Chapter 150 - Chance Meeting
Earlier that day, Irish attended a joint photoshoot wherein Levi both served as the producer and one of the photographers.
She works not only as a movie actress, but also as a fashion model. In fact, she is one of those topping the charts. For years, she has been the most sought-after in this industry.
As usual, she didn't expect much when she was asked to take part in this particular indoor photoshoot. She just needed to go through the details, follow the guidance of the staff, and make several poses.
Little did Irish know that this one wouldn't turn out to be like any ordinary photoshoot out there. It's not because the staff had suddenly added some stunts or tricks in the usual flow, but it's because she would have to work alongside someone - and not just anyone.
Irish was not informed beforehand that Cassidy would also be joining the photoshoot.
"C-C-C-Cassidy?!"
The two of them met inside the dressing room.
Her sister-in-law, who had been missing for days, was now in front of her - with a makeup artist and hair stylist touching her up for the event. She was dressed in a fashionable outfit, which was already a dead giveaway that she was that co-model she would be working together with.
"W-Why...?! Why are you here?!" Irish hastily questioned as she rushed in her direction.
"Does it concern you?" Cassidy replied apathetically without even bothering to look at her.
She slightly lowered her head and faltered at her indifference, thinking that she must have already been aware that she would come. Hundreds of questions kept piling up inside her head at that moment, but she began hesitating to say them out loud after recalling the present circumstances they had. She was already past the stage where she loathed her, and now, she was nothing but wary and intimidated by her.
Irish may have been livid when Cassidy humiliated Olivia in front of their houseworkers before, but it wasn't even shortly after that she came to realize that it was nothing compared to all the terrible deeds they did to her.
"Step aside already. I'm going out."
At that, Irish snapped out of her train of thoughts and looked up again to find Cassidy staring back at her with a scowl. She only did as she told and let her pass through. That's until she suddenly found the intrepidity to at least say something - one that mattered to her most of all.
"My brother..." Irish started all of the sudden, making her halt on her tracks.
"Adrian hasn't been the same since the day you left. From morning 'til night, he's been drinking. He doesn't go to work anymore, and he doesn't want to eat properly. It's affecting every one of us. He's devastated, Cassidy."
"I'm not going back - if that's what you're trying to tell me to do," Cassidy said in a heartbeat, crushing her hopes.
"Will you at least see him? Just once?"
"I will not."
She knows how heartless she appears when she says those things, and though she feels really bad for what her husband is going through, returning there will not solve anything in the long run. He should learn how to live without her from now on - like what she has been doing. It hasn't been a month yet, so he still has time to get used to her absence. Eventually, he will forget about her.
"I couldn't let my brother turn into some suicidal moron!" Irish exclaimed out of nowhere, taking her aback.
"What are you saying?" Cassidy blurted out with a flummoxed expression.
"You think that he will forget you eventually?! Well, if he is still alive by then, he might indeed! But at the rate of how it's going, he's going to be beyond saving pretty soon!"
"And you want me to go back because of something as implausible as that? You're quite demanding for someone who did nothing but mistreat me for half a decade."
"This is not for me! I don't care if you do lots of evil things to me! This is about my dearest little brother!"
"Well, if you care that much about him, why don't you try to find another way to solve it? You're his family, aren't you?"
"I can't even talk to him without getting burned by his deadly glare. Recently, he looks like he wants to beat me up every time he sees me. He's terrifying!"
"Then, that's your problem!"
Up until when they were already in the middle of the photoshoot, they did nothing but banter.
Levi and the others were stunned to find that the relationship between these sister-in-laws was actually strained all along. Everyone thought that they had been getting along well. That's actually one of the main reasons why they invited Irish to the photoshoot after Cassidy agreed to work with them and signed the contract.
The sisterly dynamic of these Millicent's would be an effective charm point in the kind of advertisement they were making.
"Oh, no, no, no... Ma'am Cassidy, you're doing it all wrong," Levi declared in distress, not satisfied by how his model kept posing.
"Watch how you stand, Cassidy. You can't just make random poses," Irish gently chided as she stepped in and started giving her sister-in-law several advises in accordance to the shots that the photographers wanted to get from her.
Wanting for this whole thing to end soon, Cassidy decided to put aside their personal matters in the meantime and listen to the best of the best - it's called professionalism. She was aware that she was a top model, and if it only was not for their family disputes, she would have been either intimidated or respectful towards her.
With Irish helping Cassidy out all throughout the photoshoot, it ended quite more seamlessly than she had wanted it to be, though she did get scolded from time to time.
This was her first time in modeling. She decided to accept what Levi offered to her some time ago, thinking that it would be easy since all she had to do was pose in front of the camera. That being said, she didn't expect that it would turn out to be really difficult without prior experience.
Though Irish did help Cassidy get through it, that didn't change anything in their relationship. If anything, she herself was only trying to be professional as well.
After the photoshoot, she decided to leave without saying anything, knowing that she would try to plea to her once again.
"Already done, Cassie?"
On the way out of the building, Cassidy met up with Asher at the entrance hall. He offered to give her a ride back to their current place. Yet for someone who would only be picking her up, he dressed himself up quite fashionably. He might as well be a model himself with how he kept attracting everyone's attention there.
"Thanks for fetching me, Asher..." she beamed at him as she approached him.
"All good now. Let's get going-"historical
"Huh? Cassidy?"
But right before Cassidy went out with Asher, there came Irish out of nowhere.