Global Best Actor: Starting with Picking Up Attributes in America

Chapter 459 A Battle of Wits and Courage

Chapter 458 A Battle of Wits and Courage

By 9 o'clock, most of the plates on the table were empty.

Jennifer's chicken soup was almost gone, Ellie's cookies were down to just two pieces, and even Christine's less-than-appetizing plate of scrambled eggs with tomatoes was completely devoured.

Chen Xun leaned back in his chair, took a sip of water, and looked at the mess on the table with satisfaction.

I haven't eaten this much in a long time.

"Thank you all for your hard work today."

He put down his cup, preparing to see the guest off.

Nobody moved.

Jennifer bent down and wiped her hands, wiping them very carefully, as if there were oil stains on her hands that couldn't be washed off.

Christine picked up her water glass and drank it slowly, with such elegance, just like a photographer taking pictures of her boyfriend.

Dakota sat quietly, without saying a word, just sitting there.

Ellie seemed about to say something, but Dakota gently touched her arm, and she shut her mouth again.

Chen Xun: ————

After waiting a while longer, no one moved.

"Aren't you going back?"

Christine put down her water glass and looked up at him: "Going back where?"

"Go back to your own homes!"

"It's too late."

Christine said matter-of-factly, "I drove forty minutes to get here, and it's already past nine o'clock. It would be too tiring to drive back."

Chen Xun glanced at the clock on the wall. 9:20. It takes twenty minutes to get here from her house without traffic.

He didn't expose him.

Jennifer continued, "I've been drinking, I can't drive."

Chen Xun glanced at the cola in front of her.

"They can even detect it in cola."

Jennifer remained unfazed.

Dakota finally spoke: "Going back now would be too much of a hassle."

Ellie immediately yawned and rubbed her eyes, her acting a little over-the-top.

Chen Xun looked at the four women, then at the four empty guest rooms upstairs.

Fine.

"The guest rooms are on the second floor, three on the left and two on the right. Towels and bath towels are in the cabinets, and toothbrushes are in the drawers under the sinks."

He stood up: "You can divide it yourselves."

Christine was the first to stand up, grab her bag, and head upstairs with an air of self-righteousness.

Jennifer followed.

Dakota led Ellie at the back.

Chen Xun stood at the top of the stairs, watching the four women disappear around the corner on the second floor.

He felt the villa was a bit crowded today.

When Chen Xun came out of the shower, it was almost eleven o'clock.

Turn off the lights, lie down on the bed, and close your eyes.

Just as I was getting sleepy, I heard very light footsteps in the corridor.

He opened his eyes.

The footsteps grew closer and stopped at his door.

The doorknob turned slightly.

Chen Xun did not move.

The door was pushed open a crack, and a figure slipped in, the movements as practiced as if he had done it countless times.

In the darkness, he recognized the silhouette.

Christine.

She was barefoot, wearing a long T-shirt, and tiptoed toward the bed.

Just then!

Another voice came from the corridor.

"Christine?"

Christine paused in her steps.

The hallway lights were turned on, and Jennifer stood at the top of the stairs, wearing a bathrobe, her hair loose, squinting at us.

What are you doing?

Christine's hand was still on Chen Xun's doorknob. She turned around and said without changing her expression, "Get up, have a glass of water, and go to the bathroom."

Jennifer glanced at her, then at Chen Xun's room behind her.

"The toilet is over there."

Jennifer pointed to the other end of the corridor.

"I know."

Christine released the handle: "I'll go to the kitchen first."

"The kitchen is on the first floor."

"I know."

Christine calmly walked towards the stairs, saying to Jennifer as she passed by, "Go to sleep early."

Jennifer didn't move; she just stood in the middle of the hallway and watched Christine go downstairs.

Two minutes later, Christine brought up a glass of water.

Jennifer was still standing in the hallway.

"Why aren't you asleep yet?" Christine asked.

"Wait for you."

"Why are you waiting for me?"

"I was afraid you'd go to the wrong room."

Christine, holding her water glass, stared at Jennifer for a second before turning and going back to her room.

Jennifer watched her close the door, stood in the hallway for a while to make sure no one was moving, before turning and walking back.

But after taking only two steps, she stopped at the door of Chen Xun's room.

I hesitated for a moment.

Just then, the door behind me opened.

Christine poked her head out: "What are you doing?"

Jennifer's hand froze in mid-air: "—Going to the bathroom."

"The toilet is over there."

"I know."

The two looked at each other.

Christine leaned against the door frame, arms crossed, looking at Jennifer.

Jennifer was looking at her too.

No one moved.

Why are you staring at me?

Jennifer spoke first.

I was afraid you'd go to the wrong room.

"I won't go the wrong way."

"Then go back to your room."

"—You go back first."

"You go first."

The two stood there in the corridor, neither willing to leave first.

After an unknown amount of time, Jennifer yawned.

Christine yawned as well.

"Tired?"

Christine asked.

"A little."

"Me too."

There was a few more seconds of silence.

"How about we sleep in the same room tonight?"

Christine hesitated for a moment.

Jennifer looked at her, thought for a moment, and said, "Okay."

The two entered Christine's room one after the other and closed the door.

The corridor finally became quiet.

Chen Xun lay on the bed and heard everything clearly.

He turned over, ready to go to sleep, when the door was pushed open again.

There were no footsteps this time.

He almost thought he was seeing a ghost.

Dakota stood in the doorway, barefoot, wearing a simple cotton nightgown, her hair down, her face expressionless.

"They're asleep."

She said softly.

Chen Xun sat up: "What are you doing—"

"Ellie is asleep."

Dakota walked in and gently closed the door.

She walked to the bedside, looked at him, and said nothing more.

Light leaked through the gap in the curtains and fell on her face. Her eyes were calm, not in a deliberate way, but just as she always was.

Since I met her, she seems to never say much.

She doesn't say anything fancy, nor does she do anything to attract attention; she's just always there.

When Chen Xun was filming "Spider-Man", she brought Ellie to visit the set. They didn't say much, just sat and watched.

During the time Chen Xun was in a coma, she would come to the hospital every day. She would stay quietly for a while, sometimes with flowers, sometimes without anything, and then leave.

Robert said she often came in the early hours of the morning, but she came less often after Chen Xun woke up.

That's just the kind of person she is.

"You've lost weight," Dakota said.

This was the second thing she said after she came in.

Chen Xun looked at her and said, "You've lost weight too."

Dakota shook his head, didn't reply, and sat down on the edge of the bed.

The two of them just sat there, without making any unnecessary movements.

A few seconds later, Dakota leaned in gently and rested her head on his shoulder.

Chen Xun reached out and put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer to him.

Dakota didn't break free and moved even closer.

"Is Ellie sleeping soundly?" Chen asked.

"Yes, she usually doesn't wake up when she's asleep."