Chapter 6: The Final Edit

I opened my eyes. Carter was sitting beside me. Eyes half-closed, his fingers trailed from my hair to my cheek, his voice soft as a summer night breeze.

“Bowl-cut, if you get to be the dad… will you marry me when you grow up?”

Carter’s gaze deepened, full of longing. “You finally remembered?”

I reached out and touched the scar hidden in his hair. So the one who played house with me wasn’t Charlie, but Carter.

“You recognized me all along. Why didn’t you say so? Hiring me to break up a ship—only you would think of that!” I shifted weakly. “Tell me, have you been plotting this for a while?”

“No.” Carter smiled and shook his head. “You tease me every day—I had to get used to it first.”

Mia fell, but luckily the brush below was thick. Aside from a few fractures, she was okay.

Because of the accident, filming was halted and everyone was evacuated from the island overnight.

The twenty-million prize vanished. The audience cursed the show for using big money as bait, but in the end, nothing came of it.

After that, no one ever invested in or planned another dangerous, life-risking show like this.

Mia revealed she married Charlie. Her tough-girl and sweet-girl images collapsed.

Charlie had known all along that Mia couldn’t win. He married her hoping she’d die on “One Percent” so he could collect the insurance payout. In short—an insurance scam to kill for the payout.

After surviving, Mia’s first move was to call the police and file for divorce.

Charlie was brought to justice. The whole thing finally ended.

“The show’s over. Does our agreement still stand?”

Carter smiled gently. “Depends on how you behave.”

“Oh, I get it. You like me, don’t you?”

I glared at him, hamming it up again.

“Sorry, but I only see you as my boss. Come on, you don’t like me. There’s nothing special about me—I can’t cook, I’m not even that thoughtful, I’m just… low-maintenance…”

Carter leaned in. I thought he was going to kiss me, but he just whispered by my ear, lips brushing my forehead.

“Don’t you know? Everything we did on the island was broadcast live.”

“What?”

“Bad news is, your drama queen persona is totally busted.” Carter paused on purpose. “Good news is, you’re famous.”

Outside the hospital, crowds of fans gathered to visit.

“Where’s my precious girl? Where’s my baby?”

“So dramatic, so charming!”

“I don’t care, Dusty Blue is sweet again! I’m shipping them for life!”

The crowd outside the hospital kept growing, waving homemade signs and chanting our names. For the first time in years, I felt like maybe, just maybe, the world was ready to see the real me.

Fame turns fast. So can a heart.