The press conference clip went viral overnight.
Jayden's words—"because I love her"—were replayed millions of times.
Half the internet swooned.
Half the internet sharpened their knives.
"True love! They're so brave!"
"Shameless! A celebrity dating a nobody?"
"Fire them both!"
Sponsors pulled out. Fanclubs split in two. Music shows debated whether to blacklist them.
And yet, Luna's hand never left Jayden's.
At Star Entertainment, the CEO roared. "Do you know what you've done?! This company is bleeding! Unless you both issue an apology and break up publicly, you're finished in this industry!"
The board nodded in agreement, eyes sharp.
Luna lifted her chin. "Then let us be finished. Because I won't apologize for love."
Jayden echoed softly, "Neither will I."
The room fell silent. Their rebellion was complete.
Crystal, watching from her penthouse, smirked. "So brave… until the world tears them apart from the inside."
She pressed send on a new message—directly to Luna.
It was a single photo.
Jayden… hugging another girl.
That evening, Luna sat in her room, the photo trembling in her hands. The girl looked familiar—one of Jayden's old street bandmates. The caption beneath it read:
"Are you sure he only loves you?"
For the first time, doubt clawed at her heart.
Meanwhile, Jayden was preparing for a live interview—the first since his confession.
Max warned him, "They're going to grill you. They'll twist every word."
Jayden nodded, steady but tired. "Let them. I'll tell the truth anyway."
But before he could step onstage, he received a text. From Luna.
> "Jayden… we need to talk. Alone."
His heart sank. He knew that tone.
On the other side of the city, Crystal leaned back in her chair, satisfied.
"It's not the fans. It's not the media. It's doubt," she whispered. "And doubt will destroy them faster than any scandal."
The final war wasn't outside anymore.
It was inside their hearts.
End of Episode Nine part one
Seeds of Doubt
The café was nearly empty when Luna slid into the booth.
Her phone still showed the photo Crystal had sent—Jayden with another girl, arms around her.
She didn't look up when Jayden arrived.
"Luna?" he said softly, sliding into the seat across from her.
Her knuckles were white around her cup. "Who is she?"
Jayden froze. His stomach dropped.
"It's not what you think," he started, but Luna's eyes flashed.
"Don't say that! Don't give me the same line every cheater in a drama uses." Her voice trembled, breaking. "I've given up everything for you, Jayden. My career, my image, my safety. So tell me—am I the only one?"
Jayden's throat closed. He wanted to reach for her hand, but she pulled it away.
"She was part of my old street band," he explained. "After Ethan… after everything, she was there for me. That hug—it wasn't love. It was comfort. That's all."
But Luna's voice was a whisper, heavy with pain: "Then why does it look like love?"
For the first time, silence stretched between them.
Not the warm, safe silence they used to share—but cold, sharp, suffocating.
Jayden whispered, "Luna… do you really not trust me?"
Her lips parted—but no words came.
Across town, Crystal watched through her hidden contact who had snapped the photo.
Her smile was vicious. "Good. Let the doubt fester. Soon, they won't need me to tear them apart—they'll do it themselves."
That night, Luna lay awake, scrolling through the photo again and again, the image eating her alive.
Jayden sat on his rooftop with his guitar, strumming broken chords, his chest aching with the thought that he might lose her.
Neither of them slept.
Both of them hurt.
And somewhere in the shadows, Crystal prepared her final strike.
End of Episode Nine part two
The Breaking of Trust
The next morning, the internet woke up to a new headline:
"Jayden's Secret Relationship Revealed?!"
Attached was a short video clip.
Jayden, late at night, standing outside a bar.
The same girl from the photo wrapped her arms around him.
And though the clip ended before anything more happened—
it looked damning.
Luna's phone buzzed nonstop.
Her heart pounded as she clicked the video.
Her breath caught.
It wasn't just a hug this time.
It looked like a confession.
Reporters swarmed her doorstep within hours.
"Luna, did you know about Jayden's other girl?"
"Are you going to end things?"
"Were you played from the start?"
Her manager shielded her, hissing in her ear, "If you don't end this now, you'll be ruined beyond saving!"
Meanwhile, Jayden saw the video too—and nearly threw his phone across the room.
"Crystal," he growled, realizing instantly who was behind it.
Max clapped him on the shoulder. "Bro, you gotta fix this before Luna believes it. She's been under fire too long. She might not be able to hold on."
Jayden's chest tightened. "No. She has to believe me. Because if she doesn't…" He couldn't finish the sentence.
That night, Luna confronted him again.
Her hands shook as she shoved her phone into his chest.
"Tell me this is a lie. Please, Jayden. Tell me this isn't real."
Jayden stared at the screen, then back at her. His voice cracked. "It's not what it looks like. I swear on my life—she kissed me. I pushed her away. Crystal set this up. You have to believe me."
But Luna's eyes brimmed with tears. "Jayden… I want to believe you. I do. But how many storms can I survive before I drown?"
She turned away, her voice breaking. "Maybe love isn't enough."
Jayden's heart shattered.
He reached out desperately, but she stepped back.
The space between them had never felt wider.
From her penthouse window, Crystal watched the live gossip feeds showing Luna's tearful face as she left the studio alone.
And she whispered to herself, victorious:
"Checkmate."
End of Episode Nine