“Cut!!!”
“Okay, good, let's take a rest, everyone. We'll continue filming in the afternoon.” “Thank you, Mr. Durkheim! My stomach has been waiting for this moment for so long, ha ha.” “Then tell Ashley to buy you some food, I'll pay for that!” “Kelvin, you're more and more skillful! Just maintain your professional style!” So it was lunchtime? With both eyes emotionless, Ernest looked at the film crew nearby who were waiting for lunch after ‘working hard’ for hours, then looked back at his own meal—which he ate a half and held another half for hours without biting a piece. Why didn't he eat the meal? Ernest stared at the half of bread for a while. Then he closed his eyes, putting it all into his mouth and gulping it down, though the bread is nothing but a tasteless edible object. Honestly, Ernest was not a picky eater who just decided to eat what they loved. His poor identity didn't allow that, and even though this meal was just bread with some peanut butter spreaded on, he could eat it without any problems… Or at least till the moment that damn film crew came and started working just near him. Ernest had never seen how a film was made, and he was even interested in watching them in person, thinking that it would be a good experience while enjoying his lunch. The actor was playing the role of a beggar rummaging the trash bin to find a piece of bread. He ate it, and he turned the bread in Ernest's mouth into something tasteless. Why? Because the action… sucked. It hurted his eyes, especially when the actor was eating another bread in a way that Ernest could even feel deeply… abused. Ernest could swear on the honor of a poor guy from birth that once the film was released, this actor, as well as this film crew, would be yelled to death. It was the most sincere, brief review that he could give. Thinking so, Ernest left the shadow and came close to the place where the film crew was taking a break. The actor, who played the role of a beggar, was sitting in such a comfortable style. His staff surrounded him, each of which had their own business to serve the guy, but that actor himself seemed not to be satisfied at all. Ernest even heard his voice scolding the staff. “Fck, Annie! Are you deaf, huh? I told you that I need a cold Espresso, not this hot coffee! Go buy it again or I'll fire you!” The girl called Annie repeatedly bent her body and apologized, while the other members of the film crew just looked at her for a moment before turning their back on her and continuing their work. This guy might be a famous actor, and it would be a bit hard to give him a review, Ernest thought. But he didn't care much about that. Ernest stretched his arm to stop the staff, asking her with a smile. “Excuse me, can I talk with the actor over there for a moment? It won't take long.” The girl's eyes opened wide. She was about to refuse, but she guessed that it could be a fan coming to visit the actor. She nodded slightly, going back to ask the assistant. “Ashley, there is a fan coming here to find Kelvin. Can we let him in?” Ashley was the assistant who took charge of all the contracts that Kelvin, the actor playing the role of the beggar, signed. He also decided who Kelvin could meet, and he raised his eyebrows while looking at Ernest in a bargain outfit. “You mean that beggar?” Annie nodded, and Ashley immediately narrowed his eyes. Ashley looked at Ernest again, and he went away while speaking loudly as if he didn't care if Ernest could hear, “Definitely no, okay? Kelvin is busy, he has no spare time to meet a so-called fan for nothing! Get him out of here, Annie!” Ernest, as expected, heard everything from the arrogant assistant. He also saw the guy called Ashley patted her shoulders and threatened her with a gentle voice. “Later I want an explanation from you saying how other people know that Kelvin is here.” The girl's face turned pale, but she tried to talk politely to Ernest, “I'm afraid not, sir. Kelvin is busy now and he can't go meet you. But next Friday is his fan meeting, you can go there and Kelvin will be ready to meet you.” Ernest didn't understand why he could be misunderstood, but he still explained, “Thank you, miss. But I'm not his fan or something. I came here to leave a comment. That's all.” How coincidental it was, Kelvin had just washed all the smelling objects from the damn trash bin. He didn't even want to touch it in real life, and if he could choose on his own, Kelvin would never agree to work in such a smelly situation—even if it's just acting. But Ashley tried to convince him that the director was skillful, talented… and Kelvin didn't trust a bit. Kelvin hadn't felt good since the morning, so when he heard Ernest’s words, they became the matches thrown into the gasoline. Kelvin threw the handkerchief on the floor, scolding loudly while walking towards Ernest. “Who the fck are you? Why are you here?” Then Kelvin noticed that Annie was standing aside, “Annie Rotterfield, you're fired! How the hell can you take your salary from me and let this bastard come to offend me?” Annie then burst into tears. Then Ernest can't hold back his words to Kelvin. “It's wrong, sir. I'm not offensive. I was nearby when you started acting, and I just want to say something about your acting skill. Too fake.” The actor is angry, asking “Who the hell are you, again?” And now after scolding Annie, he shouted at his assistant, Ashley, “How can you let a stranger in our crew? Do you still want your salary?” Being scolded was what Ernest expected, so he was still calm. “I won't cause any trouble here, sir. I just want to advise you that your actions are not good at all. Yeah, from an experienced one.” Ernest was confident while saying this. And it's absolutely true, because he had been poor since childhood, and the older he was, the poorer he was. Now, at the age of eighteen, Ernest's belongings were just old clothes which he is wearing, a tattered bag and a pair of torn shoes. Who else knew about poverty better than him? The argument, though Ernest didn't even argue, easily attracted other people's attention, because there's nothing louder than Kelvin's furious voice at noon. Some people came to stop the conflict, including the director. The director also looked at Ernest. Though Ernest's appearance obviously showed that he was just a poor guy, the type that robbers would never give a damn, but his expression was telling a different story. The unique confidence, he thought. This young man was even more confident and calm than some young masters coming from wealthy families. Despite facing such an impolite attitude from a stranger, his actions were naturally elegant, as if he was taught from birth to behave exactly this way. The director thought of a possibility, although there was no reason at all: this poor appearance may be just a camouflage.But the director didn't have time to think about this, because his actor had already been provoked and started yelling at Ernest.“Oh? Then who the heck are you? Are you a famous actor who won an Oscar? Or the honored lecturer working in the National Film Academy? You are just a kid trying to draw our attention!”“Listen, kid. The word ‘experienced’ is not for such an innocent teenager like you. I graduated from The National Film Academy, and I know what I'm doing! Just getta of here and let us adults work, okay?”All those bad words slapped Ernest at an incredible speed, and it's fast to the point he couldn't hear exactly what this handsome man was yelling about. However, even the dumbest man could realize that this man was humiliating Ernest.And Ernest was not dumb.He looked at the actor, slowly telling him with a disdainful smirk.“As far as I know, your character is a beggar struggling to find food on the street, right? Then your actions are absolutely wrong.”Ernest pointed at
What's the problem, sir?”Ernest turned back with a slight smile, even though his mind was full of bad words. All those crew members looked scary like hell when he commented, so what's this man gonna do? Punch him?Ernest had decided that he would punch back at this man if he just came to yell.But it didn't happen. The middle aged director immediately smiled, as he was trying to show his friendliness to Ernest. His words were polite as well, which made Ernest think that the director wanted to copy him.“My name is Michael Durkheim, this crew's director. Please don't bother Ashley's rude behavior. He didn't hear what you've said and it's all his fault. Don't leave this way, sir. May I talk to you for a while?”Ernest raised his eyebrows for a long time, which abruptly chilled Michael to the bone.“My pleasure.”“This way, please go this way, Mr… Sorry, may I know your name?”“Ernest Eswaranski.”The director stopped for a moment. He might have heard of this surname somewhere before, b
Michael smiled in bitterness. Obviously asking for an investment was never an easy task. He may have underestimated this young guy, just because of his innocent appearance.Look, Ernest didn't even ask what the offer can be but strictly asked for a reason. Ernest knew everything, and according to years of experience talking with all types of producers, Michael understood that he had to show this teenager what benefits he could gain, or everything would be gone.Michael didn't fear that the budget would disappear. What he was afraid of is the loss of his position in the upper class—once Ernest felt unpleasant for what Michael said. Instead of asking for a budget which could provoke this young heir, Michael needed to ask for something more friendly. “I know what you want, Mr. Eswaranski.” Michael said, then he went to find his suitcase in front of Ernest's bewildered eyes.Want? What did Ernest want? Why did he know nothing about that?While Ernest was still confused, the director had
Ernest smiled at Ashley, turning at the weird director who was still bewildered aside and showing him a relaxing expression. “I guess you will need a discussion first, Mr. Durkheim.”“Mr. Eswaranski…”Michael's heart nearly stopped beating when he saw Ernest standing up. He didn't even have time to yell at Ashley—the one who had broken all his wonderful plans. He was about to hold Ernest's sleeve, but Ernest dodged Michael's hand fast like a wind, showing the obvious refusal though he didn't say that.“We will talk later, Mr. Durkheim.”“We don't work with you! Get out of here! Now!”At the moment Ernest was about to put his feet out of the van, he heard Ashley's disdainful words, and the finger pointing at the outside filled with underestimation. The people around him didn't say a word, just looking at Ernest as if he was an old toy, which could entertain them for just a few minutes.He realized that he couldn't leave this way.Ernest turned back at Michael, who was engulfed in despa
Eswaranski? Now confused wasn't what Ashley was feeling. It turned into shock and for a moment, Ashley thought that it was a damn prank. But it was impossible. Eswaranski was so rare that he had never met anyone having that surname in real life, or even on the Internet. Lying was not that easy. You couldn't randomly take a meaningless surname and unintentionally match the real one belonging to someone if you had never heard about it. Ashley had seen the name Eswaranski once. “I have read about that name, Eswaranski.” Ashley’s face turned pale and his voice was trembling. “My late great grandfather had written about that in his diary, but I don't remember the content.” Then he looked at Michael, “Mr Durkheim, I have to go home to find the diary!” Ernest was sitting at a coffee shop. A cup of espresso was on the table, giving off the beautiful scent of perfect coffee. A pianist was playing a song over there, and the relaxing music echoed all over the coffee shop. Waitresses in
For heaven’s sake, it's the first time Ernest had to do such a complicated thing like analyzing just to spend money. He looked at the shop, then glanced at his reflection on the glass door, thinking that his brain would explode before the system showed up and took his life.Ernest had nothing at the moment, just eight… no, seven hours left to complete this mission, and there was nothing valuable all over his body. All the things he was wearing were useless, invaluable which his ex-girlfriend and murderer refused to take.Just a T-shirt, a pants, an old hoodie which Ernest had worn for five years, and-Ah, yes.He got one thing.An idea appeared in Ernest's mind.Ernest turned at the woman who was advising him to ‘be a better man’, giving her a polite smile. “Thank you for giving me such precious advice, ma’am. But I don't come here to disrupt their business, I want to buy some clothes, and it's pretty weird if the employee treats me this way.”“Oh?” The woman was surprised, “To be hon
Ashley had been walking for such a long time, his face turned pale and both his legs were trembling uncontrollably. He huffed and puffed, telling James with a trembling voice, as if there was nothing stable on his body now.“S-stop, James! I-I need to take a rest! I can't walk any longer!” Then he bought an icy beverage from the vending machine, and started complaining after drinking a bit, “Screw it! Why the hell does Michael tell us to find that beggar? He is just a scammer coming to fool us and Michael trusts everything he said? What happened?”“And the last name Eswaranski? Damn, why the fck did my uncle sell the diary to pay for his debt? Why didn't he sell one of his kidneys? Fuck!!!”“Now the diary is gone and it's possible that the scammer has seen that name and pretended to be noble!”Ashley couldn't hold back his bad words. After Ernest left, he had gone back home to look for the name Eswaranski in his great grandfather’s diary. But who the hell could expect that his uncle h
Ernest raised his eyebrows. His anger vanished as fast as the way it showed up, and Ernest was conscious enough to realize his problem. He couldn't stand there and argue while the precious time was flying. He had another plan, but before leaving, he had to do something. “Fine, now I understand the way you guys do business.” He looked at the big, sparkling banner on the rooftop, “Friesta? Good, this is the first brand that I have to keep in mind.” “We will meet again.” If I couldn't survive tonight. Ernest left that sentence with a mysterious smile before he turned away, heading to another shop. Ernest wouldn't give up! He had six hours left, and there must be some shop where he could spend all his money! But when Ernest was about to leave the crowd, he heard someone calling him. “Sir. Please, sir. I have something to talk about.” Ernest was surprised, and so did the crowd. Since they all knew that Ernest had done nothing wrong, no one dared to scold him badly. Just look at his