Chapter 389 - 385: Lost Contact

"Don’t be so negative. How about I go ask around for you?"

When Hannah Warner heard this, her eyes instantly lit up.

She just wanted to know what was happening. If the other girl hadn’t heard anything either, it meant she still had a chance.

"Could you, Lily? Could you go ask for me?"

Seeing her friend’s haggard appearance, Lily Sterling’s heart ached for her. She nodded gently. "Of course. Stop looking at your tablet and get some rest. I’ll ask around for you on my way to class in a bit."

"Okay, thank you, Lily."

Lily Sterling smiled and shook her head, pulling the bed curtain closed for her before going to the bathroom to wash up.

After her morning classes, Lily Sterling found the other girl who was on standby with Hannah Warner in the school cafeteria.

"Hello."

She wasn’t naturally a social person, but for Hannah Warner’s sake, she still went up and initiated the conversation.

The girl was sitting with a few friends, laughing happily about something amusing. Hearing Lily Sterling’s voice, she instinctively turned her head, a smile still lingering on her face.

"Lily Sterling?"

One of her friends had recognized her, blurting out her name in surprise and exchanging a look with the others.

Among their year, Lily Sterling was a pretty well-known student. At the very least, there wasn’t a single first-year who didn’t know who she was.

But when the girl recognized Lily Sterling, the smile on her face vanished without a trace. Her gaze turned hostile as she looked Lily up and down, asking coldly, "What is it?"

This attitude caught Lily Sterling by surprise. She was taken aback for a moment but kept her tone friendly. "Sorry to bother you. I just wanted to ask, have you gotten a confirmation notice for the role of Mona Underwood?"

At her words, the girl was also clearly taken aback. Her brows furrowed as she retorted, "Hannah Warner didn’t get it?"

Lily Sterling subconsciously shook her head.

Seeing this, the other girls sitting with her immediately grew excited. "So it hasn’t been decided yet?"

"Coco, that means you still have a shot!"

"I told you! Your performance was just as good as Hannah Warner’s. It’s really not set in stone who they’ll pick. The production team is probably still discussing it."

"That just proves the role is pretty important, which is why they’re taking so long to decide."

Hearing this, the girl named Coco broke into a smile again. Lily Sterling also breathed a sigh of relief. It meant the other girl hadn’t received any news either.

And just like Hannah Warner, she was also worried the other person had already gotten the part.

"Is there anything else?"

Seeing Lily Sterling still standing there, the girl looked at her again and asked with a cold expression and tone.

Lily Sterling shook her head. Sensing the girl’s obvious hostility, she didn’t say anything more. After a word of thanks, she turned and left.

"Coco, why were you so harsh with Lily Sterling?"

"Yeah, have you met her before?"

Coco shook her head and pouted. "Nope."

"Then why?"

"Because Hannah Warner only became a real competitor for this role after getting advice from her," Coco explained. "If Lily Sterling hadn’t stuck her nose where it didn’t belong, I would have been cast on the spot."

Her friends’ expressions showed they understood.

If that was the reason, then her being cold to Lily Sterling was understandable.

As new students, they were all desperate for roles. Everyone was secretly competing with each other; in reality, they were all rivals.

However, one of the girls felt Coco was being unnecessary. "It’s not that big of a deal, though. Lily Sterling and that Hannah Warner girl are roommates, so they’re probably close. It’s only natural for friends to help each other out."

"Besides, Coco, Lily Sterling entered the industry before us, so she’s basically a senior. It’s not necessary to make enemies at this point."

The friends who had just found Coco’s coldness toward Lily Sterling understandable now nodded after hearing this girl’s words, thinking she had a point.

But Coco didn’t take it to heart. Anyone who could get into The Film Academy was talented. At their young and prideful age, no one was willing to admit anyone else was better.

*

「Lorcain International Airport.」

Cecilia Sterling arrived at the airport parking garage early, using the flight information her aunt had provided. Her cousin, an intern on a trial flight, was scheduled to land in Lorcain.

"Sarah, I’m in the underground parking garage, Section A. Text me when you land, and I’ll come up to get you."

After sending the message to her cousin, Cecilia Sterling sat in her car and waited.

The flight crew had to wait for passengers to deplane and then take care of follow-up tasks like cleaning the cabin, so they would naturally emerge later than the flight’s arrival time.

So, Cecilia Sterling sat in her car, idly scrolling through her phone to kill time.

Time ticked by. Nearly an hour and a half had passed since the flight’s scheduled landing time, and still no word from her cousin. Cecilia Sterling finally began to feel that something was wrong.

’Was the flight delayed?’

She got out of her car, went up from the underground garage to the arrivals gate. Her cousin’s trial flight was no longer listed on the big screen.

"Hi, excuse me, was flight HC5862, Veridia Wyvernstone, delayed?" Cecilia Sterling asked at the information desk.

After checking, the staff member informed her, "It landed on time."

"What about the flight crew?"

"They should all be off the plane by now. You can try calling her, ma’am."

Cecilia Sterling had just tried calling; the phone was still off.

’Young people these days are most afraid of their phone dying. The first thing my cousin would do after getting off the plane is turn her phone on. Did she lose it?’

Cecilia Sterling didn’t dare let her thoughts run wild, but she also didn’t tell her aunt right away, not wanting to worry her.

She quickly found airport security and asked if they could help check the flight surveillance footage and the terminal’s external cameras to help find someone.

The airport staff first verified Sarah Harris’s information, confirming that there was indeed a flight attendant named Sarah Harris on the crew list for that flight, but they did not pull the relevant surveillance footage for Cecilia Sterling.

"Ma’am, I’m sorry. The person you’re looking for is indeed a member of the flight crew, but airport surveillance, especially the cabin cameras, can’t be accessed casually. If you really can’t get in touch with your relative, we can help you contact another member of the same crew to ask about the situation. Would that be okay?"

"Yes, please. Thank you for the trouble."

The information came back quickly. Sarah Harris was on a trial flight as a trainee today, supervised by another flight attendant, and was serving the economy class passengers.

About forty minutes after the flight landed, they finished cleaning the cabin, deplaned, and went to the hotel to rest.

But Sarah Harris hadn’t gone with them, saying she was going to her relative’s house in Lorcain.

’She went home?’

’No, that’s not right!’

Cecilia Sterling realized something was wrong. Sarah knew she was coming to pick her up, so why would she go home by herself?

The most suspicious part was still the fact that her phone was off.

Just as her mind was racing, a message finally came from Sarah Harris: "Sis, I’m going to hang out with a friend for a bit. I’ll contact you later!"

Cecilia Sterling stared at the message in her WhatsApp, and a burst of anger flared up inside her.