Caught Off Guard

Elliot had been hiding his actions earlier, aiming to avoid startling anyone and secretly catch sight of Scarlett. Now that Renly had spotted him, although a bit regretful for not catching Renly and Scarlett in a secret rendezvous—which Elliot had already assumed as fact—he figured there would be other opportunities. He didn't believe Scarlett could keep everything hidden forever.

For now, Elliot decided to drop the pretense. He turned around and brazenly started taking photos. Whether Scarlett showed up or not, the news of Renly and Paul coming to Oahu for surfing was still good enough. 

He could write that Renly was getting along harmoniously with the crew and had become close friends with Paul. Or he could spin it the other way, saying Renly had fallen out with the crew, abandoned Vin Diesel, and formed a small clique with Paul. What to write next would depend on Renly's behavior.

Elliot calmly met Renly's gaze, even slightly raising his chin as if to greet him, before lifting his camera again to focus on Renly. This time, at last, he could openly take pictures and hoped to capture something good. Wait, what was Renly doing? Was he… waving?

Elliot lowered his camera, eyes wide in disbelief, only to see Renly with a faint smile on his face, raising his right hand and giving a small wave to greet him.

But why? Why would Renly greet him? Caught off guard, Elliot suddenly felt flustered, looking around to confirm no one else was around. Yes, Renly's greeting was directed at him! This made Elliot feel unexpectedly uneasy.

He glanced back at Renly and saw that his eyebrow was slightly raised, the corners of his smile curving upward a little more. There was a playful glint in Renly's eyes, as if he found Elliot's nervous glancing around amusing. 

What was up with Renly? Elliot blinked rapidly, revealing the tension building inside him.

Nobody likes paparazzi—there's no denying that. If Hollywood figures were to make a "most hated" list, paparazzi might not take the top spot, but they'd definitely be in the top three.

Just look at how many celebrities have lost their composure and yelled at paparazzi.

Sean Penn had lashed out at paparazzi several times, even landing one of them in the hospital. And that's an extreme case! Even a nice guy like Will Smith once slapped a paparazzo. Dustin Hoffman was cornered by paparazzi to the point where he hid behind a garbage can to avoid being seen.

Even someone as gentle as Jennifer Garner was once driven to flip off the paparazzi. And Gwyneth Paltrow, who is always mindful of her public image, was so enraged by paparazzi at a supermarket that she threw all her groceries at them.

The stories of celebrities versus paparazzi could probably fill a seven-book series like 'Harry Potter'.

Nobody likes paparazzi, and no one likes being photographed without their knowledge.

Yet here was Renly, waving at him! It was a situation beyond belief. If Elliot didn't know for sure that this wasn't a setup arranged by some PR agent, he might have thought Renly was welcoming him. The whole situation was just too strange!

Elliot was reminded of their last encounter. After the Emmys, he had tracked Renly down, capturing his street performance, only to be tricked into hailing a taxi for Renly, paying for the fare, and getting dropped off at an after-party, only to be left behind! Him, a feared paparazzo, utterly abandoned!

More accurately, he had been thoroughly toyed with! He had invested time and effort, only to come away with nothing. Worse, he had to run from security, a hardship that was hard to describe.

Now Elliot was even more on guard—was this about to happen again?

Renly had noticed the paparazzo taking photos from a distance. Initially, he thought it was just a fan who had recognized him or Paul, but upon closer inspection, he recognized that face—the kind-hearted paparazzo who had given him a lift to the after-party.

It was quite the coincidence to run into him again in Hawaii. It felt like meeting an old acquaintance, so Renly waved a casual hello.

Renly didn't particularly like paparazzi, but he also understood that being an actor came with the price of sacrificing one's privacy.

As a public figure, attention was part of the job. This was one of the reasons his family opposed his acting career—they valued mystery and privacy, something nobility protected fiercely. They didn't want to be scrutinized by commoners, and they certainly didn't want the family's secrets exposed.

The pressure the British royal family endured stemmed from this, and the global outcry following Princess Diana's death was proof enough.

For Hollywood figures, they needed to learn how to handle the spotlight properly. Complaining about it while basking in fame and fortune would be the height of hypocrisy.

Since the Toronto Film Festival, Renly had been adjusting to this new world. Figuring out how to manage the attention while protecting his privacy was a learning process.

To be honest, Renly didn't view paparazzi as villains. Like actors, they were just ordinary people with slightly different jobs—working hard to earn a living, like any "office worker." At least, most paparazzi were. They simply captured moments from behind their cameras, which weren't that powerful, especially in the age of smartphones when anyone could be a documenter.

In his previous life, Renly had studied journalism, so there was nothing mysterious about being a reporter. In fact, he found it quite familiar. He'd rather deal with the press than hordes of obsessive fans; at least journalists were more manageable.

Paparazzi were even easier to handle. They thrived on drama—the bloodier the better. The more explosive the story, the larger the headlines. But without drama, they'd lose interest. Drama is what paid their bills.

So Renly smiled and waved. To be fair, this was his first real encounter with paparazzi, and it felt somewhat novel.

Then Renly saw the paparazzo's utterly shocked expression, as if he'd seen a ghost. Renly couldn't help but chuckle and nudged Paul with his shoulder. "Look, there's a paparazzo over there."

"Where?" Paul lowered his binoculars and followed Renly's gaze.

"He doesn't look too happy. Probably because there's nothing newsworthy about the two of us just sitting here watching a game. Must be quite disappointing for him," Renly joked, making Paul laugh.

Paul saw Renly's gesture and followed suit, waving and smiling at the paparazzo. "I once had a paparazzo follow me to Santa Monica to catch me surfing. I ended up waiting for a wave for forty minutes. He got so bored he just left."

Paul's life was simple, even boring. That's why there wasn't much gossip about him in the tabloids. His life was too dull for paparazzi.

By comparison, Vin Diesel, who was constantly hounded by paparazzi, led a much more eventful life.

Then again, Vin's more scandalous lifestyle was part of why his career was more successful.

Paul's story made Renly laugh out loud. "I bet he's going to be just as disappointed today. All he's going to see is us watching the game, not even sneaking a drink—how boring."

André, who was sitting nearby, heard the conversation and glanced toward the paparazzo. "Why don't the two of you kiss right now? That'd make for some juicy headlines. I guarantee you'll be on the front page of every paper tomorrow."

Paul slapped his knee, laughing, while Renly rolled his eyes. "A kiss? That's not spicy enough. How about the three of us take off our shirts and put on a show right here on the beach? I bet even 'The Times' would clear their front page for that."

André was left speechless, staring at Renly in shock. Seeing Renly's deadpan expression, André admitted defeat. Yup, Renly was still Renly—he simply couldn't keep up with him.

Meanwhile, Elliot had taken a serious blow. Not only had the three of them not panicked, but they had greeted him with smiles and continued chatting and laughing. They even seemed to be enjoying themselves. 

What should he do? Should he keep taking photos? Should he interrupt them? Should he provoke them into making a mistake? Should he try to get under their skin and trigger a reaction?

Or should he just turn around and leave, escaping from Renly, the dangerous one?

The last option seemed the wisest. So Elliot stood up and took off, as if he had seen a T-Rex, disappearing into the bustling crowd on the beach.