Chapter 783: Easy to Guess

[Chapter 783: Easy to Guess]

Eric and Jeffrey Katzenberg chatted until close to quitting time. With the weekend approaching, Katzenberg mentioned he had promised to take his family out for dinner and made an early exit.

Eric continued to sit in the cafe, waiting for the progress report from Firefly Electronics on their recent projects. The hardware projects for the MP3 player and the e-book reader had been underway for a year. However, due to various technical difficulties, like operating system development and processor chip design, progress on the e-book reader was slow.

In contrast, the development of the MP3 player was going much smoother. By the end of last year, Eric had obtained a prototype MP3 player from Firefly Electronics, which used a Toshiba 1.8-inch hard drive. It was a bit larger than a cigarette pack, with 270MB of memory, capable of storing about 50 songs. While the prototype's design and storage capacity were somewhat lacking, Eric was pleased that Firefly Electronics had registered the full set of patent technologies for the MP3 player. This ensured there wouldn't be any unclear ownership of MP3 player patents in the future. Even if the MP3 player were to be completely phased out, any future electronic devices, like mobile phones that utilized MP3-related music playback technology, would still have to pay patent fees to Firefly Electronics.

...

After flipping through the latest evening newspaper and patiently waiting for over half an hour, the cafe door swung open, and three women walked in, chatted and laughing.

Eric looked up to see it was Caroline, Melanie Gleason, and Rachel Weisz. All three were dressed casually in jeans and carrying bags, embodying a relaxed vibe as if they were heading out for a shopping spree. Rachel had just wrapped filming Titanic but needed to stay in Los Angeles to assist with some voiceover work, so it made sense she was out with Caroline and Melanie. Eric wasn't surprised to see them together.

Caroline spotted Eric looking their way first, smiled shyly, and the three women greeted him as they walked over.

Eric asked the waiter to bring a fresh pot of coffee and pour it for the girls. He then inquired to Caroline, who had taken a seat across from him, "So, are you all going shopping?"

Caroline rummaged through her bag for a folder. Upon hearing Eric's question, she nodded and replied, "Yeah, we don't have to get up early for work tomorrow, so we're planning to catch a movie tonight."

Eric responded, "Oh, I don't have any plans tonight; how about you bring me along?"

Before Caroline could respond, Melanie and Rachel chimed in unison, "No way."

Caroline blinked her innocent big eyes, looking left and right, uncertain of how to reply. She understood her friends' intentions -- they didn't want her to get too close to Eric, the notorious flirt. But it seemed obvious Eric was just joking around, so she wondered why they were reacting so strongly.

Eric shrugged and chuckled, "Alright, but does anyone else feel like I suddenly have two rivals for affection?"

At the mention of "rivals," Caroline's cheeks turned bright red.

Rachel, being a bit more bold and less intimidated by Eric due to their limited interactions, hugged Caroline and playfully pecked her on the cheek, stating, "Eric, Caroline's already mine; you can't just ruin someone else's love life."

"Rachel, let go of me; it's not like that!" Caroline, aware they were all joking, still shyly pushed Rachel away while adding an explanation.

Taking the folder that Caroline handed over, Eric waved his hand, saying, "Just deliver the report; you girls can head off now. I won't interrupt your girls' night out."

Caroline pulled on Rachel, who was about to get up, and reached into her bag to pull out a small box the size of a palm. "Eric, there's also this. It just got sent over from San Francisco this morning."

Eric took the box and glanced at the Seagate logo on it, guessing its contents. He opened it to find a postage stamp-sized micro hard drive inside.

As Eric examined the micro hard drive, Caroline explained, "This is a sample developed by Seagate with a capacity of 256MB. Their attached materials say they'll have a new 512MB product by the end of the year. Our electronics company has already started designing control chips based on the samples provided by Seagate. We expect to have a finished product by the second half of the year, and Yahoo's music store has also started its internal testing phase. Mr. Victor McNally, who oversees the electronics department, mentioned in a memo that the company can start considering the next phase of product release and promotion."

After playing with it for a moment, Eric returned the micro hard drive to the box and stated, "There's no rush on this. Let's wait for a more stable 512MB product before we think about the next steps. I'll look through this material over the weekend and will call Victor to discuss it."

With the player's storage reaching 512MB, it would hold enough for about ten albums, making it a clear step above traditional players. Any smaller capacity would not draw enough consumer interest.

After Eric's remarks, he noticed Caroline nodding, her big eyes shining as she looked at him, seemingly waiting for him to say something else. "Is there anything else?"

"Nope," Caroline instinctively shook her head.

Eric couldn't help but chuckle at the thought that with just one silly hairpin on her head, Caroline would fit right into a cartoon world. He teased, "Then you can head off. Or do you really want me to join you for the movie tonight?"

As those words left his mouth, Rachel and Melanie giggled and got up, their cheeks flushed, pulling Caroline with them as they said their goodbyes and left the cafe.

...

Mission: Impossible 2 was also confirmed to be filmed in Australia, and Drew had recently gone there with Amy Pascal for a site visit. After the Oscars, Julia Roberts returned to the UK to continue filming Shakespeare in Love, with Elisabeth following her. Nicole and Famke Janssen were also nowhere to be found in Los Angeles. Once Caroline and the others left, Eric realized he was going to have to spend another weekend alone.

The pre-production preparations for Casino Royale were almost complete. According to the schedule, Eric would have to leave Los Angeles next month to personally visit the confirmed main filming locations before the movie began shooting. Shooting a Bond film always required traveling to various places around the world, and this time was no different. The planned filming locations included the UK, Italy, the Czech Republic, and the Bahamas. Eric's past films, even Jurassic Park, had concentrated filming locations, so this movie presented a challenge for him.

As April got busy, Eric anticipated that he wouldn't have another break until the end of the year when Casino Royale wrapped up. He was contemplating how to spend the last free weekend he had, when his phone on the table buzzed.

...

A few minutes later, Eric's ride pulled up alongside the studio, and the door opened from the inside. He waved over to the two tall girls standing by the street, "Hop in."

Gisele Bundchen and Alessandra Ambrosio entered the car one after the other. Alessandra pulled the door shut with a hint of frustration as she glanced at Gisele, who was leaning in to hug Eric.

Patting Gisele on her soft waist, Eric let her go and then smiled at Alessandra, asking, "What brings you both to Los Angeles?"

Eric was actually more curious about how the two girls managed to have Kepler contact him, as he wasn't one to easily share his contact information with just anyone; Gisele and Alessandra did not have his phone number.

However, thinking it over, this matter was likely pushed by their respective agencies. Most famous models held separate acting contracts with Hollywood talent agencies, and the connection between modeling and acting agencies remained tight. Kepler probably just did a favor for someone.

"Our company set us up for two weeks of short-term acting training right here in Santa Monica; we've already been here for five days," Gisele mentioned, her voice still carrying a slight rasp, hinting at her excitement and a touch of longing to see Eric again.

She and Alessandra had come to Los Angeles hoping to see Eric easily but soon realized just how far he really was from them.

They could see his name in countless newspapers and magazines, hear people discussing him everywhere, and feel his influence permeating the city, but actually meeting him was a completely different story. Just days ago, they had secretly approached Malibu to catch a glimpse of that infamous mansion that so many dreamt about. They had contemplated knocking on the door but ultimately lacked the courage, fearing they'd appear too forward and put Eric off.

Eventually, it was the high-level representatives from both agencies who initiated this discussion that led to the arrangement.

Noticing the slight disappointment in Gisele's tone, Eric chuckled lightly, choosing not to say much. While the girls' roles in Casino Royale would merely be fleeting, he certainly wouldn't oppose anyone treating this matter with seriousness.

Checking his watch, Eric instructed the driver to head for Venice Beach, telling the girls, "It just so happens to be dinner time, so let's grab a bite, and maybe we could invite Miranda to join us so you can all meet."

Eric hadn't mentioned anything about Miranda Kerr, and this seemingly trivial arrangement hadn't been on Gisele and Alessandra's agency's radar.

Seeing the puzzled expression on the two girls' faces, Eric clarified, "Her name is Miranda Kerr; she'll be joining us for the shoot."

Alessandra couldn't help but express her disappointment, "Three of us?"

It wasn't because they worried about sharing attention during a minor scene; to them, that moment symbolized so much more. Bringing in another person meant an additional contender for future opportunities.

According to information from their agency, after completing a five-year contract, Cindy Crawford and Linda Evangelista, the original supermodels, would not be renewing their contracts with Victoria's Secret. Aside from age considerations, it mostly was due to their commitment to their respective reality shows. At that point, Gisele and Alessandra would each have the chance to compete for a spot, making this unexpected appearance of someone named Miranda Kerr raise some alarm bells for them.

However, Eric's next comment had the girls feeling even more uneasy.

"It's not three; it's four."

"Ah..."

Even Gisele, the ever-composed one, found herself a bit rattled and gasped in surprise.

Eric enjoyed teasing the two stunning models a bit and opted not to elaborate further.

Once the car reached Venice Beach, Eric chose a cozy restaurant with good privacy and then instructed the driver to go pick up Miranda Kerr.

...

Miranda had been staying with a mid-level Firefly manager's family residing in Santa Monica, and she had already joined the local high school. After several auditions, she landed a recurring role in a family sitcom on Disney Channel, thus settling in Los Angeles.

Half an hour later, as Eric casually chatted with Gisele and Alessandra, Miranda walked in, led by a waiter.

She was instantly on guard upon seeing Eric and the two unfamiliar girls sitting beside him but quickly warmed up as she playfully made her way over to Eric.

"Stop it, we have company," Eric quickly got up, catching the girl's soft frame and gently seating her next to him.

Although he had specifically chosen a booth, it was still not completely private, and making too much noise would catch attention.

Miranda sat down neatly, casting a glance at the two girls across from her, who were also assessing her, before quickly turning her focus back to Eric, with a hint of pretentious sadness, "You haven't contacted me in almost a month. I thought you might have forgotten me."

"You know I've been busy," Eric offered in explanation as he reached for the menu, gesturing for the girls to start ordering.

As the waiter with a hint of envy in his eyes walked away, the atmosphere in the booth became slightly awkward.

"Right, this is Gisele Bundchen and Alessandra Ambrosio. They're both from Brazil. And this is Miranda Kerr; she's from Australia," Eric took the initiative to introduce the three girls to each other, thinking it was quite a gathering of top models from the early century.

"Hello," Miranda waved at the other two from her seat beside Eric.

Initially wanting to get up and shake hands with Miranda, Gisele and Alessandra both returned to their seats, waving modestly in response.

After brief exchanges, Miranda keenly sensed Gisele and Alessandra's cautious demeanor around Eric and realized their relationship with him wasn't as close as hers. This stirred a subtle feeling of superiority in her, prompting her to ask, "So, the three of us will be appearing in that scene together?"

"No, it's four," Alessandra, seated across from Miranda, added, noticing her confusion about the situation.

Miranda looked questioningly at Eric.

Eric chuckled and said, "Guess who the last one is. It's easy to guess."

*****

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