"...There is no competition quite as intense as the one in the entertainment circle, because what you receive will forever be more than what you pay for. Especially for the younger people. Once a certain movie suddenly becomes popular, they earn money that ordinary families might not be able to earn in their entire lives. Just like Malcolm Calkin. He was only 14 years old in 1994, and his salary had already reached 800 million dollars! Stars are like this, and so are managers. If you can't get what you want for the client, then you will lose him. Without a client, you will have no meaning. So if you don't want to be eliminated, you have to give up a lot of things." Frederick, who had been speaking for a long time, smiled bitterly. "This is the reality. When you are valuable, they will try their best to flatter you. You can do whatever you want, but when you are worthless, they won't even give you a second look." "I haven't come here to drink for a long time." He sighed in a low voice. "There has to be something that you insist on," Sean, who had been listening to him all this time, said. "I know what you want to say, Frederick. Yes, I admit that I want to survive here. Not just here, but in this world, in order to survive and live better, something must be changed. I don't deny this. Even the few geniuses don't dare to say that they can completely change the world and make the world cooperate with them, let alone us ordinary people. However!" He jumped up from the hood of his car. Sean went to Frederick with a beer bottle and looked down at the city under the sunset with him. "There must be something you insist on - yes, you give up a lot of things, you change yourself again and again to adapt to this world, and you can live well, even better, but..." He pointed down the mountain. "How many people in this city are like you? How many of them have the same flaws and qualities as you? Are there any differences between you and them? What is there that you're doing that completely belongs to you? That really absolutely belongs to Frederick?" Scenes from his previous life kept appearing in his mind. "I wouldn't mind changing to adapt if there was a need to." In contrast, he had changed too much. "I could lower my stance, and I could also flatter other people." Skin color, appearance, and even personality. "As long as it is necessary." But there were some things that could not be changed. "But there are always some things that are worth my persistence. There are always some bottom lines that I have to stick to." I had no interest in studying "who I was". I only knew that there were some things that could not be lost. "If those things change, then I am no longer me." Sean took a deep breath and gulped down the remaining beer in the bottle. "In the beginning, I just wanted to solve the problem of life. I didn't really want to be an actor or even a star. But now, I want to continue. This is just one failure. I still have enough time. I can experience many failures, but it is not the time to admit defeat. This is like a game. Maybe there is still a lot of time, but once I give up, it will be over." Frederick turned to look at him for a long time. "I hate people like you the most, Sean. You're smart, you have a plan, you're not careless at all when you're serious, and nothing can be changed once you get stubborn. However..." He suddenly laughed. "It's good to try. I'm exactly 30 years old this year. Traditionally speaking, 30 years old is a new beginning. No matter how many stupid things I have done before, as long as I correct them after 30, I can still achieve success. I don't think what I did before this was stupid, but I think I can try." The agent raised his head and poured the remaining beer into his throat. He adjusted his clothes and extended his hand to Sean. "Alright, let's reintroduce ourselves. Frederick, Rogers, manager of the Elite Management Agency. I am very honored to serve you." Sean blinked his eyes. He was slightly stunned. He did not understand how the atmosphere had changed as he spoke. The other party looked like he was acting in a movie. It was like a scene. It made people want to laugh. But in the end, he grabbed his hand and shook it. "Sean Thomas, new actor. I am very happy to be represented by you." Then, he burst out laughing. This immediately infected Frederick, who also burst out laughing. They laughed. The more they laughed, the bigger their laughter became. They were like two fools, but they were abnormally happy. The humiliation they suffered today had completely faded away. "By the way, you just said that you started acting only to solve your life problems. Does that mean that once you earn enough money, you'll quit?" "I think that since we have just met again, you can let it go." "No, no, no. I have to know what you are thinking. Were you lying at the beginning?" "Come on, Fred. It's meaningless to dwell on this. Do I look like a liar?" "That's right, you do." The two of them laughed and joked with each other. Sean's pager vibrated. He picked it up and looked at it. Then, he frowned slightly. "Hey, Fred, can I borrow your phone?" Sean asked. "Of course." Frederick did not think too much about it. He took out his phone from the car and threw it to him. Sean smiled, then walked to the side, picked up the phone and dialed someone. "Hmm... Naomi? Why... wait... wait, don't... what did you say? Don't do anything stupid... Listen, stay where you are and don't move. I'll be right there... I'm on the St. Mona mountain range. It's not far from Mulholly Drive. It only takes a few minutes... Listen, promise me, wait for me over there. Don't walk away!" He threw the phone back to Frederick. "Sorry, Fred, I have something to do and need to go down the mountain." "Naomi? Sounds like a girl's name." Frederick raised his eyebrows. "Your girlfriend?" "Just an ordinary friend." Sean shook his head in denial. "Come on, don't think that I don't know. Sarah Lithur, the receptionist, and several female employees have mentioned you countless times," Frederick teased. "You know how to flirt with women, don't you?" Then, without giving him a chance to react, his expression turned serious. "Do you need help?" "Thank you. There's no need. As long as we drive slowly and don't violate the rules, there won't be any police officers to interrogate us." Sean rolled his eyes and got on the road. When he was about to go down the mountain, he opened the window and flipped Frederick off. Two or three minutes later, Sean arrived at Mulholly Drive. This two-lane road was built in 1924. It was 21 miles long and connected to the Pacific coast, connecting the 101 highway and Cary National Park. It was a symbolic avenue for Holliewood. Many stars lived in the residential area on this road. After spending another five or six minutes on the road, Sean found the parking lot that Naomi mentioned. As soon as he entered, he saw her red, slightly dilapidated Dodge. Sean reached out and knocked on the car window a few times. Then, he waved his hand, and the car door opened. Then, Sean saw a pair of tearful eyes. Thinking back to the sobs on the phone, there was no doubt that she had just cried. "What happened?" Sean, who was in the passenger seat, asked. "No... nothing..." Naomi wiped her mouth and forced out a smile. "Just now, it was just... I didn't control it... It's fine now..." "Who made things difficult for you? Was there a problem with the audition?" Sean asked. Even though Naomi was trying her best to hold on, he could tell that her current situation was very bad. Although she was very confident before, everyone had moments where they could not hold on. "No... nothing, I just... thank you for coming over, but I really... just once..." Naomi was a little incoherent. She waved her hand to increase her persuasiveness, but before she finished speaking, tears suddenly rolled down her eyes. Even though she covered her mouth at the first moment, she still let out a low sob. Her entire body arched up and she trembled slightly as she curled up on the steering wheel. This petite woman no longer had her previous strong appearance. She curled up in her seat and looked so pitiful. Sean reached out and hugged Naomi's shoulder. He pulled her into his embrace and stroked her back as he comforted her in a low voice. Not only did Naomi have no intention of resisting, she leaned into his embrace as much as she could. She kept sobbing in a low voice, as if it was only there that she could feel a trace of safety. Although she had not finished speaking just now, Sean had basically guessed the reason. Two days ago, she had been very happy to tell him that there was a role that she had gone into the finals for, and the possibility of getting it was very high. Looking at her current appearance, there must have been a sudden change. Recalling his encounter today, a bitter smile emerged from the corner of Sean's lips. Even so, he continued to comfort her softly. "Alright, it doesn't matter. This is not a big deal. It is not worth it for you to do this." The warm body in his arms did not respond. Naomi, who was buried in his arms, only hugged him even tighter. The low sobs never stopped. Sean could not help but sigh. Although he understood her pain at the moment, it was not a true understanding. After all, Naomi had been working hard for ten years. Therefore, if he wanted to appease her, he had to find another way. It was completely dark outside. Even though there was no light in the room, they could still see the scene clearly through the light coming in from outside the window. There were several empty beer bottles on the ground. There were several pieces of pizza boxes on the coffee table that had not been moved. Some paper bags were scattered all over the place, making it a bit messy. Duke crawled on the ground behind the sofa, wagging his tail in boredom and glancing at the bed from time to time. He didn't understand why the master and the mistress - that was what his limited wisdom thought - wouldn't play with him today. Unfortunately, even though it was very unhappy, it could only obediently crawl and listen to the movements on the bed. "He really said that? He really said that?" Naomi laughed and asked in a surprised tone. She was completely different from the woman crying in the car. However, just by looking at the beer bottle that she hooked between her two fingers and her blushing face under the light rays outside the window, one would know what had happened. "Yes, that's what he said. He said it with ridicule and pride, as if I would be completely finished from now on and would never be able to rise again." Sean, who was also carrying a beer bottle, shrugged. The two sat side by side on the bed, leaning against the wall with their legs bent. Their heads leaned against each other as they drank and chatted about all kinds of topics. Then, they talked about Sean's experience today. "Oh, ignore him. That kind of people are the worst. They are all people who only use other people's power to be arrogant. They are nothing after leaving the powerful people. You don't have to care," Naomi said loudly and raised her arm and swung it around. She was a little excited under the influence of alcohol. "You are smart and talented. You will have a role sooner or later. I believe in this." "I believe it too, Naomi." Sean turned his head to look at her, "I also believe that you, who are both beautiful and talented, will definitely become famous." Naomi suddenly fell silent. She looked up at the ceiling and sighed after a long time. "I don't know, Sean. I don't know." She closed her eyes and frowned slightly. She seemed very unwilling to recall. "Many people told me that there should be no problem with that role, but after the audition yesterday... one of the producers told me... I was too beautiful..." At this point, Naomi burst out laughing with a bit of mockery and more helplessness. "No one cares about my acting. No one cares about my efforts. In their eyes, I am just a... decoration." She hugged her legs with her arms and did not speak further, but Sean knew that the little pause in the middle might have hid something. "No, Naomi, it won't. Although we haven't known each other for a long time, I know that you will be outstanding. You will definitely be very outstanding. As long as... you continue to persevere." He held her hand. "I know, I am just a temporary actor. My words may not be convincing, but I will change my mind. I want to persevere because you are also persevering, so... I hope to see you still lead me forward. Don't give up, just for me, okay?" Naomi turned her head. She was surprised, confused, and... touched. The room immediately fell silent. All that could be heard was the sound of a heartbeat. An indescribable atmosphere spread out. The two lonely people reached a strange resonance at this moment.

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