Chapter 371: Out of Line

[Chapter 371: Out of Line]

This was Eric's first time giving himself a gift. Nicole curiously lifted her head and asked, "What is it?"

"You'll find out soon enough," Eric replied with a smile.

Nicole pursed her lips and shot a glance at Eric, rolling her eyes.

After a leisurely lunch, Eric led the young woman to his study and handed her a folder he had pulled from the bookshelf as she sat down on the sofa.

Nicole squeezed the folder a bit before opening it, pulling out a large set of keys first.

"Are these keys?" Nicole asked, bewildered.

"It's an apartment in Manhattan's Upper East Hydee," Eric explained, "There's also a check inside for the 8 million I borrowed from you a while back."

Surprised, Nicole dumped the contents of the folder onto the table. Along with the check and the apartment's title deed, there were several photos of the apartment. From the pictures, it looked to be a duplex of over 2000 square feet, decorated in a simple and warm color scheme.

"So, the rumors during this time were true?" she commented while flipping through the photos.

Eric, puzzled, asked, "Rumors? What rumors?"

"Many people were saying you made a ton of money off the oil crisis."

"I did make some," Eric vaguely replied.

Nicole raised an eyebrow, holding up the photos and smirking, "Surely you made more than just 'some'; a duplex on the Upper East Hydee doesn't come cheap, and... do others also know?"

Eric replied, "I just wanted to raise more funds at the time, so I borrowed from you all. I didn't expect someone to be so generous later on, so I figured it was an investment for all of us. This apartment was bought with your principal investment; you and Vicky are the only ones who have this." He added with a hint of bitterness, "To be honest, it's pretty pathetic; you're the only ones who could lend me money."

"That really shows how unpopular you are," Nicole teased, quickly asking, "Julia Roberts must be the richest one, right? She got 8 million just for that film Sleeping With The Enemy."

Eric shrugged, saying, "When I went to see her, Liz was also there. When I mentioned borrowing money, they thought I was joking and kicked me out."

Nicole paused and then burst into joyful laughter.

Eric showed a helpless expression. Although Julia eventually learned he wasn't joking, by that time, he had already secured significant funding from other investors, making her couple of million insignificant, so he hadn't pursued her for it.

"Well, since it's money I earned myself, I'll accept it," Nicole quickly said, putting everything back into the folder.

Seeing Nicole putting things away, Eric asked, "By the way, what brings you here today?"

After just organizing a pile of scattered items, Nicole turned sulky again, saying, "It's really hard to see you these days."

"Alright then, let's talk business," Eric said, unable to stand the sad look on her face.

Nicole thought for a moment before asking, "Did you hear about Spielberg's recent movie?"

Eric thought for a bit before asking, "The one based on Peter Pan, Hook?"

Nicole nodded. "I've already auditioned for the role of Tinkerbell, but there were many competitors. Can you help me out? I really want this role. It shouldn't be too hard for you, right?"

Eric recalled seeing news about Hook during certain newspaper readings. This film was an idea Spielberg had since childhood, tirelessly working on the script over the years. It had finally been greenlit under the new Sony Pictures. It was yet another ambitious project by the deep-pocketed Japanese investors, and the prospects of this film were deemed quite promising, with one professional film magazine analyzing that it could make at least $200 million in profits.

However, Eric knew that the film's performance ultimately turned out to be lackluster. The production and promotion cost exceeded $100 million, and North American box office sales barely made over that amount. The film barely managed to break even through overseas distribution, and the reviews were abysmal, with critics claiming it was a hodgepodge of expensive special effects and nonsensical fantasy.

"Nicole, while this movie is funded by Sony, Spielberg is the one calling the shots. I don't have much of a relationship with him, and I had previously turned down his request for the rights to Jurassic Park..." As Eric spoke, he noticed Nicole's expression shifting from disappointment to resentment, then to grievance. "Um, you..."

"So you don't want to help me," Nicole said, her voice dropping in disappointment.

"Well, this film also..."

Nicole immediately cut Eric off, raising her voice, "You just don't want to help me!"

Eric tried to gesture for her to listen, saying, "Just hear me out, this film..."

"Enough," Nicole looked at Eric with watery eyes, "Why are you always so harsh on me? What did I do wrong? Why are you so nice to all those other women? Just recently, you went out of your way to secure a comedy for that girl, and now everyone knows about it. And Julia Roberts -- what makes her better than me? You prepared three box-office hits for her! Do you know what it means to have three consecutive blockbuster hits in Hollywood? She's untouchable, and how about Drew? A 15-year-old producer! And me? I've always listened to you; when you told me to switch agents, I did it right away. When you needed money, I lent you my overdraft credit card. Did you know that? They all have their own houses now, and many of them were bought by you! Meanwhile, I'm still living in a rented villa. Tell me, where did I go wrong? I only asked you to say a few words for me, and you're trying to weasel out of it..."

As she spoke, she curled up in the armchair and began to sob.

The situation caught Eric off guard. He never realized how much resentment Nicole had been building up inside her.

"Alright, Nicole, stop crying. I'll call right now and definitely help you get this role," Eric squatted down next to her and patted her arm.

Nicole swatted Eric's hand away, burying her face in her arms and continuing to cry like a sulking child, "I don't want it anymore. You jerk, you're such a jerk."

"Okay, I'm sorry. I've been kind of unfair, neglecting your feelings," Eric took one of Nicole's hands and comforted her, "I honestly thought you were so capable that you wouldn't be like the others who always made me worry."

"You're just making excuses. You're biased," Nicole accused without raising her head.

"Alright, I won't argue. I'm wrong," Eric quickly apologized.

"I don't want your pity, you jerk."

"Yeah, I'm a jerk."

After a while, Eric managed to calm her down and began dialing numbers, one by one, in front of Nicole.

Though Hook wasn't likely to further her career, it also wouldn't harm it either; after all, it was a globally influential film. Even if it failed, the blame wouldn't fall on the lead actress. The film had numerous avenues for impact, and if it barely returned through various channels, it's largely thanks to Spielberg's name. Since Nicole wanted a shot at it, they would go for it.

After making a few calls, Eric set the phone down. "I just reached Spielberg. He happens to be in Los Angeles. I've invited him to come to the estate for lunch tomorrow."

Nicole had recovered from her earlier outburst, now holding a few tissues, cleaning up her smeared makeup. When she heard Eric's words, she simply pouted, still curled up on the sofa.

"Now let's talk properly," Eric sat facing Nicole.

Nicole's expression turned anxious, like a suspect at a trial. She stammered, "I... I need to go to the restroom."

"Okay," Eric nodded, watching her stand and practically dash to the bathroom. It took a while for her to come out, her previously tied-up hair now tumbling over her shoulders and her eyes slightly red, giving her a more delicate appearance.

Once seated across from Eric, he straightforwardly asked, "Nicole, you like me, right?"

"I... don't," Nicole immediately replied.

Eric pretended he didn't hear her and continued, "I used to struggle with this, but now I'm certain."

"So what if I do? You don't like me. You're just... a jerk who plays with my feelings."

"Not that severe, right?"

Nicole pointed at the desk not far away, "It's sitting right there. Do you seriously not remember?"

"Ahem, that, that was just once."

"Twice. And once at the villa in Beverly Hills," Nicole immediately countered.

"Alright, two times. I think it's best if we don't talk about that right now."

"Humph!"

...

The entire afternoon, the young woman acted like a scorned wife, recounting Eric's previous "wrongdoings". Even until bedtime, she was still sulking.

"I don't want to do anything with you tonight. You're not allowed to cross this line in the middle," the young woman, wearing nothing but Eric's T-shirt as pajamas, gestured at the bed between them as a warning.

Eric helplessly turned off the light and lay down on the other side, saying, "You know, Nicole, what you just said was a bad joke."

In the darkness, Nicole huffed in response.

Eric continued, "So there's this man and woman on a date. They stay at a motel, and the girl, being very reserved, drew a line in between them, saying if the boy crossed it, he would be a beast."

Upon reaching here, Eric deliberately paused.

Nicole obviously hadn't heard this widely circulated joke online in the past. After a long while of silence, she finally couldn't resist asking, "So... what happened later?"

"The boy stayed on his side all night without crossing the line."

"Oh," Nicole replied as she turned, complaining, "That's lame."

Eric chuckled, "I'm not finished! When they woke up, the girl saw the boy sleeping neatly on the other side and not crossing the line at all, so she reached out and slapped him, saying: 'You're worse than a beast.'"

Nicole paused before bursting out in laughter, reaching out her long leg to kick Eric playfully, "You jerk, you can say ten bad jokes, and you still won't get anywhere with me tonight."

Eric laughed, "Of course, it's just a harmless joke."

Nicole huffed again, saying, "Sleep now."

"Okay, sleep well."

Both closed their eyes and unknowingly drifted off to sleep. When Nicole woke up, she found herself being held by Eric.

"You beast," she immediately scolded as Eric woke, though there was more playful annoyance in her tone.

...

Close to noon, a Lincoln car drove into the estate. Eric, who had been waiting for some time, quickly went to greet Spielberg. As Spielberg got out of the car, he embraced Eric like an old friend, saying, "Eric, long time no see."

"It's been a while. How have you been, Steven?"

"Not too bad," Spielberg exchanged a few pleasantries with Eric before turning to Nicole, who was standing beside him, "This must be the beautiful Ms. Kidman. I've seen your audition tape."

"Thank you, Mr. Spielberg," Nicole politely shook his hand, and after a brief exchange, Eric took Spielberg into the villa.

Lunch had been prepared by a chef they had brought in. Spielberg had just recently gone through a divorce, so there were only the three of them at the dining table.

Initially, the three didn't discuss anything regarding Hook. They started commenting on the lunch and shared many recent interesting stories from Hollywood.

After more than half an hour, with lunch almost finished, Eric finally broached the topic. "Steven, the lead actress for Hook hasn't been set yet, right?"

Spielberg glanced at Nicole with a slightly strange look before nodding, "Yes, Eric."

"Then what do you think of Nicole?" Eric didn't beat around the bush; after all, he would undoubtedly owe Spielberg a favor today. Given Spielberg's willingness to personally visit, securing the role should be straightforward.

"Ms. Kidman's performance is outstanding," Spielberg genuinely said, having seen Nicole's audition tape. "However, Eric, there are a few other issues. Another actress among the candidates is also quite competitive."

Eric thought for a moment and quickly recalled another young woman in the lineup.

*****

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