Rose Shaw wore sunglasses. A white suit accentuated her exquisite figure, and her short hair was styled in a sharp, professional cut.
She took off her sunglasses and offered the surrounding reporters a faint smile.
"I've arranged a press conference at a nearby hotel. Please, I ask that you all refrain from crowding outside the hospital to avoid any unnecessary trouble. It wouldn't do to disturb the public order."
"You can ask all the questions you want once we get to the conference."
Her words left the swarming reporters speechless.
"Go talk to the fans. Tell them not to crowd the hospital; it will only create bad press for Melody Monroe," Rose Shaw said, turning to her assistant.
...
In a private hospital room, a little boy wearing a blue and white sweater, black pants, and small white leather shoes sat on the sofa.
A blue and black backpack rested on a corner of the sofa.
He clenched his little fists, his face etched with worry.
The moment he saw a stir from the person on the bed, he shot up and ran to the bedside.
Melody Monroe felt a small hand touch her forehead, triggering a sharp pain that made her furrow her brow.
The boy immediately snatched his hand back, a guilty expression on his face.
Melody Monroe suddenly reached out, catching the small hand just as it was about to pull away. 'What a soft little hand. It feels so nice.' She couldn't resist gently caressing it.
Surprise, anticipation, and a hint of reluctance filled the boy's beautiful, wide eyes.
In his memory, he had never been this close to his mother before.
Melody Monroe slowly opened her eyes and looked around. She found herself lying in a hospital bed, surrounded by various medical instruments.
'So I really am in the hospital.'
But she had no idea how she'd been injured.
'Weren't I just sleeping in my bed? Did I roll off the top bunk in my sleep and hit my head?'
Suddenly, the small hand gave hers two tugs, and Melody Monroe immediately looked at the child standing by her bed.
'Good heavens! Whose child is this?'
'He's as perfect as a porcelain doll—criminally cute! A single glance made even her, single since birth, feel a surge of maternal affection.'
"Who are you? Why are you here?" Melody Monroe asked in the gentlest voice she had ever used.
The boy's eyes reddened. He looked down and said nothing, clearly hurt but fighting desperately to hold back his tears.
Melody Monroe's heart ached. 'But I really don't know this adorable kid.'
'Was I not being friendly enough? Why did I make the poor kid cry?!'
"I'm Ian Monroe," the little boy said timidly, his eyes welling with tears. "Does... does your injury still hurt?"
'Ian Monroe?'
'Why does that name sound so familiar!'
'Isn't that the name of the main villain from that trashy Mary Sue novel I was reading?!'
'No, it has to be a coincidence, right?'
Suddenly, the door opened, and Ian Monroe immediately shrank back toward the head of the bed.
Rose Shaw stood in the doorway, her gaze flicking from the small backpack on the sofa to the little figure hiding behind Melody Monroe.
She had just received a call that Ian Monroe hadn't gone to school. She'd already sent people to look for him, and here he was all along.
Meanwhile, Melody Monroe was sizing up the woman in the doorway.
'That intimidating aura... she could give a dean of students a run for their money!'
'Who is this woman? I've never seen her before!'
"Melody Monroe, I've already had the news suppressed. Blame it on your own bad luck—getting into an accident right as filming started. To keep the production from falling behind schedule, the director made a last-minute decision to replace you. The role of the second female lead will be filled by Hailey Paige."
Rose Shaw walked over to the sofa, sat down, and pulled out a cigarette.
She expected Melody Monroe to burst into tears upon hearing the news.
But the woman on the bed showed no reaction at all. Instead, she just looked dazed and confused.