Chapter 77: Covered in Lipstick

Chapter 77

Martin's acceptance speech was a hit, and it didn't stop the audience from giving him the warmest applause as he made his way back to his seat.

Nicole stopped him first, a bright smile on her face. "Congratulations, Martin!"

Tom Cruise, always the supportive friend, stood up to hug him. "Congratulations, Martin!" His gesture of goodwill was clear, and Martin couldn't help but appreciate it.

"Thanks!" Martin replied, his smile genuine.

With the two industry giants showing their support, Martin's journey back to his seat seemed longer than usual. Everywhere he turned, people wanted to congratulate him, some even seizing the opportunity to plant a kiss on his cheek.

By the time he reached his seat, everyone seemed to be smiling at him, and the cameras swung over to capture the moment.

"Martin, your face!" Bruce Willis pointed at him, trying to suppress a grin.

Martin, puzzled, quickly borrowed a small mirror from Toni Collette, who was already grinning broadly. He took a look at his face and saw it covered in lipstick marks.

"I knew it, I knew they had bad intentions!" Martin exclaimed with mock annoyance, pulling a handkerchief from his coat pocket and vigorously wiping his face.

The live broadcast caught the moment perfectly, capturing the laughter that rippled through the audience, making it one of the most memorable scenes of the night.

Next came the awards for Best Actor, and despite the slim chances, Bruce Willis remained hopeful. Yet, his optimism was dashed as Roberto Benigni of Life is Beautiful took home the statue. The disappointment continued as Shyamalan, Martin's director, lost the Best Director award to Steven Spielberg, a giant of Hollywood. The Best Picture award went to Shakespeare in Love, and with 13 nominations, it ended up winning 8 statuettes.

Harvey Weinstein's public relations skills were on full display as Shakespeare in Love swept the evening. If you included The Sixth Sense, that brought the total number of statuettes won by Harvey's films to 9.

As the ceremony wrapped up, Martin joined his agent Jeff, who had been sitting in the back row. Upon hearing that Martin had won Best Supporting Actor, Jeff had been so excited he danced around, drawing the envious eyes of his colleagues.

"Martin, there's a dinner party later. Do you want to go?" Jeff asked, now composed.

"Forget it, I'm a little tired," Martin replied. "I want to go home and share this honor with Grant and Linda."

"Okay, I'll take you back."

After taking some routine photos and answering a few interviews, Jeff politely declined invitations to various after-parties, explaining that Martin was young and needed rest. The two of them left for Martin's home on 222 Buren Street.

---

Upon entering the house, Martin was greeted with a surprising celebration. Fireworks erupted from either side of the door, courtesy of his Uncle Frank and father Grant.

"Why are you here?" Martin asked, stunned.

"To celebrate our little genius becoming the youngest Oscar winner in history!" Frank said, grinning widely, tossing confetti over Martin's head.

"Well, I'm glad you're here," Martin said, his grin stretching across his face.

"Come on, everyone! Let's eat!" Frank announced. "We've got grilled lobster and Angus steak."

"Martin, come cut the cake!" Linda added.

"Mom, is there cake today?" Martin asked, amused.

"Yes, your favorite—chocolate!" she replied.

"Wow, awesome!"

"Miranda, come on over!" Linda called to her guest.

Miranda walked over to Martin, her eyes filled with admiration. "Congratulations, Martin!" she said, clearly in awe.

"Are you staying in Los Angeles?" Martin asked casually, reaching out and holding Miranda's hand. They stood together by the cake, ready to cut it.

"Yes, I'm staying. I'll be working as a model," Miranda replied, blushing slightly at the intimate moment.

"Okay, if you need any help, just call me," Martin said with a smile.

"Thank you, Martin. I will."

The evening passed with laughter and celebration. Frank, Chris, and Miranda stayed at Martin's house that night. Miranda's room was on the second floor, right next to Martin's.

After taking a bath, Miranda wrapped herself in a towel and began drying her long brown hair with a blow dryer. As she walked out of the bathroom, she froze when she saw Martin lying casually on her bed, the Oscar statuette beside him.

"Why are you here?" she asked, surprised.

Martin turned over with a grin, waving at her. "I thought you might have trouble sleeping. Want me to tell you a bedtime story?"

Miranda rolled her eyes, clearly not amused. "I'm not a child anymore."

She picked up the Oscar statuette from the bed and examined it closely, commenting, "You just throw things that others would consider treasures everywhere, okay?"

Martin smiled, his eyes gleaming with mischief. "To be honest, it's just a copper bump. It's attached to my name, but that's about it. I've already put it on the shelf. To me, this statuette doesn't mean as much as the manuscripts and music scores I've written."

"Then why are you here with it?" Miranda asked, raising an eyebrow.

Martin shrugged, "I noticed you kept glancing at it while we were eating. Thought you might be interested, so I brought it over for you to take a better look."

Miranda's face flushed, realizing that she hadn't been looking at the statuette at all, but rather at Martin beside it.

Suddenly, Martin sat up, snatched the statuette from her hand, and tossed it aside. He moved toward her, taking her hand and sitting her down gently on the bed. "I've changed my mind," he said, his voice low. "What's so special about that thing? It's not as beautiful as you... or as handsome as me."

Before Miranda could react, Martin playfully pulled her down onto the bed with him. She gasped, "Ah, my bath towel!"

Martin quickly covered her mouth with his hand. "Shh, keep it down. Do you want to attract everyone?"

Miranda gazed up at Martin, her breath catching as she felt the closeness between them. The air between them felt thick with unspoken tension, and for a moment, neither of them moved.

[•———•——•———•]

𝙥𝗮𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙤𝙣(.)𝙘𝙤𝙢/𝙂𝙤𝙙𝙊𝙛𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧

✨ • 𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝙂𝙚𝙩 𝟲𝟬+ 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙚𝙡𝙨𝙚.