Seeing that Paige was still crying, Zachary dipped his hand into his pocket, took out his handkerchief, and offered it to her.
She stared at his hand, hesitating to take it from him, but he said, "Go ahead, take it.""Thank you, sir," she replied as she accepted the handkerchief and wiped her tears.When she was done wiping, Zach said, "If you break down so easily, how can you get to the top? How can you become a star if it's so easy to turn you into a crying vegetable? And what's up with your dress?""Well, I... I think someone cut off the rope," Paige sniffled."It's your fault," Zachary said, "it's no one else's fault but yours."Paige was surprised; she could not understand how it was her fault that someone plotted against her.Zachary saw the look on her face and knew that she did not understand his words, so he began to explain. "You should know that people try to one-up each other at events like this. That's how the world of showbiz is. So you should always be prepared. I looked at the girls who were singing with you and discovered that one of them is your sister. Am I wrong?"Paige was surprised, "How did you recognize...?""Forget about that. You were the one who told me that she treated you horribly and stole a song you wrote, weren't you?"Paige nodded, "Yes, I was.""So why weren't you alert? I can bet my life on the fact that she was the one who sabotaged your dress. You should have been more alert and not given her a chance to do that.When you're in a place like this, you have to be alert at all times. You should always be ready for anything they throw at you. You don't turn your back on your opponent. Even if you stood together with those girls, you're competing against each other. Only two of you will be selected as the best from this event and finally, only one of you will be signed by the agency hosting it.You should always look around in places like this. Why did you give your sister the chance to humiliate you? I usually don't give people second chances, Paige, and I especially hate people who are weak. But I'm feeling particularly generous tonight. You have twenty minutes to prepare yourself to perform the last song at this event.""What!?" Paige could not believe her ears."I thought only well-known singers..." she stuttered."Stop stuttering and listen. My assistant will wait for you at the door. Go back to your room and get ready. He will give you a new dress to put on, not this one. You told me you've written so many songs before, isn't it?"Paige nodded, "Yes, sir.""Good. Pick out one of the best and prepare yourself to sing. You said you wanted a second chance. This is your second chance, Paige. This time around, when you get into that room, guard your belongings properly.""Thank you very much, sir. Thank you," Paige said gratefully.As she turned to walk away, Zachary added, "And Paige...."She stopped and turned to look at him."I hope you'll not disappoint me this time."Paige shook her head, "No, I'll definitely not disappoint you. Thank you so much, sir."Afterward, she ran inside.Zach stared at her as she ran away and smiled. He took out his phone and called the top judge of the event. The judge quickly answered when he saw that Zachary was the one calling him.He went out to take the call and said, "Sir, I saw what happened to your girl.""Forget about that. I want to say something. She'll be performing as the last candidate. I have taken out the girl who was to perform and kept her in place of that girl," Zach explained.The chief judge heaved a sigh of relief and said, "Okay, that's really nice. I was already worried since she's your candidate, and from what happened, I can tell that she was sabotaged.""It's a good thing you were able to figure that out. I'm trusting you'll be able to do what's right and punish those who need to be punished," Zachary replied."Of course, I'll definitely do that, Sir," the judge assured. "Since she's your candidate, I will ensure that she comes out as...""No, I don't want that," Zach said. "I want her to get a fair chance.""A fair chance?" the judge confirmed."Yes, what I mean is that if she comes out among the top two, it should be because she merits it," Zach explained."So, you don't want me to assist or give her preferential treatment?""That's what I said," Zachary responded. "I want to make Paige into a star. I want her to become the new sensation because I've seen that she's talented. But then, I want her to learn how to be strong, and I want her to be able to fight for what's rightfully hers. I don't want things to be handed to her.Yes, I'll give her opportunities, but she has to merit them. So tonight, if she doesn't meet your expectations, let me know before you announce the result, and if she does, give it to her. That's what I'm requesting of you.""Okay, I understand you, Mr. Zachary. I'll do just as you've asked," the judge agreed."That's nice," Zachary said. "Come and see me sometime in my office.""Thank you very much, Sir. I'll surely do that," the judge replied.Meanwhile, Paige hurried towards the room from which she had earlier come out. On the way, she saw Zachary's assistant, and when she met him, he stopped her and said, "Hold on, Paige."Since she didn't know he was there and had been anxious, she didn't notice him on time. When he called her, she stopped and stared at him.He handed a dress to her and said, "This is what you're to wear. I don't know if it's your size because it's what was recommended for the initial performer, but you both seem to have the same body shape, so I think it should suit you. Anyway, just make it work.""Thank you so much, Sir, thank you," Paige replied gratefully."Go to your room and get ready. I'll come and knock once it's time, okay?" Luke instructed."Thank you," Paige said once again.She took the dress from him and ran towards the door. When she reached the door of the room, she heard the voices of the girls inside, and her heart began to race.She knew she was going to face them, and the main thought of how she had been humiliated the first time made her get cold feet.However, when she recalled that she had gotten a second chance from Zach, and she had to prove herself. She placed her hands on the doorknob and opened it before going inside.As Paige entered the room, two of the girls turned to stare at her and began to laugh.Candy was the one who laughed the loudest; she folded her arms and said, "Aww, her eyes are puffy. Has the crybaby been crying tonight?""You were the one who sabotaged my dress, weren't you?" Paige asked Candy.Candy shook her head and retorted, "Wait, you're not satisfied with being a failure; now you're going to embarrass yourself here by accusing me of things I know nothing about?"The other girls in the room joined in laughing, and one even said to Candy, "Come on, why are you entertaining her? Don't bother with her, Candy; she's beneath us. From the very start, she wasn't supposed to be among us. We worked hard to get to this stage, and only God knows who she slept with in order to sneak in. But she has learned her place, so you shouldn't waste your breath on her."Paige stared at all of them without saying another word, holding her clothes tightly to herself. She remembered what Zachary had sa
Zach didn't want to believe that Paige was a thief. Although the information he had gathered showed she had been accused of theft many times by her family, he knew how families like that worked, so he didn't want to hold on to that. However, the look on her face at this point left him unsure of what to believe.It wasn't possible for her to be the one who stole from him because the CCTV footage of last night had been wiped off.The first thing he did was to check the CCTV room when he realized his jade necklace was missing. It was the only thing he had left of his mother, the only thing that reminded him of her. The fact that the footage had been wiped off showed that whoever stole from him was someone who knew his house perfectly.Paige had just turned eighteen and was the youngest person in his house. So how could she have stolen that bracelet when she didn't really know how everything worked in the house?Seeing that Paige was quiet, he became worried as he desperately hoped that
One hour later, Paige stopped crying and thought about what the future held for her. No matter how she thought about it, someone must have set her up.The jade necklace could not have miraculously ended up in her room since she knew that she never took it. It had to be one of the maids.Who else could it be? The one person she held as a suspect was the housekeeper. She was the only one who hated her enough to plot something so big.However, she couldn't point her finger at her because she had no evidence. It would seem as though she was trying to push the blame for her crime onto someone innocent.What hurt her the most was the way Zachary had stared at her as though she was a thief. He had shown trust in her just a few minutes ago, but now everything was ruined.She tried to focus her mind on other things because she didn't want to keep crying. She suddenly remembered that the judges of the event she performed at the previous night had said they'd send a reply to her the next day.Sh
After Paige left, Candy went back into the house with her parents. Her mom said, "Just imagine, this Paige. She's so fearless. How dare she come here and try to speak at the top of her voice? This is what I've been going through in her hands."Anthony shook his head, "I can't believe how insolent she is. It's a good thing I threw her out. If I hadn't stopped by to pick up something, I wouldn't have known that she could speak so disrespectfully.""That's how she is, Dad," Candy replied. "But, um, Dad, did you see that Paige also performed at the Spark girls' show? I mean, for some reason, she was suddenly among the Spark Girls. Normally, spark girls are only four, and one is picked out as the best at the end. But she came out of nowhere, and for the first time, the Spark Girls were five. Dad, I don't want Paige to beat me."Her mom scoffed, "How will she beat you? You're more beautiful and more talented. You'll surely win over her.""I know that when it comes to talent, I'm much better
After leaving the police station, Paige went back to Zach's home. She remained in the room, thinking about everything Matilda had told her. In the end, she told herself not to pay attention to such nonsense. It was probably an excuse to justify her wrongs.When Zach got back home, he went straight to his room without stopping to ask Paige about her meeting with Matilda.When it was morning, Paige woke up and checked her mail. She knew that the information from Spark Entertainment Agency would arrive on that day, but she didn't know the time. However, she decided to still check her mail, and when she did, she saw that a mail had been sent, citing her as one of the candidates who had been selected.She got up and screamed, jumping for joy. "I can't believe it, I can't believe this," she exclaimed.She wanted to hurry to Zach to tell him the good news she had received, but she realized that she hadn't taken her bath. So she rushed to the bathroom, took her bath, brushed her teeth, and p
As Zach drove back to the office, he recalled how Paige had said she couldn't call him "sir" because it was disrespectful.He smiled, "Foolish girl, can't you tell that I don't want you to get so formal around me? So you can call Williams by his name but not me?""What is going on here?" The director who caught Candy before she could fall and pushed her forward asked.Candy pointed accusing fingers at Paige as she sounded aggrieved, "I don't know what I did to her. Perhaps she's jealous of me. I just came in here and saw her sitting down. I asked her if you were not in your office, and then she got up and slapped me. How can someone be so uncouth? Why would she do that? I am not going to spare her; this is unacceptable. No one has ever hit me before."As the director listened to Candy's accusation, the man stared at Paige, who was silent. She had an air of composure about her and did not show any signs of anger. He recalled what the top judge had said when he gave him Paige's name.H
The crowd was bustling with excitement as it was the fifteenth edition of the Spark Girls, and everyone was eager for the different performances. As usual, Zach wore a cap and a T-shirt to conceal his appearance, and sat at the back of the audience, waiting for Paige's performance.As both Paige and Candy listened to the director's new arrangements, Paige accepted them, saying, "Okay sir, it's fine by me."However, Candy refused, "No, I will not share a stage with her. Let each of us perform separately; I do not agree to this."The director scoffed, "Stop being so picky. It's not up to you. As I told you before, you can leave if you're not comfortable with the arrangements we have made. That way, Paige can become the automatic winner."The director was already fed up with Candy's attitude, considering that the Spark girls were just newbies, and the Spark agency was a platform to help them begin their careers. Candy was just starting but was already full of herself, which annoyed him.
Anthony watched in surprise as the young man who had flung his hand led Paige out of the hall.Once they were outside, Paige said, "Thank you very much."At this time, though, Candy was inside her car crying her heart out. It finally dawned on her that everyone had deliberately plotted to humiliate her, and she was convinced that Paige was in on the plan."Hi," the young man who had saved Paige said. "Do you need a ride home?""Oh no," Paige replied. "I already got one.""Do you know me?" He asked."Yes, who doesn't know you," Paige said. "It's such an honor to meet you."He chuckled, "Come on, don't be so serious, um.... Now that you're a Spark girl, I'm sure we'll be seeing more of each other frequently.""Really?""Yes, I have a deal with the Spark agency going on. I can collaborate with any good musician here in this agency.""That's nice," Paige said, smiling at him.While they were speaking, Zach, who was in his car waiting for Paige, noticed the way they were talking and smilin