I am Hollywood

[Chapter 1116: Her]

At four o'clock in the afternoon, she arrived in the kitchen to start preparing dinner.

She had secretly researched how to make Italian bacon pizza for two days. Today, she wanted to surprise him.

Since last weekend, she had been living in this mansion for five days. Although she occasionally felt like a caged canary, most of the time, she felt incredibly satisfied and fulfilled.

He was busy -- very busy -- but it never made her feel neglected. She sensed that he was not the type of man who easily charmed women. However, being around him, his confidence, easygoing nature, and sense of humor, even his occasional solitude and aloofness, had a natural charm that attracted women.

She even thought he possessed a mysterious ability to pull a woman into his personal world without her even realizing it, like a magician.

After spending a few days together, she found herself intrigued by many things she had never encountered before, all because he had mentioned them. Moreover, he unconsciously drew out her limited knowledge. The only thing she felt she had over him was her ability to speak Estonian, and now he already knew quite a bit of everyday Estonian dialogue.

On Tuesday, he had sneaked her into Firefly Studios to watch a preview of the movie he was working on. It was truly a secret mission, as if he were worried that she would be bullied by his women. So, she had to tread carefully, and it felt thrilling.

Firefly Studios had a large screening room that was called IMAX. Though it was just a short three-minute clip, wearing the 3D glasses and watching the three-story-high space scene before her, she was utterly awestruck.

She had no idea a movie could be like this.

That moment made her feel extremely proud.

However, there were also times of sadness.

On Wednesday night, he did not return to stay. Although he had called to remind her not to forget dinner and to go to bed early, she still acted like a little jilted lover, deliberately skipping dinner and stubbornly curling up on the sofa in the living room all night.

By morning, she heard noise early on, thinking he had returned. She rushed out in surprise, only to find two identical Russian girls with maids conducting a routine cleaning of the villa.

Her mood soured even more.

Estonians generally disliked Russians.

Or, to be precise, they hated them.

That country had brought too many disasters to Estonia. During the war, one in five Estonians had died, and after the war, Estonia was annexed by the Soviet Union. Hundreds of thousands of survivors were exiled to the bitter cold of Siberia, and very few were able to return.

Now, among Estonia's population of over one million, the original Estonian ethnicity comprised less than half.

The two Russian girls were polite to her, but they were clearly distant. She naturally did not attempt to get closer to them.

So, she stayed in the small corner of the glass curtain wall, where she had set up an easel, with dye mixed by him, and a golden outline just sketched on the canvas that he had designed for her real self perfume poster.

She sat on the sofa, clutching a cushion fiercely, like a little beast fiercely guarding its territory, keeping a close watch on the maids cleaning the villa, preventing them from getting too close and keeping the twins at bay.

It wasn't until everyone left that the villa quieted down again.

That was when she deflated.

She finally understood that he could never belong to her.

Then, in the evening, he returned. With gentle words, she quickly regained her dependence on him.

She thought to herself, "I'm hopeless."

That infuriating man, who seemed to have everything, also devilishly entangled women in the identity of being owned.

She just wanted to bite him again.

As her thoughts drifted, she continued to prepare dinner.

Just then, the aroma of pizza wafted from the oven. She snapped out of her daze, hurriedly put on oven mitts, and took the pizza out.

Waiting for it to cool a bit, she pinched off a very small piece from the side and tasted it.

It was too small, and she couldn't discern any flavor or whether it was good or not.

Nonetheless, she wasn't inclined to cut a piece from the entire pizza; that would surely look awkward.

"What deliciousness are you making in secret?"

A familiar voice came from behind her. She turned around, smiled, and lifted the freshly-baked pizza toward him in a gesture of triumph.

Eric walked over with a smile, leaned down to smell the pizza she was holding, and nodded, saying, "Not bad; it must be delicious."

"I'm not so sure. It's my first time making it."

"Let me try."

Eric picked up a knife and fork, cut a small piece, put it in his mouth, and nodded satisfactorily after a moment before cutting another piece and offering it to her.

She opened her mouth and nibbled, leaning her little head forward to take it all in.

Of course, she had eaten pizza in restaurants before.

But it was never as good as what others made.

However, since he nodded, it must be good enough.

After all, she had put thought into it.

"Let's make a salad," Eric said as he watched her finish. "I remember there were some oranges in the fridge. I'll handle the juice, and that'll be enough for dinner."

She nodded and walked to the fridge with him, beginning to gather the ingredients, while casually setting up a conversation, "Do you have to work tomorrow?"

Eric shook his head, "No work tomorrow. I'm taking you to Santa Rosa Island. How does that sound?"

She tilted her mouth softly, letting a smile form, but said, "You still haven't finished that poster you were helping me with."

"Well, we might as well take it to Santa Rosa Island to finish it. The vibe there will be great," Eric said, then added, "Also, we're going to New York together the day after tomorrow."

The carrot she had just grabbed almost slipped from her hand.

Suddenly, she felt a void inside her.

In just a few days, she had fantasized more than once about staying here forever. It seemed nice, even if she had to see those two Russian girls every week. She could barely endure it.

But ultimately, she would have to leave.

Yet, beside him, she instinctively didn't want him to see through her thoughts.

So, she nodded naturally, saying, "Sure, I should go back too. Paul said there would be several important fashion shows in Tokyo next month and hoped I could attend."

"Tokyo next month?"

"Yeah."

"I wonder if I'll run into you," Eric said, pouring some warm water over several oranges, then fetching a juicer from the cupboard. "I should also be going to Tokyo next month for the premiere of Iron Man."

She looked puzzled, "Is Iron Man premiering in Tokyo?"

"Of course, not just in Tokyo," Eric chuckled. "There's also Los Angeles and London. I will personally attend the premieres in these three places, but for the other locations, I won't be going."

*****

https://www.patreon.com/Sayonara816.