“Star, what the hell is wrong with you?” Thornton asked. “Can’t you even tell me what’s wrong?” And he softened his tone, his voice touching a tiny spot in Star’s heart, but it still didn’t make him want to face Thornton.
“Do you want to talk to him?” Dent whispered in his ear. Star frantically shook his head.
“Who the fuck are you to speak for him? I didn’t ask you. And how do you know my friend?” Thornton shouted at Dent.
“I don’t know him,” Dent said. “But when I see someone being harassed, I will not stand by and watch.”
“Harassed my ass,” Thornton growled. “Didn’t you hear me say we’re friends? Star, who the fuck is this?”
Dent went to speak, but Star pulled on his suit jacket, showing that he wanted to leave. He couldn’t stand there and listen to Thornton anymore; his voice kept reminding him of what happened.
“Want to go,” Star said softly.
“Hey, man, I have no clue what’s going on between you two, but he doesn’t seem comfortable around you right now. So how about you give him some space, and when he’s ready, he’ll call you.”
“What?” Thornton said.
“Please,” Star said loud enough for Thornton to hear. He wasn’t sure why he didn’t walk away in that second, but he waited for Thornton’s answers.
“Okay,” he sighed. “Just call me later.”
Star nodded. Dent wrapped an arm around Star’s shoulder and led him away.
“There’s a coffee shop a few blocks up the road,” Dent said. “How about we head there?”
“Okay,” Star said, feeling better the farther they got from Equi-Noxx headquarters.
“So, your name is Star? Mine’s Dent.”
He stepped out of Den’t arms and cleaned off his face. “Hello, Dent, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Star Rueng.”
“Nice to meet you, Star Rueng,” Dent said.
Star stopped walking, and so did Dent, observing him keenly. “Th…thanks for back there,” he said. “And you don’t have to go to the coffee shop with me. I can head home.” He couldn’t finish what he was saying because Dent spoke up.
“Do you still feel a bit shaken up?” he asked, and Star nodded.
Before killing Thornton in his other life, Star never used to have panic attacks.
They silently walked to the coffee shop, and Star could feel his emotions settling down as his brain tried to figure out what was happening. He’d assumed that he had gone back to the exact moment his life’s tragedy started, or maybe he was reincarnated, but the question was, why was he given this chance? Coincidentally, Star spotted a billboard with the date and time flashing and became very confused. That had to be wrong, because if it was correct…
“Are you all right?”
“Is that the right date?” he asked, pointing to the billboard.
“Yup?”
What the fuck? How is it possible? That’s not the right date for when I signed the contract the first time. I’m so confused. Things aren’t making sense.Star looked at Dent walking beside him.Is this the same Dent? Will the same thing happen to him again? Is my past running perpendicular with my present? Fuck, I’m getting a headache trying to work it all out.
If Star remembered correctly, Dent wouldn’t open his real estate company for another year. Around this time, he worked for a bodyguard service while working on his real estate license. They got to the coffee shop, and Dent told him to find a seat while he ordered. Star asked Dent to get him a black coffee and then went and found them a table, facing a large window looking out at the busy street.
Star let out a long breath now that he had a moment to himself. In a matter of minutes, his entire world had changed. One second he was dying, and the next, he was sitting in a coffee shop hiding from a man that used to be his lover. They weren’t fully together yet, but there was a deep attraction between him and Thornton. But now, after what he had done to Thornton in his last life, there was no way he would go back and make the same mistake twice. He was not the naive twenty-year-old from the past. But he also didn’t want to return to the Italian restaurant and work odd jobs. Despite what had happened in his last life, he still wanted to be an actor.
Things aren’t the same as the last time.Maybe I should give up on being an actor.What if I keep having panic attacks?Even without a contract, he had a couple of freelance modeling jobs and a few commercials he’d done to get some screen time. Only after meeting Thornton and getting a constant stream of work could he stop working at the restaurant and pay for his acting classes. Star figured he would keep doing that until he knew what to do next.
Just as he had that thought, his cell phone rang, making his hand feel hot. Trepidation coursed through him, and he hoped Thornton wasn’t calling him. Star turned it over to see the caller ID and sighed with relief that it wasn’t his ex-lover. However, he furrowed his brows when he saw Tanner Simmon’s name. Star dropped his phone on the table in shock. In his previous life, Tanner had called him three times. Still, Star had ignored his phone calls because he was too busy celebrating with Thornton after signing his contract with Equi-Noxx Entertainment and never returned his calls. He knew Tanner had left a message after one of the calls, but Star had deleted it without listening to it.
“Are you going to answer that?”
