From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

Inside the Wilshire Theater, silence reigned, even breaths and heartbeats seemed to vanish. Nearly two thousand people were caught in a wave of shock and awe, their eyes glued to the screen at the front—

Evan and Kaylee, two seven-year-olds, bravely stood up to confront George.

It was like the mythical story of "David vs. Goliath."

Emotions surged and churned, yet words failed to capture the feeling.

At this moment, Nicholas could say with absolute certainty:

The movie was a success.

At the very least, it had successfully captured the audience's attention. Because there was Anson on the screen, draped in a white bed sheet like a god of ancient Greece, his fine physique on full display; yet the audience remained silent, without a single scream.

This meant that even the most ardent fans were now completely engrossed in the story. The tension of the plot had firmly grabbed their attention more than mere looks and physique. They began to care about the characters' fates, about the story's development.

Undoubtedly, this was astounding.

After all, even in "Spider-Man," Sam Raimi had used quite a few shots to fully exploit Anson's pretty-boy appeal; not to mention "Catch Me If You Can," which was practically shot as a fashion film.

Huh!

Evan opened his eyes, returned to being twenty years old, but found himself imprisoned.

He was lying in a strange room, and even the time was different, completely unlike when he opened the diary. It was as if he had entered another dream from one dream, utterly losing his sense of reality—

Who am I, where am I, what am I doing?

Evan's pupils were shaking violently, revealing intense confusion and panic.

"Ah!"

Evan was in agony as a massive flood of memories surged into his mind, filling his brain and stirring up a storm within.

Evan and Kaylee, their youthful romance budding. Although the email explosion and Crockett incident still occurred, although he still moved, they remained together, spending countless wonderful moments.

Those fragmented memories were about to detonate Evan's brain.

When he came to, he had a nosebleed, and then Kaylee appeared behind him, sharing the same bed, which startled Evan so much that he fell off.

Kaylee?

Kaylee, who should have ended her life by now, was alive and well, not only alive but also smiling brightly, a smile that seemed to encompass the whole world.

After some effort, Evan finally understood what was happening.

History had changed—

Everything, completely.

The childhood basement incident had not happened. Kaylee was not harmed. Not only that, but Kaylee, like him, had been admitted to the state university.

They attended the graduation ball together, they had a bright future, they held each other's hands and never parted again, they had each other and they had happiness, they were the fairy-tale couple that everyone on campus envied.

He and Samp became strangers. Samp was still an unconventional Goth freak, but he became a senior member of the fraternity he once hated and rejected the most, free to prank the newcomers.

Everything before him was too perfect, so perfect that it felt unreal.

Evan had to repeatedly confirm with Kaylee that this was not a dream, that it would not disappear like quicksand, that they had a happy present and a bright future, that happiness was no longer a distant fantasy.

His anxious and apprehensive appearance was just like a child's.

However, reality is always like this: behind the happiest and most beautiful moments, danger and tragedy are always lurking, waiting to deliver a fatal blow.

The long-sought-after happiness had finally become a reality, and Evan prepared to seize it firmly. So he arranged a candlelit dinner, and he and Kaylee dressed up for the occasion—

He was going to propose.

Before the words could be spoken, his fraternity friends barged in, interrupting Evan's romantic confession, saying that his sports car had been smashed.

No one knew what had happened, but Evan noticed a detail.

Dog leash!

The fear hidden behind the happiness instantly gripped Evan's heart. He immediately made the connection: those inexplicable ringing phones with no sound, those happy moments when he always felt like someone was stalking and watching. The answer was obvious:

Tommy.

Evan rushed back to the dorm, starting to search for weapons. He knew Tommy was coming for him.

The reactive outburst from Tommy, who had previously suffered countless instances of violence and humiliation at Evan's hands, erupted. Evan tried to protect himself, but after rummaging through everything, he only found a can of pepper spray, which plunged Evan into utter terror.

Kaylee couldn't understand.

She had been trying to calm Evan down, telling him that Tommy wouldn't hurt anyone. In fact, she had been protecting Tommy all along.

Afterward, Evan finally understood.

His words had successfully made George stop touching Kaylee, but at the same time, they had also made George vent all his anger and frustration on Tommy.

Tommy became a punching bag, bearing all the harm and pain alone. In this world, besides Kaylee, Tommy could no longer trust anyone.

So, Kaylee told Evan not to worry, she believed Tommy wouldn't do those things; even if Tommy really came, she could persuade him.

After finally understanding the whole story, Evan calmed down. He realized that in this timeline, perhaps his understanding of Tommy was no longer valid; perhaps Tommy's experiences were directly related to him; perhaps he should give Tommy a chance.

He had saved Kaylee, however, the price was completely ruining Tommy.

After a moment of adjustment, Evan agreed that they should leave the matter to the campus security.

Evan escorted Kaylee back to the dorm. He was worried, planning to stay overnight with Kaylee tonight; but Kaylee, after thinking about it seriously, was still a little uneasy. She felt she should be alone tonight.

"Evan, I just… I just don't want Tommy to see us together at this time." Deep down, Kaylee also knew Tommy's possessiveness toward her—

It had even evolved into possessiveness.

Kaylee didn't want to take any chances.

But on this matter, Evan refused to back down and compromise. "No, I've lost you once, I don't want to experience it a second time."

Kaylee didn't understand. "What do you mean you've lost me once? You've never lost me. What are you talking about? You've been acting strange lately."

Evan panicked a little.

He was worried that Kaylee might see through him, explaining clumsily; but clearly, the different experiences from childhood had caused all of his ways of thinking and acting to change:

He was still him, but he was no longer him.

Evan didn't know how to explain such a situation; fortunately, Kaylee's attention was diverted, she noticed that Evan's coat was dropped at the bottom of the tree.

Before Evan could feel relieved, a figure came out from behind the tree, holding a baseball bat in his hand, a cruel and sinister smile on the corner of his mouth—

Tommy.

Looking at the aggressive Tommy, looking at the furious Tommy, looking at the ruthless Tommy…

The nightmare struck his heart again.