"Hi Theron! Is now a good time?"
From the driver's seat of his Wrangler, Eric made a call.
"Eric, what's up?"
"How about we have dinner together? We can discuss the plot of inception."
"Hmm, sorry Eric, I'm a bit tired. I don't feel like going out tonight. I'll treat you to dinner another day."
"You sound a bit down. Is something wrong?" Eric asked, feigning ignorance.
Theron hesitated for a moment before saying, "Nothing, just a bit tired from filming. If there's nothing else, I need to hang up. I need to rest for a bit."
"Wait, after a day of filming, it's not good for your health to sleep without dinner. If you don't want to come out, I'll just bring some food over for you."
Hearing that Eric was coming over, Theron quickly refused: "No, it's too much trouble! I'm not hungry at all!"
"Is your boyfriend home?" Eric went straight to the point.
"He… he is… not home."
"Is he in, or not?"
"In."
"Really?"
Theron was silent for a while again before speaking: "No, he's not home."
"Alright, half an hour at most, wait for me!"
"No, Eric, you absolutely must not—"
"It's settled then!"
Hanging up the phone, Eric smiled. From her tone, he could sense her struggle.
And struggling precisely indicated that he was on her mind, and he had already shaken her boyfriend's position in her heart enough.
A few minutes later, seeing that no call came back, Eric was even more convinced of his idea.
If Theron really firmly didn't want him to come over, she would definitely call back to dissuade him, or even say some harsh words, but she didn't.
Her current state was like someone walking on a cliff edge; even if he applied just a little force, she could use it as an excuse to fall.
The Wrangler roared as Eric drove directly to Leonard's restaurant. The two had dined there many times, and Eric knew what she liked to eat.
Meanwhile, in Beverly Hills, at Charlize Theron's villa.
The woman leaned against the wall, slowly sliding down until she sat helplessly on the floor, her phone slipping from her palm.
A string of numbers was already displayed on the screen, but her finger ultimately didn't land on the dial button.
Sighing, Theron couldn't help but ask herself, what was wrong with her? What was she doing? How could she allow a man to come to her house?
The scary thing wasn't that this man was a stranger; it was precisely because he was so familiar.
They had spent over a month together, and she wasn't foolish; she naturally felt Eric's affection for her.
"Could it be that my subconscious has already accepted Eric's feelings? Otherwise, why would I tacitly allow him to come?"
"No, it's not like that. Eric is an investor, a producer, a player who holds power, and I'm just a card on the table."
"How can a card refuse a player? I'm just succumbing to his power."
"As for feelings, we are friends, and can only be friends. Tonight is just a dinner between friends, it doesn't mean anything."
"I can't betray Stuart. That's right, Stuart, I must tell him. If Eric sees him there, he will definitely back off."
Thinking this, Theron picked up her phone, found her boyfriend's number, and then her finger stopped on the dial button again.
Looking at the phone screen in front of her, her finger felt as heavy as a thousand pounds; she couldn't press it down.
A battle raged in her mind, and she didn't know how much time had passed until she suddenly heard the doorbell, which startled her awake.
Looking up at the time, Theron exclaimed, "Oh no, how did so much time pass? It must be Eric."
As if pushed by an invisible force again, she decisively dropped her phone, and the thought of informing her boyfriend was thrown to the wind.
Opening the door, it was indeed the young man who had been unsettling her.
Eric held up the paper bag in his hand: "Look at the logo, it's all your favorite dishes."
Theron said helplessly, "I told you you didn't need to come, Eric."
"But I'm already here. Aren't you going to invite me in?"
Theron took the bag: "Alright, for the sake of the food, at least you do remember what I like to eat."
Bang!
Eric walked into the house. It was his first time at Theron's place, and his goal instantly became clearer: to make this place his home in the future.
Pouring the food onto plates, Theron asked, "Need anything to drink? Coke? Juice? Wine?"
"Wine, of course. It's the perfect drink for this moment."
"Why?"
"The chef recommended it; this foie gras only tastes right with red wine. And your mood seems to need a bit of alcohol to numb it."
Theron's hand trembled violently: "What does that have to do with my mood?"
"Because it heard the sadness deep within you." Eric pointed to his ear.
The two stared at each other for several seconds. Under Eric's powerful gaze, Theron was defeated and quickly turned to walk to the wine cabinet.
"Uh, Harlan Estate, is that okay? Or Stag's Leap Wine Cellars?"
"Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, Cabernet Sauvignon is the king of grapes."
"King of grapes, perfectly suited for you, the King of Hollywood. Is that what you mean?"
Eric shook his head slightly: "King of Hollywood, haha. I don't like that title. That guy Harvey Weinstein can be called the Emperor of Hollywood; he completely tarnished that title."
"I heard Harvey Weinstein isn't a good person; there are rumors in the industry that he likes to act inappropriately with actresses."
"It's not a rumor, I can tell you accurately it's a fact. At least dozens of actresses have been sexually assaulted or threatened with sexual assault by him."
Hearing this, Theron was first surprised, then nodded knowingly. The industry was just this messed up, what could be done?
Carrying the food, they walked over and sat on the floor.
Theron suddenly asked, "Eric, you wouldn't be like Weinstein, would you?"
"Me? Do you think I need to be?" Eric retorted, pointing to his handsome face.
The two burst out laughing. Theron thought to herself that she had spent so much time alone with him; Eric had had ample opportunities. If he really wanted to force it, he would have done so already, but he hadn't.
Well, recently his courage seemed to be growing, no longer content with verbal teasing, he was starting to get physical.
But it wasn't annoying at all, as if he had broken through her defenses as subtly as a gentle rain.
"The wine needs half an hour to breathe, we can eat something first."
"Or watch a movie, I brought a DVD."
"Enough, with Jennifer Lopez? I like her." Theron took the disc and looked at it.
"What type of movie is this?"
"Thriller crime, suspenseful type. I haven't seen it either, the boss just gave it to me."
Actually, Eric knew, of course, that the movie involved domestic violence, where the husband abused his wife, and then the wife awakened, brutally beat and killed him in revenge, a satisfying revenge flick.
For Theron, this kind of movie was much more effective than a horror movie.
Turning on the DVD player, the Sony Columbia logo floated by, and the two ate while watching.
The movie was from last year, and the picture quality was very clear.
As the movie's plot progressed, the two had already put down their utensils. Theron frowned tightly, watching the TV screen with a pained expression.
Bang!
"OMG!"
As the scum husband broke his wife's ribs with a punch, even knowing it was a movie, past memories still attacked her.
Theron couldn't take it anymore, she turned her head away and closed her eyes.
Seeing this, Eric took the opportunity to lean in and put his arms around her.
The moment their bodies touched, he clearly felt Theron's body tremble, but she didn't resist.
The two held each other quietly, able to hear each other's heartbeats.
Eric didn't go any further. After a while, he said, "Don't be afraid, she's about to fight back against that scumbag."
Theron opened her eyes, moved slightly, and finding it ineffective, she stopped struggling, leaning against Eric's chest, her attention returning to the movie.
Finally, when the scumbag husband was taken down by his wife's punches, and the wife was ruled to have acted in self-defense, Theron finally smiled.
Eric took the opportunity to peck her on the cheek, and Theron trembled violently again.
Then, as if something moved, their four lips suddenly joined, and a pair of arms wrapped around Eric's neck, as the two passionately embraced and kissed.
Moist breaths filled the air, Eric savored Theron's taste, and their heavy breathing intertwined.
The kiss lasted for several minutes, as if to vent all the longing and desire accumulated during this time.
Suddenly, Eric felt a force against his chest; he was pushed to the ground, and Theron quickly stood up and retreated a few steps.
She waved her hands repeatedly: "Eric, what we're doing is wrong. I have a boyfriend, you know that."
"And Stuart hasn't betrayed me. Please don't push me anymore. I'm worried I really won't be able to control myself and betray him. I don't want to be the bad guy."
Eric smiled and motioned for Theron to calm down: "Okay, I respect your decision. I won't force you, okay? Don't worry."
Theron looked at Eric, breathing heavily: "Really?"
"Really, I promise what just happened won't happen again, okay?"
Theron nodded: "Okay, I… I'll go heat up the food, you wait a moment."
Seeing that she didn't dare to meet his gaze and found a clumsy excuse to escape, Eric couldn't help but chuckle to himself.
However, it seemed he still needed to push a little harder. He knew Theron was a relatively devoted woman.
With her beauty and status, it would be normal for her admirers to stretch from Los Angeles across the Atlantic to London.
But her scandals were actually very few, especially during her relationships, there were no rumors of cheating.
Were the tabloids not trying hard enough? Of course not, American entertainment media's business capabilities are top-notch globally.
The main reason was that they truly couldn't find anything; Theron was just that kind of woman.
And to truly win over such a woman, one had to put in more effort.
Afterward, the two drank the over-aerated red wine, ate the remaining food, and discussed the movie's plot.
After the passionate kiss they just shared, Eric could feel Theron's heart opening up even more; she began to talk about her most painful memory.
Her father abused her mother and her, and her mother, to protect her, chose to shoot her father.
They had been alone many times, but this was the first time Theron had brought up this topic.
Once the floodgates opened, the two drank cup after cup. Eric couldn't persuade her to stop and could only drink with her.
Then he held her in his arms again, smelling the alcohol on her breath, watching her eyelids grow heavy until she completely slumped into his embrace.
"Sigh! Sometimes it's hard to be a gentleman, especially when facing a beauty like you. But while your beauty diminishes my rationality, it also elevates my morality."
"How could I take advantage of you? Get some good sleep."
Eric muttered to himself as he picked up Theron, carried her to the second-floor bedroom, helped her take off her shoes, then placed her on the bed and covered her with a light quilt.
Looking at her exquisite face, he still couldn't resist leaning down and gently kissing Theron's forehead, then closed the door and left.
A moment later, hearing sounds from the kitchen downstairs, Theron slowly opened her eyes.
After a while, she saw Eric's departing figure through the curtains, and the corners of her mouth curved slightly upward.
She touched the spot on her forehead where she had been kissed, then her mind was filled with the shouts and arguments with her boyfriend from the past few days.
Theron shook her head and pulled the quilt over her head.
Seven days passed in a flash. During this time, Eric filmed diligently. On the day monster wrapped up, he didn't bother Theron again, only maintaining daily phone and text contact.
During this period, he also completed the script outline for inception, which he had been writing for over a month. He arranged for a script doctor to enrich it, and simultaneously tasked a producer to contact main actors like Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, and Tom Hardy.
As for Nicole, he naturally delivered it himself, taking the opportunity to go through the back door, clear the pipes, jingle some bells, sing an opera, and dance a jig.
And la vie en rose, after several months of script refinement, finally began filming. The most important director choice ultimately fell to Ron Howard.
Eric greatly admired and appreciated this master. He was known as Hollywood's most adept director at biographical films, having directed countless excellent works.
Just two years ago, he won an Oscar for Best Director with A Beautiful Mind. In short, entrusting it to him was absolutely reassuring.
He didn't participate in the script for supernatural, only providing the concept.
The episodic format was actually relatively easy; he directly hired nine screenwriters to work, and they delivered a first draft in a short time.
Eric reviewed it, offered some revision suggestions, and filming was estimated to begin by the end of August.
For the first season of american horror story, he still chose Murder House as the script prototype. Eric provided an idea and then assigned screenwriters to it.
hannibal was adapted from a novel, so he naturally pulled in the original author, Thomas Harris, and found two other screenwriters; the three of them went to work on it.
The one that truly required Eric to meticulously craft was breaking bad. If he only gave an idea for this show, a regular screenwriter really couldn't handle it; it needed careful polishing.
On set, Andrea praised him, saying, "Director, it's good to see you so serious. I was really worried you'd just abandon it like you did with blue is the warmest color."
Eric chuckled: "How do you know what I'm thinking?"
"Huh?"
Handing the director's microphone to Andrea: "You're in charge of the set for the next few days. I have something to take care of."
"Ah? This again!"
"Heh heh. No pain, no gain. I'll invest in your short film, keep up the good work!"
After painting a grand picture, Eric left the set. He had to rush to Santa Barbara, because Michael's trial was approaching.