Clarissa had no more words to refute him.
Facing Matthew, they continued to chat amicably. When she was not being unreasonable from a temper, she could never win an argument against him.
“Alright, you win.” Clarissa held up her arms in surrender.
“So, for the traits about myself that you’ve listed, none of them could be used to select an actress to my satisfaction to portray myself.”
Matthew tapped Clarissa’s forehead lightly with a cheeky laugh.
“That’s because you are irreplaceable.”
Clarissa nodded. “Is that so? All right, I’ll do some introspection. I can’t be demanding for perfection.”
I think we’ll go by acting skill, then.
Before the audition, Clarissa had received a lot of invitations to dine with actors eager to be considered for her film. If it was not a free meal, it would be another form of a request to meet.
Yael was not subtle in the delivery of her opinion.
“They are trying to curry for your favor to be cast as the main or secondary characters. Because there was no announcement of Ryler being cast as the male lead, the competition for that spot is still fierce. I’m guessing that the men who are taking the initiative to bribe you are intending to be considered to be the male lead.”
At the mention of bribery, Clarissa was immediately reminded of the fiasco on set.
Her face turned grim at the memory.
“Yael, reject them all and be firm about it. I will not entertain any requests to meet or exchange favors. If they want the parts, they’d have to audition for it.”
Clarissa loathed opportunists like these. The memory of that encounter still left a bitter taste in her mouth.
To prevent that from happening again, Clarissa avoided any locations that she would likely run into hopeful but unqualified actors. She shut herself off in Zen Highlands to work without even showing up at the studio. Unless absolutely necessary, she could only be reached by phone or the Internet.
Clarissa’s self-imposed exile had ended on the day of the audition.
Due to the sheer number of candidates, the audition had to be broken up into batches, which was something Clarissa had not expected. To combat this, she had arranged for the audition of the main roles to be left towards the end, as she had intended to cast every single role to perfection.
Clarissa browsed the profiles of the candidates and discussed them with several members of the crew. Justin had offered many acute opinions, which were invaluable in Clarissa’s decision-making process.
“This Roxanne seems promising. She’s not only a good actress, but she also looks the part too.”
Clarissa nodded in agreement. “I think she’ll do.”
As the circumstances had evolved to the way they were, she felt that Roxanne was more suitable.
Though Roxanne was new, she had professional training from a drama school. Her most appealing factor was the elegant way that she carried herself. Aside from that, Clarissa had discovered to her surprise that Justin was right. Roxanne did have an uncanny resemblance to her.
Due to a bizarre combination of coincidence and fate, Clarissa had asked that Roxanne act out the scene of the main characters breaking up when it was her turn to audition. Every detail was accounted for to the point that Clarissa felt like she was watching her very own breakup with Matthew before her eyes all those years prior.
When the scene had ended, Roxanne was shocked when she met Clarissa’s gaze after bowing to each of them.
Roxanne discovered to her surprise her resemblance to Clarissa.
Justin smiled and nodded in response to her performance. “That was good,” he praised.
Clarissa nodded as well. “It’s Roxanne, is it? That was a great performance.”
Great? Did I get the part? Roxanne was beside herself with excitement, though she did not dare ask.
Aside from plays that she had written for herself in drama school, this was the first time she was acting in front of a production crew.
Roxanne had been a loyal fan of Clarissa for a long time. When she had heard that Clarissa had intended to shoot a movie, many of her classmates had voiced their intention to audition for a part in her film. However, what they were really after was only a slice of glory for themselves. Due to Clarissa’s popularity, they surmised that this biopic of hers was going to be a hit.
It was about the romantic history between her and the president of Tyson Corporation, Matthew Tyson. Though this was only Clarissa’s directional debut, it had no chance of being a flop.
Roxanne joined them for the audition without high expectations. Just to be able to meet Clarissa in person and get her autograph would make the trip worth it.
Unexpectedly, Clarissa was not only more beautiful than she had expected, but she had also looked strangely familiar too, as though Roxanne had seen her somewhere before.
Even more unexpectedly, her performance had drawn words of praise from Clarissa and Director Yates.
Roxanne’s heartbeat quickened as her face turned red with anticipation. An excitement that was on the verge of exploding brewed up within her. She opened her mouth but her nerves failed her as not a sound escaped.
The only thing she was capable of doing was to bow and thank them in a stammering voice.
When Roxanne had left the room, her classmates that she came with surrounded her as they interrogated her.
Clarissa felt a great burden lifted off her shoulders after she decided that Roxanne had won the part.
As she bent over to examine the profiles of other potential candidates, the door was pushed open and someone entered.
“Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Shermaine.”
Clarissa jerked her head up at the sound of the name. It really is her.
Clarissa thought that she had misheard. Turning around to see how the others would respond, she found that they shared her expression of shocked disbelief.
Clarissa frowned slightly but said nothing. She stood waiting with a grim look on her face.
Even the production staff who was present grew startled at Shermaine’s arrival. Her intention of auditioning was abundantly clear, though it was not explicitly announced.
It was common knowledge that she was the romantic rival of Clarissa all those years ago.
“Excuse me, Ms. Smallwood. Have you happened to have walked into the wrong set?” said the staff, hurrying over as he thought of an excuse to escort her away.
“No, I’m here for an audition. Ms. Quigley, am I correct in presuming that there would be a supporting character who is a wicked woman? I might be suitable for that part.” With a mild-mannered smile and earnest demeanor, she was a world apart from who she used to be.
She stood perfectly composed as her request was being considered.
Clarissa returned her smile.
“Apologies, Ms. Smallwood. I have no wicked characters in my novel. Naturally, the film wouldn’t have one either. You must have mistaken my intentions. Besides, forgive me for being blunt, but there is not a single character that would be fitting for you.”
“Ms. Quigley,” Shermaine pressed on. “If you would give me a chance, I would like to try anyway. I’ll accept and respect your decision no matter what the outcome may be.”
That was all she wanted. For us to watch her audition.
Since Shermaine had turned up, it wouldn’t look good to turn her away without giving her a chance.
However, Clarissa was firm on excluding Shermaine’s involvement from her project altogether.
“There’s no need. I am certain of the fact that you are not what we are looking for.”
Shermaine was taken aback. Her subtle make-up seemed to accentuate the disappointment in her face. With a sad little smile, she bowed graciously.
“Apologies for intruding, and thank you for your time.”
At that, Shermaine turned and departed.
Not a single person at the scene attempted to stop her.
“Ms. Quigley, I really had no idea that Shermaine would come for an audition. My apologies for overlooking this possibility.” The production crew was stammering in fright.
“It wasn’t your fault.” Clarissa shook her head. “Let us continue.”
The process went by smoothly as they were aware of what they were looking for.
When the audition finally drew to a close, Clarissa sat with Justin to discuss business. When they were done, Clarissa blurted, “Justin, do you think that I did the right thing?”
Justin frowned. “Shermaine?”
“Yes, her. She is a gifted actress, no doubt. As for her character, she seems to have turned over the new leaf. I had read on social media that her temperament had improved tremendously. Everybody who has interacted with her had reported that she had become so humble that it was like she was a completely different person. After seeing her today, I have been shocked as well. But I still do not wish to even look at her after everything she’d done.”
Justin did not press his opinion. “You’re free to think what you please about her. It doesn’t even matter if you’ve made up your mind. Besides, this is your movie. If there is a constant thorn by your side that you have to deal with, your entire project might be jeopardized.”
Clarissa’s heart lightened considerably at Justin’s words of encouragement.
She turned to look out of the window and met the curious gaze of the staff outside.
“I don’t quite understand what she’s thinking. She knows perfectly well that I wouldn’t cast her. Why would she show up and get herself humiliated?”
“Who knows?” Justin shrugged as he packed away his documents. “Stop overthinking. It’s been a long day, go home and get some rest, will you?”
Clarissa nodded. “You go on ahead, Director Yates. I’ll leave shortly after you. Matthew’s coming to get me.”
She smiled sweetly at the mention of her husband’s name.
Justin scoffed in jest and departed with a shake of his head. Maybe it’s time for me to find someone too, he thought.
Spring is here. It’s the perfect season for a budding romance.
Clarissa turned her attention back to the stack of profiles. As Shermaine invaded her subconscious again, she shook her head with a self-deprecating laugh.
She was not only upset about the fact that she rebuffed Shermaine. The other reason was that in her novel, no wicked characters existed despite Shermaine’s presumption.
When Clarissa began working on her novel, it began as a diary chronicling her time with Matthew. Though their love had been tested with obstacles, it was nobody else’s business but hers and Matthew’s.
Does Shermaine think that I will include her in my book?
Does she think that her role in my past is that important?
Shermaine was wrong on both accounts. Clarissa had never referred to Shermaine in her novel or created any characters based on her. It was a love story about her and Matthew; no other woman was involved.
Since the novel had not been released, Shermaine could only guess that she had been written in as well.
That was not the case. Clarissa felt sick even writing about her. She definitely did not intend to stain her work with the inclusion of Shermaine.
The diary of their shared history together was Clarissa’s gift to Matthew. It would have been tainted to include other women.
Clarissa smiled in relish at the look on Shermaine’s face when she realized that she had been completely omitted from the novel. She was not even worthy of being mentioned.
A light knock on the door interrupted Clarissa’s pleasant fantasy. She raised her head, her smile still plastered across her face. The sight of Matthew leaning against the door with his dark and twinkling eyes boring deep into hers left her breathless with admiration.
“What’re you thinking of?” Matthew strode over and placed his hands on the table as he met her gaze.
Clarissa held her head up by her chin, looking demure with her eyes narrow from smiling so widely.
“I’m imagining what the film would turn out to look like when it’s done. That’s another gift from me to you. If it turns out bad, you have to be kind about it, won’t you?”
