CHAPTER 44: EIGHTH LESSON

Selena’s eyes flashed. "You are just saying what you saw on the internet! Or did you know? Tell me—did you know before that they were friends? Did you? No, you don’t! And how did you know he has feelings for her, or that she manipulated him, when you don’t even know if they were friends? And you dare accuse her?!"

Harper steadied herself, sneering as she caught the evasive expression on Sierra’s face. "I don’t need to know before figuring it out!" She snarled, "And yes, from what is on the internet and from seeing your daughter now, I’m even more sure. If it’s true she manipulated my son into trying to kill Erisia on her behalf, then a few slaps will be the least of your worries!"

"You crazy old hag! How dare you threaten us? Your son was arrested because of his deeds—because he deserves it—and that has nothing to do with us!"

"Say that again!"

Infuriated by Selena’s words and indignant expression, Harper rushed forward again, and Vivien couldn’t hold her back.

In a flash, both Selena’s and Sierra’s hair was yanked harshly, and they screamed. Mother and daughter flailed, trying to dislodge Harper’s painful grip, while Vivien tried to pull her mother away—but her efforts only made Harper pull harder.

"Mom! Mom, what are you doing?!"

"Argh!!" Selena screamed in pain, clawing at Harper’s wrist while Sierra struck at the hand gripping her hair.

"Mom! Stop, Mom!"

"Let go! Let go!"

Harper yanked harder. "Confess it!"

"Let go of my hair, you maniac!" Selena shouted, "Ahh! Let go of my hair this instant—!"

Finally, Vivien managed to pull her mother away, but the sudden force dragged Sierra and Selena forward. When Harper’s grip released so abruptly, both women pitched toward the center table. Sierra caught herself in time, but Selena was not so lucky—her head struck the hard glass with a sharp thud.

Harper stood breathing hard, her outfit and hair in disarray, glaring down at the mother and daughter. Beside her, Vivien’s expression hardened. "It seems we won’t be able to get what we came here for."

Selena looked up, angry and humiliated as Vivien continued talking. "Mrs. Hoffman, you should watch what you say. There are some things that are not supposed to be said—and once said, they cannot be taken back. I hope you understand this."

Vivien turned to her mother, her expression softening. "Come, let’s go, Mom."

Selena hurriedly stood, Sierra following a second later while cursing Adrian’s mother in her head to die.

"Yes, get out! Get out of my house! Go!"

Harper snorted at both of them and grabbed her bag. She stormed to the door but paused just as she stepped a foot outside. Glancing back at Sierra, she smirked. Selena stepped protectively in front of her daughter, glaring daggers at Mrs. Hoffman.

"Don’t you dare look at her! Get the hell out of my home!"

"Relax," Harper said with a mocking smile. "Stop barking like a dog. There is nothing to see in her anyway—just a shell of something vile. She will pay for whatever she has done, that’s a promise."

With that, the Hoffmans stepped out of the Wenford home.

Selena immediately turned to Sierra, fury burning through her at everything that had just happened. Sierra’s face had gone wary, but Selena mistook it for fear. Pulling her into a hug, she brushed a hand over her daughter’s hair.

"It’s alright, darling. It’s alright. Mommy is here. I won’t let anyone hurt you."

...

Erisia had just ended a call with Officer Tyler. He’d told her Adrian had been transported to New York City, booked on Friday, and his charges re-read. Because it was the weekend, his arraignment was scheduled for Monday afternoon—open to the public.

Erisia already understood what that meant, but Echo insisted on explaining it again anyway.

[ An arraignment is the first court appearance after formal charges are filed. The defendant is informed of their rights, enters a plea, and bail is discussed. Because Adrian’s charges involve attempted homicide and conspiracy, public attendance ensures transparency. ]

She pinched the bridge of her nose. ’Echo, I know.’

[Clarification protocols are non-optional when criminal proceedings directly involve you.]

Erisia sighed and told Officer Tyler to continue.

He said she would appear in court, and Erisia only murmured that she already knew.

On the other end of the line, Officer Tyler exhaled, the sound carrying more weight than words. "Tomorrow’s going to be a hell of a day for me," he muttered. "Arraignment’s one thing, but I’m the lead detective. That means every reporter, every lawyer, every so-called ’concerned party’ will be sniffing around."

His voice roughened, the fatigue evident now. "The Hoffman family’s already been reaching out these past two days. Polite on the surface, sure, but let’s not kid ourselves—they’re desperate. Their golden son’s behind bars, and they’ll want to ask their ’questions.’ About evidence. About witnesses. About you."

Erisia chuckled, listening to Rita’s voice as she played with Rein in the living room. "They can ask all the questions they want but it won’t change anything. And Officer Tyler? Please hang in there."

"Alright, then I will see you tomorrow, Erisia. Have a good day." With that, the call ended and Erisia sat up.

’Alright, Echo. Let’s start our simulation class. It’s the eighth lesson right?’

They had discussed about what she was going to do after Adrian has been sentenced to prison and of course Erisia replied that she would start looking for audition. She wanted to finish all the acting lessons before then but when she saw the list, she wasn’t sure she would be able to finish it.

[ Yes, it’s the eighth lesson. ]

[ The simulation class will begin now. ]

The room shimmered into existence around Erisia like a mirage. One second she was standing in her bedroom in Rita’s apartment, the next she was in a studio class. The studio lights were dimmer than usual, the black-box stage lending itself to shadows.

A chime rang overhead.

[ Welcome to Lesson Eight: Character Layering & Dual Motivation. ]

[ Objective: Play a character who speaks one truth while concealing another. Your performance will be scored on subtext, consistency, and control. ]

The studio grew warmer as bodies filled the space. Chairs and tables appeared, scraping across the wooden floor as students blinked into existence—casual, as if they’d been there all along. A few flipped open notebooks, one girl was already chewing her pen cap. At the front, Ms. Lorette clapped her hands once, loud enough to make half the students straighten.

"Today’s focus: layers." She spoke calmly, but the precision in her tone left no room for argument. "Humans don’t just walk around with one face—we wear masks, but our core bleeds through whether we like it or not. Your job is to embody both. Three parts: Mask vs. Core, Conflicting Truths, and our big Simulation Task."

A low ripple of nervous excitement ran through the class. Erisia took her seat, crossed one leg over the other, pen resting against her notebook.

⸻

[ Activity 1: Mask vs. Core ]

"Erisia," Ms. Lorette called first, as if the system had written her name in bold across the lesson plan. "Stage. Now. Your character: a sweet, supportive friend comforting someone... while secretly plotting their downfall. Let us see the mask and the core."

Erisia stood, pulse ticking fast, but her lips curled into a smile. She approached a classmate—simulation or not, the girl had the wide eyes of someone pouring out heartbreak. Erisia softened her voice, tilting her head sympathetically.

"Oh, don’t worry, everything will work out for you," she cooed, hand hovering like a pat. But her gaze lingered longer than necessary, making the smile on her lips feel uneasy, an undercurrent of enjoying this weakness.

The class stirred. A boy whispered, "Chills."

A soft chime from above: [ Mask vs. Core: 92/100. ]

⸻

[ Activity 2: Conflicting Truths ]

Now Ms. Lorette gestured to another volunteer. "Line drill. You both speak, but your subtext must contradict your words. Erisia, you tell them you forgive them, but underneath—you want them to burn."

Erisia inhaled and turned to the tall boy stepping onto the stage. His line was scripted: "I’m sorry. I never meant to hurt you."

Her lips trembled into a smile, voice warm as honey. "It’s all right. I forgive you."

But her eyes stayed locked, unblinking, her shoulders stiff like coiled wire. Her breath caught at the edge of a laugh—too brittle. The boy faltered, swallowing.

The instructor’s brows lifted, approving.

[ Conflicting Truths: 95/100. ]

⸻

[ Simulation Task: Dinner Table Secret ]

"Final task," Ms. Lorette declared. "Everyone on stage. You’re a family at dinner. Each of you wants something different—money, forgiveness, validation, escape—but no one is allowed to say it outright. Actions and subtext only."

Chairs scraped as the students clustered around a long table that materialized mid-stage. Candles flickered, casting gold across porcelain plates.

Erisia slid into her chair between two ’siblings,’ her smile sharp and sweet as she ladled soup into their bowls. "Eat up, you must be starving," she said gently, yet her tone carried an edge of control—I’m the one feeding you; you owe me.

The ’mother’ character fluttered napkins, fussing over manners, but her voice carried a brittle desperation for order. Across from Erisia, a ’brother’ drummed his fingers, eyes darting at the wine bottle, wanting it desperately but never asking.

The laughter sounded forced, breaking too quickly, and every polite word carried an edge of impatience.

Erisia leaned in, raising her glass. "To family," she said brightly, but her gaze cut toward the ’inheritance papers’ stacked at the table’s end.

The tension hummed so thick the room felt real. Ms. Lorette clapped once, breaking the spell.

[ Dinner Table Secret: 97/100. ]

[ Lesson Complete. ]

———-

{A/N: I wanted to give you all a heads up. I’ll be introducing a new privilege tier, which means that there may be a brief pause in your access to new Chapters for about two days, even though I’ll still be updating. I really appreciate your patience during this time! I promise that once the wait is over, there will be five exciting new Chapters ready for you to enjoy! Thank you for your understanding!}