"This isn't one of your acting gigs where you have to impress the director to earn a higher pay."
"B-Brother, answer me. You're scaring me by not saying anything. You've been holding your breath too. You've held it so long, I think you've broken the record for the man who held his breath the longest."
After shaking her brother for several seconds, Brielle Sloane couldn't deny the obvious any longer and burst into angry tears.
"You selfish bastard! How could you leave your little sister? You promised not to join mother so soon, but if you want to meet her so badly, I'll let you go with escorts."
"I'll send after you those bastards who took your life. I'll make sure they beg for their lives before I send them to you."
The entire class was pin-drop silent, their eyes pinned on the moving performance right in front of them.
Within three minutes, Zoey's demeanor changed three times.
First, she went from herself to a girl mourning her dead brother, then to a bloodthirsty maniac.
Though she was merely acting, when Zoey raised her eyes, everyone could see the tiny streaks of blood in them, an indication Brielle was slowly descending into madness like the book described.
Eugenia Hartwell swallowed, temporarily forgetting to breathe in fear it'd make her bat her eyes and she'd wake up to see this was all just a dream.
Such… jaw-dropping performance.
She was so in love with Day of Reckoning everyone knew no one could direct the movie to perfection.
So whenever someone with money to burn planned to acquire the novel's film rights, they'd spend tons searching for the right actress who could portray Brielle Sloane at least a little like the author described her.
This moment—when her brother died—was the moment she lost her mind.
The madness in Zoey's eyes was the exact madness Eugenia had been waiting for.
Who would've thought a high school student was what the entertainment industry had been looking for all these years?
Zoey ended her performance and got on her feet.
Well, she did write Brielle Sloane. No, she gave a little of her personality to Brielle, so she knew exactly what this scene was to be like.
Kate's hand beside her curled into a tight fist.
This… it was hard for her to admit, but this was better than she imagined.
The maximal effort she'd planned to put into the scene was nothing compared to what she had just witnessed.
Zoey succeeded in raising the bar so high, if she went ahead to perform and fell short, that'd be too humiliating…
Eugenia got a grip on herself and pressed her slightly parted lips together before turning to Kate.
"It's your turn now."
Kate flinched. Then she smiled forcefully and stepped backward.
"Sister put so much effort into this and seems to be best suited for it. I wouldn't want to stand in the way of her having the role."
Eugenia already made up her mind the role would be going to Zoey and merely asked Kate to perform to fulfill all righteousness.
She'd seen Kate act numerous times and thought it was good enough for a high school student—but after what Zoey had just delivered, she realized her standards had been lower than they should've been.
So she didn't persuade Kate and turned to Zoey.
"Zoey Smith, you will perform as Brielle Sloane. Since you're playing the female lead, you'll need to practice harder than anyone else. Do you understand me?"
Zoey nodded without hesitation.
Of course she'd practice harder than anyone if it meant winning that money.
The class president beckoned a few others who had shown interest in other roles.
And just like that, the class temporarily forgot about Kate and went about their morning auditions.
Awkwardly, she stiffly returned to her seat.
Everyone knew the role of Brielle Sloane was hers, so she hadn't bothered practicing for any other character. Now that she'd lost it, she couldn't even audition for another.
This role, which should've been her breakthrough, slipped right through her fingers, going to the least expected person.
Underneath her desk, she curled both hands into angry fists.
Zoey Smith.
You kept quiet this whole time while we spoke about Day of Reckoning. I even defended you in front of the whole class thinking you hadn't read the novel, but this is what you had in store for me while I looked out for you?
"Is that all the people who'd be auditioning?" Eugenia's question filtered into her ears as she seethed quietly, but she wasn't mentally present to respond.
A bored Zoey leaned forward and pointed out, "Kate hasn't."
By this time, the entire class stood at the front of the room, divided into two: one side filled with those who didn't pass and would be extras, and the other side made up of those who did.
The only person not in either group was Kate.
She tepidly raised her eyes hearing her name, jaw clenched hard as she forced on a smile.
The air turned awkward as the students finally grew aware of the situation.
Eugenia was in the room, so none of Kate's followers could afford to accuse Zoey of humiliating her sister on purpose.
Eugenia took off her glasses to rub her eyes tiredly.
"Kate, you didn't happen to prepare any other role, did you?"
Kate stiffly shook her head, her voice barely audible as she lowered her eyes pitifully, "I didn't. I spent hours, months—practicing for the role of Brielle Sloane, but sister got it. I guess she must've prepared for this day longer than I did."
"I only read that book once." Zoey blurted before she could stop herself.
Instantly, Kate's face darkened, now convinced Zoey was humiliating her on purpose.
While she wasn't entirely wrong, Zoey was just being honest.
Her novel sold out so quickly she didn't even have a copy for herself. The one she had planned to keep—one of her mother's friends saw it, recognized her signature at the back, and offered ten million to buy it.
Of course, she didn't know who the author really was.
Zoey initially refused to sell, but the woman thought her refusal meant it was worth more and kept raising the offer.
By the time she reached ten million, Zoey feared she'd retract it—so she sold it.
Eugenia thought for a while before she pointed at the side with extras.
"Well, Kate, all the roles have been taken. Why don't you join those starring as extras?"
Kate's face turned ugly.
An extra?
Not even a supporting character, but an extra? How did she go from alwsys being the female lead to such a pathetic role?
She swept her eyes through her classmates, hoping one of them would think this was a chance to get close to her by giving up their roles.
However, they all valued the prestige they'd gain from performing this drama during the festival more than being close to her.
Joining as an extra was still better than not being part of the drama at all.
So she bore the shame and began walking to the side for extras, her eyes lowered.
This was all Zoey's fault!
Had she known Zoey was so good, she would've made sure she never got the chance to audition at all!
Seeing Kate walk with her head lowered to join the extras, a boy who had a crush on her couldn't contain it any longer and stepped forward.
"Professor Hartwell, this isn't fair. I don't care what Kate says, she deserves just as much right to audition for the role of Brielle Sloane as Zoey!"
Upon hearing him, Kate panicked and placed the wrong foot forward, tripping over it immediately.