Chatper 58


    Chapter 58


    “No way! I have to confront that Annika and at the very least get her song pulled from the charts!” The


    agent fumed, immediately scouring the inte for Annika’s contact. “She’s got some nerve, using her


    email as her cell number!”


    Muttering under her breath, the agent dialed the number.


    Two secondster, Natalie’s phone sitting on her dresser buzzed to life.


    Madelyn nced at Natalie’s phone, but couldn’t make out the caller due to the re from the makeup


    mirror.


    “Excuse me.” Natalie offered a polite smile, grabbed her phone, stealthily pressed the mute button, and


    slipped it into her pocket.


    Madelyn’s agent hung up after the voicemail kicked in, mounting her frustration.


    “I’ll try a few more times,” she muttered, redialing the number.


    Natalie’s phone vibrated again. With her hand in her pocket, she quickly silenced it once more.


    Madelyn thought it was a text notification and said, “You’re pretty busy, huh?”


    “Some family drama keeps me on my toes,” Natalie replied with an easy smile, not giving anything


    away.


    With that, she casually took out her phone and switched it to silent mode, right in in sight.


    Madelyn paused for a moment, then said softly, “Your family is going through a lot. Hasn’t he reached


    out?”


    Her mention of “he” pointed at Brian.


    “He’s got nothing to do with me. I moved out a while ago,” Natalie said coolly.


    Brian wouldn’t be contacting her. After all, he was the instigator behind the Wright family’s


    current predicament.


    Madelyn, under the impression that Brian was deliberately not helping, looked at Natalie again, “You


    know, I could talk to him for you, put in a good word.”


    “No need, they can handle their issues,” Natalie replied, indifferent.


    Madelyn was rebuffed, her pride stung, and she fell silent.


    Meanwhile, the agent, unable to reach Annika, grew more agitated and decided to st the duet


    version of Madelyn and Annika’s song from her phone.


    She yed Madelyn’s televised performance first, ranting. “Listen for yourselves, who’s the better


    Please check at N/?vel(D)rama.Org.


    singer? The onlinements are saying Madelyn can’t even match up to this inte nobody. It’s


    ludicrous!”


    Chapter 56


    Natalie was surprised by the sudden y of music, her eyebrows shot up. She wanted to say


    something to prevent the imminent embarrassment.


    “Can our professional be outdone by an amateur, right? Annika doesn’t even have an agent. without a


    record deal, just some nobody doing covers!”


    But the agent kept ranting, and Madelyn, with her nose in the air, didn’t seem inclined to stop the agent.


    Natalie thought better of it and decided to let it go. After all, she wasn’t the one who’d be humiliated.


    After Madelyn’s song ended, the agent quickly yed Annika’s version, impatiently dragging the slider


    to the middle:


    “… Set fires to my purpose,


    And I let it burn,


    You got off on the hurting.


    When it wasn’t yours.


    We’d always go into it blindly.


    I


    I needed to lose you to find me.


    This dancing was killing me softly.


    I needed to hate you to love me…


    Η


    The lyrics, like a narrative spun by Annika’s voice, were not overtly stunning but resonated with


    heartbreaking sincerity. The abrupt cut to the middle of her rendition made it feel even more emotive


    than Madelyn’s technically precise but emotionally bare version.


    The air in the makeup room was heavy, awkward silence prevailed, and nobody spoke.