Chapter 232: Of Course, It's Different

[Chapter 232: Of Course, It's Different]

"Alright, stop arguing," Elisabeth said after a moment of thought. "I think we should give it a shot."

The little girl chimed in immediately, "This is the script selected by a Best Picture nominee for the last Oscars! It has to be good, and if you all agree, I'll ask Eric to take a look at it."

When Julia heard Drew say that, she quickly suggested, "Drew, didn't Eric help you acquire a bunch of adaptation rights? Why not pick one from there? Those were all his choices, so they have to be better than this one, right?"

"No way," the little girl shook her head. "Those rights belong to my Flower Films."

"Don't you also have stake in TG?" Julia asked, feeling discontent.

Drew replied, "Of course, it's different! Flower Films was given to me by Eric."

Julia paused, feeling a bit envious, but she didn't know how to counter that.

"Alright, Julia, I think we've made our decision. Let's go ahead and make our debut film The Silence of Lambs."

Julia grabbed a cushion and hugged it to herself, curling up on the couch. "Anyway, I'm not playing the lead."

Elisabeth and Drew exchanged glances, silently communicating. Elisabeth then said, "In that case, let's vote. Who agrees that Julia should play the lead?"

The little girl and Elisabeth immediately raised their right hands in a theatrical manner.

"You guys..." Julia rolled her eyes in exasperation.

Elisabeth looked at Julia's stubborn expression and, with a gleam in her eye, suggested, "By the way, if you disagree, Drew and I will find someone else to convince you."

Julia immediately thought of Eric's annoying face. She jumped up, tossing the cushion aside in anger. "You... How can you bully me like this?"

"So, does that mean you agree?" Elisabeth said with a victorious grin.

Julia sulked, "I have to ask my agent first."

Elisabeth reassured her, "The Clarice character isn't a villain or a fool. I'm sure Mr. Hyde will agree. Besides, don't think we don't know; in Hollywood, once you reach your level, agents can only suggest. They can no longer control your script choices. You're obviously trying to dodge the issue; why bother asking your agent? I'd say that guy has better taste. We could consult him."

"Fine, fine, I agree! Is that enough?" Julia finally relented.

"Then I'll have Eric take a look at the script for us tonight," Drew said, flashing a triumphant smile. Just as she was about to tuck the script away, Elisabeth suddenly put her hand on top of it. "Let me do it. I'll be filming Sleepless in Seattle soon, so I'll have more time for him to help us out."

"You?" Drew looked at Elisabeth curiously. Did she see a hint of hesitation? "Didn't you say Eric didn't want to help you choose scripts?"

Elisabeth quickly replied, "Haven't we already decided? Plus, Julia is definitely getting a piece of the film's profits based on her salary, so the investment for this movie isn't that high. Even if it flops, it won't matter. I'm just going to ask him for advice. I don't think Eric would be stingy with that. Besides, if you take it to him, you'll need another excuse. If you're not careful, he might just discover you're involved in our film company!"

Drew contemplated that and then nodded, "That works too. It'll save me from going back, only for Eric to complain about me skipping out."

Elisabeth sighed with relief. If the little girl returned to find the villa filled with gasoline and any clues linking her to it, that would be disastrous. She wasn't really worried about how Drew would react; she simply didn't want this embarrassing situation to become public. If it weren't for the fact that she had been out all night, Elisabeth wouldn't have shared any details with Julia.

With that settled, the little girl glanced at Elisabeth's robe, suddenly inspired. She stood up, took off her T-shirt, and puffed out her little chest, saying, "Since we're doing this, I'll also take a shower. If only I could rent a place of my own! The dorms are just uncomfortable. Julia, why not get a bigger villa? You can afford it!"

"No way! A bigger place would feel too empty. You guys wouldn't stay long-term, so this size is just right," Julia immediately refused.

The little girl shrugged and didn't say more as she walked away.

Once the bathroom door closed, Julia quietly asked, "Hey, Liz, are you still going to see Eric?"

"What else am I supposed to do?" Elisabeth shook the script. "I can't let Drew go back and find the villa filled with gasoline, can I? Besides, if anyone should feel guilty, it should be that jerk. Isn't he the one trying to run away? I'm going to stick close to him and make sure he can't relax."

Julia couldn't help but envision Eric's frazzled state when faced with Elisabeth, and she teased, "Liz, you're so wicked."

Elisabeth tossed her hair over her shoulder without a hint of shame, "Of course!"

...

Even so, it wasn't until the next afternoon that Elisabeth finally made her way to Firefly Films' office. The staff there all knew she was Eric's new assistant, and her relationship with him was more than casual. So, Elisabeth had no trouble reaching Eric's office. After hesitating for a moment, she raised her hand to knock but then reconsidered. Instead, she gently turned the door knob and tiptoed inside.

"Jeffrey, I've reviewed the set photos. The indoor scenes are fine, but there's one thing missing in Jonah's room - a pod chair. Just tell the props master the name, and that'll do... Alright. I'll sketch something and fax it over shortly. The indoor setup is no problem. However, the exterior of the cabin feels a bit empty. Just placing a single set of chairs underneath the eaves makes it look lonely. Let's add a couple of large flower pots there, wooden ones, to..." Eric was deep in conversation when he noticed something out of the corner of his eye, and instinctively looked up to find Elisabeth standing there. He dropped the microphone in shock, which clattered to the floor.

Feeling a mix of nerves, Elisabeth saw Eric's stunned expression as he regarded the microphone he'd just dropped, and she felt a wave of relief wash over her. She pulled up a chair and gracefully seated herself in front of Eric, noticing him glance around nervously. With a smirk, she asked, "What happened? Are you planning to escape through the window this time? It's not like this building is too high, but a fall could still crush some bones, right?"

Eric managed a weak smile, bending down to pick up the mic and hold it to his ear. "...Jeffrey, it's nothing. I just dropped the microphone... Yeah, I have something urgent to handle, so I'll call you back later, alright? Let's just leave it at that."

After hanging up, Eric found himself at a loss for words. What had happened the night before was supposed to be just a one-night stand, but now the girl was on the verge of marriage? The thought horrified him.

Even if he had gone through everything in his previous life, he was still under twenty in this life. There was no way he should be getting tied down in marriage this early on.

Even though the culture was quite open before marriage, both the societal climate and public opinion demanded strict fidelity from married couples.

If he were single, maintaining relationships with multiple women would only earn him some teasing, but no one could really do anything about it. However, if he were married and did the same, he would be hit with public scorn.

As someone hoping to live the life of a playboy, Eric certainly didn't want to go against public opinion. That would be utterly foolish; thus he had no thoughts of getting married any time soon. Which is why he had fled that morning. While it was a bit cruel, he had no other way to deal with a woman fixated on a certain idea.

"Why is it so quiet?" Elisabeth eyed Eric, her confidence rising.

"What should I say?" Eric chuckled awkwardly. "I can't exactly thank you for not burning down my villa yesterday, can I?"

Elisabeth huffed, "Hmph, I just didn't find the lighter. You got lucky this time."

"Uh..."

While Elisabeth cornered Eric, she had no intentions of pressing too hard. After all, she didn't want to linger on that topic herself. "What were you doing just now?"

Noticing her attempt to change the subject, Eric quickly replied, "Nothing. I was discussing the set for Sleepless in Seattle with Jeffrey. I have so many things on my mind that I had to leave these details to him. He's currently making the final arrangements in Seattle."

"Oh," Elisabeth nodded.

"Hey, do you still want to continue being my assistant?" Eric tentatively asked.

"Why not?" Elisabeth's tone immediately brightened. "And also, you can forget about any of that... stuff."

"Of course," Eric nodded vigorously. He'd rather be a hermit his whole life than engage with a woman trying to trap him into marriage.

"I came here today for something else, too," Elisabeth said, pulling the script for The Silence of Lambs from her bag. "Here, give me your thoughts. I've decided to make this movie next year, so you don't need to evaluate its box office potential or take responsibility for profits and losses. Just give me some guidance."

Eric took the script, but just as he was about to tell her he would review it when he had the chance, he caught sight of the name on the cover and was immediately taken aback.

*****

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