Chapter 5

Compared to London, Los Angeles, where he had lived for seven years, felt more foreign to Ryan. The apartment where he had once lived, after some furniture changes, became his and Nicole's home again. To be honest, both Ryan and Nicole had accumulated a fair amount of money, but finding a suitable house was not easy, especially since Nicole was set on living in Beverly Hills.

"Damn, women take so long to change clothes!"

Half an hour had passed, and Ryan, waiting on the sofa in the living room, couldn't help but mutter.

Kinsley, sitting opposite him, just smiled. They had signed a formal contract, and after half a month of getting to know each other, she gradually understood Ryan's situation. She knew he was both smart and mature, and couldn't be treated like a child. Sometimes, she even felt like she was talking to someone her own age.

Ryan glanced at the wall clock, feeling quite bored, and turned to the lady agent, "Pattie, have you heard back about the script?"

"Don't worry, Ryan. I handed the script directly to Harvey Weinstein. I have some connections with the brothers, so whether they accept or reject it, they will notify me immediately."

Kinsley had read the script carefully. Although she was not an expert in screenwriting, a good story always resonates with people. In her view, unless the Weinstein brothers had lost their minds, they would definitely see the value in this script.

Sighing, Ryan realized he was getting a bit impatient. However, Kinsley's extensive network of connections did impress him.

Since that was the case, Ryan was happy to leave the matter in her hands. As for Nicole, she could focus on being a movie star.

"Ryan." Nicole's voice came from another room, "Why is my shoe cabinet locked? Have you seen the key?"

"No." Ryan subconsciously touched the brass key in his pocket and denied it outright.

"Damn! Do you expect me to go to the audition in slippers?" Nicole's voice from the room sounded irritated. Ryan's eyes darted around, and he called out loudly, "Nicole, isn't there a new pair of shoes you bought yesterday in the shoe cabinet by the door?"

"Really? I don't remember."

Nicole, wearing light makeup, patted her head and walked out of the room. She opened the shoe cabinet by the entrance and took out a pair of high heels. The four-inch heels were long and pointed, her favorite.

Wearing the high heels, Nicole looked even taller. Ryan's lips curved into a faint smile. He had carefully chosen and placed those shoes inside, hoping they would come in handy.

The audition was at Paramount Studios. To be on the safe side, Ryan used his child's privilege and insisted on sitting in the car. Facing Nicole's questioning, he argued confidently, "I just want to see what an audition is like. Besides, the studio didn't say I can't bring anyone else besides the agent."

Sitting in the back seat of the moving car, Nicole felt that Ryan was up to something. After all, they had lived together for so long, and she had a keen intuition about his behavior. But no matter how she thought about it, she couldn't find anything wrong.

On the bench outside the audition room, the three of them waited quietly. Ryan overheard some staff members talking and realized that Tom Cruise was actually the screenwriter of the movie. It made sense; this kind of cool and stylish work that fully showcased the idol's charm was typical of Tom Cruise.

Ryan shook his head. Because of the year and a half she had spent performing in London, Nicole's acting skills were much better than in her previous life. If she still got the lead role in this movie, it would help her break into Hollywood, but the "flower vase" label might stick again. That wouldn't be good. She was already too beautiful, and if she got that label, she might end up on the same path as before.

"Ryan, stay here with Pattie and don't cause any trouble!" Nicole reminded him before entering the audition room. Clearly, Ryan had caused a lot of trouble over the past two years.

"Can't I go in and see?" Ryan blinked his eyes, trying to look innocent. After all these years of acting, he completely fooled the Paramount staff, but not the cold and beautiful Nicole. She warned him directly, "Do you want me to send you to a boarding school?"

Ryan immediately became obedient but grumbled to himself, "Fine, you're my guardian now, I won't argue with you. We'll settle this when I turn sixteen."

After a moment of silence, Ryan started chatting with Kinsley. The topic, of course, revolved around Hollywood. It wasn't until more than forty minutes later that Nicole came out of the audition room, but she went in alone and came out with someone else.

The extra person was someone Ryan really didn't want to see: Tom Cruise!

Even though Tom Cruise was wearing shoes with hidden lifts, making him taller than his actual 5'7", he was still at least 5 inches shorter than Nicole in her high heels.

Every time Nicole turned to speak and had to look down at Mr. Cruise, Ryan felt a sense of satisfaction. He had chosen those high heels for a reason.

However, his carefully planned scheme was destined to be just a joke for himself. Tom Cruise seemed to be completely unfazed by Nicole's height. As he walked up to Ryan and Kinsley, he extended an invitation, "Nicole, would you like to join me for dinner?"

I mind! I mind a lot! Ryan's eyes widened, and he stared straight at Tom Cruise. If looks could kill, the handsome young star would be riddled with holes.

"An honor!" Whether in her previous life or this one, Nicole was a skilled socialite and wouldn't refuse. After thanking him, she wanted to introduce the two people in front of her, but Mr. Cruise ignored them and said, "There's a very unique restaurant in Beverly Hills. How about we go there?"

"No!"

Before Nicole could answer, Ryan jumped off the bench, crossed his arms, and pinched his chin, looking at Tom Cruise with a sidelong glance. He circled around Tom Cruise and Nicole and suddenly said to Nicole, "Mom, you said you would take me to eat Chinese food tonight."

Mom? Nicole's eyes widened, but she knew Ryan well and instantly understood that he was up to something.

Tom Cruise was so shocked that his jaw almost hit the floor. He never expected this stunning Australian woman to have such a big son.

"Ryan, where are your manners and upbringing?" Although she didn't understand the saying "three days without a beating, and the roof tiles will fly," Nicole knew she couldn't let him off easily. After scolding him, she explained to Tom Cruise, "This is Ryan Jenkins, my brother, a bit too mischievous. Tommy, don't mind him."

She then introduced the female agent to Tom Cruise.

Tom Cruise was more formal when facing Ryan, but when facing Kinsley, he was as proud as a peacock in full display, typical of a big star.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Tom Cruise."

Tom Cruise might not know about the Chinese art of "face-changing," but Ryan's performance gave a glimpse of its essence.

Ryan knew he had little influence, and unless he acted up, it would be hard to sway Nicole's decision about dinner. So, he pulled out a signature book and a pen from his backpack and handed them over, "Can you fulfill a fan's wish?"

"Of course." Tom Cruise quickly signed the book, "Ryan, may your life always be filled with sunshine and happiness!"

As long as you don't take my Nicole, my life will always be filled with sunshine and happiness! That was Ryan's only thought as he put away the signed book.

The Bentley sped into the Beverly Hills area. In the front seat, Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, a handsome man and a beautiful woman, looked like a perfect match.

But from the back seat, Ryan felt the distance between them was as vast as the distance from Sydney to Los Angeles. If he reached out, he could create a Mariana Trench in the calm sea.

To Ryan's surprise, Tom Cruise seemed to take his words seriously and actually took them to a Chinese restaurant. Seeing the sign "Mr. Chow," Ryan muttered in Chinese, "It's Mr. Zhou's restaurant. I wonder if the food is authentic."

Inside the restaurant, contrary to Ryan's expectations, the decor was Western. As a big star, Tom Cruise was led to a quiet booth by the waiter, and the menu was served after they sat down.

Ryan sat next to Nicole and discreetly looked at the waiter, a black-eyed, black-haired, yellow-skinned person, likely a first-generation immigrant or a student working part-time. Many students from the mainland had come to the U.S. this year.

"Ryan, what would you like to eat?"

It was Tom Cruise who asked. Despite Ryan's initial misbehavior, his later manners and demeanor showed good upbringing, making it hard not to like him.

Unfortunately, Tom Cruise wouldn't understand that Ryan was a person who was different on the inside and out.

"Can I order for myself?" Ryan blinked his bright eyes, looking like a very cute boy. Tom Cruise laughed, "Of course. But, Ryan, do you know Chinese cuisine?"

"Actually, Ryan is studying Chinese culture and has some knowledge of Eastern food and customs," Nicole seemed proud of Ryan's knowledge.

Tom Cruise just smiled and handed over the menu. Ryan scanned the English menu, but most of the dish names were hard to understand due to translation. He scratched his head and looked at the Chinese waiter, "Do you have a Chinese menu?"

"Ch... Chinese?"

Ryan asked in slightly broken Mandarin. The waiter clearly understood but was surprised to hear fluent Chinese from a blonde, blue-eyed boy.

"Sorry, we don't have a Chinese menu."

As Ryan guessed, the waiter was a student. While cursing in his mind, he politely apologized.

"Alright." Ryan thought for a moment and burst out with a string of Chinese dish names, "Stir-fried sea cucumber, Dezhou braised chicken, nine-turns intestine, sweet and sour carp, and Kung Pao chicken."

The waiter was speechless, surprised by the boy's familiarity with Chinese cuisine. Some of the dishes he had never even tried.

Of course, Dezhou braised chicken, nine-turns intestine, and sweet and sour carp were not available. After the waiter explained, Ryan, not wanting to be difficult, asked Nicole for her opinion and ordered spinach with shrimp, flower-carved chicken, crab roe dumplings, and a special order of water-boiled pork slices for them.

Since it was a Western-style Chinese meal, after Tom Cruise ordered, Ryan specifically instructed in Chinese, "My dishes should be cooked in the authentic Chinese way. And the water-boiled pork slices should have plenty of chili and red oil, enough to make you sweat when you take a bite."

The waiter carefully noted Ryan's requests but rolled his eyes when he turned away. What a troublesome little brat, not afraid of being burned by the chili?