"Oh, no!"

I stumbled out of bed with the big blanket wrapped tightly around my body, then I hurriedly carried my bag and clothes to the bathroom. I dressed quickly, not caring about the buttons being put in the wrong holes, not caring if my hair was disheveled like a bird's nest, and not caring about my appearance being so messed up.

All I cared about right now was one thing, and that was that I had to get out of here. As fast as I can!

As soon as I did, I exited the bathroom, moving carefully because I didn't want to make a sound. Until finally, I was transfixed for three seconds, my eyes shining on the handsome shirtless man who was fast asleep on the bed. The man I actually recognized.

I swallowed my saliva. Then I shook my head, I didn't want to think about him. I then stomped toward the door. But, just holding the door handle, I was startled by the sound of moans behind me, making me reflexively close my eyes.

For a moment, I thought that the man I slept with last night would wake up, then call me and require me to stay here longer to deal with him, which I couldn't because I was pressed for time, I had a schedule that couldn't be canceled anytime soon.

I waited, but there was nothing. I opened my eyes again, my head turned back, and I saw that the man was fast asleep again. He had just changed positions. I let out a long breath as I realized that I could escape right now. And that's what I did next.

I opened the door and ran away from the place. I ran with ease, and it was this that made me realize that I looked strange and wrong. And it was only when I saw my bare feet that I cursed myself.

"Damn it." I cursed under my breath. This is one of the things that will happen if you leave in a hurry. You will always leave behind important things that you should have brought. And that's exactly what happened to me this time.

My heels were left in that asshole's room. I forgot to bring them. I paused for a moment, then looked back.

"I'm not going back there," I said quietly, followed by a harsh sigh that escaped my mouth. I didn't want to encounter the worst possible outcome, which was that he had woken up and realized that I wasn't by his side. Perhaps by now he was awake and wondering about my sudden disappearance. There was also the possibility that he was looking for me. And this can't be allowed.

I immediately made a choice. I took another step away from that place. Coincidentally, there was a taxi passing by, and I immediately stopped it. It was better to lose my heels than to meet him. Indeed, my heels were quite expensive, but my desire to avoid that man was far greater than getting my heels.

The taxi sped up as soon as I mentioned my destination. By now, I had managed to get away from that man. I was already on my way out.

I leaned my body against the seat, then closed my eyes as I tried to neutralize my breathing to make it normal. Then, suddenly, the memory of last night's incident slammed into my cranium, which made my breath catch. I hurriedly shook my head, pushing the thought away. For now, I didn't want to think about it.

***

"Jesus, Nellie!" Nick exclaimed dramatically while smothering his mouth when he saw me walk into the room. "You're ten minutes late, honey. Where have you been? Oh shit, look at you!"

"I know, please don't make any comments, I'm well aware that I look pretty bad," I said.

"More than that, you look like a street hobo."

Nick's words made me drool. "What?"

"I'm not lying. You're so ugly. Where have you been? What happened to you?" Nick looked at me intently.

Like Nick said, I was already late, and now there was no time for me to explain what Nick wanted. "Later, I'll tell you what happened, right now I need to take a shower, and after that, please dress me up pretty like always, okay, babe?"

"No! You have to perform in thirty minutes. There's no time to go take a shower. You came at the time we agreed on. For the past three days, I've even warned you not to be late. Just showing up late pisses me off, let alone being late like you're doing now? No, sit down now."

"Nick, really?"

"Look at my face, am I kidding?" Nick pointed at his own face, which made me immediately conclude that he was indeed being very serious. I sighed softly.

"But I haven't showered yet, and I—"

"You haven't even showered for three days."

"That's different. I'm now going to appear on a show, I'm going to meet people, go on television, and you're seriously not allowing me to clean my body. Are you kidding me?"

"Let's be realistic and say that you don't have extra time. Please don't talk as if I'm the one at fault here. You're the one who came late. It's your fault, I'm just trying to help you, okay?"

I let out a long breath.

"You might have a problem that made you come late, but for now, put that aside, you have something important to do in a little while."

"Okay, fine!" I put my bag down on the table. "Which clothes should I wear?"

"I've prepared everything, just a moment." Nick left immediately, then came with the clothes I had to wear. He moved quickly. Compared to me, he was more aware that my time was really very limited. "Wear this, don't argue too much, I'm sure that this dress will suit you. Time is too short to argue unnecessarily."

"Your taste always suits me, I won't protest the clothes you choose for me. You just relax," I said as I snatched the clothes that were still in Nick's hands. "I'm going to the dressing room now."

"Remember the time, Nellie."

"I won't forget," I called out as I walked away from Nick.

I changed quickly. In fact, I was moving too hastily. A second was precious, and I didn't want to waste my time. I walked out when I was done.

"Perfect!" Nick snapped his fingers as soon as he saw me coming out of the dressing room. "I knew this dress would suit you. You look absolutely stunning!"

I didn't listen to Nick's words. I ignored him completely. What I did was grab my bag, rummage through it for perfume, and then, after finding it, I immediately sprayed it liberally on my body.

Nick then dragged me in so suddenly. He sat me down on a chair. And before I could protest, he had already said it first.

"Shut up and let me work," he said.

I obeyed what Nick said. He started applying my makeup, styling my hair to make it look pleasing to the eye, and fixing my clothes that didn't look neat yet. He worked quickly and efficiently. In no time, I turned into a beauty thanks to his hands.

Nick smiled at me through the mirror. "Right on time, we're done."

I nodded. "You're the expert. Thank you, Nick. You're my hero." I smiled widely. "But by the way, is my body odor obvious?"

"What?" Nick glared, followed by a wagging hand. "Oh, Nellie, don't be silly, you don't smell at all."

"Really?" I seriously doubted Nick's words. "I didn't take a shower. Remember that."

"It makes no difference, people won't know if you haven't showered or not. No one even cares about that. Everything will be under control, trust me. You smell nice and are very pretty. Now stand up and go. Show your bitch smile to the camera."

I immediately punched Nick's arm violently. "Fuck you, Nick." I pouted, while Nick laughed innocently.

At that moment, a woman dressed in a formal suit called me, whom I believed to be one of the staff of the talk show I was attending now. She asked me to follow her, so I nodded and started walking. And as I looked back to stare at my gay best friend, he called out the phrase good luck to me, to which I replied with a smile and a nod of my head.

Then, I started to step inside after being given the signal. I was already quite used to being the center of attention. It's not a difficult thing to do, I can handle it. I can do it. And attending a talk show as the main star is also no stranger to me. I've done it before. Because I'm not an ordinary person. I'm an actress. Or rather, I'm a singer and songwriter.

And this is my story. Welcome to my life.