From Flower Vase to Film Emperor in Hollywood

For a brief moment, Ansen's brain malfunctioned, unable to react, suddenly realizing that Hollywood was even more insane than he had imagined.

This time, Ansen didn't hide his expression.

Brad noticed it, spreading his hands with a bitter smile.

"You can feel free to express surprise or shock, I don't mind, because I also think I'm terminally ill."

Heh heh.

Brad chuckled softly. Before speaking, he felt it was a disgrace, something he wanted to bury forever and completely forget, praying that the assistant wouldn't tell anyone. He wanted to take these secrets to the grave. But after speaking, it didn't seem so difficult. Instead, there was a sense of relief. Unconsciously, the secret had broken free from its restraints and been spoken.

He needed this kind of catharsis.

"The story isn't over yet."

"I lost some face, so I questioned the assistant, why she didn't reply to the message. At least she could have replied with a voice message or text. Maybe I'm a madman, but professional communication should naturally receive a response."

"She said she doesn't work on weekends, she has a private life too."

"She said that maybe she's insignificant, but she refuses to be kidnapped by work. From Monday to Friday, twenty-four hours a day, she's on call and busy without rest, so on weekends, she has the right to turn off her phone, turn off her computer, turn off her email, and deal with those trivial matters until Monday."

"Those producers and directors are all on vacation, at parties, playing around. She refuses to sell her life to those devils from hell."

"Ha, haha."

"She has her own life, she has her own life."

"Obviously, she didn't want, didn't need, and shouldn't have to deal with an actor's madness on the weekend."

Smiling, he abruptly fell silent.

"Ansen, I'm sick."

"And I'm seriously ill. I need help."

The sky was still vast.

Brad quietly basked in the light, but he was more vulnerable than ever, as if he could be swallowed and destroyed by that golden halo at any moment. That loneliness and bewilderment quietly spread in the air.

Sometimes, Ansen found it difficult to distinguish whether they were victors or victims of the fame and fortune arena, or rather, both victors and victims.

Ansen didn't speak, because he didn't know what he should say, and he wasn't sure if he could help—

Or rather, whether he should help.

Brad rubbed his temples, taking a deep breath.

"I don't know, I don't recognize myself, and I don't understand myself. I feel like I'm a madman."

"This is everything I've longed for, at least what I thought I longed for, but in the end, I don't even know what I'm longing for. I just…"

Ansen gently exhaled, "You long to become the most famous actor in the world, so that everyone will love you, admire you, support you, worship you, remember you forever, immortalize you; but at the same time, you're afraid of them, you dread them, they won't criticize you in any way, because they need to always look up to you."

Brad stared at Ansen, stunned.

Ansen, "I'm the same."

"There's no difference between you and me. This is the life we crave, tirelessly climbing the peak of fame and fortune, higher and higher, until only we are left alone."

Ansen didn't stand on high ground to criticize and judge. He didn't think he had much integrity or pride.

Without warning, Brad broke down, his shoulders slumped heavily.

"But, at some point, I, I don't know, I suddenly had nothing."

"No friends."

"I miss you, I miss Chris, I miss James, I miss the me who was furious at Hayden's departure but still sincerely believed in friendship."

"Ansen, I want to find myself."

Rambling, unclear.

Perhaps, as Brad said, he didn't know what he was longing for or what he was looking for. He had lost his way, deeply sinking into darkness.

Brad raised his hand, messily rubbing his eyes, hiding his sadness and struggle, trying to show a smile.

"Ansen, I miss my friends."

All along, Brad had been desperately pursuing and running wildly, but he had never truly stopped to look back at himself, to calmly think about it:

Is this really what you want?

"I want to sit in the backyard with you guys all afternoon, doing nothing, worrying, and chatting. I want to spend time with those real people in life, sharing real life. I want to grasp some real things."

"Not a illusory reputation and prestige, nor a bunch of tools who flatter and compliment each other but completely forget about each other after turning around."

"I want…"

Taking a deep breath.

"I want to sit down, I want to know what you guys have been busy with lately. What about Chris? Are you still single? Does that guy James still change partners every day? I strongly suspect he has an addiction to that."

"Ansen, I miss the old life."

The words seemed unfinished, but Brad didn't continue, hovering in mid-air, stuck there, with a look of loneliness.

Under Brad's gaze, Ansen gently exhaled, his tongue full of mixed feelings, difficult to simply describe for a moment.

"…Thank you."

Ansen said.

"Thank you for your honesty, Brad. I really needed this moment."

"You know, I've always believed that life is long and lonely. We come into this world alone, and we leave alone."

"On this journey, we will meet all kinds of people. Some are strangers who pass by, some are enemies who are at odds from beginning to end, and some are like-minded friends who walk side by side."

"But the point is, we will eventually separate."

"For various reasons, even the closest and most intimate partners can only accompany each other for a while, and then continue forward on their own, embarking on their own life paths. Ultimately, we need to complete this journey ourselves."

"Life, after all, is lonely."

"But."

Ansen paused slightly, the smile on the corner of his mouth gently rising.

"But, there are also differences here. Some people walk side by side for a longer journey, and some for a shorter one."

"I sincerely hope that the journey we accompany each other can be longer. Remember when Hayden left without saying goodbye, we and Chris stood there speculating, predicting the worst possible outcome while comforting ourselves that it wouldn't happen."

"At that time, I thought we would always go on, this small place of fame and fortune was really too lonely."

"Later, I worried that you would become the kind of friend who only gets along for a short period of time and eventually parts ways due to differences. I didn't want you to just accompany me for a while, I sincerely hoped that this friendship could last a little longer."

Such simple and unadorned words struck Brad hard.

Brad shifted his gaze somewhat awkwardly, hurriedly hiding his embarrassment and discomfort, but he still couldn't control it, and his eyes slightly reddened.

"So, thank you, thank you for being willing to come and say these words today."