The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era [BL]

Caleb Pretorius.

He stood tall with a sturdy figure. His dark brown, curly hair cascaded long enough for a ponytail, yet a few strands playfully escaped, framing his face. The mischief danced in his green eyes, lending a perpetual air of trouble. His skin, akin to expensive ebony, added to his striking presence.

The man was indeed very handsome. Astrid just didn\'t expect that the other would be the type to go around flirting with other actors. Then he suddenly remembered that Caleb Pretorius had quite the reputation - that he was a bit of a playboy.

It was not as bad as that of Lance Reid. Since he was not going around targeting newcomers. But there\'s always a paparazzi photo being released every month of him interacting closely with another man or a woman.

They were not scandalous photos, just him standing close with the other person or something similar. But because he never clarified anything, people just tend to imagine what they wanted. And sometimes, it would be the worst one could think of.

Astrid never really took those kinds of gossip seriously. For one, he hadn\'t really heard anything bad about the other. And second, he\'s also an artist under Polaris. Surely, the company wouldn\'t sign anyone problematic.

Just look at Lauren. That friend of his was also embroiled in a lot of scandals. But it turned out that it was just because the other was too friendly. He thought it might be the same with Caleb Pretorius. But thinking of that cheesy pickup line he just said, maybe that wasn\'t the case?

No, Astrid should still give him the benefit of the doubt. What if that\'s just his way of speaking? He shouldn\'t be too judgemental.

He was about to greet the other, but Sienna did it first. And in a not so conventional way at that.

"Oh my, I never thought Caleb thought of me as captivating."

Although Sienna was smiling, it was not the same sweet and gentle smile she usually had. Even her words had some thorns in it.

Caleb didn\'t let himself be defeated and retorted, "My bad. Your back is facing me, so I didn\'t actually see your face. I thought you were Miria Lane."

The other said that with a careless smile, obviously mocking Sienna.

Astrid looked back and forth between the two. What\'s with this atmosphere? Was there some bad blood between them? Since both of them were from Polaris, maybe it\'s just some kind of friendly bickering?

But he obviously spoke too soon because the conversation between the two just escalated further.

"Really? Should you go to the hospital then? I didn\'t think your eyesight is that bad," Sienna said with a worried look on her face. "But how could that be? Don\'t you have an S class physique? Maybe you lied and you\'re actually just Z level."

A vein on Caleb\'s forehead throbbed. "There\'s no Z level physique. Are your sure you finished your primary education?"

Sienna laughed. "Sorry, I just chose the very last letter in the alphabet. Since you look so... weak."

Astrid, who was trapped between the two, didn\'t know how to react. Should he mediate? Was this even a serious fight that needed someone to step in? It seemed like bickering between close friends, and at the same time, it also seemed like it didn\'t.

Before he could decide on what to do, someone had pulled him from behind. He looked back and saw Lauren. The other shook his head while gesturing at the two, as if silently telling him to just ignore them. And then, he was pulled by Lauren away from the two who were still bickering and didn\'t even notice that he was gone.

"Is it okay to leave those two alone?" he asked, a bit worried. "There are reporters around. Won\'t they get into a controversy if some reporter took a video of them?"

"It\'s fine. That\'s how they had been since their rookie days at Polaris. Even their fans knew that\'s just their way of getting along," Lauren said with a wave of his hand. "Since they\'re like that and their fans didn\'t really mind that they\'re like that, those reporters wouldn\'t even bother to make an article about it. It\'s not considered a controversy, after all."

"...I see."

That\'s the only reaction Astrid could give. That whole conversation between Sienna and Caleb made his impression of the latter go up and down like a roller coaster. But it\'s a good thing to know that that\'s how the two usually get along. That\'s definitely better than finding out that Caleb was actually just a rude asshole.

"But if you asked me," Lauren leaned into him and whispered as if he was about to impart some great secret. "I think those two are secretly into each other."

That statement amused Astrid. "Why do you think so?"

"Because they only act like that towards each other. I even bet Caleb approached the two of you on purpose because he saw Sienna alone with you," Lauren said with a shrug. "And there\'s that saying, \'The more you tease, the more you please.\' Doesn\'t that perfectly apply to them?"

Astrid looked back at Sienna and Caleb, who were still bickering. "Hmm... you do have a point."

"Right?"

He turned to Lauren. "They kind of remind me of you and Reas when you first met."

As soon as he said that, Lauren\'s whole face turned red. Then the other just blurted out, most likely without thinking;

"We\'re not into each other!"