Off Camera

Chapter 38

Tee POV

An uneasy feeling settles in the pit of my stomach as I pull up to the studio. We have only a few more weeks of filming and then the drama will be done.

Tae has been talking with Dr. Heartland several times each week these past couple of weeks, and his jumpiness has calmed down. But he still isn't back to his normal self, which makes my heart ache. Will he ever be able to get back to his normal self?

The security is tighter at the studio now, and at any locations we might go to. No matter the number of big, burly men standing guard, I can't shake this feeling the witch hasn't given up yet. I hope I'm wrong, but I think I'm starting to be just as paranoid as Tae is.

Jane pats my arm. "Tee, is there something on your mind? You seem to be lost in thought."

I shake my head. "Not really. I was wondering how long Tae is going to have to talk with the doctor. He is getting better."

She nods. "Yes, he is, but he isn't back to his old self. It might take some time for him. We are going to be patient. He is fine when you are at the apartment together, right?"

My eyes drift around the studio, looking for him. "Yeah, he is fine."

I could expand on that, but that part of Tae isn't something she needs to know about.

She breathes a sigh of relief. "That is good. At least for some part of his life, he has gotten back to normal. I've been doing everything I can to make sure the witch doesn't get another chance to get near him. I've been working on the fan meetings and other events, trying to find a way to keep her at a distance. I don't want her interrupting any of them."

I don't even want to see or hear her again, but we can't always get what we want. I can only hope for the best.

I motion to a couple of chairs off to the side. "Do you want to sit down?"

She nods, and we head for the seats. With a faint giggle, she playfully says, "By the way, I've heard an interesting rumor. I don't know how true it is, but it has to do with the witch."

My head perks up. "Did she try to do the same thing to someone else?"

Jane shakes her head as she sits down. "Not completely, but I've heard she has done something similar to other actors, but they were usually younger. Tae seems to be the oldest actor she has tried to sink her claws into. But that isn't the interesting part." She waves her hand in the air.

The witch has done something like this to other actors. I don't even know what to say. A part of me has had a feeling this isn't new for her, but another part of me has hoped my gut is wrong.

I sit down in the chair beside her. "What did she do? I hope whatever it is, she gets hit hard because of it."

Actually, I hope karma knocks her for a loop and renders her unconscious. Then she won't be able to cause anyone trauma.

She quickly looks around and then turns back towards me. Her eyes shimmer. "I heard the owner of the studio told her he wouldn't help her anymore. He had had enough of her."

A smile explodes on my face. "Really. Does that mean we don't have to worry about her coming here?"

Even though I'm hoping it means she can't get in, something tells me it isn't going to be that easy. She won't go down without a fight.

Jane shakes her head. "I don't know, but I'm not going to take chances. Tae is improving, and I don't want to risk his health because of a rumor."

I nod. "I agree. It is too risky, and I don't want any setbacks. Between you and the studio, there are enough security guards around to keep any unwanted people from entering. Have you been able to arrange the same kind of security for our events?"

She takes a drink of her bottled water. "Yes. I'm able to get more security here, but I've also gotten security for the events. The venues must provide some too, so the burden to pay for it isn't solely on us."

My eyes drift around the studio, looking for Tae. "That is good. Are we going to change how we handle these things in the future because of the witch?"

She sighs. "Yeah. I didn't think I had to worry about it too much before, but I've been proven wrong. I'm crossing my fingers and hoping Tae is the only one of our agency's actors who must deal with this. The company is also hiring more staff so none of our actors are left alone on a job, no matter what the job is. The additional staff is long overdue and can't happen fast enough."

I agree. "When is our first event? I know you have cancelled a few, but I'm not sure if you were going to keep any of them."

Jane bobs her head up and down while she stares across the studio at the set where the director is filming. "There are some I can't break the contract without paying a huge fee or penalty. We want Tae to be safe, but we can't put the company into a financial hardship either. I wish it wasn't this way, but there is nothing I can do about it."

She pulls out her phone. "Your next event is next week at the mall. It is a promotion for a new product. There will be plenty of cameras around, so if anything happens, we should be able to get a copy."

I take my phone out and look at my calendar. "I'm not showing it on my schedule yet. Did you send it to me?"

She shakes her head. "No. I'm hammering out a few last-minute things. If I can't get them, I might have to postpone it. I can't cancel it. It is one with a huge cancellation fee, but the contract allows us to postpone the event for a few reasons. One of them is the safety of the actors."

My stomach sinks. "What are the hang-ups for it?"

As she scrolls through her phone, she mumbles, "You don't need to worry about it. I'll take care of the business side while you and Tae take care of the giving the fans a show. Okay."

An uneasiness spreads across me, but it isn't my place to demand answers for this.

She looks up from her phone. "Plus, the fans love to see you and Tae flirt with each other. If you pretend to kiss each other or if you actually do, they will probably scream so loud they'll blow out your eardrums. I was going to talk to the two of you before the next event and ask if you can go a little further than normal. Since you two are..." She glances around and then leans in towards me and whispers, "boyfriends now. The fans will love it, and no one will know you have taken your relationship to the next level. It is good for everyone."

Heat rushes across my cheeks.

I hadn't even thought about that. Tae and I usually flirt and banter with each other, but we haven't actually tried kissing during an event since those games from our first drama where there was candy or paper in between us. Those weren't really kisses, but the fans loved them. I still see those videos on fan pages when they tag us in them.

I nibble my lower lip and whisper, "Do you really think we should do something like that? I don't know. It is one thing to take move our relationship to the next level, but kissing during a fan meet is another thing."

A giggle explodes from her. "Are you kidding me? The fans would be over the moon if you had some heavy petting and a few light kisses here and there. You could even nibble each other's neck or something. It is too soon, though, to talk about the specifics. I haven't seen the program for it yet. Once I know what they plan on doing, we can discuss things to add to it for the fan service side of it, but I hope you will think about what I've said. We could grow your fan base if you add some PDA during the event."

My heartbeat quickens, and I almost choke on the lump in my throat.

Can I actually do any of that in public? Would Tae be willing to do it, too?

Published November 7, 2022