Never Judge

"Mr. Chan! Mr. Chan! Here please!" A photographer shouted as Eric Chan walked down the red carpet of the premier of his latest movie.

Eric turned and gave the press what they wanted, a charming smile from the nation's most popular artist.

Despite having announced that he was already engaged to Katerina, his fans did not abandon him. They defied all expectations and excitedly waited for his and Katerina's wedding.

"Mr. Chan, did you come alone?" A reporter asked as he looked quite disappointed the Katerina had not accompanied Eric.

"Just a year ago you were all ready to hate my fiance because you believed she was stealing me from someone, now you are all eager to see her." Eric pointed out with a serious look on his face, making the reporter feel embarrassed.

"Sir, we apologize for what we had done." The reporter said as he looked down.

"It's fine, we understand." Eric said with a sigh as he shook his head. "She still has a career of her own and it has taken her away from my side. Trust me, I want her with me all the time, but Katerina Sebstian is not a woman you can tie down."

The press were in awe of his statement, they were used to actors whose wives simply quit their own careers and lived off their husband's fame. Then again, Katerina Sebastian was no ordinary woman.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm holding up the premiere." Eric said as he gave the members of the media one more cover worthy smile before walking down the red carpet.

Behind him, Ram arrived with Francesca Rocci. The members of the media loved them.

When the couple started attending events together, everyone was shocked. Ram had made it a point not to take a date to any of his business related events.

It was then that the press sensed there was more to the relationship, especially since Ram had every power to control what they published about him.

Unlike Eric, they did not consent to an interview and simply smiled and waved at the media as Ram led Francesca through the doors and into the cinema where the premier was to be hosted.

"Too anxious to speak to the press?" Eric teased as soon as they were away from prying ears.

"Of course." Ram said with a frown, unhappy with the fact that he and Eric couldn't join the others on Kashmere.

"We have to be here, we don't want to alert them that something is up." Eric said as he placed a hand on Ram's shoulder.

"My brother sent men to help Ian, they won't be harmed." Francesca told Ram as she placed a gentle kiss on his cheek, making the Entertainment CEO smile.

"Your brother or you?" Eric teased.

He knew for a fact that Francesca still commanded a significant amount of respect among the Rocci Mafia Family. She even helped run parts of it since her return to the country.

It also helped that her boyfriend's childhood friend was the king of the underworld.

Francesca rolled her eyes at Eric, making him laugh as he walked ahead of the couple and entered the cinema.

Inside, he was escorted by several bodyguards to his seat.

Despite there being significantly less people, many were still eager to get a photo of Eric as he arrived alone.

Some fans and haters even went as far as spreading rumors that the reason Katerina was not by his side was due to an argument between them.

"You're always popular on social media." Ram chuckled as he sat down next to Eric.

He handed his phone to his friend, showing him the different rumors that were circulating about Eric and Katerina.

"Ever since Katerina and I announced our relationship and I proposed to her, I don't feel as bothered about them." Eric said with a smile as he handed the phone back to Ram.

The rumors that people had spread were just crazy.

"Any update?" Eric asked as he kept his eyes on the screen.

"They are all on Kashmere." Ram told Eric, emphasizing the word all.

"They are all safe?" Eric asked, thinking about Ian and his daring escape.

"Those that we like, yes." Ram responded. "I'm still waiting for more news, but I guess we will see after the movie."

"You still have to make your speech." Eric said with a grin as the host began to welcome all of the guests.

"Right. I hate this part." Ram said with a laugh as he got up, kissed Francesca on the lips and made his way down to the stage to welcome everyone.

It was clear that Ram was in a rush to get the premiere started. The guests all thought that it was because he was proud of the film. The truth couldn't be further from it, he simply wanted the film to be over so he and Eric could fly over to Kashmere and join the others.

The film played after Ram's speech, and it was clear that the audience liked it.

They all stood and applauded as the closing credits ran on the screen.

Eric stood up and waved at his fans, the media, and the critics. For this film he had asked for him not to have a female lead since when he had begun taping it his relationship with Katerina was quite sensitive.

"Mr. Abad." A body guard said, catching Ram's and Eric's attention.

"Keep them busy." Ram said as he left with the bodyguard, supposedly to deal with an important matter.

"He'll be fine. Don't worry. It's probably nothing." Eric said as he smiled at Francesca and gestured as he allowed several reporters to ask their questions.

"Mr. Chan, this is quite rare for you not to have a female lead, does it have anything to do with Miss Katerina Sebastian being bothered by you acting opposite females?" A reporter asked, making Eric laugh and shake his head.

"No. Katerina and I are both quite secure in our relationship. I simply wanted to do something new, something different." Eric said as he pointed at a different reporter to ask a question.

At this point, the security team had allowed some of the reporters waiting outside to enter so that they too could ask their questions about the film.

"Mr. Chan, how will your acting career be influenced by both yours and Miss Sebastian's families? Is it true that the president is asking you to quit acting?" There were gasps among the audience as the reporter asked her question.

Eric smiled, he had heard these rumors and had no idea how they had started. He assumed they were from other actors that were jealous of him.

"It will not affect it in any way, our families both fully support my acting career. I wanted to quit thinking that my fans would leave me once they found out about my relationship with Katerina. I am happy to hear that they actually support it." Eric said as he smiled at the seats his fans had been allotted.

"Mr. Chan." A deep voice said, making the crowd turn their heads. "Send this message to Cedric and Ian. We are not to be messed with."

Before he could even react, Eric and the other guests were shocked to hear a loud gun shot ring through the cinema before chaos suddenly ensued and the man vanished among the fleeing audience.

In the VIP area, Eric fell. Slumped against the cinema seats, bleeding as Francesa ran over, struggling to get the bleeding to stop.