Chapter 314: Self-Abandonment
Chapter 314: Self-Abandonment
Francis Coppola withdrew his gaze and proactively explained, “Eric, that area over there is the garden. If you’re interested, you can take a look later. There are ornamental plants transplanted from the South American jungle.”
“No, it’s not that. I think I just saw someone I know. Though I might have mistaken her for someone else,” Eric recalled the figure that had flashed past earlier. She had seemed to be holding the arm of a balding middle-aged man. In that case, there was an eighty percent chance he had mistaken her. A proud little girl like her…
Shaking his head, Eric said nothing more. He gestured to everyone that it was nothing and continued toward the villa.
…
Tony Brandt, who had originally been eagerly flattering Jennifer Connelly, heard the faint applause coming from the entrance of the estate. After asking around, he quickly returned to Jennifer Connelly’s side.
“So it’s actually Eric Williams. That absurdly young director. Really unexpected.”
The middle-aged man seemed to be sighing emotionally about something and did not notice that when the woman beside him heard the name Eric, the wineglass in her hand almost slipped to the ground and her thoughts became chaotic.
“Miss Connelly, do you know Eric Williams? He’s an incredibly miraculous young man. In less than two years, he made an enormous name for himself in Hollywood. Being kissed by a lucky woman isn’t enough to explain his fortune anymore. He’s practically the illegitimate son of the Goddess of Luck.”
At this point, Tony Brandt apparently found his own words humorous and burst into laughter by himself.
Jennifer Connelly, however, could not laugh at all.
Holding her wineglass, she lowered her eyes slightly as a string of numbers clearly flashed through her mind. It was the phone number Eric had once given her.
But she had only dialed it once.
That had been nine months ago, after My Sassy Encounter was released.
She had regretted her decision.
But that time, no one happened to answer the call, and she had not left a message.
Afterward, as Eric’s fame in Hollywood grew greater and greater, the pride and inferiority hidden deep in her heart prevented her from ever gathering the courage to dial that number again.
She felt that only by doing this, only by continuing like this, could she preserve something.
When the turmoil at the beginning of the year had exposed the scandals involving Eric and various women, she had initially been dragged into it as well.
However, later on, the media’s attention had all focused on the Hollywood actresses who had already risen to fame through Eric. Just like those actresses who had only briefly crossed paths with him, she had merely become a name mixed into a long list of names in the endless scandal reports, appearing utterly insignificant.
Perhaps because of that, the middle-aged man beside her had actually asked whether she knew Eric Williams.
Heh, how ridiculous. Who in Hollywood now did not know that… guy?
Very quickly, Jennifer Connelly saw Eric walking over side by side with Francis Coppola.
He looked more or less the same as he had a year ago.
However, there seemed to be another woman beside him now.
Although that woman was not as pretty as herself, she was very tall, seemingly a full four inches taller than her. Still, Jennifer Connelly forcibly generated a faint, fragile sense of superiority in her heart.
At least she had held out.
Those other women had fallen.
Yes. That was it.
Her already chaotic thoughts continued wandering wildly while Tony Brandt beside her calculated whether he should go over and make himself familiar.
However, judging from the situation over there, because Francis Coppola was beside Eric, not a single person around them dared approach on their own initiative. Instead, Francis Coppola himself was personally introducing Eric around, which clearly meant Tony Brandt had not yet reached the level where Coppola would proactively recommend him.
Perhaps if he stood closer, Coppola might casually mention him?
Seeing Eric occasionally taking out business cards and handing them to people, Tony Brandt could not suppress the thought.
If he could obtain Eric Williams’ contact information, perhaps it would become extremely useful someday.
Once this thought surfaced, Tony Brandt became eager to try, though for a moment he still could not gather the courage.
Jennifer Connelly noticed the fervor in the middle-aged man’s eyes and realized something. She quickly said, “Mr. Brandt, I remember there are benches in the garden. Why don’t we go sit there for a while?”
“Ah, well… alright,” Tony Lambert said.
He had already lacked confidence to begin with, and Jennifer Connelly’s words immediately gave him an excuse in his heart, allowing him to climb down gracefully.
Afraid Tony Brandt might change his mind, the woman proactively wrapped her arm around his and gently tugged him toward the garden.
All the benches in the garden were occupied by guests, so after searching for a while, the two finally sat down near a table holding drinks.
Tony Brandt attentively brought over two glasses of red wine, handed one to Connelly, and quickly started chatting about something.
The woman, however, appeared distracted. She continuously sipped at the red wine one mouthful at a time, and within only a few minutes, the wine in her glass was gone.
They had already been there quite a while before this, yet the woman had maintained a restrained attitude the entire time. Even after an hour, she had only drunk two glasses of wine.
Therefore, after noticing this, Tony Lambert casually picked up another glass of red wine from the nearby drink table and handed it to her.
Jennifer Connelly was currently immersed in certain emotions and did not think much about it. Instead, she thanked him and accepted it again.
A few minutes later, another glass of wine unknowingly reached the bottom.
After seeing the woman once again accept the red wine he handed her, excitement finally appeared on Tony Brandt’s face. His heartbeat sped up noticeably.
Sneaking a glance at the deep cleavage revealed by the woman’s strapless evening gown, Tony Brandt had already begun calculating how he would play with the pair of huge soft breasts beneath the gown tonight.
After several glasses of red wine entered her stomach, Jennifer Connelly also seemed to realize something. However, her entire body was already slightly drunk.
The mental defenses of drunk people were always especially fragile.
Gradually, the woman even began to feel somewhat self-destructive.
Although her drinking slowed considerably, every time Tony Brandt handed her another glass of red wine, she never refused.
…
“Eric, this is my daughter, Sofia. Sofia, this is Hollywood’s youngest and most outstanding great director, Eric Williams,” Francis Coppola said after leading Eric around the villa before introducing another young girl to him.
“Hello, Miss Coppola,” Eric greeted the curious-looking girl warmly, without the slightest change in expression.
“Hello, Eric. Can you call me Sofia?” Sofia Coppola appeared even more enthusiastic than Eric. “I really like your films. It’s hard to imagine you’re actually this young.”
Eric’s expression shifted slightly as he remembered the disastrous performance the girl had given in The Godfather Part III. With deeper meaning hidden in his words, he said, “Perhaps you could make good films too. Why not try it? I’m sure your father would support you.”
The girl’s expression changed slightly. After glancing at her father, she replied, “I can’t do that. I’m not a genius like you. And I’m still so young. Besides, Dad has already decided to let me play the Godfather’s daughter in The Godfather Part III. I think it’d be better for me to try developing as an actress like my cousin.”
“Of course. When you’re young, you should try everything before you can find the path most suitable for yourself,” Eric continued.
“Wow, the way you say that doesn’t suit your age at all. You sound like an old man,” the girl could not help saying.
“Sofia, don’t be so rude. I think Eric is right,” Francis Coppola glared at his daughter dotingly.
The girl stuck out her tongue and still said unconvinced, “I’m not wrong. Otherwise why would an old man like you agree with him? Hehe.”
Francis Coppola immediately looked at Eric helplessly.
The girl mischievously smiled, then suddenly turned to the tall woman standing beside Eric. “This…”
“My name is Famke Janssen,” Famke Janssen introduced herself.
“Then, Miss Janssen, could you lend Eric to me for a little while? Let us dance together?”
The tall woman shrugged and looked at Eric. “Of course.”
“Hey, I don’t think I agreed yet,” Eric said with a laugh as the girl pulled him into the dance floor.
“You wouldn’t refuse, would you?” Sofia Coppola tilted her head upward and asked.
Her figure was somewhat petite. Even wearing high heels, she was still ten centimeters shorter than Eric.
“Alright. Of course not,” Eric shrugged, lightly wrapping his arm around the girl’s waist.
After dancing gently to the music for a while, the girl suddenly said, “Hey, you seem distracted.”
“Is it that obvious?”
“If it weren’t obvious, how would I notice?” the girl said gloomily, pouting.
To be honest, Sofia Coppola’s lips were somewhat thick, and when she spoke, one side of her upper lip tended to curl upward, making it look even more awkward.
Although in Western eyes, thicker lips were considered sexier, Eric still thought thinner lips looked better.
“Alright, I apologize,” Eric said while his thoughts wandered aimlessly.
Sofia Coppola tilted her head thoughtfully, then asked, “By the way, your earlier words seemed to carry some hidden meaning. Can you tell me what exactly you meant?”
“You want to hear the truth?” Eric stared at the girl and asked.
“Mhm.”
Eric thought about it. If he could get the girl to abandon the idea of “ruining” the classic Godfather series, that would not be bad.
In his memory, Sofia Coppola’s performance in The Godfather Part III had truly been disastrous. Even with an Oscar-level veteran actor like Al Pacino supporting her, viewers still experienced a strong sense of immersion-breaking. Those two Golden Raspberry Awards had not been undeserved at all.
Because the two of them had no real friendship, Eric had not said this earlier in front of Francis Coppola. Speaking too deeply to someone you barely knew was a major taboo in social interactions.
But now, facing the girl alone, as long as he phrased it tactfully, saying it would not have too much of an impact. Afterward, it could even be laughed off as a joke.