"Pfft."
A light, uncontrollable chuckle broke the tension inappropriately.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh—their gazes immediately shifted toward Anson, who had been ignored on the side.
Michelle glared at Anson with eyes wide in anger, as if she wanted to swallow him whole.
Kate also looked at Anson in disbelief, her eyes full of shock and disappointment.
Anson straightened his mouth, putting on a serious expression. He gestured with his hand, "Go on, go on. No need to mind me."
After speaking, Anson made a zipping motion with his mouth, stepped back half a step, and gave the discussion space back to Michelle and Kate.
Kate didn't think much of it and turned to face Michelle, ready to continue making her case.
However, Michelle noticed the mockery in Anson's expression and gestures and kept her gaze locked on him.
And then, she couldn't hold back any longer.
"So, what do you think?"
"You're our leading man, no matter how we resolve this, we need to consider you."
"When did you know? Why do you have that bystander attitude? You should know, this situation is far from simple."
Bang, bang, bang!
A barrage of words poured out from Michelle. Her tone couldn't be stopped, all that frustration, anger, and anxiety, rather than calming with time, only intensified—
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got.
And so, Anson became her punching bag.
But Anson didn't mind; in a way, he hoped for this moment to shift the focus and pressure, dispersing Michelle's fire so Kate could relax a bit.
Anson shrugged lightly, his face full of innocence, waiting patiently until Michelle finished before responding calmly.
"Of course, no one wants unexpected changes, but plans can't keep up with life's unpredictability. That's just how it is. Surprises don't mean the world is ending."
Michelle, still fuming, couldn't hear any of it. And now Anson was giving her some philosophical talk? She wanted to strangle him on the spot.
"Ha, Anson Wood—don't think that just because you worked with Steven Spielberg, you've become Spielberg."
Her sarcasm was so thick even Kate couldn't bear to hear it.
Anson, still unbothered, replied, "I'm new to this industry, and the director's no seasoned expert either. There's no need for us to tear each other apart."
He casually struck back at Michelle, hitting a nerve.
Ignoring Michelle's murderous stare, Anson continued, "Actually, the solution is simple. We just keep filming."
Michelle blinked. "What?"
Anson replied, "No need to change the plan, and no need for drastic measures. We keep filming as scheduled. Kate can still play Clementine—I don't see the problem."
Michelle laughed. "Ha. Hahaha."
Anger turned into laughter.
Michelle said, "Even though you're not expecting a baby yourself, you should know that once a woman is pregnant, her belly starts to show."
"So, are you saying Joel and Clementine are about to welcome a baby?"
"This isn't just a minor tweak; it could change the entire story. The love story becomes a marriage story in an instant. Are you going to explain this to Charlie, or is Kate? Do you think Charlie is willing to let us make such a reckless change to the script?"
As Michelle started veering off topic, Anson had to pull it back.
"Director, director!"
"I've never been pregnant, but I know that during early pregnancy, it doesn't show. Generally, it takes at least three to four months for signs to become visible."
"Kate isn't even two months along yet, which means we still have a window of four to six weeks."
"Look, we need to race against time. There's not much winter left in New York, and these two timeframes align perfectly. We can finish filming before winter ends and before Kate's pregnancy starts to show."
"No need to rewrite the script, no need to recast. We can stay on track."
Michelle was stunned for a moment—
He hadn't thought about it this way, and at least from a scheduling standpoint, it seemed possible.
But then Michelle shook his head.
"You're still too young."
"Pregnancy isn't that simple. Starting from week five, morning sickness begins—nausea, dizziness, it's overwhelming. Kate started feeling these symptoms, along with changes in her cycle, which is why she suspected something and took a pregnancy test, right?"
Michelle looked at Kate, who didn't deny it.
"Morning sickness is just the beginning. Next, your body will start reacting in all sorts of ways to signal that you're nurturing a new life."
"That means your body might not keep up with the demands of filming. On top of that, our movie involves running around in the cold, jumping, and even lying on a frozen lake to watch the stars. How are we supposed to film under those conditions?"
Michelle calmed down slightly, taking a deep breath, and his eyes showed a trace of concern.
"Kate, you probably think I'm a jerk right now, caring only about my movie while you're facing a major life change."
"I admit, I am a jerk. I won't deny it—this film is a huge turning point for my directing career."
"But setting that aside, have you thought about yourself?"
"If you keep filming and end up losing the baby, will you regret it? What about the baby's father?"
"Don't say it's impossible. In Hollywood, there are countless stories of actresses losing babies because of the grueling demands of filming—day-and-night schedules, unhealthy eating, lack of rest, exposure to cigarettes and alcohol, and overwork."
"Hollywood is a heartless place. No one cares—men don't care, and neither do women."
"Today you lose the baby, and tomorrow filming resumes."
"The studio sets in Burbank have buried countless unborn souls, and still, no one cares."
Pausing for a moment, Michelle glanced at Kate, a hint of reluctance in his eyes.
"Kate, are you sure you know what you're doing?"
Michelle didn't have to say these things. If he was really selfish and only cared about his film, he could've ignored Kate's situation and kept shooting. But he couldn't do that.
Kate was stunned, pain and struggle flashing across her face.
She may not have spoken it aloud, but those fears had certainly crossed her mind. Her thoughts were a tangled mess, standing at a crossroads, unsure of which way to go.
Anson stood nearby, silent—
There was no perfect solution.
That's the challenge of adulthood: making choices without a clear right answer, only trusting yourself.
Once you make your move, there's no going back.
For a moment, all three were silent.
Michelle sighed again, rubbing his cold hair in frustration, and turned to leave, but Kate stopped him.