Days later...
"Chacha, Second~!"
"Hello, Big Sister~"
Ida chuckled as she tucked her hair behind her ear, standing in front of the adorable children. Behind the twins, Lola chuckled as she caught the slight blush on Ida’s face. Director Sarian’s strictness might have rubbed off on Ida, but being called "big sister" by the twins instead of "auntie" was flattering.
"Goodness, how long has it been since I’ve seen the two of you?" Ida hummed, bending down in front of the twins. "How have you been?"
"We just started pre-school!" Second cheered. "It was fun! We made a lot of friends!"
Chacha nodded. "And our teacher said we’re very good kids, Big Sister~!"
"Of course, you are," Ida said, straightening up and facing Lola. "Taz, can you join us every time and bring them with you? They’re really just so adorable."
"Even if I wanted to, the twins are enjoying school so much," Lola said, happily pulling her children closer. She knew Ida was just saying that because the twins made her feel younger. "But I will try my best."
"Taz!"
Suddenly, Director Sarian’s voice echoed in the room where the audition for Ryker’s role was being conducted. The twins, Lola, and Ida turned toward the source of the voice, watching the energetic director march in their direction.
"Taz, about the—" he stopped mid-sentence as his eyes fell on the children standing with Lola. His expression brightened, and he bent slightly, resting his palms on his knees. "Chacha! Second! You’re here!"
"Hello, Director Sarian~!" the twins beamed. "How are you?"
The director chuckled. "Good, good! And how about the two of you!? The last time you were here... you left early!"
"Had we known our mommy would be sad, we would’ve stayed with our Father Sir," Second sighed while Chacha pouted.
"Our Father Sir said she wouldn’t be sad if we went home early, but our mommy was sad," Chacha added. "She came home drunk and cried so much!"
"She cried so much she even had a hangover, but with Chacha and Second, we took care of her!"
"Mhm! We cured her hangover by preparing breakfast and really nice soups! We promised her we would work hard, so it’s not unfair—"
Chacha’s and Second’s voices were muffled as Lola’s hand crept up to cover their mouths. She smiled, holding the children close, glancing at Director Sarian and Ida.
"Ha... ha..." Lola laughed awkwardly. The more she listened to the twins’ casual storytelling, the more she couldn’t help but feel like a neglectful and terrible mother.
No one wanted to hear that children were taking care of their parent because she was sick with a hangover. Technically, the twins weren’t lying, but hearing all that without proper context—someone might call child services on her.
Oh, how Atlas would have loved to hear this, just to say, "Now, you know my pain."
"It’s not like that," Lola explained through gritted teeth. "I mean, it’s not as bad as you think it is."
Ida and Director Sarian studied her. Not bad? It sounded a little concerning. However, glancing at the twins and then back at Lola, they didn’t dwell on it. They trusted her enough to know she wouldn’t be that bad as a mother.
"You two are good kids," Director Sarian said, smiling at the twins. "By the way, Lola, I need to talk to you about something."
Lola raised her brows, and a second later, nodded.
"Babies, Big Sister Ida is going to assist you to your seats, okay?" she hummed at the twins. "Mommy will join you in a bit."
"Okay~!"
Ida chuckled. "Let’s go, Chacha, Second. You’ll like the seats we prepared for you. Everyone was very excited when they heard you’d be joining us today."
The twins happily took Ida’s hand, skipping toward their seats. Lola and Director Sarian watched them go, smiling.
"Goodness. They have special seats now?" she quipped, turning to the director. "They were just happy to be here."
Director Sarian shrugged. "It’s not my idea—it’s the crew’s. We had a few auditions, and they all agreed that having your children around gives the work environment a different air. So, blame them for their cuteness."
"Thank you for welcoming my children." Her smile stretched. "Anyway, what is it you wanted to ask me, Director Sarian?"
"Well, the thing is, I haven’t mentioned it before, and I apologize. But someone has already been chosen for Nine’s role." He stepped closer. "You’d be surprised who it is."
Lola bit her inner bottom lip. I think I already know.
"It’s Slater," he revealed, nodding and widening his eyes for emphasis. "Did you hear me? It’s Slater."
"Slater, huh?"
"Yes! That Slater." He stressed the name, watching Lola as if expecting a huge reaction.
Nothing came.
Her face twitched slightly; her mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. She understood why Director Sarian forgot to mention Slater—he had been busy. It wasn’t surprising that he missed relaying something like this.
The thing was, this big superstar had been living in her home. And that guy had completely shattered the image she had of him. She couldn’t see him the same way anymore.
"I’m sorry for not letting you know earlier," he sighed, taking her lack of reaction as a form of shock. "I’ve already arranged a meeting with him, and he has already sent me his video recording. It was good."
He smirked and leaned mischievously against her side. "If you want to come, you’re welcome. I already asked if I could bring the creator, and his manager is fine with that. It’s also good if you meet him and get to know him, since he didn’t have to go through the hassle of auditioning."
Lola tried to maintain a smile, knowing she didn’t need to attend this meeting to meet and get to know him. She just needed to go home and check what the guy was doing—or rather, she just had to pull up her phone because Slater liked chatting so much that she had his number muted.
"Anyway, although I’m still baffled by how this project caught his eye, it’s probably not important at this point," he laughed. "Taz, about the minor role you asked me to create for the twins’ uncle—it’s ready and approved, just as you requested. Still, I need a video recording of the actor."
"About that..." Lola ran her tongue along her inner cheek and smiled. "There’s no need for that anymore."
"Huh?" He frowned. "Why? It took me a lot of thinking to add this role because you said it might fit a minor character with a similar big physical appearance."
She forced a smile. "He got into an accident and broke his ankle, his ribs, arms, and even his spine." She hurriedly added, "He doesn’t need the role. Thanks, though, and sorry for bothering you about it."