Free Web NovelChapter 184: Chapter 184 Unexpected Fame
Christina’s POV
I headed upstairs and opened the first door I found.
A walk-in closet. Not just any closet—one filled to bursting with clothes.
Dresses, tops, sandals, over a dozen different pairs of sunglasses. All in my exact size. Every piece something I’d actually want to wear.
I grabbed a light green t-shirt from a hanger and paired it with white athletic pants. My hair was a mess from the flight, so I pulled it into a tight ponytail and checked myself in the mirror.
Casual. Clean. Annoyingly... perky.
Whatever. Everyone at the airport looked ready for the beach. I could blend in for once.
When I came back downstairs, I walked straight up to Hudson, did a little spin, and turned back. "How do I look?"
He stared at me for a moment, perhaps a beat too long. "You look good."
Then he disappeared upstairs.
Ten minutes later, I heard footsteps and looked up, nearly choking.
"Are you serious right now?"
He was wearing the exact same outfit. Same green shirt. Same white athletic pants. Same sneakers with identical stripes on the heels.
"Are we doing the couples matching thing?" Akira asked with amusement.
Hudson stopped on the bottom step, pausing like he was on a runway.
His normal style ranged between "funeral-ready" and "hostile boardroom." Black everything, perfectly tailored, all radiating Alpha power.
Now he looked... younger.
Not in a strange Botox way. Just... less rigid.
He tilted his head. "You’re staring."
"I’m adjusting," I said. "Walking around like that, people will think you’re only nineteen."
He grinned. "Which would make you what, sixteen?"
He flicked my nose, and my heart did a stupid little jump.
I stepped back with a frown. "Why are you dressed like me?"
He shrugged. "Just grabbed whatever was on top."
"Liar."
"Charges unfounded," he said, taking my hand and leading me toward the front door. "Come on, food time."
I let him hold my hand but narrowed my eyes. "I thought you had meetings. Nobody’s going to take you seriously walking into a conference room like that. Unless you’re some tech genius."
"No meetings today. Might have one later. We’ll see. For now—food."
"Glorious."
We waited nearly forty minutes for a table at the restaurant I chose, some influencer-hyped place with plants hanging from the ceiling and tiny plates arranged like a drunk raccoon had set them. fɾeewebnoveℓ.co๓
The food was bland. No seasoning, no texture, absolutely nothing remarkable.
Waste of queue time.
Between his second bite of undercooked sea bass and my failed attempt to chew through some unidentifiable leaf, I overheard girls at the next table talking.
"Midtown Crossing is having a New Year’s countdown party tonight."
My ears perked up.
Hudson caught it. "Want to go?"
I nodded. "Only happens once a year. Let’s pretend we’re fun people."
"Then we’ll go."
After that terrible meal, neither of us wanted to head back to the house.
We detoured to a movie theater instead, snagging the last two seats for a horror film with a name that sounded like prescription medication.
The place was packed.
People squeezed together, arms colliding on armrests, popcorn spilling everywhere. freewebnovel.cσ๓
Hudson kept a firm grip on my hand, pulling me behind him in lines as if I might get trampled by teenagers in denim jackets at any moment.
The movie was terrible.
Cheap jump scares and blood that looked like ketchup.
During one scene when a zombie leapt out of a closet, Hudson actually flinched.
I burst out laughing.
He leaned closer, whispering, "That’s not funny."
"You screamed."
"I did not scream."
"You absolutely did."
He squeezed my thigh, and I nearly spat out my drink. Something about that gesture made me feel oddly sensitive.
By the time we left the theater, it was dark.
Streetlights glowed yellow across the sidewalk as I scrolled through my phone for food, the screen illuminating my face.
"I found another Instagram restaurant," I said. "This one looks better. At least their photos don’t show edible foam." I looked at Hudson. "Can you trust me one more time?"
"Lead the way," he said simply.
It was close to Midtown Crossing.
We headed in that direction.
As we crossed the street, three girls came racing toward us with a selfie stick filming themselves.
One crashed directly into me.
"Oh my God, I’m so sorry!" she blurted, yanking the stick down.
"It’s fine. Just watch where you’re going next time."
She froze, her eyes bulging out of their sockets. "Wait, aren’t you Christina from CVanceJewels? "
The other two spun around immediately.
"No way!"
"We follow all your posts. I love your sketches, I’ve saved every single one."
"We bought your bracelets! Look!"
They thrust their wrists at me, stacked with identical bracelets.
I recognized my designs. "Yes, that’s me. Glad you like the pieces. Thanks for the support."
The middle girl clapped her hands and actually jumped up and down. "We don’t just like your stuff, we like your face. Brianna is literally obsessed with you."
They pushed the smallest girl forward.
She looked like she wanted to sink into the sidewalk.
Brianna gave a nervous laugh. "I just think you’re really pretty. Prettier than half the actresses on TV. I followed you right after Octavia Grey posted that selfie with you. You look way better in person. You could totally be a beauty influencer, or a model, or an actress. You should be actually famous."
She continued rambling, cheeks flushed, smile bright.
I stood there, somewhat stunned.
In that moment, I didn’t know what to do with my hands.
Most of my Instagram and X followers had hit "follow" after Octavia tagged me in that viral photo.
Unless I was showing sketches or mentioning gemstones, my posts barely got thirty likes.
The bracelet incident had created a small buzz, but I was hardly a household name.
I never expected to meet actual fans.
I smiled at Brianna. "That’s really sweet. Thank you."
"Can we get a picture with you?" she asked hopefully.
"Sure."
I posed for selfies with each of them individually, then one group shot.
They were loud, unembarrassed, laughing and pushing and posing like we were all drunk cousins at a reunion.
We were standing on a busy street near Midtown Crossing.
People stared.
Some pedestrians slowed down.
Someone asked, "Who is she?"
More people approached.
I heard someone behind me say, "Is that the bracelet designer?"
Just like that, I was surrounded.
