing she would only do for her little sister.
Even so, she had no intention of looking too concerned. Concern spoiled people.
A mont later, the door opened.
Alexandra walked in wearing nothing but a white towel wrapped around her body. It sat dangerously low over her chest, and droplets of water still fell from her wet hair, trailing along her shoulders and collarbones as if she had left the shower without bothering to dry herself properly.
Katherine gave her a sidelong glance. "You call this an urgent eting?"
Alexandra smiled as if nothing was wrong. "You called off all of today’s etings anyway."
"Whose fault is that?"
"Yours, for being such a devoted elder sister."
Katherine’s spoon stopped for one second before she resud stirring her coffee.
"Do not try to be cute when I have rescheduled half my day for you. It irritates ."
"You ca anyway."
"Of course I ca. You sounded serious." Katherine leaned back slightly and studied her sister’s face. "And you would not waste my ti for no reason. What’s happening?"
Alexandra’s smile faded.
"My career is at risk."
Katherine’s expression changed at once, though not dramatically. She did not do dramatic unless she wanted to. Her eyes rely sharpened, and the relaxed air around her quietly disappeared.
"Cut to the chase."
Alexandra walked farther into the room and sat across from her, crossing one leg over the other while making no effort to fix the towel. For a mont, she looked like the sa Alexandra the public knew, beautiful, untouchable, and so confident that even silence seed to serve her.
Then her shoulders lowered just enough for Katherine to notice.
"I can’t perform my current role," Alexandra said. "To be precise, I can’t perform the scenes with the main actor."
Katherine waited.
"It’s not because he has a thing for ," Alexandra continued. "This isn’t the first ti I’ve dealt with that. n develop crushes on set all the ti. Sotis won do, too. It happens. Usually, I know how to deal with it."
"Usually," Katherine repeated.
Alexandra clicked her tongue softly.
"But he suddenly beca an eyesore. His face, his voice, the way he looks at , the way he agrees with everything I say, the way he keeps smiling like a trained dog waiting for a treat. All of it annoys ."
Her fingers tightened around the towel at her thigh.
"I really want to tell him to fuck off."
Katherine stared at her.
"That’s all?"
Alexandra’s brows twitched.
"That is not all. I told you my career is at risk."
"You want to tell a man to fuck off and call that a career crisis?" Katherine asked. "Please. That is Tuesday."
Alexandra glared at her.
Katherine held the glare for one second before she burst out laughing.
"Haha!"
Alexandra’s hands clenched.
Katherine noticed the second warning sign on the spot and quickly lowered her voice, though amusent still clung to her lips.
"Ah, my little sister. Forgive . I’m not laughing because it’s aningless. I’m laughing because you called here like the world was ending, and the problem is that you finally t a man whose presence makes all the other n look worse."
Alexandra’s glare deepened.
Katherine took a calm sip of coffee.
"There it is," she said.
"What?"
"That face."
"What face?"
"The face of a woman who already knows the answer but hates that soone else can say it first."
Alexandra leaned back.
"I ca here for advice, not mockery."
"You ca here for both. You know ."
"That is unfortunately true."
Katherine set her cup down.
"Fine. Let us be serious." Her voice softened, though it did not lose its firmness. "You need to get your head straight and separate work from real life. Once you understand why he bothers you this much, you will have an easier ti controlling it."
Alexandra looked away.
"You’re not so amateur who freezes because a handso actor smiles at her," Katherine continued. "You know how sets work. You know how people behave around beautiful actresses. You know how desire can sneak into a performance and make everything ssy, especially when the other person starts believing the mood between the caras is real."
Alexandra said nothing.
"For intimate scenes, ask for a double or push for smarter cara angles. Adrian should know those techniques well. If he is as competent as you claim, he will understand the practical side of it. Keep that actor at arm’s length, swallow your feelings when the cara rolls, and leave anything unnecessary to doubles. Work on yourself until you can look at him and see a scene partner again, rather than an insect crawling across your floor."
Alexandra stared at her.
"You make it sound so easy."
"It isn’t easy," Katherine said. "It’s just the work."
"That is one of those annoying lines people say when they want to sound wise."
"Yes, and I said it beautifully."
Alexandra rolled her eyes.
For a mont, Katherine smiled. Then the smile faded.
"I went through it, you know?"
Alexandra’s expression shifted.
Katherine looked down at her coffee, watching the pale swirl near the surface.
"That’s what this job does to people. We perform, pretend, borrow emotions, twist them around, and make them pretty enough for strangers to care. If you are not careful, the act starts feeling too close to the truth."
Her voice remained composed, but Alexandra heard sothing underneath it, sothing that sounded like a mory rather than a lesson.
"So people are completely clueless," Katherine said. "They do not know where the role ends and where they begin. So are lonely. So are desperate to be loved. So believe every tender line spoken to them under stage lights is real."
She paused.
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