Defying Fate: The Unstoppable Eileen



In the middle of a bustling film set, tension had clawed its way to the center. Voices were raised, not in lines rehearsed but in earnest frustration aimed at Paulina, who had just reached a boiling point.

The cast and crew, under the guise of offering Paulina sage advice, were effectively scolding her for mixing personal drama with professional commitments. One moment she was accused of bullying Eileen, the next, of picking on Chester, the charming lead actor.

Standing amidst the chaos, Paulina trembled with fury. With a dramatic flair befitting her profession, she declared, "I'm done with this!" before storming off to her trailer.

As she exited stage left, Chester's eyes glistened with unshed tears. Facing the crowd, he bowed deeply, apologizing with a soft-spoken, "I'm terribly sorry, everyone."

The crew waved off his apologies, their sympathies quickly shifting as they consoled him, united in their belief that Paulina had crossed a line. Eileen, observing from the sidelines with a calculated squint, couldn't help but ponder Chester's motives. He had been playing a dangerous game, prodding Paulina while simultaneously playing the victim. What exactly was his endgame? Surely, he was more than just a jerk and a manipulator.

Interrupting her thoughts, a voice called out, "Director, should we try to smooth things over with Ms. Paulina?"

Just yesterday, when Paulina threatened to walk, the whole team had cajoled her back to the set, treating her like royalty. But today, Carrol's patience had worn thin. "To hell with it!" he barked. "If she doesn't want to shoot, fine by me!"

Spotting Eileen in the corner, he commanded, "Let's shoot Eileen and Chester's scene first!"

As the set was being rearranged, Eileen and Chester began to block their movements on stage. Suddenly, Chester yelled, "Watch out!" and leapt in front of Eileen, just as a vase came crashing down from a bookshelf, striking him on the head.

The prop master, pale as a ghost, rushed over with profuse apologies. "Mr. Chester, I am so, so sorry!"

Chester, rubbing his head with a grin, reassured him, "No worries, but do be careful. I can take a hit, but we can't have the ladies getting hurt." Turning to Eileen with equal concern, the prop master repeated, "Ms. Lopez, I apologize."

Eileen waved it off nonchalantly.

Once the prop master left, Chester winced, touching his head once more. "That's gonna hurt."

His eyes flickered to Eileen, silently beckoning her concern. She obliged, asking, "Does it hurt much?"

Chester managed a pained smile. "Feels like it's swelling."

Eileen replied with a deadpan, "Did you ever consider that the vase might be in more pain than you? Poor thing."

Chester was taken aback, left speechless as Eileen, muttering under her breath, walked away with her script.

The filming proceeded smoothly thereafter. Eileen's lines were delivered with impeccable skill, and Chester performed adequately, allowing them to nail the scene on the first take.

Afterwards, Chester sidled up to Eileen and murmured, "It's a shame that beautiful moments are so fleeting."

Eileen cast him a sideways glance.

"If only Ms. Lopez were the lead," Chester continued, "we'd have so many more scenes together, spending every day side by side."

Eileen replied coolly, "Funny, Mr. Chester, I was thinking something similar. If only Mr. Chester weren't the lead, then we'd never have to see each other again. It'd be a peaceful existence."

Chester's frown deepened. "Ms. Lopez, I'm not sure what you've been told, but you seem to have problems with me today?"

Eileen laughed, "Yeah, Ms. Paulina mentioned something."

Chester, unphased by the prospect of being exposed, grew serious. "If it's about Ms. Paulina, let me explain. There's nothing between us. She fancies me, sure, and I've turned her down. But you know how she is domineering, stubborn. She's targeted you because she knows I'm into you, and I've asked her to stop. Maybe that's why she's so upset today and even hit me."

Eileen shook her head in disbelief at Chester's blatant lies.

"So, you're saying that all this was just Ms. Paulina acting alone?"

"Of course!" Chester insisted.

Eileen nodded. "I see."

Chester breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm glad you believe me."

Eileen didn't respond, only scoffed as she left to change.

After changing, Eileen checked her phone to find a lengthy WhatsApp message from Gentry, filled with text and photos. After digesting the content, she marched straight to Paulina's trailer.

Paulina had been holed up inside, sulking, and despite the crowd's attempts, she refused to emerge. Chester, too, stood outside, his apologies as pitiful as his demeanor.

Eileen ignored him and knocked on the door. Silence followed until she announced, "It's me."

The door creaked open after a moment, revealing a teary-eyed Paulina.

The crowd was stunned. Even Carrol had failed to get Paulina to open the door, yet Eileen had managed?

Without a word, Eileen stepped inside, shutting the door behind her.

Paulina, in a voice tinged with self-pity, said, "Don't bother trying to convince me. I just need a moment. I'll come out later this afternoon."

Eileen sat down and tossed her phone onto the coffee table. "It's not about that. Take a look for yourself."

Paulina picked up the phone and after reading just a few lines, her expression froze in shock. "What? Chester... he's gay?"

Eileen's face was a study in frost as she hissed, "Keep it down, will you? Why don't you go outside and tell him that to his face?"

Paulina clamped a hand over her mouth and continued to scroll.

With each swipe, her eyes widened in shock. "Holy cow! No wonder he's got such connections. People say his family's got clout, but what kind of 'clout' is this? Sleeping your way to the top much?"All rights © NôvelDrama.Org.

Eileen just sighed.

Rubbing her temples in exasperation, Eileen muttered, "He's gay, but not exclusively. He's probably bisexual. Keep going; there are pictures of him with some wealthy women later on."

Paulina kept reading, and then she felt her skin crawl.

She scratched at the back of her hand frantically, exclaiming, "I can't handle this, it's too much! He better not have any STDs, he's touched my hand!" Eileen's eyes sparkled with mischief as she asked, "Is that all? Just hand-holding? None of the... more adult stuff?"

Paulina glared at her. "We've only been seeing each other for a week! And it only started after joining the project! Things don't move that fast!" Disappointed at the lack of juicy details, Eileen let out a dejected "Oh."

Paulina decided to turn the tables, pressing, "What about you, huh? You and him, you guys must've done it by now, right?"

Eileen just blushed, grabbing her ears as they started to heat up, and waved the conversation away. "Let's drop it. Let's talk about something less damaging. Just keep reading; there's more."

Paulina dove back into the digital rabbit hole.

Once she was done, Paulina was fuming. "What the hell? So that's his game, huh? Trying to get both of us, setting us up to catfight, and then framing us to lose our roles! What

kind of man is this? So now!!"

UMS

Eileen chuckled, "He's probably done this plenty of times, cool as a cucumber. If you slip up, he moves on to me. If I mess up, he plays the pity card to garner sympathy. Seems like he's dead set on snagging both rofes, huh?"

Paulina scowled. "He wishes!"

Eileen stood up, ready to leave. "Alright, I just wanted to give you a heads-up. Stay here; my assistant will keep digging."

Paulina nodded and handed the phone back to Eileen. Just then, a man's voice came through the phone, "You there?"

Both women were startled.

Eileen took her phone back, turned off the mute, and replied, "Yeah."

On the other end, Egbert asked, "Had dinner yet?"

Eileen settled back onto the couch, responding, "Not yet, was about to."

Egbert chuckled, "Did you think of me this morning?"

A smile played on Eileen's lips as she grabbed a cushion and hugged it to her chest, "Nope."

He prodded, "Really?"

She repeated, "Nope."

His voice softened, "I missed you."

Eileen's eyes crinkled with her smile, but she feigned indifference, "Oh."

He pressed on, "Think of me this afternoon, maybe?"

Eileen mumbled, "I'll consider it."

Paulina was at her wit's end.

Unable to bear it any longer, she lunged for the phone and blurted out to Egbert, "She's lying! She's been missing you! She's definitely up for

some dirty fun game with you! Just come and take her away, foro heaven's sake!"