Chapter 66
Chapter 66
The dinner didn't end until late in the night. Chelsea stayed back at Zuri's house as usual. Fay ordered a Uber to take her home. And Luka went back to his house which was only a few blocks away.
The next morning, Chelsea wanted to go to Edmund's residence. Zuri had to be on set too, so she gave her a ride.
They were almost at Edmund's residence when Zuri received a call from her agent, Sunny Foster.
On the verge of breaking down, Sunny said, "Zuri, you're the trending topic now. The media is reporting that you are a lesbian and that you're dating Mr. Nelson's ex-wife!"
Zuri almost spat out the coffee she had just sipped. She coughed and asked, "What? They are saying I'm a lesbian? And that I'm dating Chelsea?"
Sunny sighed and replied, "Yes. This doesn't look good, Zuri. They have pictures to seemingly prove their point. In one, you put your arm around Chelsea's shoulder as you came out of your house this morning."
Since the beginning of Zuri's acting career, Sunny had been by her side. He knew that she and Chelsea were just close friends, not a couple.
Zuri said honestly, "Yes, I had too much to drink last night. I'm still suffering from a hangover, but I need to be on set this morning. My head was banging and my legs were feeling a little weak, so I supported myself by holding Chelsea. How does that make me a lesbian?"
In a fit of pique, Zuri hit the steering wheel and continued, "How the hell were the paparazzi able to
take photos of me? I thought you said that the estate is private. How come they traced me and gained entrance too?"
Sunny ran her fingers through her hair and responded helplessly, "Honestly, I don't know. You are quite popular now. The paparazzi can do anything just to get a picture of you."
The phone was on speaker mode in the car, so Chelsea could hear everything Sunny was saying. The news shocked her to the bones. Her mouth was agape as her mind went all over the place.
In the past, Zuri had told her that the media could cook up stories just to gain traffic or views. However, she didn't think they could go to this length. She had heard a few celebrity gossip, but this was the most outrageous one!
Friends holding each other was a normal thing. However, the media twisted the whole thing and made it seem like they were actually dating.
Fortunately, Chelsea was divorced. If she was still married to Edmund, this would not only be a dating scandal, but also a cheating affair. It might land Edmund more than in the hospital.
Fury was burning Zuri's entire body at this time. She parked the car by the roadside. Fiddling with her flaxen curly hair, she asked, "What should I do now?"
"What should you do? Do you want to let them continue propagating a false narrative about you? Of course, you need to address the issue immediately!" Sunny answered, her voice slightly raised.
Zuri shouted angrily, "I'm not into women at all. And I'm most definitely not dating Chelsea. You know we are just good friends. The man I love is..."
Zuri was so angry that she almost blurted out the name of the man she loved. When she thought of how the man, who was on the other side of the continent, might have forgotten all about her, she held her tongue and leaned back into her seat in frustration.
"What's the use of shouting at me? I'm not the one that needs convincing. You need to preach to the public, making them believe that you and Chelsea are innocent," Sunny uttered, amused by her outburst.
Zuri rubbed her forehead hard. This matter was making her head bang more than before.
She leaned on Chelsea's shoulder and said, "I'm sorry for raising my voice, Sunny. Just make it clear to them that Chelsea and I are just good friends."
"Okay, no problem. I'll issue a statement soon," Sunny replied with a sigh.
Something occurred to her the next second. She inquired curiously, "By the way, did you offend Diane recently? I found out that she was the one that started the rumor and caused the media to go to this length to photograph you and Chelsea. Did you do something to piss her off?"
At the mention of Diane's name, Zuri abruptly sat upright. "Why the hell would I offend her? I don't give a damn about that hypocritical woman. Why did she do this to me?" Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.
Everything finally made sense to Chelsea when she heard that Diane was involved in this. After putting two and two together, she whispered to Zuri, "I think she's doing this to spite me."
It was a known fact that Diane was a jealous and vile woman. Perhaps she wanted to hurt Chelsea, so
she went for her friend.
Or maybe Zuri was just caught up in the storm when Diane tried to spoil Chelsea's reputation.
However, it didn't matter who she was targeting exactly. Either way, the reputation of both Chelsea and Zuri would be affected.