Page 4 of Drama Queens Don't Fall For Charming Boys

I clutch my heart dramatically. “My parents are so hurtful.”

“All kidding aside,” Dad continues, “you’ll work with a lot of people you don’t like throughout your career, just like any job. The best you can do is be professional and get the work done as best as you can.”

“Yep,” I say.

“And make sure they know you’re an easy person to work with.”

Dad was accused of being “difficult to work with” when he was my age and he took a break from Hollywood, which is why he moved in with his grandmother in Edenbury. That was how he and Mom met and fell in love. Of course it was a misunderstanding, and thanks to Rylee’s Mom, Kara, who wrote an article and cleared his name, everything was okay in the end.

“It’s getting late,” Mom says as she checks her phone. “We should head to the restaurant. Do you want to come with us, Mia?”

My dad’s parents and his grandmother immigrated to America from South Korea and he was born here. They opened a Korean restaurant and named it Ji-Ho’s, after my dad. It was his halmeoni’s dream. It was hard for them to get it going at first, and they thought they would have to shut it down, but then Dad was discovered. He helped keep his family afloat. He worked his butt off to get to where he is today, and I’m so thankful for all the sacrifices he and my mom made over the years. We have a house in L.A. we use when either Dad or I are working on a project. Though I usually work in the summer, since I want to focus on school and have a somewhat “normal” childhood.

Mom and Dad usually help out at Ji-Ho’s on the weekends. Halmeoni and Harabeoji have expanded it over the years, and it’s grown into a very popular restaurant in Edenbury. It’s best known for being homey and welcoming, a place where families can spend a wonderful day together.

“Yeah, maybe I’ll go with you guys to Ji-Ho’s,” I tell my parents. “Rylee and Zoey have a double date with their boyfriends, so it’ll be nice to take my mind off things.” Like the fact that I’m single.

“Okay, be ready to leave in ten,” Dad tells me.

Just as I go up to my room, WillowBot says, “Mia, you have received a few notifications.”

“From Rylee or Zoey?”

But no, my notifications are not from my best friends. They’re from Spill It! informing me yet again that Declan’s video is trending.

“Ugh!” I say as I chuck my phone away.

Chapter Two

Declan

“Got a minute, Declan?” my twenty-seven-year-old brother Chase, who’s also my manager, asks as he peeks into my room. I just finished my homework for my online classes and am scrolling through the comments on the interview I did with Chelsea. They’re pouring in like the waves of an ocean and all are positive. I’ve only started acting a little more than three years ago, but I’m very thankful and honored and love all my fans. I wouldn’t be where I am today if not for them.

“Sure, what’s up?”

Chase heads to my bed and sits down. He doesn’t live at home with our parents and me but is spending a few nights here because his apartment is being painted.

“Quentin was trying to reach you, but couldn’t get through.”

I glance at my phone. I have a missed call from my agent. “Sorry. Was distracted.”

“He called me regarding the callback.”

“Did I get the part?”

I auditioned for a movie about a teen alien. I’m hopeful I got the part because I felt good vibes.

With his lips pressed together, Chase shakes his head. “I’m sorry, man.”

“I didn’t get it?”

He shakes his head again.

I look away from him. Darn it. How was I so wrong? Nothing has been the same ever since I wasn’t asked to do the sequel to The Beat of My Heart. It tainted my image and I’m positive producers are hesitant to hire me.

“It’s her fault,” I mutter, referring to my former costar, Mia Park.

“You don’t know that,” Chase says.

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