Following the firm lines of his physique downward, one could see those wide shorts covering the man's mysterious part. Charlize seemed startled, and quickly lifted her gaze upward, finally landing in panic on the taut lines of Hugo's neck, where she caught sight of his Adam's apple moving slightly—it was obvious Hugo had just swallowed a mouthful of saliva—because of a dry mouth and parched throat.
This thought immediately made Charlize's cheeks flush slightly. She hurriedly released her hands and took half a step back, avoiding Hugo's gaze, yet not knowing where her own eyes should fall, for it seemed that every corner revealed Hugo's evenly tanned wheat-colored skin. She could only grit her teeth, feigning calm as she said, "Nice body, looks like you've been keeping in good shape lately."
Hugo only felt a small flame within his chest cavity. That close contact just now had proved with "real action" that Charlize was a woman, and one with a charm that could make people blush and their hearts race. The problem was, Hugo's current attire was hardly suitable for the stray thoughts flashing in his mind, since the conditioned reflexes his brain sent downward were impossible to control. So Hugo could only barely maintain composure, turning around to look for his sweatpants and pulling them on. "Naturally, the premiere isn't far off now."
Once he had his pants on, Hugo finally calmed down, though the faint flush on his cheeks still betrayed his inner shyness. Although Hugo and Charlize had once laid themselves bare before each other, that had been only a night after drinking. Afterwards, when they became roommates, they had agreed to treat each other as friends. That was why today's situation was indeed somewhat awkward.
"For dinner tonight let's just order takeout, Chinese food, how about it?" Charlize tried to make her footsteps sound less flustered as she turned and left Hugo's room, though her legs felt weak, as if stepping on cotton.
"Of course." Realizing that Charlize had left, Hugo also let out a breath of relief, hurriedly slipping on a T-shirt. "You should call Kal, ask him to come back and celebrate together." With Kal joining, the atmosphere at home would surely ease, especially since Alex was going home for two days.
"Great idea!" Charlize immediately agreed. Standing outside Hugo's room, she leaned against the wall, took two breaths to steady herself, then walked to the phone and dialed Kal again.
After hanging up the call, Hugo and Charlize sat in the living room, but seemed to have suddenly lost their conversational rhythm, each with more or less a trace of awkwardness on their face. Fortunately, Hugo was the first to think of a topic. "Don't you plan on washing off the makeup on your face?"
It was only then that Charlize realized she had been wearing that tramp costume and still had not removed the makeup since coming back. In this state she had hugged and faced Hugo, and now recalling that blush-inducing moment made everything seem comical. Charlize lowered her head, looked at the grime on herself, then thought of Hugo's bare torso just now, realizing the dirt from her body had rubbed onto him. In an instant all the ambiguity and allure vanished without a trace.
Clearly Hugo had realized this too. In his earlier fluster, he had not remembered, and when gazing into Charlize's eyes, all his attention had been captured by those breathtaking pupils, making him completely forget that dreadful makeup. But thinking back now, he was certain there was probably a smudge of dirt on his forehead, and his body was even worse. Linking that image with the earlier ambiguous moment made everything absurdly funny.
Hugo and Charlize exchanged a look. Seeing the gray smudge on Hugo's forehead, Charlize could not hold it in and burst out laughing. Hugo also felt it ridiculous and couldn't restrain his own chuckle, and once they began laughing, there was no stopping. Both laughed so hard they bent double.
In that hearty laughter, all awkwardness silently melted away. The two laughed until they couldn't straighten up, and when they finally stopped, they looked at each other, each seeing the same glimmer in the other's eyes. Obviously, they were both thinking the same thing now: shower!
Almost simultaneously, Hugo and Charlize turned and rushed toward the bathroom, only to jam together at the doorway. Charlize shouted in frustration, "Hey, ladies first, haven't you ever heard of that?"
"Aren't you the one always championing feminism!" Hugo refused to give in. He had once cried out for gender equality, only to be treated like an alien. Later he learned that this was the era when feminist awareness was rising, while the slogan "gender equality" would not officially be introduced until 1995, let alone widely accepted in the years after. So Hugo was quietly adapting to 1992 society.
"But my makeup is filthy!" Charlize struggled to squeeze inside, but Hugo's arm barred the way, unyielding.
"Exactly why I should go first, I'll be quick—five minutes tops." Hugo shouted loudly. He wanted to barge in, but with Charlize blocking the door, he could only get one leg inside.
"Hugo!" Charlize cried furiously, but seeing him still obstinate, she rolled her eyes and hatched a plan.
Clenching her teeth, she suddenly withdrew her strength, catching Hugo off guard and nearly toppling him, then stomped hard on his left foot. As Hugo howled, hopping on one foot, Charlize seized the chance to dart inside, slamming the bathroom door shut behind her. Inside, she planted her hands on her hips and let out a triumphant laugh, thoroughly pleased.
Outside, Hugo put his foot down and continued howling, deliberately cursing at the doorway, "You cheated! Next time I definitely won't let you win!" Charlize shouted back from inside, "When have you ever let me win? Hmph! Anyway, I won, oh yeah!"
The smile on Hugo's lips blossomed. That stumble just now he had done on purpose. Letting Charlize wash up first wasn't really a big deal. More importantly, after the noisy tussle, all their awkwardness had clearly vanished, and they were back to the mode of friends again—that was what truly mattered. Hugo turned back into the living room, sinking heavily into the sofa with a long sigh of relief.
Inside the bathroom, after Charlize shouted her victory, she too smiled, breathing out in relief. Though Hugo acted well, after living together for half a year, such bathroom tussles were nothing new. Whether Hugo had truly been tricked or had deliberately let her win, how could Charlize not know? But this was good, at least the earlier ambiguity and allure no longer mattered.
Taking a deep breath, Charlize walked to the sink, turned on the tap, and the rushing water instantly cut off the world outside the bathroom door.
Today's makeup covered her whole body, so Charlize spent a long time washing. Even after Kal came back she still hadn't emerged—it truly took a long time, though whether it was entirely necessary, or partly just waiting for Kal's return to ease the awkwardness of being alone with Hugo, was anyone's guess.
Hugo and Kal discussed ordering takeout, and only then did Hugo have the time to carefully ask Kal about the details of the matter.
"I met a producer at the Halloween party last time—he's one of the producers of Beverly Hills, 90210. I introduced Charlize to him. Later, the show happened to need a guest role, and he thought of Charlize, so he gave me a call. We had a simple discussion, and in the end, things were settled." Kal simplified the complicated process as much as possible, explaining it once through.
Hugo raised his eyebrows slightly, rather surprised. "Halloween?" That day Charlize had been wearing a nun's costume, and even so, the producer had taken notice. "Don't tell me they want Charlize to play a nun?"
Kal was clearly in high spirits and immediately laughed at Hugo's joke. "No, it's a normal role."
Hugo nodded, but right away another point came to mind. Beverly Hills, 90210 was a soap opera, where handsome men and beautiful women were the highlight. If Charlize were to act in it, it would most likely be a flower-vase role. That kind of platform would not be very favorable for Charlize's future career trajectory. However, though Hugo opened his mouth, he did not voice his thoughts. Not because he was afraid, but because today was not the day to say it—today was a good day.
Kal, meanwhile, was truly ecstatic. His excitement, almost impossible to contain, filled the entire third floor with an atmosphere of joy. Compared to Charlize, this was Kal's first job in twelve whole months, which also meant that at the very least he no longer had to depend on Joseph's support. As an agent, only when your artist had work did you have a way to survive; otherwise, it was a disaster.
But the reason Kal had gone so long without work was in fact because of his stubbornness. Even such a prolonged predicament hadn't made him compromise. When he saw the hesitation and concern between Hugo's brows, he immediately understood. "Hugo, I know—Beverly Hills, 90210 is a soap opera, and Charlize is already someone who easily makes people focus only on her looks. A platform like this is even more unfavorable."
Even in his excitement, Kal still maintained a clear head. "That's why I agreed only to a three-episode guest appearance. It's simply to give Charlize a chance to appear on screen, thereby opening up more possibilities. As for this soap opera—even if the producer invites Charlize to continue appearing, I won't agree."
Hugo's eyes toward Kal instantly changed. For an agent to keep such a cool head was no easy feat—after all, Kal had endured economic hardship for a full year. All the more so considering that the agent industry was a circle where profit came above all else.
"I'm done, your turn now." At this moment, Charlize finally opened the door and walked out, beaming a radiant smile the instant she saw Kal. "Hey, my agent, thank you for bringing me such good news." Charlize immediately stepped forward to give Kal a big hug, and her expression toward Hugo also grew much more at ease. Thanks to Kal, there was nothing unusual in the way Charlize and Hugo got along, and with Thanksgiving right around the corner, even the last trace of awkwardness melted away completely.
...
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