The rumors about Cassius and Kristen blew up online fast!
TMZ fired the first shot!
Other gossip rags like People and US Weekly quickly jumped on the bandwagon. All sorts of embellished "insider" tips and deep-dive analyses started popping up everywhere.
The headlines were getting crazier by the minute:
#Bella's Secret Asian Night!#
#Stewart's New Flame Revealed: Unknown Asian Actor Cassius#
#From Beverly Hills Hotel to USC Campus: Investigating Kristen's New Rumored Boyfriend#
...
Cassius's peaceful life was completely shattered!
He had no idea how his phone number got leaked, but strangers started blowing it up!
Reporters wanted interviews, curious friends were fishing for details, and he even got some nasty racist comments and threats from Kristen's obsessive fans.
He had to turn off his phone for a while!
Lee Su-yeon looked at him, worried sick.
"Oppa, are you okay? People are saying some really awful things out there."
Cassius shoveled fried rice from a takeout box into his mouth.
"What's there to worry about? Getting cursed out won't make me lose any weight!"
Rob called, too—straight to Lee Su-yeon's phone.
"Hey, Gossip Girl! You're really something, huh? Making such a huge splash out of nowhere! How does it feel? Are paparazzi blocking your door yet?"
"Not yet! I guess they haven't figured out my slum address."
"Rob, is this mess going to mess up my chances of getting roles later?"
Cassius was a little worried.
His career was just starting to take off, and now he had to deal with this crap!
"Short term? Definitely!"
Rob gave it to him straight.
"Some people will think you're using this scandal to climb the ladder, or they'll label you as Stewart's boyfriend and ignore your acting!"
"But you're famous now, bro! Even if it's for the wrong reasons, Hollywood is all about name recognition! At least producers and casting directors know the name Cassius now! The key is how you play your cards from here!"
Rob advised him to stay silent, not respond to any media, and let the heat die down on its own.
At the same time, he should be ready for all sorts of weird audition opportunities that might come his way because of this.
After hanging up, Cassius felt a bit more grounded.
Rob was right!
At the very least, he was famous now!
The scariest thing in show business is being invisible!
At least he had crossed that hurdle!
He turned his phone back on, blocking most of the unknown numbers but keeping a few important contacts.
Just then!
An unknown number he had accidentally let through called.
Cassius hesitated, but answered it.
"Hello?"
He spoke cautiously.
There was silence on the other end for two seconds, then a slightly raspy female voice spoke.
"It's me!"
Cassius paused, then realized. "Miss Stewart?"
"Yeah~"
Kristen sounded exhausted, even more drained than she had been that night when she was drunk.
"You saw the news, right?"
"Hard to miss it!"
Cassius replied honestly.
"Sorry!"
Kristen whispered. "I dragged you into this. Those paparazzi are everywhere!"
Cassius hadn't expected her to call personally to apologize.
"It's fine. I haven't lost anything! Except my phone blowing up and people staring at me like I'm a monkey in a zoo!"
Kristen seemed to chuckle very softly on the other end.
"You'll get used to it!"
She paused.
"My team will handle this. We'll clarify that it was just a friend helping a friend that night. Nothing more!"
"Thanks!"
A statement from Kristen's side would carry a lot more weight than Cassius trying to explain it himself.
"I should be thanking you!"
"If it weren't for you that night, I don't want to think about what kind of accident I might have gotten into driving!"
Kristen's tone was serious. "Sorry for bringing you so much trouble!"
"Same to you! You've been getting trashed online too!"
Another brief silence.
"You..."
Kristen seemed to want to say something, but held back.
"Never mind! Keep in touch. If you need help with anything, call my private number!"
She hung up without waiting for Cassius to respond.
Cassius held the phone, listening to the dial tone.
He put the phone down, feeling complicated.
This sudden storm had tied him to this top Hollywood star in the most awkward way possible.
Hopefully, after Kristen released her statement, things would slowly calm down.
Thinking of this, Cassius let out a sigh of relief.
He glanced at his stats panel. Because he had been so distracted, he hadn't really focused on picking up attribute bubbles.
This wouldn't do!
He stood up and said to Lee Su-yeon, "I'm going out for a bit!"
"Where? There might still be paparazzi outside!"
"To the gym!"
Cassius rotated his wrists. "I need to blow off some steam and get my head back in the game!"
...
A few days later.
Kristen attended a fashion brand event as scheduled.
Everyone knew this was her first public appearance since the hotel scandal. The media interview area after the red carpet was packed with reporters, cameras aimed at her like weapons on a frontline. The atmosphere was tense.
Kristen, wearing the brand's latest collection and sporting her signature expression, walked over, surrounded by bodyguards and staff.
Flashbulbs practically drowned her.
The initial questions were standard—about fashion, about new projects.
But soon, the focus shifted to the sensitive topic.
"Kristen! About the TMZ report from a few days ago, regarding you spending the night at the Beverly Hills Hotel with that Asian actor, Cassius—do you have any response?"
A male reporter shouted.
Kristen replied calmly, using the script prepared by her team.
"Cassius is a kind colleague. We happened to be filming in the same studio lot that night. I wasn't feeling well after the wrap party, and out of kindness, he drove me back to the hotel. Because it was so late and transportation was an issue, he rested on the living room sofa."
"It's that simple. None of the things you're imagining happened. We are just friends!"
This response was clear and reasonable, defining the incident as a friend helping a friend.
Cassius, who was sweating buckets in the gym at that moment, saw this on the TV and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.
Once this blew over, he could finally go back to his fulfilling life of filming and collecting attributes!
Hearing Kristen's lukewarm answer, another female reporter immediately threw a sharper question.
"Reliable sources have revealed that you actually aren't interested in men, and that your personal preference is women!"
"Is this hotel incident with Mr. Cassius just a PR stunt to cover up your true sexual orientation?"
"Are you bearding?"
The crowd went into an uproar.
This wasn't just simple gossip anymore; it was an insulting accusation that invaded her privacy.
In Hollywood, "bearding" refers to when a gay celebrity fakes a relationship with someone of the opposite sex to protect their public image.