King of Hollywood-Chapter 169 - : Odds
Chapter 169: Chapter 169: Odds
“Thank you, that will be all,” Rodick said as Charli rose from her seat, nodded slightly to the three people behind the long table, and then turned to walk towards the door.
After the door closed, Adrian also stood up, greeted the two interviewers, and walked out, leaving the two who had wanted to discuss with him staring at each other, puzzled.
“Hi, Miss Charli, I really didn’t expect to meet you again under these circumstances,” Adrian greeted Charli, who was packing her things on a bench.
Charli looked up at him and suddenly burst into laughter, leaving Adrian puzzled as he checked himself.
“Sorry, I just think… such dialogue seems like it should be in a movie,” Charli said, waving her hand with a smile.
“So,” Adrian gestured with one hand, “should I pull out a gun and point it at you?”
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“If you can manage that,” Charli shrugged, then stood up and extended her hand, “It’s great to see you again, Mr. Adrian. Honestly, I really didn’t expect to see you again as a famous director and film producer. I’ve always remembered what you said that day on the streets by the Hudson River.”
“I’m glad you remember—you can call me Ed—I never imagined that the lovely girl from then would have turned out to be so beautiful,” Adrian replied as they shook hands.
“You can call me Charli, Ed.” Charli giggled, appearing especially flirtatious and far from a 17-year-old, but the hint of naivety in her expression didn’t escape Adrian’s notice.
Checking his watch, Adrian then extended an invitation, “Can I buy you a coffee, Charli?”
“Now?” Charli raised her slender eyebrows, looking at Adrian with a playful gaze for a few seconds before replying, “No problem.”
As the sun moved westward, the orange light through the glass stretched the shadows of the two sitting by the window.
“It was indeed very challenging at first since I started from scratch, but… it’s really interesting to think about. Whenever I felt like giving up, I would remember those words you told me,” Charli recounted her experiences over coffee, occasionally showing a nostalgic expression.
“I never knew my words could have such an impact,” Adrian expressed in surprise.
“Oh, of course, because I felt like I couldn’t lose to a guy who only consoled himself with grand words,” Charli winked slyly, causing Adrian to choke a little before the lady in front of him burst into giggles, her laughter shaking her gracefully.
What a change from two years ago, Adrian mused to himself with a wry smile. He had never expected that the distressed and angry young girl he had met by the Hudson River would be Charli Theron, nor had he thought that a few words from him could change her fate so profoundly—an intriguing feeling indeed.
Looking back, she was indeed quite striking, and even though their interaction was brief, her impulsive nature left a deep impression on Adrian; and today, two years later, she was much more mature and even more beautiful, yet even without modeling, her figure remained impressive. With that said…
“Anyway, I’m glad I could help,” Adrian said magnanimously.
“But…,” Charli suddenly sighed softly, “in fact, there were three times I almost truly gave up. The last time, my mother persuaded me to return; the second to last was my teacher, Ms. Maria, who gave me confidence; and the last time, it was because I saw news about you.”
Adrian remained silent, just watching her as she tilted her head and thought before continuing, “It was when you were first nominated for Best Director at the Oscar. At first, when I saw your photo in the newspaper, I just thought you looked familiar. After a careful look and finding some of your pictures in magazines, I confirmed it was you—the guy who comforted me with grand words when I was at my lowest.”
“Looks like, you weren’t exactly thrilled with me that day,” Adrian joked lightly.
Charli smiled, “If I had to describe the feeling precisely, it would be shock and disbelief. That man who claimed he would stand atop the world had already been nominated for Best Director at the Oscar and even broke the record for being the youngest… If he could achieve so much in a year, why should I shrink back when faced with difficulties?”
With that, she sighed lightly and stared steadily at Adrian for a while before adding, “Unexpectedly, just a year later, you became a top-ranking director and broke another Oscar nomination record. It seems that what you said back then wasn’t just big talk after all.”
“It seems you pay a lot of attention to the entertainment industry news,” Adrian said with a smile, “have you ever thought about pursuing a career in entertainment? You have the stunning looks and figure, and there would be many people willing to sign you if you were an actress.”
“Really?” Charlize raised her eyebrows.
“Of course, if it hadn’t been too hurried two years ago, I might have signed you back then,” Adrian said seriously.
“Let’s forget it,” Charlize chuckled, “don’t think I don’t understand the entertainment industry. Beautiful women can only be vases, and I don’t want to be just a vase. Plus, I’ve finally earned my training certificate, why should I give that up to do something else?”
That’s Charlize Theron for you. Adrian thought to himself, his desire to have her join him becoming clear.
“Speaking of which, Charli, I regret to inform you,” he said, spreading his hands and speaking in a sympathetic tone, “according to federal law, you cannot be employed in a role like a company secretary if you are under 18.”
“Really?” Charlize looked at him in surprise.
“Indeed, I assume you’ve been rejected by quite a few companies before,” Adrian said with a smile.
“Oh, damn!” She showed a frustrated expression, not hiding her disappointment and frustration.
“But…” Adrian started again, this time with a hint of teasing.
“But what?” The lady lifted her head, quickly understood his point by the look on Adrian’s face, laughed softly, and adjusted her posture to appear relaxed and collected.
What a clever woman, having her as an assistant wouldn’t be a bad idea at all, since her fate had changed anyway, hadn’t it? Adrian shrugged and said, “It’s simple, although the law says you can’t be a company secretary if you’re under 18, there’s no problem being a personal assistant.”
“So that means…” Charlize looked at him, twirling the handle of the coffee cup in her hand.
“Would you like to be my personal assistant and secretary, Charli?” Adrian asked directly, not minding.
The lady pondered for a moment, raised her eyebrows indelibly as if realizing something, then smiled, “Of course, I am willing, otherwise I wouldn’t have come for the interview at Bossworth Film Company, right?”
The recruitment of a secretary and assistant thus concluded, but Charlize’s story had just begun. Still, before she took up her position, Adrian had to rely on a few company assistants to handle some work tasks, since Charlize needed time to get familiar with the situation, and he had to appear on a show over the weekend.
The debate over this year’s Oscar nominations had temporarily settled, but the buzz hadn’t diminished at all, especially discussions about who would win could be heard everywhere in America, as it was every year without exception. The renowned William Hill Gambling Company in the United Kingdom had already set the betting odds early.
The smallest odds were, of course, for Al Pacino for Best Actor. Public, critics, and Hollywood celebrities alike unanimously thought the award belonged to Pacino. Six nominations without a win, a disabled character role, and acclaimed acting prowess—he had it all, and even secured a nomination for Best Supporting Actor for “Glengarry Glen Ross.” If he didn’t win Best Actor, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences would definitely face unprecedented criticism.
And the highest odds, unfortunately, weren’t for Adrian, but for John Travolta, nominated for Best Actor! As in real history, Travolta completely turned his fortunes with “Pulp Fiction,” not only making a huge profit from a signed profit-sharing deal but also becoming a media darling once again, now having snagged Best Actor, and being on a high was an understatement.
But he had been in a slump for too long, and with Pacino steadying all nominees and the other three nominees also having an advantage over him, his odds for Best Actor were the highest.
However, Adrian’s odds, although not the highest, were mixed. After all, he had six nominations—well, accounting for two repeats, that’s four nominations, breaking the record for the most nominations for a single person in a single Oscar session. The lowest odds were for Best Adapted Screenplay, as adapted screenplay carries less weight than original screenplay, and with two nominations in this category, it was very likely that the jury would give it to him as a consolation prize. The highest odds were for Best Director, as Adrian had only been directing for two years, despite having two nominations.
Of course, these high odds were only in terms of individual awards because Adrian had another betting pool—the pool for winning all nominated awards! The odds for this bet were as high as 1 to 2000, quite significant for gambling. If not for William Hill raising Travolta’s winning odds to 1 to 2001 to create hype, Adrian would undoubtedly have the highest odds.
In fact, most gambling companies in Europe had him as the highest odds in the 65th Oscar betting pools.
In such circumstances, Adrian participated in a talk show hosted by Jimmy Kimmel on FOX. (To be continued. If you want to know what happens next, please visit www.qidian.com. More chapters available, support the author, support genuine reading!)
