Part 10
The scandal hit like a storm, but Adrian didn't fall.
At first, the internet roared.
#AdrianLeeExposed
#TruthBehindTheIdol
Thousands of comments, millions of views.
Everyone wanted to believe something dark about someone too perfect.
Ethan watched from the shadows of fame — smiling, silent, letting the lie do its work.
He didn't need to say a word.
He just had to wait.
But this time, the story didn't go as planned.
Adrian's fans — the ones who had followed him from the beginning — fought back.
They posted old clips, handwritten letters, real stories from fans who had met him.
They flooded the internet with one message:
#WeStandWithAdrian
They compared dates, disproved screenshots, exposed faked photos.
Some even traced the source of the rumors back to an anonymous account tied to Ethan's PR team.
The narrative started to crack.
Still, the damage was done.
Sponsors pulled out. Interviews were canceled.
Adrian's label wanted him to issue an apology "for public peace," but he refused.
"I won't apologize for something I didn't do," he said quietly, eyes sharp.
Onstage, his voice trembled at first.
Then, during a live performance — stripped of dancers, lights, and glamour — he began to sing a soft, aching song.
It wasn't planned.
It wasn't perfect.
But it was real.
Halfway through, the crowd rose to their feet.
The fans held up thousands of lights, forming one word across the arena:
"TRUST."
Adrian froze mid-song, tears catching in his throat.
The sound of their voices drowned out everything else.
After the show, while the internet buzzed with clips of the moment, Ethan sat alone in his dressing room.
His phone screen glowed with headlines:
"Adrian Lee Breaks Silence — Fans Refuse to Believe the Lies."
"#WeStandWithAdrian Reaches 10 Million Tweets in One Hour."
He tossed the phone aside, face twisting.
He'd planned every detail — every post, every fake — and still, Adrian stood higher than before.
Ethan whispered under his breath,
"So that's how it is… the golden boy's bulletproof."
But in his chest, something sharp burned — not just envy anymore.
Hatred.
Outside, Adrian sat in the quiet of his van, staring at the city lights flashing past.
He felt the weightlifting, just a little.
The world still doubted him, but not everyone.
Enough people still believed.
And that was enough to keep him standing.