Cathryn realized she needed to relax more.
"Moderation is the key to feeling good." Edward had scolded her like her mom as they walked back to the apartment, proceeding to lecture her about mental health and nutrition as he crossed his arms on his chest. "Don't overdo working, playing, spending, saving, exercising, resting, being on social media, or spending so much time alone."
Cathryn wasn't in the mood to listen, letting Edward's ramblings go past her ears as they arrived.
"If you had been working too hard and staying up late to get things done, working at weekends or not taking breaks then you should learn how to balance school and personal time. Relax a little and find healthier ways to treat yourself without overdoing it. You are stressing too much about your school and money." Edward continued in his grim tone as if he had delivered some bad news or if they go for the extremes, he sounded like he had been reading Cathryn's eulogy at a funeral. "And in this case, if you had been indulging a tad too much, it's time to take care of your body with healthier foods, exercise, and rest."
Argh!
"My head is aching like a motherfucker, Edward, and here you are, telling me I need to work on my diet? Do I look that fat to you?"Cathryn rolled her eyes as she rubbed her fingers in her temples in a circular motion to ease the pain. "I eat well so it's not about nutrition. I'm just stressed out by all the attention. The media had portrayed me like a whore, exiting out of Alexander and Blake's hotel room."
"Have you seen the memes already, then?" Justin asked quizzically.
When they got home, Cathryn quickly opened her laptop and spent a few frustrating hours online. Her face was plastered in all social media platforms but most especially on Twitter.
Every search she did overwhelm her with so many ridiculous memes and all sorts of conspiracy theories about her connection with Mild Savagery. She couldn't narrow it down because she didn't have any real context for what it was she had seen.
She clenched her jaw in anger, even the story of her life didn't go unnoticeable. All of her social media and pictures were shared all over the Internet. They unearthed every dirty secret about her including the pictures on her private Instagram with Alexander last summer.
These Internet trolls had invaded her privacy and it felt like she was stripped naked in front of a crowd, feeling so exposed and vulnerable. Briddled with paranoia, Cathryn didn't know who to trust anymore.
She welcomed the air coming from the breeze drifting through her open window to calm herself down from these information bombarding her at once.
When she got her nerves under control, Cathryn dropped to the bed as the bedsprings screeched at his five-foot-four frame. She tossed and turned for a while then glared up at the ceiling, praying to God that this issue about her and Mild Savagery would die down quickly.
The ringtone blaring from Cathryn's iPhone near the bedside lamp disrupted her sleep and she her phone shut.
Oh god, why?
When she was stressed and plagued with insomnia, she would have a hard time falling back to sleep. This must be mental fatigue Edward had been jabbering about. It had been a long time since she had slept well for eight hours straight that her brain had started to degenerate.
What was sleep again?
Anyway, this bastard who had called her when she was this cranky and irritable will see a preview of what a demon would sound like.
She accepted the call and muttered, "Hello?"
"Cathryn." The voice on the other side said breathlessly on the other side of the line. She gasped when she realized who it was and a hand flew to her chest. She was holding back her screams.
It was from Alexander.
She lay back down on the left side of the bed with her phone pressed in her ears. Closing her eyes, she tucked herself under the blankets and said calmly, "What do you want, Alexander?"
"Are you okay with the girlfriend rumors?"
"Do I look like I'm okay with this scandal?" Cathryn asked sarcastically and stopped the urge from yelling at him on the phone. She didn't want her blood pressure to rise for something this idiotic. "No, Alexander, but I don't think that is any of your business."
Cathryn needed to set boundaries to this player or else this guy would dominate her all the way whenever and wherever he felt like it.
"I'm sorry." Alexander said softly.
Cathryn couldn't feel his sincerity that much when the apology wasn't given in personal.
"Will you do something about it, then?"
"Hmm. It depends." He trailed off huskily.
Cathryn'e eyes widened and her head was spinning once again.
She was certain now that Alexander was her number one source of stress, nothing else.
"What do you mean it depends?" She blinked rapidly and there was a long pause before Alexander replied.
"My manager said that good or bad publicity, it was still publicity."
"What do you mean?" She rubbed absently at her arm, her annoyance slowly burning into full-blown anger. "You aren't going to do something about it?"
"I think it became good publicity for Mild Savagery when the three of us trended on Twitter."
"Are you— Cathryn jerked her head back as she sat up furiously, her heart breaking into pieces. She was ready to change her clothes, go to where Alexander was, and beat him to a pulp.
His statement was like a stab in the back. "Are you saying that we had to keep up this charade for publicity when your fangirls are ruining my good girl 'reputation' and changing it into a slut by holding smear campaigns against me?"
"I'll protect you from them." Alexander said fiercely and it kind of surprised her. "The management would sue anyone who would tarnish our name and I will demand that right and it shall also be extended to you."
"I'm a University Scholar, Alexander." Cathryn shook her head in disappointment, not believing what he had promised. "Because of this thing with the paparazzi, I will lose my scholarship and get expelled."
Alexander asked calmly. "How about we make the rumors real then?"
"What do you mean?"
Cathryn waited for his response in anticipation.
"That Blake, you and I--" Alexander said slowly, chuckling, "--are in a sort of polyamorous relationship?"