Nicole said, "We haven't been together long, so it's a bit too soon to talk about this."The man replied, "You're not that young anymore. Dad and Aunt Helen are quite worried about your future, especially Aunt Helen. She's worried so much her hair has turned gray. Since you have a boyfriend now, bring him over to meet her so she can be at ease."Nicole pressed her lips together. "We haven't been together for long, and Leighton is a few years younger than me. His career is on the rise. We're not ready to talk about marriage yet. When his career is stable and our relationship is still strong, and if he wants to marry me, I'll bring him to meet our parents without you telling me to."The man wanted to say more, but Nicole didn't give him a chance. She continued, "If there's nothing else, I'm going to hang up now. Leighton is busy preparing for his new album and is under a lot of pressure. With all the recent strange happenings, I want to spend more time with him. I won't be able to att
Leighton was taken aback, his ears turning red as he met Nicole's teasing gaze.“You’re the one who’s dumb! I know it’s pronounced petty!'”Nicole blinked and helpfully pointed out, “But you just said ‘pi’ not ‘pe’.”Leighton stiffened. “No, I didn’t.”“Yes, you did.”“I didn’t!”“You did! Estelle heard it too.” Nicole nodded toward Estelle. “Right, Estelle?”Not wanting to get involved in their childish argument, Estelle cleared his throat and said, “I didn’t catch what you were saying.”Nicole clicked her tongue. “No wonder so many young idols are clueless these days. It's because managers like you spoil them.”Leighton suddenly wanted to kick her out of the car!Estelle chuckled. “Leighton just isn’t great at the language. He's fine in other subjects.”This wasn’t just to cover for Leighton. The Hall family had good genes for academics. Leighton’s grandmother had been an educator before she retired, and his siblings excelled in school. Leighton’s younger brother even won
"Ultimately, what everyone detests are actors whose virtue doesn't match their position. If you can't see this and only think about using your education to silence the audience, even with a high degree, you'll just be seen as a highly educated waste in their eyes."Being an actor is different from being an idol. Fans' affection for you is eighty percent based on your looks. They need to see your face first to have the desire to know you as a person. Idol dramas choose you because you look good, fulfilling fans' fantasies. However, an actor doesn't have to be handsome or beautiful. They serve the role, and sometimes you might not even show your face in a whole scene, but your acting can still leave a mark on the audience. That's the charm of an actor."I can introduce you to big directors, but if you still cling to an idol's mindset, caring about your image in fans' eyes and heavily focusing on your external persona, then even if I help you, it will do you no good. Do you understand?"
Leighton suddenly realized what was happening. All this talk about making ugly faces and shedding his idol image—this crazy woman was just messing with him!Embarrassed and angry, he lunged for her phone. Nicole dodged left and right, but in the process, she accidentally hit the back of her head on the glass, her face turning pale with pain. At the same moment, Leighton managed to grab her phone but was startled by her cry of pain.Holding her phone, he looked at Nicole's ashen face. He instinctively wanted to ask if she was okay but remembered her recent antics and hardened his heart. "Stop messing with me. Don’t think I’ll fall for it again."Nicole didn't say anything, pressing a tissue to her wound. When she pulled it away, it was nearly soaked with blood.Leighton was at a loss. "Why is there so much blood?"Nicole glanced at him, pressing the tissue back to her wound. "You were so rough, and now you're scared?"Leighton was speechless once more.He ground his teeth. "No on
Ah…Leighton was so frustrated he wanted to pull his hair out. Why would this crazy woman like him? He glanced at Nicole, who was replying to a message, and quickly turned his head to the side when he saw her about to look up. His overly handsome face was reflected in the car window. Leighton paused for a moment, suddenly thinking it was quite normal for her to like him. After all, the Hall family genes were indeed excellent.With this thought, he unconsciously straightened up, raising his chin slightly. From Nicole's angle, his profile was absolutely perfect. After all, he had been in numerous magazines and on many stages; he knew exactly which angles and poses made him look the most handsome.Nicole finished her message, put her phone aside, and turned to look at Leighton. Seeing him sitting so stiffly, she paused and asked, "Did you stick a ruler in your back? You can’t bend at all?"Estelle chuckled.Leighton was more than ten years younger than her, and to Estelle, he was jus
Leighton hesitated to share these thoughts with Nicole. It was mainly because during their previous "relationship" publicity stunt, Nicole unintentionally bumped into his family while they were together. Except for his cousins, no one else in his family knew that their relationship was a charade. They were ecstatic to see Nicole and insisted on treating her to meals.Despite Nicole's tough demeanor around him, she knew exactly how to act around elders. She addressed them as grandpa, grandma, uncle, and aunt, melting everyone's hearts. Even his father, who typically disapproved of entertainment industry stars, seemed to approve of her, silently expressing, "You've done well, kid, finding such a beautiful and remarkable partner."Nicole's behavior made Leighton question if his previous perceptions of her were biased or exaggerated. But after they finished eating, she surprised him in the car, saying, "Didn't realize you're such a mommy's boy, needing your mom to clean your fish for you
So, when Nicole mistakenly assumed that Dr. Sanders was arranged by the company, he didn’t bother to correct her. He just had this inexplicable feeling that if Nicole knew it was his mother’s arrangement, she would probably feel upset. It was like… not talking about light in front of a blind person. It just felt unethical.While the wound was being treated, Stella called to check on him. She had been watching the live stream and was very worried when she saw Nicole get injured. She sent several WhatsApp messages to Leighton, but when he didn’t respond, she called.“It’s no big deal,” Leighton said softly. “I’m with her at the doctor’s, getting her wound treated.”“You’re not hurt, are you?”“No.”Stella said, “Aunt called me. She’s very worried about you. She’s afraid of bothering you, so she asked me to check on you. Where are you now? Keegan and I can come over.”“No need, Stella, really. I’m fine.” Leighton quickly declined. Stella was heavily pregnant, and he couldn’t risk ha
Leighton fell silent."Can’t think of anyone?" Stella asked."It’s not that," Leighton coughed. "There are too many."Stella was rendered speechless.Previously, Leighton had clashed with a somewhat influential host on a variety show. Although the host was being offensive and Leighton’s retort was praised by netizens, he was still new to the industry. The host, with his connections, caused Leighton to lose some job opportunities and subjected him to plenty of difficulties.Leighton's rebellious and righteous nature made him intolerant of some people’s vile behavior, leading to many conflicts in the entertainment industry over the years. It wasn’t impossible that someone might want to take this opportunity to drag him down.The entertainment industry was already a place with too many people competing for too few resources. The top artists monopolize over ninety percent of the resources. Taking him down could free up opportunities to benefit dozens of other artists.After listenin