Chapter 1

"Aaaaaah, Aiden is just too handsome."

"My new fave for a reason. That new hairstyle of his with the misty blue highlights? Literally breaking the fourth wall—it’s insanely good."

"I'm so obsessed with his face it's not even funny. I wanna stan him so bad, but it’s like he..."

*

"Miss Harrington? Are you with me?"

The voice snapped Natalie back to the moment. Across the café table, the neatly dressed real estate agent looked at her with a polite smile.

She blinked, flustered. "Sorry, kind of spaced out there for a sec."

Her fingertips tightened slightly before she quickly pulled herself together.

“No worries. As I was saying…”

The agent didn’t seem bothered at all, maintaining that calm smile and easy tone.

Natalie tuned in properly this time, checked through the contract, and after confirming everything was in order, she signed the fat stack of paperwork.

Once she was done, the agent tucked the papers away and beamed a little wider.

“Pleasure working with you, Miss Harrington. If you have any other properties to rent, feel free to reach out.”

He handed over his business card with practiced ease.

Natalie took it and gave a polite goodbye. As she turned around, she realized that the two young girls who'd been chatting behind them had already left.

A flash of disappointment crossed her face.

That girl was about to say something… but what?

Did Aiden run into some trouble lately?

Still thinking, she slipped on her mask and cap, unease slowly creeping in. A few people around were sneaking glances her way—her hand gripped her phone a little tighter.

Maybe it was better to just head home and call him—or search about him online—

She didn’t get the chance.

Gasps rang out.

Then came a sharp jolt to her head. Everything went black as searing pain shot from her scalp through her whole body.

“The ceiling just crashed on someone!”

“Call 911—hurry!”

“Where’s the café manager?!”

Voices blurred into static as something cool and sticky trailed down her neck. It was gross and cold, but that sensation quickly faded as the world around her went silent...

*

When her eyes fluttered open again, everything was doubled. Just shifting slightly made the nausea and dizziness surge all over.

“Doctor? Doctor, she’s awake!”

That familiar voice echoed near her ear, but Natalie’s eyes slipped shut again, mind cloudy and heavy.

Who knows how much time passed before the fog started to lift and her body stopped floating.

When her eyes opened again, it was the middle of the night.

The place was quiet. Only a faint nightlight in the hallway offered a soft glow.

She slowly moved her eyes, and in her peripheral vision, caught sight of a black head of hair resting by the bed. Between the strands, she could make out a hint of misty blue.

Natalie tried to speak. It took a moment of effort before a tiny sound escaped her lips: “A…”

Even that faint noise jolted Aiden upright.

“Nat!”

He jumped to his feet.

“You’re awake! Thirsty? Need water or anything?”

“The doctor said you’ve got a mild concussion—need to stay a bit longer just to be safe.”

As he spoke, he turned on a small desk lamp he’d bought earlier. Its soft light cast a warm glow over her bed.

He adjusted the bed gently, then turned to pour water for her, testing the temperature before handing it over—all without looking at her more than once.

Natalie said nothing at first, eyes quietly trailing after him. When he turned back, just as she expected—his eyes were red and watery.

“I’m okay.”

She took a few sips of the warm water, and the nausea eased a little.

“Just a freak accident. Don’t worry too much.”

Barely had she finished the sentence when Aiden, the slim young man standing beside her bed who’d kept it together so far, suddenly had a tear roll down his cheek.Tears streaked down his face, smudging the uneven foundation and dripping onto his collar. Watching that, Natalie Harrington felt a sting in her nose.

“Come here,” she said softly.

Aiden Harrington shuffled over and knelt down beside her bed. She reached out and ran her hand gently through his hair.

“That smoky blue really does look as good as in the photos.”

“Go get some rest over there. I need you to look after me tomorrow.”

He paused for a few seconds before letting out a quiet “Okay.” Then he turned off the lights and lay down fully clothed on the other bed.

Natalie watched his back for a while before slowly shifting her gaze to the ceiling.

After the ceiling crash, she had a long, vivid dream.

She couldn’t remember the novel’s name, its plot, or even who the main character was. All she remembered was that her brother—Aiden—was in it.

Aiden, aged 22, debuted as the standout winner of a talent show. Just three months post-debut, a small online drama he starred in exploded in popularity. Virtually overnight, his followers skyrocketed by over ten million, and he was hailed as the next top star across major platforms.

But with that fame came misfortune.

He guest-starred on a variety show and was slammed online for supposedly disrespecting older artists. He missed an event and got labeled arrogant and entitled. Then the drama he acted in was accused of plagiarism, and even on another variety show where he was a regular, he got cold-shouldered by the other cast members. It didn’t stop there. While attending a casting call, obsessive fans tracked him down and secretly filmed him at his hotel. The media tore into him, and soon, the public turned their back on him too. In less than a year, Aiden crumbled under it all, developed severe depression, refused treatment… and eventually died.

It took Natalie several deep breaths to calm herself, but her heart still felt like it was being crushed.

Growing up, it had always been just the two of them. If anyone knew who Aiden really was, it was her.

The dream even had the audacity to claim Aiden was money-hungry and frequented shady clubs. Come on, even if that ceiling had taken her out for good, the money she had left behind would've been enough to let Aiden live comfortably for the rest of his life.

That entire plot was just…pure nonsense.

All that messy chaos made her head start to throb again. She exhaled hard, shut her eyes.

Then with a sigh, she reopened them, grabbed her phone from the side of the bed, and ordered a set of makeup removers for Aiden.

*

Natalie had dozed off again after dawn. When she woke, it was exactly eight and the doctor was doing his rounds.

She wasn't sure when Aiden had cleaned up his face, but he was already tidy and fresh. He’d even ditched his usual flashy outfit for something plain. Standing next to her bed in a mask, he listened intently to the doctor while gently bobbing his head. The little tuft of his hair tied up at the top wobbled with every move, hiding even the faint streaks of smoky blue dye.

Natalie stared at it, her fingers twitching with the urge to tug on it.

The doctor didn’t stay long—ran the checks, offered Aiden a few reminders, and left.

Once the door shut, Aiden pulled off his mask and leaned over. That face of his was glowing with joy, his signature phoenix eyes crinkled into crescents.

“Thanks, sis.”

She knew he was talking about the makeup remover. Her hand reached up and lightly tugged the hair on top of his head. For the first time, she asked about his work.

“It’s all good. Nothing major. I’m doing fine.”

“Come on, sis, trust me. I’ve got nearly sixty million followers on Weibo now. A few more months and I’ll be catching up to Mom.”

He grinned and whipped out his phone, ready to show off his follower count. That cocky, cheeky vibe was exactly the same as always.

“And your boy—” He thumped his chest. “Give me a few more roles... I’m gonna have that best actor trophy in the bag.”

Natalie couldn’t help laughing. “Fine, then we’ll put it up next to Mom’s trophies.”

Aiden laughed with her, his whole face lighting up, carefree and happy.

Normally, she would’ve believed him without a doubt. But this time, even with all his smiles, part of her just couldn’t shake that uneasy feeling. Still, she didn’t press further.She never really kept up with the entertainment scene. The only updates she ever got were from Aiden or what popped up on Weibo’s trending page.

And well, Aiden didn’t exactly trend every day.

As for what he told her himself—yeah, looking back, it definitely sounded a little too polished.

Natalie was still stuck on that thought when a soft knock came at the door.

Aiden quickly pulled his mask back on and got up to let a middle-aged woman inside.

“This is the nurse. If you need anything, just let her know. The doctor said you should avoid getting out of bed for now.”

Aiden gave a brief intro between them, then stuck around while Natalie struggled through her morning routine, clearly stiff and awkward the entire time. Once the nurse left with Aiden to grab breakfast, she finally let herself relax, slumping back in bed before reaching for her phone.

She opened Weibo, typed in “Aiden Harrington,” and bam—a flood of hashtags lit up the screen.

#AidenHarringtonCenterDebut

#AidenGodlyLooks

#AidenWithNoMisses

...

Scrolling past the top ones full of praise, it didn’t take long before she hit the first red flag:

#AidenHarringtonStealingScenesOnReboot

Then another:

#AidenSkippedRedCarpetNoReason

#AidenMissingEvent—StaffHintHe’sBeingDifficult

Natalie paused, tapped into each one, reading every post with growing unease.

She hadn’t even heard about all this before, but now that she had, the similarities to her dream hit way too close to home.

Was this really just a coincidence?

She frowned, still thinking, when Aiden walked in, carrying breakfast.

“Hey, I got you soup dumplings and some porridge. Hope that’s okay?”

She nodded as he set the food down, then suddenly asked, “What’s your next work schedule like?”

In her dream, his next gig was a lifestyle reality show—“Totally Us.”

Aiden hesitated briefly before replying, “I think it’s a variety show? More like a real-life one. I’m supposed to be a regular on it.”

“What show exactly?” she pushed further.

“‘Totally Us,’ I’ll need to bring another guest with me. The company wants me to bring someone from our label, probably a junior.”

After explaining, Aiden looked confused. “Why? What’s up?”

Usually, Natalie didn’t ask about stuff like this.

Totally Us.

The second those three words registered, it was like someone dumped a bucket of ice water over her. Hidden under the blanket, her hand curled up tightly, and panic started building in her chest.

Was that dream actually real?

But—she didn’t want to believe those headlines from her dream. Still, she couldn’t explain why everything was lining up so perfectly either.

When Aiden noticed the shift in her expression, he instantly got worried too.

“What’s going on? Are you feeling sick?”

She shook her head quickly and blurted out, “Do you have to pick someone from your agency?”

“I… I want to go with you.”

“Seriously? That’d be awesome!”

His eyes lit up, the words leaving his mouth before he could even think. But immediately, some hesitation crept in. Things in the industry had been messy for him lately. Would bringing her along drag her into the chaos too?

Then again, yesterday had really shaken him. Seeing Natalie lying unconscious in the hospital—it still made his chest ache just thinking about it.

He figured… having her close by was probably best.

“I’ll tell my manager,” he said as he grabbed his phone and headed to the bathroom to make the call.

The bathroom door shut behind him, muffling the sound of his voice.

Natalie stared blankly for a second before realizing what she’d just suggested.

A show full of cameras. Strangers. Too-close interactions…

A wave of nerves and dread crawled over her skin.

God, what had she just signed herself up for? But it was too late now—she’d already said it out loud. Pulling back now? Not happening.