Ever since Gino first laid eyes on Tang Feng, he was struck with a sense of familiarity. And strangely enough, he found that he also trusted the other to an inexplicable level. Yet despite that trust, heād kept several things from Tang Feng. One of them was that heād been secretly excited for the kiss scene for an entire week before they were scheduled to film it.
Another thing heād never told Tang Feng was that heād brushed his teeth at least four times and chewed through an entire pack of gum before the scene. He was afraid that Tang Feng would dislike him.
When he kissed Tang Feng back at the church, he was only half-immersed in his role. When he felt the otherās lips on his own, he felt as if heād been transported back in time. At that moment, he felt as if he were a seventeen-year-old whoād just been struck with the first signs of love. His heart was racing, and he could feel the blood rus.h.i.+ng to his head. In his panic, he couldnāt control himself and ended up biting Tang Feng.
It was the first time that he found that a kiss could be more nerve-wracking and more memorable than the actual act of love itself.
ā¦
āIs this your answer? Michael Gino, youāre disgusting! You b.a.s.t.a.r.d! I hate you!ā Lilith screamed as she launched a pillow at Ginoās head.
Gino leaned sideways and dodged the soft projectile. Heād thought about everything and came to the conclusion that Tang Feng was right. He didnāt love Lilith. Heād simply been in a rush to find someone to fill the hole Fiennes had left behind.
āLetās break up,ā he said calmly.
It was better for them to end it now than later. He didnāt want to continue living this foolishly.
āWhy are you so selfish, Gino? I love youā¦ā Lilith stared at him for several long seconds. After she processed Ginoās words, she fell onto the couch as if injured and started crying.
āLilith, nothing will come out of our relations.h.i.+p even if we stay together. Since Iām the one who brought it up, Iāll take full responsibility. If the media picks up on this, I will deal with it.ā
At first, theyād started dating because it was their agencyās idea. They needed to create antic.i.p.ation for the movie theyād starred in, so their agency leaked to the media that they were dating. The plan was a success; theyād won the mediaās undivided attention. Somewhere along the way, they truly started dating each other. Even now, Gino still had a tough time deciphering whether they had been simply acting or if they had actually loved each other.
āArenāt you afraid that Iāll tell people? Iāll tell everyone that youāre in love with Fiennes Tang! A dead man whoās a decade older than you!ā
Gino chuckled and replied, āLilith, you know Iām not afraid of those sorts of tactics. I donāt mind letting the world know that I love Fiennes. Also, Fiennes is not dead. He still lives in my heart, and will continue to do so for the rest of my life.ā
āYouāre out of your mind,ā Lilith mumbled. Leaning into the couch, she rubbed at her eyes. When she removed her hand, the back of it was completely black. All her makeup had smudged into a mess.
Gino walked over and handed her a tissue. Almost ripping it out of his hand, Lilith accepted it and wiped at her face. She then reached for her bag and pulled out a mirror and a bunch of makeup. As a devotee to beauty, Lilith wanted to look beautiful no matter the situation she was in.
Fortunately, Lilith was still young. Gino knew she would never break herself over a half-serious relations.h.i.+p. She was a Hollywood girl.
āFine, whatever. In any case,
Iām going to marry someone whoās handsomer than you. And youāll only have your memory of me to comfort yourself when youāre all old and lonely,ā Lilith said angrily. She pulled out a tube of lipstick and retouched her lips. āWeāll break up. I hope you donāt regret it afterwards.ā
āOf course Iāll regret it.ā Gino smiled and shrugged. āThank you for your good wishes.ā
Lilith snapped her mirror shut and glared at Gino. She looked as if she wanted to say something else, but then pursed her lips in displeasure. She lowered her head and started storing her makeup away. She then said quietly, āI hope you can thank him for me. That man with black hair and black eyes.ā
Even though Lilith had been completely drunk that night, she still remembered whoād saved her and then looked after her.
āI will, heās a good person.ā Gino understood who Lilith was referring to.
āThatās right. Heās a good person, and I am a good girl. Yet how did we both come across someone like you?ā Lilith slung her bag across her shoulder and stood up. She collected herself and said, āListen up, there better be a good reason for why we broke up. I donāt want the world to know that I lost to a man whoās already pa.s.sed away. My manager will contact you about this. Also, donāt talk to me in the future!ā
Lilith turned around and walked away with big strides, leaving behind a confident figure. Yet she couldnāt stop the rims of her eyes from turning red again. She quickly pulled out a pair of sungla.s.ses and put them on.
Who hadnāt had a pa.s.sionate and short-lived love back in the days of youth?
Like Lilith, those adolescents would laugh and cry, and would live on to see tomorrow.
ā¦
After coming back to the United States, what Tang Feng wanted to do the most wasnāt meeting up with the people he once knew, but to take a trip around the places heād once stayed at and look around, this included his final resting place.
His death had come in a sudden manner, so he had no idea whoād taken care of all the matters related to his death afterwards.
Had it been his manager John?
Or had it been his good friend Randa, or perhaps Leroy?
No matter who it was, they did a very good job. There hadnāt been any public broadcasts on the news or exclusive interviews with reporters. It had been a private funeral with a group of his close friends. It had been a simple and quiet affair, something that suited him perfectly. Although he didnāt know who had planned everything, fortunately, they had made sure that his grave would be open to the public afterwards.
Tang Feng thought he had a right to visit his own grave once, so he planned to visit it together with Gino over the weekend. Coincidentally, they were going on the same day as Fiennesā birthday.
After having a talk with Gino, theyād spent two days finis.h.i.+ng the filming of their first bed scene. Although it was described as a bed scene, the actual time they had to expose themselves in front of the camera was minimal. Tang Feng did have his pants taken off, but he was still wearing something underneath. Not to mention, he was also wearing the long and bulky monk robe on top.
For the entire scene, Gino merely held himself above Tang Feng and simulated a few movements. However, the director was a perfectionist and asked the two of them to repeat the scene several times, with a different set of movements each time. The director was also particular about which direction they should face and whether they needed to look at the camera and who should look at the camera.
Whenever the director came up with a new idea, they had to repeat the scene. After several repeats, Gino was embarra.s.sed to find that he was physically reacting. He could feel himself getting hard, but fortunately, the monk robe was loose enough to hide his reaction. Even though no one else had noticed, Tang Feng was the exception. Gino had been rubbing himself on him back and forth for the better part of the day. If it werenāt for the obvious look of apology on Ginoās face, Tang Feng would have a.s.sumed that the other was taking advantage of the situation and doing it on purpose.
For the entire scene, the two of them mainly exposed their legs, and only up to their thighs at that.
The director didnāt have any plans to turn the film into an erotic film. Regarding the relations.h.i.+p and actual nudity in the film, the director had chosen to turn up the intensity in a gradual manner. The first kiss and the first bed scene had to be controlled and subdued. Later on, it would turn more pa.s.sionate as the two main characters collided more and more with each other.
āAre you all right?ā After the dayās filming wrapped up, Tang Feng ran over to Gino and asked. Gino had been in the same position for quite a while now. It wouldnāt be good if he developed a problem because he was holding it in for so long.
āDo I look like all right to you? If you give me a tree, Iām pretty sure I would start humping it right now,ā Gino joked crudely. After talking with Tang Feng a bit more, Gino made an excuse that he had to go change and ran off to his trailer.
As for what Gino was actually doing inside his trailer, who knew?
Tang Feng snickered to himself. What was Gino going to do when the more intense scenes came around?
To avoid coming across Gino and getting himself in an awkward situation, Tang Feng left first. Today, the one picking him up was still Lu Tian Chen.
The president seemed to be in a bad mood today. When he saw Tang Feng, none of his usual ācordialnessā was present, cordialness as in holding the door open for Tang Feng and asking where he wanted to go before heading home.
āGet in.ā Lu Tian Chen didnāt bother holding the door for Tang Feng. He also didnāt ask Tang Feng where he wanted to go. Right after Tang Feng got in, Lu Tian Chen put the car in drive and sped away.
Only an idiot would fail to see that Lu Tian Chen was angry, but Tang Feng couldnāt recall what heād done to make the man angry. Was Lu Tian Chen angry at the fact that his āloving breakfastā the other day had given him an upset stomach?
āAre you feeling okay? It was my first time making breakfast. Sorry.ā Out of politeness, Tang Feng felt that he should apologize for making the brave man beside him eat everything heād made.
Lu Tian Chen didnāt reply; he outright ignored Tang Feng.
āAre you angry at me?ā Tang Feng tried asking.
Lu Tian Chen ignored him again. This time, Tang Feng was a bit angry himself. Since when had he ever had to lower himself this much? One couldnāt act too weak around Lu Tian Chen or Charles, otherwise theyād eat you for breakfast.
Tang Feng smiled and said, āKeeping your anger all bottled up is going to lead to health problems. I hope youād take care of your health, President Lu.ā
āIām not angry. Iām only jealous.ā Lu Tian Chenās answer was direct and simple. A calm and logical conclusion that nevertheless shocked Tang Feng.