"Hiss—"
Someone shoved her from behind. Amelia Lockhart lost her footing and fell hard to her knees, a shattering pain shooting through them.
The area suddenly went eerily silent. It was then that she noticed a pair of clean, white sneakers in front of her.
Following the sneakers upward, Amelia Lockhart's gaze landed on a face that could captivate the world.
Ethan Quinn was wearing sunglasses. Dressed in just a simple white shirt and black pants, his mere presence outshone everything on earth.
The moment he lifted a hand to remove his sunglasses, everything else faded to gray. His deep, cold eyes looked down at her as his thin lips parted. "There's no need for such a grand gesture."
At that very moment, they were surrounded by cameras.
And she was kneeling, ramrod straight, right in front of Ethan Quinn.
Amelia Lockhart scrambled to her feet, but the pain in her knees made her frown. She staggered, unable to find her balance, and pitched forward toward the man in front of her.
A collective gasp went through the crowd.
Fortunately, someone caught her just in time.
"Ms. Lockhart, are you all right?" Ruby Sawyer asked, steadying her.
Amelia Lockhart quickly shook her head and smiled at her. "Thanks."
[HOLY CRAP! She actually knelt to get our idol's attention!]
[All she does is try to ride our idol's coattails. So shameless! If it weren't for Ethan Quinn, I'd stop watching this show right now!]
[Waaah! Our darling Ruby is so sweet! Helping someone like Amelia Lockhart!]
Once she was steady, Amelia Lockhart watched Ethan Quinn being whisked away by his entourage. A flicker of regret showed in her eyes. If Ruby Sawyer hadn't so kindly pulled her up, she could have completed her mission.
'All I want is to repay a debt,' she thought. 'Why is it so hard?'
Amelia Lockhart trailed behind everyone else, looking dejected. The cameras caught this, and the bullet comments erupted into another bloodbath.
[Trying to get close to our idol? That's hilarious. As if she's even worthy of Ethan Quinn!]
[She doesn't even deserve to be in the same frame as him!]
The director stroked his beard with a smile, extremely pleased with his casting choices. While Amelia Lockhart wasn't a big name, she had a massive number of anti-fans. From the moment she appeared to the scene that just unfolded, their livestream viewership had multiplied several times over!
The April spring weather was perfect. The first episode of *Fated Love*, Season 3, had officially begun filming.
This season featured eight guests in total—four men and four women. With top-tier celebrity Ethan Quinn headlining, the dating show was destined to be a massive hit. And that was without even mentioning the inclusion of A-list actor Leo Bishop and popular starlets Anna Summers and Ruby Sawyer.
All eight guests were now standing in a sun-drenched, blooming garden. The director kicked things off with a brief but enthusiastic opening speech before announcing the first, highly anticipated task.
A thousand miles of fate, tied by a single thread.
The bullet comments instantly went wild, with viewers spamming the names of the on-screen couples they hoped to see.
"I'm sure you're all familiar with the rules. Each episode's couples are brought together by fate. Who will you be spending the first episode with? You each have four balls in front of you, and each ball contains a pairing designation. Now, let the drawing begin!"
[Please let our idol Ethan Quinn get paired with Summer!]
[Please let Summer and our sweet Ruby get paired with Leo or Ethan!]
As Amelia Lockhart reached for a ball, she silently used a prop card she'd gotten from a previous mission—a Good Luck Card.
'Come on, lady luck, please put me in a group with Ethan Quinn!'
'I just want to repay a debt!'
"Everyone, please open your balls now. Inside, you'll find one of four words representing our show's theme. Those who draw the same word will be a pair!"
Countless eyes and cameras were fixed on the eight balls. When Amelia Lockhart opened hers, she saw the word "Fate" written inside.
After all eight guests revealed their words, Amelia Lockhart was not surprised at all to see the other "Fate" in Ethan Quinn's hand.
Ruby Sawyer's face was a mask of disbelief. An uninformed observer might think she was just shocked by Amelia Lockhart's dumb luck, but she was truly stunned. She had clearly made arrangements with the staff, so how did Amelia end up with Ethan Quinn's match?
'Did this woman bribe the staff, too?'
[RIGGED! RIGGED! RIGGED!!!]
[AHHHH! It's like I jinxed it! Why did he actually get stuck with Amelia Lockhart! I'm gonna be sick!]
The viewer count on Amelia Lockhart's individual livestream window skyrocketed as a huge wave of anti-fans flooded in.
But no matter how wild the bullet comments got, it didn't affect the on-site filming. The four randomly-drawn couples had been decided.
Ethan Quinn and Amelia Lockhart, Leo Bishop and Anna Summers, Vincent Vance and Ruby Sawyer, and Rhett Reynolds and Iris Yates.
[AHHHH! Leo and Summer are so perfect together! I'm licking the screen!]
[I want to watch Ethan, but I don't want to see Amelia Lockhart. Now they're in the same frame, and I'm so annoyed!]
The moment the pairs were drawn, the director saw the livestream's popularity shoot to number one. He grinned from ear to ear and quickly announced the first task—
"The first task is a race against time! One partner must carry the other to the finish line one hundred meters to your right. What happens there will determine how you get to the first filming location!"
[HOLY CRAP! Ethan has to carry Amelia Lockhart! Damn you, production team! I'm seriously gonna hurl!]
The four couples had only just been paired up, and now they had to engage in such an intimate act. A palpable shyness and awkwardness hung in the air.
This only made the atmosphere around Ethan Quinn and Amelia Lockhart seem even more awkward and frigid.
Ethan Quinn lowered his gaze to Amelia Lockhart, who was smiling beside him like a little fangirl. For some reason, his mind flashed back to the image of her kneeling before him moments ago, her eyes slightly red from the pain.
Amelia Lockhart had a crush on him.
His agent had told him about it. He didn't use Weibo much, but because of the show, his agent had mentioned Amelia Lockhart and warned him to be careful not to get dragged into any manufactured hype.
'Is she just good at hiding it?' he wondered. He just found that the girl in front of him had very clear eyes, and her smile held a hint of... fawning?
Seeing the silent standoff, Amelia Lockhart assumed Ethan Quinn was unwilling. After all, she was well aware that she had countless anti-fans online.
"Mr. Quinn, I'm pretty strong. How about I carry you?" Amelia Lockhart suddenly proposed a viable alternative.
'Ethan Quinn is three years younger than me,' she reasoned. 'And since I want to repay my debt to him, I should be the one taking care of him.'
[Heh! What kind of divine proclamation is that! Does she think she's Popeye or something?]
[Ethan is 6'2", a whole head taller than her. Who does she think she's carrying? I'm dying!]
[Oh my god! My eyes are deceiving me! She's carrying him!]
[HOLY CRAP! Not only is she carrying him, she's RUNNING!]
The tone of the bullet comments took a sharp turn. Not only were the livestream viewers stunned, but the guests and staff on set were also left reeling in the wind!
The 5'7" woman was seen princess-carrying the 6'2" Ethan Quinn, her feet flying as if she had the wind at her heels, practically sprinting toward the destination!
Caught off guard by being suddenly lifted, Ethan Quinn first went completely rigid, then gradually relaxed. He narrowed his eyes, re-evaluating Amelia Lockhart.
'What the hell!' he thought. 'I can't believe I'm being princess-carried in my lifetime!'
'And what's even more insane is that... it's actually kind of comfortable?'
[Key points for the new book]
1. If you don't like it, please don't hate on it! I will delete malicious comments! Also, my writing style is light-hearted and sweet, so for readers who like sweet stories, you can dive in without worry. I will definitely finish this book!
2. The stats for a new book are very important. If you like it, please shower me with comments, check-ins in the readers' circle, and recommendation votes! I'll be endlessly grateful! (Bows)
3. The summary reveals a lot of information, so go take a close look! It's not just about the entertainment industry!
Finally, I write the story, and you read the story. I hope we can walk through the autumn and winter of this year together, and head into the spring and summer of the next~
It's your loving Huahua!