Chloe slammed the door to her luxury condo and threw her purse on the ground and growled into the silence "That little bitch. If she thinks she can get one over on me, she has another thing coming. I have worked too hard and too long for some little nobody to speak to me as if I were dirt on the bottom of her shoe. She thinks that just because she is Eddie Duran's current arm candy that she is somehow special, but I will get him back and I am going to enjoy crushing that little wannabe along the way. She should have stuck to the highschool glee club because she is playing in the big leagues now. "
Chloe Carter had originally grown up as Cynthia Kowalski from Fresno, California in a two bedroom house that wasn't much bigger than a shack. Chloe learned very quickly growing up in Fresno that there were two types of people in this world, those who had money and power and then the others. Chloe, or rather Cynthia, had started out being one of the others. Cynthia had been poor and had had an alcoholic mother who brought home a different man almost every night of the week. And, each time Cynthia's mother, Jackie Kowalski, would bring home a new guy she would claim that she had finally found the love of her life and then attempt to convince Cynthia that their ship had finally come in. Jackie would predictably be devastated when the flavor of the moment would then walk out in the middle of the night and take with him whatever belongings were available and whatever was left of her pride.
Cynthia was tall, slender with long blonde hair that flowed in natural waves down to the center of her back, and the princes Jackie brought home would invariably attempt to hit on a young adolescent Cynthia while her mother was passed out drunk on the couch. Cynthia initially resisted the advances and would find ways to make herself scarce when Jackie brought home the random guys. However, one day, it occurred to Cynthia as she was sorting through a second hand store looking through clothes that were completely disgusting that if she couldn't beat the derelicts that her mom brought home that maybe she should try joining them. From that point on, when one of the guys would drunkenly rub up against Cynthia, she didn't discourage him and would sometimes pretend to actually enjoy it. There were even times when Cynthia would subtly encourage the ones that actually had jobs to kiss or fondle her if she thought that there might be something in it for her, like money or jewelry. When she was 17, Chloe agreed to lose her virginity to one of the loser's her mom brought home because he promised to buy her a car.
Cynthia was proud that she was smarter and not naïve like a lot of girls in their teens who believed sex was something you bartered with in order to win some guy's love and attention. Cynthia had watched her mother be treated like crap because she had been "in love," and where had that gotten her? Jackie had been a desperate drunk who had clung to any guy who threw her a compliment her way, and Cynthia was ashamed of her. No, love was a stupid reason to do anything of significance, and Cynthia wasn't stupid. Cynthia was practical, and she learned at a young age that sex was a commodity and being beautiful made her powerful.
Cynthia capitalized on this fact throughout her highschool years. Even if Cynthia did not have the intelligence or the talent that some of the other girls had, she could neutralize the playing field by using her looks and her body to her advantage. By being the prettiest one in the room and learning exactly what turned the guys on, Cynthia found that she could manipulate even the most popular boys in her highschool into getting everything she felt she deserved. There was even a time or two when Cynthia was able to convince a few male teachers to improve her grades by provocatively rubbing up against them or revealing a little more cleavage than was appropriate, and it always worked like a charm. Men were so easy to control and once you knew how to control one you knew how to control them all. Cynthia had perfected the art of seducing men and even though Cynthia had no female friends and had developed a reputation for being easy in her class, she was okay with her lot in life as long as she inspired fear in her classmates and she was given the respect she demanded. No one in highschool would ever dare disparage Cynthia to her face for her humble beginnings or the embarrassment of having the town drunk for a mother.
One girl in highschool learned the hard way the consequences for disrespecting Cynthia Kowalski. Natalie Banks was in the same senior class with Cynthia and was pretty, popular, and an "All American" girl who had ambitions of becoming a TV journalist when she graduated. Natalie was a "good girl" and had been dating her highschool sweetheart since her freshman year. Chloe couldn't remember the name of Natalie's boyfriend, and in fact, she wasn't sure she had ever known it. It may have been Bret or something. His name wasn't really important. What was important, however, was that Bret or whatever his name was was responsible for announcing on the intercom the girls who would be nominated for Senior Prom Queen and Chloe wanted to make extra sure that she was on that list. Cynthia knew that someday she would be a successful actress in Hollywood and she wanted to ensure that her highschool yearbook at least gave the impression of her being a sweet and well-liked girl-next-door type.
Natalie had walked in on Cynthia giving Natalie's boyfriend head in an empty classroom and had made the mistake of calling Cynthia a "slut." As if the derogatory insult hadn't pissed Cynthia off enough, Natalie had enough influence with their classmates to compromise Cynthia's chances of winning Prom Queen, and so Cynthia knew she had to strike first, and she had to do it in such a way that Natalie wouldn't be able to retaliate. With the help of some boy in the school office, Cynthia was able to break into Natalie's locker and steal some random pictures that Natalie had taken of herself with friend and had hung up in her locker as keepsakes. Cynthia then scanned these images into a school computer and photoshopped Natalie's head onto the body of a naked pornstar and leaked the final product to the entire school body in a mass anonymous email. Chloe even insinuated in the email that Natalie had a top secret after-school job and that her tuition was already paid for in the fall. No one questioned the validity of the email, and if anyone suspected that Natalie had been framed, they kept that opinion to themselves.
Natalie was humiliated and her spotless reputation destroyed and Natalie's parents ended up removing her from school for the remaining portion of her senior year. Chloe laughed to herself. She had been so creative and smart in removing her enemy. She almost wished she could have told someone about it. People were hypocrites. Most people would see her actions as deplorable, but the truth was that most people actually wanted to believe that underneath shiny beautiful surfaces that everyone harbored dirty dark secrets to be discovered. It wasn't really her fault that her classmates were more than willing to believe a well-placed lie than to actually investigate the truth for themselves. And the moment Cynthia had the crown for Senior Prom Queen placed on her head, she was more convinced than ever that the end always justified the means.
The day that Cynthia Kowalski graduated from highschool, she packed her car, changed her name to Chloe Carter, and decided to tell the world that she was an orphan, which in her mind wasn't a lie. Chloe Carter had never intended to see Jackie Kowalski again once she left Fresno. Jackie was weak and pathetic, and the day that Cynthia Kowalski died so did any connection she had to her mother. While Cynthia may have been poor and from humble beginnings, Chloe Carter wasn't any of these things. Chloe was from an affluent suburban community in Upper State New York and had grown up a spoiled only child of a successful and wealthy couple, who had been tragically killed in an automobile accident. When pressed for details about her parents from the media or from Eddie, Chloe would just generate some well-rehearsed tears and say that it was still just too painful to talk about. After a while, most people just stopped asking, which was perfectly fine with Chloe.
When Chloe first arrived in Los Angeles, she quickly discovered that Hollywood was basically highschool, only on a bigger scale. While sleeping with jocks in highschool had been the catalyst for Cynthia's popularity, Chloe clawed her way to the top in Hollywood by frequenting the casting couches of directors, agents, and producers and walking red carpets with whatever new and up-and-coming stars were available to her. Being famous and successful was all about learning to play the game better than anyone else, and in Chloe's mind, no one played it better than she did.
Chloe met Eddie Duran, the son of the legendary MK, when she was playing an extra on Sunset Dreams, a movie where Eddie was one of the main attractions. Chloe knew instinctively that Eddie Duran was the ticket to getting everything she craved, including access to the best clubs, money, fame, and success; and she quickly made the most of the opportunity.
Eddie Duran was sheltered and trusted Chloe completely from the minute she first met him. At first, Chloe did what she always did. She lied. She manipulated. She used her body to get him hooked. But, with Eddie, it really wasn't necessary to fight as hard as Chloe usually had to in order to get what she wanted. Eddie actually seemed to genuinely like her, and eventually, Chloe found that she could just relax and be herself around him minus the excessive bitchiness that seemed to come so naturally to her. Eddie was generous to a fault and constantly looking for ways to make Chloe happy without her even asking, and she loved the feeling of being paraded around on Eddie's arm to different events. When Chloe was with Eddie, she was important and she loved being able to revel in the fact that she was one half of the biggest "It" couple in Hollywood. Chloe knew that she had finally arrived, and she loved being able to look down on all the little people she had had to step on in getting to the top. When Eddie told Chloe that he loved her, she knew he meant it. Chloe didn't really believe in love and thought it was for the weak, but she did have a certain fondness for Eddie and she did respect his determination and his drive when it came to his music. Their unwavering focus at achieving whatever goals they had in mind was something Chloe and Eddie both had in common.
While most girls would have been content that they had won the heart of Eddie Duran, Chloe was happy but for an entirely different reason. Knowing that Eddie loved her meant that her place in Hollywood was secure and that she would be able to stop fighting for the power and the money she so desperately desired. She felt safe. She knew that no matter what anyone else said about her that Eddie Duran had her back, and no one would risk the wrath of angering Eddie. Even though to Chloe's knowledge he had never utilized the power, Eddie had the ability to blackball any journalist from ever working again if they said anything even slightly negative about Chloe and that mere fact alone meant that the only publicity Chloe ever received was positive and glowing.
Chloe was gazing off into thin air, lost in her thoughts and contemplating how to get Eddie back while simultaneously bringing down the little twit who had only momentarily bested her, when she heard a knock at the front door. With an exasperated sigh, Chloe reluctantly went to open the door. The minute she opened it and saw who it was on the other side, she went to close the door as quickly as she had opened it but a large male foot prevented her from doing so.
The sarcastically amused voice of Tyler Rorke mocked her from the other side of the door, "Chlobear, aren't you glad to see me?" Chloe snapped and walked away from the door, "No, Tyler, as a matter of a fact, I'm not." Tyler pretended to sound hurt, "Seriously babe, you're breaking my heart here." Chloe snapped back, "Please! You and I both know that if you have a heart that the only thing that could possibly break it would be someone standing in between you and your reflection, it's actually something we have in common."
Tyler entered the room uninvited. Chloe demanded, "What are you doing here Tyler? I thought I told you that I never wanted to see you again." Tyler smiled and said patronizingly, "Ah Chloe, you know you can never stay mad at me for long. It's been a week. How long are you going to hold a grudge?" Chloe looked at Tyler with barely contained rage. Tyler was the reason Chloe's life had literally imploded nearly a week ago and the reason she had lost Eddie. Chloe was about ready to yell at Tyler to get the hell out of her life when she suddenly thought better of it. Chloe had a perfect idea for revenge against the teeny bopper, and Tyler would be the perfect pawn in her plan to bring her down. Chloe, Queen Bitch, was back and with that she turned around and gave Tyler one of her most brilliant smiles.