Hugo was unable to wait for Charlize's return call. He called again the next day, but Terra answered the phone again, saying Charlize had gone out to eat.However, this time Terra did convey Charlize's message, "She said she's fine, don't worry about her."Hugo couldn't quite make sense of this sentence. It sounded like a response to his own message, and it also expressed Charlize's understanding of his sudden departure, but he always felt there was something off about her words, though Hugo didn't know if this oddity was real or just his own overthinking.Still, being able to get Charlize's understanding made Hugo breathe a sigh of relief.Hugo wouldn't deny his affection for Charlize, and he felt that Charlize must have had similar feelings for him, otherwise they wouldn't have had so much subsequent development that night, so Hugo didn't want to ruin everything because of an accident.Of course, their future development would depend on what happens next. Originally, Hugo intended to ask Charlize out again, but the call from the scent of a woman crew forced him to start preparing for his first project that was about to begin filming.Although Joseph was an agent who had only changed careers for less than eighteen months, with the backing of International Creative Management, Joseph's progress was rapid, both in terms of personal connections and his adaptation to the work.After the audition results for scent of a woman came out, Joseph completed all the signing work within two days, making Hugo truly a member of the scent of a woman crew.And the very next day, the scent of a woman crew asked Hugo to head to New York, as the film was about to start shooting.This opportunity was one Hugo had won with all his might, and it was also the best opportunity for him to break through his current predicament.Naturally, he didn't want to mess it up, not to mention that he was going to act opposite Al Pacino; such a rare opportunity does not appear often.So Hugo had to devote himself to the early preparations for filming—not just costume fittings, taking photos, and other tasks, but also character understanding, acting study, and more—which meant Hugo had almost no time to rest in the three days leading up to it, let alone call Charlize.By the time everything was ready, Hugo hadn't even come to his senses before he and Joseph were sitting on the plane to New York.Joseph, sitting on his right, saw the slightly nervous Hugo and assumed he was worried about the article in the Los Angeles Times that day.After thinking for a moment, he comforted him, "Don't worry. Once you join the crew, you just need to be yourself. Those newspaper reviews can't decide anything."Keeping his Actor in a good state of mind was also one of an agent's duties.Hugo's gaze drifted around unconsciously. Everything in the plane cabin was so strange to him.It wasn't that the plane's structure was anything special, but the dark blue printed seat cushions and the flight attendant's uniform—a white silk shirt paired with a bright red suit vest—were full of a rich nineties retro style that was really a bit overwhelming.Hearing Joseph's words, Hugo couldn't help but withdraw his attention and used a smile to cover up his previous actions. "What's wrong? What did the newspaper say again?"As soon as the words were spoken, Hugo realized he was confused. "Oh, you mean the Los Angeles Times? I only read a headline this morning, I haven't read the content yet. Is there anything wrong?"The front-page headline of the Los Angeles Times today was about the latest developments in the Woody Allen and his adopted daughter scandal. On page twenty-three, it reported the news that Hugo had officially signed with the scent of a woman crew.The news headline read, "Wrong Choice," clearly disagreeing with the crew's final decision.And it wasn't just the Los Angeles Times; most authoritative media held a negative attitude towards Hugo's appearance this time. Clearly, the aftereffects of the Golden Raspberry Awards were still affecting Hugo's acting career.Joseph realized that Hugo was just spacing out, not nervous at all. The corners of his mouth couldn't help but twitch slightly. "Nothing, don't worry."Hugo picked up the Los Angeles Times from his knees, which he had grabbed when boarding.While flipping through it, he continued, "The reporter who wrote this piece today is the same one from last time, right? Does he have some kind of grudge against our company? Why does he appear in every report?""You mean Nicholas? If he had a grudge, he wouldn't be picking on you time and time again."Joseph knew more or less about the sources and reporters behind these reports, which was also part of his job. If serious negative news appeared, he was also responsible for contacting the reporter to minimize the negative impact or even have the news removed.Actually, once this work was refined, it was the responsibility of a PR agent—the professional—but now Hugo could only be considered a newcomer, not yet at the level of having a dedicated PR agent, so Joseph had to take full responsibility temporarily.The reporter Hugo just mentioned, full name Nicholas McLaren, was a professional reporter for the Los Angeles Times. The follow-up report on the Golden Raspberry Awards was written by him, and the report on his failed audition for a river runs through it also bore his name.It was clear that he didn't have a good impression of Hugo; every report was full of sarcasm and mockery. This time was no exception. Nicholas clearly did not look favorably on Hugo's prospects in the scent of a woman crew, and even expressed concern about the entire film."I thought I stole his girlfriend, that's why he's targeting me time and time again."Hugo teased with a faint smile, then turned his gaze to the newspaper in his hand. But he flipped through it for a long time and couldn't find today's report "Wrong Choice," and Hugo felt that something was wrong with the paper, so he just flipped through it messily.Just when Hugo was pondering, Joseph next to him said coldly, "You're holding it upside down."Awkward. Hugo's movements suddenly stiffened on the spot. So that was it. He had been wondering why the position of the bold text and pictures was so strange.He couldn't help but chuckle to cover up his embarrassment, then pretended to be calm and turned the newspaper over. It looked much more pleasing to the eye immediately.He had never been able to fix his scatterbrained habits, but fortunately, it was just small things; he was never sloppy in the big picture, otherwise, it would be troublesome.While Hugo was reading the "Wrong Choice" article, the plane was ready to take off. Today was the day they left Los Angeles for New York, because most of the filming for the entire scent of a woman movie would be carried out in New York, with some other scenes to be filmed in New Jersey and Boston near New York.Feeling the plane start to taxi, Hugo moved his gaze away from the newspaper and looked at the scenery outside the window.Watching the City of Angels become smaller and smaller in his sight, the colors outside the window gradually faded from rich and heavy, finally becoming clear azure.It was like a drop of ink dripping into clear water, from thick to thin, and the slightly diffused colors had a breathtaking beauty.From Los Angeles to New York, the journey spanned the entire United States, taking more than five hours, arriving from the West Coast to the East Coast, appreciating the completely different regional customs. It was a long flight, long enough for people to feel the vastly different urban landscapes within the same season.Although it was January now, the entire Northern Hemisphere was in winter, but the bright sunshine on the West Coast always easily made people forget the coldness of winter. This time, however, the East Coast greeted Hugo with heavy rain, clearly telling him: although the East Coast and the West Coast are in the same country, the customs are vastly different.When the plane landed at John F. Kennedy International Airport, the urban landscape outside the window was already covered by a curtain of rain. There was only a blur in his line of sight. The ground temperature of thirty-five degrees Fahrenheit (two degrees Celsius) made Hugo start to miss the sunny sixty-five degrees Fahrenheit (eighteen degrees Celsius) days of Los Angeles before he even left the plane.For no reason, Hugo suddenly started to become nervous. The confusion in his thoughts forced him to shift his attention to the solid sheet of rain and fog outside the window. The breath of winter was mixed in the rain, smashing into the ground and kicking up strings of water splashes.In fact, compared to working with Al Pacino, Hugo's heart beat non-stop when he thought of the upcoming filming.Fear of the approaching event—that was probably it. He had always dreamed of being able to stand in front of the camera and perform properly, but when the opportunity really came, he was swayed by nervous emotions, worrying that he would mess up the acting, worrying that he would ruin this opportunity, worrying that he would lower the quality of this masterpiece, scent of a woman..."You can do it, you can do it, you can do it..." On the way after leaving the airport and getting into the yellow taxi, Hugo had no intention of looking at the largest city in the world. His eyes fell on the rain curtain without any focus, because he was constantly performing self-hypnosis.He had to believe in his own strength, and also believe in his own persistence and perseverance, so that he could find a stable corner amidst his nervous emotions, thereby preparing for the upcoming filming."We're here." Joseph's voice interrupted Hugo's inner distractions. Hugo turned his head to look at the left side of the taxi, and then he saw a waiter wearing a trench coat holding an umbrella, walking to the taxi door, opening it, and placing the umbrella above the door.Hugo got out of the car, and he was completely wrapped in the umbrella. The surrounding rain curtain blocked New York out, and Hugo curled up in the small world formed by the umbrella.Walking to the entrance of the hotel, the waiter closed the umbrella, and the curtain above his head disappeared. Looking back, the skyscrapers of New York immediately came into view. The damp feeling under his feet and the strong wind rushing from all directions made Hugo clearly realize: scent of a woman crew, I'm here.
