#CANCEL HER!
#CANCEL HER!
#CANCEL HER!
In less than five minutes, my face was everywhere.
Clips from the competition replayed in slow motion, edited with captions like "Look at her smirk. She's evil"
Someone even froze a frame where I blinked, claiming it was the moment I enjoyed Rae's downfall.
#CANCELHER was the number one trend, but now there were sub-threads #JusticeForRae #MaeveTheMeanGirl, #ToxicTalent, #MaeveTheBully.
People I'd never met wrote essays about my personality online. I saw my life flash before my eyes.
I knew Fred's bots were engineering this, but real people were falling for it too. The headlines were endless.
"Maeve has always been jealous," one user posted under a side-by-side of Rae smiling sweetly and me mid-performance.
"Sweet innocent Rae."
"She's bitter because Rae's voice is pure emotion. You can't fake that."
Another said, "I used to love Maeve, but fame really exposed her."
Even verified accounts joined in. An old producer from a show I once auditioned for tweeted, "Didn't surprise me. Some people never change."
Many brands quietly removed my name from their ambassador list. Not that they had me in mind anyways. The first scandal with Frank had already done the damage, and this one was to kill me finally.
My fanbase tried to fight back, posting old clips of Rae talking down to background singers, but it only made things worse. The headlines twisted it: 'Maeve's Fans Attack Hospitalized Star.'
"Maeve fans are as toxic as her. She's sending them to attack Rae."
I stayed in the green room with Becky waiting for when it was safe to leave the competition, but she said there were mob waiting outside for me and they were not leaving anytime soon.
Just like in my past, they were there. Frank had been the one to save me with his guards in the past, now I wasn't married to him, I wondered who would save me.
I read all of the news online and still couldn't believe everything I was seeing.
I thought I had everything under control. I thought since I've lived this life before, I could deal with my enemies. I thought I had finally figured out a way to destroy my plagiarist.
"What do we do miss Maeve, things are getting out of hand?" Becky asked. She asked because we couldn't sleep in the building tonight. It wasn't safe here either.
Soon everyone would love and we'd be sent out whether there are mob or not. No one was willing to help or speak to me. I was like an outcast already.
Immediately, a text came to my cell phone. "I warned you didn't I? You'll see the consequences of your stubbornness." Fred sent and that was the end.
He was punishing me just as he had said, but not with the sex video, with something else. He had destroyed my career tonight with a lie.
The door to the green room suddenly opened to a man stepping in. "The coast is clear, you can leave now." He said.
"Are the fans gone?" I asked to see him nod.
"It seems they all got tired and left like I said. It's not the first time things like this happen. Plus there are security personnel outside the building just in case a few a still around." He added and I nodded feeling so thankful.
I had experience the mob in my past life, and they weren't what I wanted to experience again.
"But you need to hurry so that you can get back home." He added and both I and Becky were more than thankful to him.
When we got out of the building, the place seemed so quiet like he had said. I was grateful the mob decided to leave, maybe, just maybe, one thing was working in my favor today.
A few more steps away from the door, I felt a hit at my back.
"Ouch!" I exclaimed turning around to see a rotten tomato on the floor. My eyes turned wide. This couldn't be happening again.
"Let's leave now Becky. Run!" My voice was shaky as I pulled Becky close about to run but we were already surrounded.
Rae's crazy fans had surrounded us, smiling to themselves. This was probably most cases where you see news of artist or celebrities dying by the hands of crazy fans.
"You're evil, Maeve! You plagiarist! How dare you hurt our Queen Rae?" one girl screamed.
"Stop it!" Becky shouted, standing in front of me hands raised out as if to protect me. "If anything happens to Maeve, you'll be sued!"
"You should ask your queen how..." Becky began, but I grabbed her wrist.
"Don't," I whispered. "They're not here to listen."
Someone yelled, "Throw the tomatoes!"
And they did.
One after another. Wet thuds against skin and fabric. My hair stuck to my face, red stains spreading down my clothes. Becky tried to shield me, her arms trembling as she took a few hits meant for me. But we were both bombardes with rotten tomatoes.
We smelled like old spaghetti sauce that had me almost puking.
"This is what you get for being a snake!" someone yelled.
Others stood at the edge of the crowd, filming. I saw the flash of cameras, every moment of my humiliation immortalized and posted online.
Then everything seized.
It was sudden and complete. Even the sound of dripping tomato juice seemed to stop.
I slowly lifted my head, pulling my hands away from my face. Becky froze beside me too.
Everyone's eyes were fixed in the same direction. Their expressions shifted, from anger to something else. Fear.
Pure. Fear.
I turned, following their gaze.
And when I saw who was standing there, my heart stopped cold.