I run a puppy playdate service at a local gaming lounge. I was just walking to a private booth when a girl knelt and reached out to pet my dog, a warm smile on her face. I figured she was the client, coming out to greet us early. But as I opened my mouth to say hello, a few lines of semi-transparent text drifted past my eyes. 【OMG, the female lead is so smart, using the puppy to get his attention.】 【Who knew he was a softie for dogs under that cold exterior?】 【Too bad about the dog, though. She gets it killed later.】 【Hey, if the dog doesn't die, how does the plot move forward?】 I looked at the girl still scratching my dog's head. Then I looked down at my sweet, oblivious pup, his tail wagging furiously. A sudden chill ran down my spine. So, I’ve barely been in this business for a week, and I’m already just a prop in some cheap romance drama? No way. This dog is not becoming a plot device. Not today. 1 The woman in the cream-colored sundress was still crouched down, her fingers tangled in my dog’s fur. Bean’s tail was a blur of happiness. The moment the floating comments registered, a single sharp command escaped my lips. "Don't touch him." I strode forward, scooping Bean up into my arms. He immediately snuggled against my chest, his tail thumping against my side. The woman, startled by my sudden appearance, quickly plastered a smile on her face. She reached out again. "Oh, he's just so adorable! I was only playing with him for a second." As she spoke, she angled her head just so, her eyes darting toward the booth next to her. She was putting on a show, managing her expression for an unseen audience. I had no time for her games. I just wanted to get past her with my dog. But just then, the door to that very booth opened, and a man stepped out, drawn by the commotion. Instantly, more text scrolled across my vision: 【It's him! The male lead! He finally noticed her!】 【That eye contact! The chemistry is off the charts! This pairing is epic!】 I blinked. "..." Maybe I’d been working too many late nights. Was I starting to hallucinate? Real or not, I had to get my dog out of here. "Excuse me, he has an appointment." I held Bean tight and walked directly toward the man's booth, pointedly ignoring the woman I left behind. "Hey, I wasn't done yet!" Just as I expected, she followed, her voice sharp with annoyance as she reached out to stop me. But the moment her eyes landed on the man in the doorway, her anger vanished, choked back down. It was replaced by an even sweeter smile, her voice softening to a gentle coo. "Wait, please. I just… I love dogs so much." "The client who booked this playdate is waiting," I said, offering the man a polite nod before turning to give the woman a picture-perfect, professional smile. Then, before she could react, I slipped into the booth and shut the door in her shocked face. With the door safely closed, I let out a long breath, the tension leaving my shoulders. I gently poked Bean's fuzzy ear. "It's okay, Bean. You're safe now." As if he understood, he licked my fingers and nuzzled his fluffy head into my palm. I sank onto the sofa, glancing around the empty air. The strange words were gone again. I handed the man my canvas tote bag filled with tennis balls and freeze-dried chicken. "Here are his toys and treats." He took the bag, his fingertips brushing against the back of my hand. He didn't say much, just pulled out a well-chewed plush toy and dangled it in front of Bean. Bean went wild, his tail wagging like a helicopter rotor as he chased the toy in circles on the carpet. The man knelt, watching the little dog spin around him. I thought I saw the corner of his mouth twitch into the ghost of a smile, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared. He was back to his cool, unreadable expression as he gently stroked Bean’s ear. Watching them, I couldn't shake the comment I'd seen: She gets it killed later. I bit my lip, the words tumbling out before I could stop them. "So, you saw what happened out there. I think Bean's a little spooked." "It's his first time doing a playdate session, and I'm a bit worried. Would it be okay if I stayed here with him for a while?" The man looked at Bean, who was now gleefully romping around the room, and nodded without much hesitation. "Sure." Relieved, I found a single armchair not too far from him and sat down. For the rest of the hour, the man just played with the dog, his expression never changing. Who plays with a puppy with a face like that? I wondered. And just as I had the thought, the damn comments reappeared. 【What is this dog owner's deal? Forcing her way into the male lead's room and trying to make our girl look bad.】 【Seriously! Our girl is the cutest, everyone loves her. It was obviously just a misunderstanding!】 I rubbed my eyes, confirming I wasn't dreaming. So, it wasn't my vision. The world itself had gone insane. If the woman outside was the "female lead" and this guy was the "male lead," then what did that make the little dog currently chewing a treat at my feet? A plot device? A furry tool to drive their romance forward? I looked down at Bean, now trying to cuddle up to the man's leg, his tail thumping a happy rhythm against the floor. He had no idea he'd been cast in someone else's bizarre story. I sighed. It seemed my little guy and I had been dragged into a setup. He let out a contented little snuffle, blissfully unaware. My eyes flickered toward the door, my resolve hardening. The second this gig is over, we're packing up and getting out of here. He can have his leading lady. Nobody is touching my dog. 2 After that day at the gaming lounge, I took Bean home and things went back to normal. Every evening, I’d walk him around our apartment complex. The strange, floating comments never reappeared. Life was quiet. I was starting to convince myself that the whole bizarre experience had just been a bad dream. Today was just another one of those walks. Bean was trotting happily ahead of me when he suddenly stopped by a patch of grass, his back legs dipping into a familiar squat. I knew the drill. I pulled a waste bag from my pocket and turned my back to give him some privacy. Once he was done, I tied a knot in the bag, tossed it into a nearby bin, and called him over. "Mission accomplished! Time for chicken treats at home!" He trotted back, tail wagging, but just as we were about to head back, the damn words reappeared out of nowhere. 【High-impact scene coming up! The main couple’s romance is finally about to take off!】 【Someone with no soul is about to hurt the puppy, and the female lead is going to swoop in like a total badass! Death to all animal abusers!】 【She’s so kind! This move will definitely make the male lead remember her!】 My feet froze. The female lead was back. I scanned the area, wondering which unlucky person she had her sights on this time. The walking path was dotted with other dog owners, all with their pets safely on leashes. Everything looked perfectly peaceful. Who was going to hurt a dog? As I stood there, confused, a sudden, powerful tug on the leash nearly yanked my arm out of its socket. I looked down to see Bean bolting forward, pulling with all his might. He’d spotted his best friend, a border collie, and the two were already barking greetings from across the lawn. "Bean! Stop!" I yelled, gripping the leash, but he was too excited, his paws scrambling for purchase on the pavement. He was dragging me along now. The collie’s owner was shouting at her dog, too. The two furballs collided in a whirlwind of happy yaps and spinning circles. Thankfully, Bean finally skidded to a halt before he could drag my old bones any further. I leaned over, hands on my knees, panting until my breath returned. I glared down at the little traitor, who was now panting happily, his tongue lolling out, wagging his tail as if nothing had happened. A wave of frustration washed over me, and I gave his rump a light, harmless pat. "Bean! Are you trying to give your mother a heart attack? If only you put that much energy into losing weight!" "You okay?" The collie's owner walked over, a look of concern on her face. "I'm fine, I'm fine," I waved her off, my eyes still fixed on the two dogs, who were now sniffing each other intently. "No treats for you tonight!" The two of us stood there chatting about the new vet clinic that had just opened up in the neighborhood. Suddenly, a shrill voice cut through the evening air from behind us. "How could you abuse your dog!" I jumped, spinning around. There she was, the female lead, standing a few feet away, her face a mask of righteous fury. At the exact same time, the comments exploded across my vision: 【Here we go! The dog abuser has appeared!】 【Get her, girl! The male lead is watching!】 【Teach that abuser a lesson she'll never forget!】 I stared. "..." Oh. So I was the unlucky one. "Me?" I pointed at my own nose, utterly bewildered. "I'm abusing my dog?" The border collie's owner was just as confused. "What's going on?" she whispered to me. While we exchanged baffled looks, a small crowd of neighbors started to gather, drawn by the commotion. "What's happening?" someone asked. "Did someone hurt a dog?" And right on cue, the comments began their frantic scroll: 【Yes, girl! Stand up to people like that!】 【That’s horrible, hitting such a cute dog!】 【Look, the male lead sees you! He sees you defending justice! You're beautiful and kind!】 I followed the comments' invisible line of sight and, sure enough, there he was. The man from the gaming lounge. He was standing in the crowd, watching the scene unfold with a surprised look on his face. Clearly, this little drama was as unexpected for him as it was for me. 3 Seeing a crowd gather, the woman—Carol, I’d eventually learn her name was—stood up even straighter, as if fueled by their attention. "I saw it with my own eyes!" she declared, pointing a finger at Bean, who was now huddled by my leg. "You raised your hand and you hit his backside! What is that if not abuse?" Her eyes blazed with the thrill of a crusader. "Someone like you who doesn't care about animals doesn't deserve a dog! You'll be the death of him!" Bean, sensing the tension, pressed closer against me. I bent down to stroke his head, and when I looked up again, my confusion had hardened into a cold anger. That little tap on his butt counted as "abuse" in her world? Were these floating comments filtered through some kind of delusion that erased basic common sense? "His mom takes such good care of him," a voice from the crowd piped up. It was Mrs. Gable, a neighbor I often saw on our walks. "She's out here with him every single day. When Bean got sick last month, she rushed him to the emergency vet in the middle of the night. You don't know what you're talking about." Most of the dog owners in our complex knew each other. We all had a pretty good sense of who treated their pets well. But the comments in my vision were having none of it: 【What is wrong with these people? Covering for an abuser? Is this whole neighborhood full of animal haters?】 【Right? Anyone defending her is just as guilty! Ignore them, girl!】 The sheer, twisted logic of it all made me want to laugh. I looked at Carol, whose face was growing paler by the second. "I'm not sure where you got the idea that I was abusing my dog." "If you're talking about the light pat I gave his rear end," I said, emphasizing the word "light," "then I really don't know what to tell you." "And as for why I did it, you clearly didn't see what happened just before, did you?" "That's right," the collie's owner chimed in, pointing to the two dogs at her feet. "Bean got overexcited when he saw my dog and bolted. He nearly pulled his owner right off her feet!" "She was just startled and trying to get him to calm down. It wasn't abuse." A murmur of agreement went through the crowd. "Yeah, that's nothing. You have to correct a dog when it lunges like that, or someone could get hurt." "Seriously. My golden retriever chased a squirrel once and pulled so hard I sprained my ankle. He got more than a light tap on the head for that." "Besides," someone else added with a chuckle, "the way she tapped him, his own tail probably hits her leg harder than that." A few people laughed. Carol had clearly not expected this. The scenario she'd imagined—a heroic rescue where she was lauded by the public for standing up to an abuser—had completely imploded. Instead, she found herself on the receiving end of a collective, gentle rebuke. Her face flushed, then went pale, her carefully constructed expression crumbling. A flash of pure rage crossed her eyes. This wasn't in the script, and she was starting to panic. I took half a step back, pulling Bean with me, trying to avoid her venomous glare. 【Male lead, do something! Help her! She's being attacked by all these villains!】 【My heart breaks for her. She was just trying to do the right thing and now she's the one getting yelled at?】 I stared at the black-and-white insanity of the comments, wanting to roll my eyes into the back of my head. How could these "viewers" lack such a basic grasp of right and wrong? "She is an abuser!" Carol finally shrieked, cornered and desperate. "And all of you, defending her—you're all abusers, too!" "Hey, watch your mouth, young lady!" Mrs. Gable snapped, her patience gone. "This was a simple misunderstanding. We were just telling you what actually happened. That doesn't make us abusers." "Yeah, for someone so young, you've got a nasty tongue on you," another man grumbled, frowning. Just as the scene was about to spiral completely out of control, a calm voice cut in. "Carol, that's enough." I looked up. The man from the gaming lounge had made his way through the crowd. He was frowning at Carol, his disapproval clear. "You're making things up. That's not what happened, and you're being unfair to everyone." Carol looked as if he'd slapped her. Her eyes instantly filled with tears. "I was doing it for you!" she cried, her voice cracking. "You love dogs so much, I was just trying to help!" Tears streamed down her face as she played the part of the deeply wronged victim. The neighbors, sensing this was a private argument now, started to back away, though they still watched from a distance. I watched this train wreck of a drama unfold, my eyes flicking to the frantic scrolling of the comments: 【What is happening? The male lead is yelling at her? But she did it all for him!】 【This guy is trash. He's blind and can't even tell right from wrong! He'd better be ready to grovel, and I hope she never takes him back!】 【Suddenly the second male lead is looking a lot better. Run, girl, run!】 I fought the urge to groan. What did Bean and I do to deserve being dragged into this mess? But watching them, I had a sinking feeling their drama was far from over. And my innocent little dog, somehow, was stuck right in the middle of it. I looked down at Bean and sighed. Looks like I'm going to have to be extra careful from now on. 4 I couldn't believe it. The male and female leads from this bizarre, invisible drama lived in my apartment complex. Great. Now there was nowhere to hide. I couldn't just stop walking my dog to avoid them. So, I switched our schedule to the dead of night. The complex was silent, the only sound the rustle of leaves in the wind. "Okay, Bean, be quiet," I whispered, clutching his leash as we tiptoed downstairs. The little guy was vibrating with excitement, his tail wagging like crazy. We had just reached a fork in the path near the community garden when I saw a figure standing under a lamppost ahead. The person turned. The warm, yellow light illuminated his face. It was the man from the drama. Thomas. Bean let out a soft "woof," and he paused, waiting for us to approach. "Sorry to bother you," he said, his gaze shifting from Bean to me. "I haven't seen you walking him lately. I figured you might be avoiding us." He looked genuinely regretful. "What Carol did the other day, accusing you like that… it was completely out of line. I wanted to find you and apologize." "Oh, uh, it's fine. Really," I said quickly, taking a small step back with Bean. "It was her thing, it has nothing to do with you. You don't need to apologize." Honestly, all I wanted was to end this conversation and disappear into the night. But he persisted. "No, she was doing it because of me. She was targeting you and your dog because of me. So, ultimately, it's my fault. I have to apologize." I didn't know what to say to that, so I just offered a tight smile. After a few seconds of awkward silence, I couldn't help myself. "You know, maybe you and Carol should sit down and have a real talk?" I suggested, trying to sound casual. "Sometimes, when things are left unsaid, it just creates more misunderstandings. This can't be good for either of you." It was obvious to anyone with eyes that Carol was obsessed with him. As for Thomas, he seemed like a decent guy, but who knew if he'd ever been clear with her. He seemed surprised by my suggestion. He thought for a moment, then nodded slowly. "You're right. We do need to talk." He looked at me again. "I'm sorry again for all the trouble. It won't happen again." "It's okay. Well, we should get on with our walk." I turned to leave with Bean. I really hope it won't happen again, I thought. Otherwise, I'm seriously considering moving. "It's pretty dark out," Thomas called after me. "Mind if I walk with you?" I agreed. The moment I did, Bean trotted over to Thomas's side, wagging his tail and rubbing his head against his leg. Thomas bent down to scratch his ears. "Why did you stop listing him for the playdate service?" It took me a second to realize what he was talking about. "Oh, uh, just been busy lately," I lied. He looked a little sheepish. "I kind of miss him." I couldn't blame him. My dog was pretty charming. "Well, if you ever want to see him, you can just join us on our walks." And so, we fell into a routine. Every evening, Thomas would be waiting downstairs, sometimes with a little treat for Bean. The three of us would walk together. Bean would dart back and forth between us, dropping his ball at my feet one moment, then flopping down on Thomas's shoes the next. It was clear he really, really liked him. One evening, I finally asked the question that had been on my mind. "So what's the deal with that girl, Carol?" Thomas's expression immediately soured. He sighed. "I have no idea. She just started acting this way recently. I've told her, very clearly, that I'm not interested, but she keeps saying we're 'destined' to be together. And then she does these… bizarre things. It's honestly starting to scare me." "Did she just suddenly start acting like this?" I asked, a thought forming in my mind. He confirmed that she had. A wild theory began to take shape. She said they were 'destined.' Could she also know about the 'script'? A cool breeze rustled the trees, and I watched Thomas as he knelt to play with Bean. Then another, even stranger question hit me. I could only see those floating comments when Carol was around. They were always there, dictating the plot. But Thomas, the supposed male lead of this story, seemed completely oblivious to them. What was the connection between Carol and those comments?
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