This director only directs blockbusters.

When the phone rang, Yang Ning was hunched over the coffee table in the living room drawing storyboards.

The table was covered in papers, and pencils, erasers, and rulers were spread out in a pile. It was getting dark outside, and the room was dark, lit only by the faint light from outside.

His phone vibrated on the other side of the sofa. He reached out and touched it, glancing at the screen.

Xue Kaiqi.

"Feed?"

"Director Yang..." The voice on the other end was soft and a little nervous, "Are you available now?"

Yang Ning put down her pencil and leaned back on the sofa.

"explain."

"I'm flying to Hong Kong first thing tomorrow morning." Xue Kaiqi paused, "I'd like to invite you for coffee to thank you in person. I wonder if you have time..."

Yang Ning glanced at the storyboard on the table. The first draft was to be reviewed with the editor tomorrow, so she needed to get her ideas organized tonight.

"I've been too busy these past few days," he said. "The later stages have just started, and there's a ton of stuff to do. It'll be the same next time we meet in Hong Kong."

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end.

"Oh..." Her voice noticeably lowered. "Well, then you go ahead with your work, I won't bother you any longer..."

Hearing that "oh," Yang Ning suddenly remembered that day in the cosmetics store, when she blushed, her eyes were bright, and she tiptoed to kiss him.

"Wait a moment."

"Um?"

He rubbed his temples.

"I'm organizing my thoughts at home tonight. If you don't mind the distance, you can come over. But you can only stay for a short while, as I have to work after nine o'clock."

There was a pause for a second, then the voice became noticeably brighter: "Is it okay? Please send me the address!"

Yang Ning gave the name of the residential area and the house number.

"Will it take an hour?"

"Yes!" she said, then added, realizing it was too hasty, "I... I'll try not to bother you for too long..."

Yang Ning smiled.

"We'll talk about it when we get here."

After hanging up the phone, he glanced down at the mess on the coffee table, then at his own clothes—a white T-shirt, baggy shorts, and barefoot. Oh well, whatever.

He got up, went to the kitchen to pour a glass of water, and then pushed the storyboard on the coffee table aside to make some room.

Forty minutes later, the doorbell rang.

Yang Ning opened the door.

Xue Kaiqi stood at the door, wearing that little white dress, her hair down, carrying a paper bag. Her face was a little red, whether from running or nervousness, it was hard to tell.

"Director Yang..." she called softly.

"Come in."

When she changed her shoes, Yang Ning noticed that she was wearing a new pair of white sandals with thin straps—it looked like the ones he had bought in South Africa that day.

The main lights weren't on in the room; only the table lamp on the coffee table was lit. A halo of light shone on the scattered storyboard sheets.

Xue Kaiqi stood in the middle of the living room, somewhat at a loss, unsure where to put the paper bag in his hand.

"Sit down," Yang Ning said, pointing to the sofa.

She sat down, placed the paper bag on her lap, and sat up straight, like a primary school student in class.

Yang Ning sat down opposite her.

"What would you like to drink?"

"No, no, I'll just sit for a while and then leave..." she quickly waved her hand.

Yang Ning ignored her, went to the kitchen, poured a glass of water, and placed it in front of her.

She looked down at the glass of water and remained silent for a few seconds.

"Director Yang," she looked up, "I just wanted to come and thank you."

"Thank you."

"Not that Xie." She shook her head. "It's... the role you gave me."

Yang Ning looked at her.

"That day in South Africa, you said you wanted me to play the record store girl." Her eyes lit up. "After I got back, I couldn't sleep all night. I kept thinking about why you chose me."

"Because you're a good fit."

"No," she shook her head. "There are plenty of people more suitable than me. I know them."

She looked down at her hands.

"I don't have any connections, I just signed with Warner, and I don't have any work yet. If that role had been given to someone else, they could definitely have gotten a lot in return. But you gave it to me."

Yang Ning remained silent.

She looked up.

"The film hasn't even been released yet, and people are already contacting me." She said softly, "Yesterday, someone called my agent and said they wanted me to play the second female lead in a film. Today, someone else asked me to meet with the director."

She smiled, but her eyes were a little red.

"Director Yang, I never thought it would turn out like this."

Yang Ning looked at her.

The light shone from the side, casting a soft shadow on her face. Her eyes were red-rimmed, but the corners of her mouth were turned up, an expression that suggested she wanted to both cry and laugh.

"It's all your own hard work," he said. "You're the one who acted in the play."

"But you gave me this opportunity," she said, looking at him. "Without you, I wouldn't even have had the chance to act."

Yang Ning didn't know what to say.

After a few seconds of silence, Xue Kaiqi suddenly moved.

She placed the paper bag on the coffee table, leaned forward slightly, and looked into his eyes.

"Director Yang," she said, "I..."

Before she could finish speaking, her face turned red.

Yang Ning waited.

She opened her mouth, then closed it again. Her fingers were twisted together, and she sat there, as if she had mustered up her courage, or as if something was holding her back.

"What's wrong?" Yang Ning asked.

She shook her head.

But his eyes remained fixed on him.

There was something in his eyes, not nervousness, not fear, but something else entirely.

Yang Ning suddenly felt that inviting her over tonight might have been a mistake.

"Xue Kaiqi".

"Um?"

"you……"

He didn't finish speaking.

Because she suddenly leaned in, hugged his neck, and kissed him.

Soft, warm, and trembling slightly.

Yang Ning was taken aback.

She was awkward and clumsy, her lips pressed against his, unsure of what to do next, just staying there. Her breathing was rapid, her chest trembling.

A few seconds later, she stepped back a little, her face flushed red, but her eyes were fixed on him.

"Director Yang," her voice trembled, "I...I like you."

Yang Ning looked at her.

"I know you have someone else," she continued, speaking quickly, as if afraid she wouldn't be able to continue if she stopped. "I know you're against marriage. I know, I know a lot... but I still like you."

Her eyes welled up with tears again, but she didn't cry.

"I just wanted to tell you," she said. "After telling you, I'll leave. From now on, if you come to Hong Kong to film, I'll act well. If you don't contact me, I won't bother you. Really."

Yang Ning looked at her.

Twenty-two-year-old Xue Kaiqi sat on his sofa, poured out her heart, and waited for his response.

He reached out and touched her face.

It's hot.

She was stunned.

Then he bent down and kissed her.

This time, it wasn't her initiative.

He pulled her into his arms, his lips were captured in hers, and his tongue was gently pried open. She made a soft "mmm" sound, then her hands climbed onto his shoulders, and her whole body went limp.

……

No one said anything after that.

From the sofa to the bedroom, from the living room to the bed. Her skirt was thrown on the floor, and his T-shirt hung on the headboard.

She was a little nervous, holding his arm the whole time, her fingernails leaving faint marks on his back.

She frowned slightly when she felt pain, but didn't make a sound; she just hugged him tighter.

……

I don't know how much time has passed.

The room fell silent, with only the sound of their breathing.

Xue Kaiqi lay on his chest, his hair disheveled, and the redness on his face hadn't faded yet.

She gently traced his abs with her fingers, her movements careful, as if afraid of disturbing something.

"Director Yang," she called softly.

"Um?"

"I won't bother you."

Yang Ning looked down at her.

She didn't look up, just lay there with her face pressed against his chest.

"I've thought about it for a long time," she said, her voice muffled. "Ever since I was in South Africa, I've thought about it every day."

I've been thinking about it for many days, but back then you had Li Bingbing and Gao Yuanyuan by your side, and they were both so beautiful.

I...I'm a little hesitant...but I'm going back to Hong Kong soon, and I'm afraid if I don't...I might miss my chance."

"What are you thinking about?"

"I miss you," she said. "I miss what you like and what you don't like. I miss the way you talk, the way you smoke, and the way you act."

I remember that day in the cosmetics store, you noticed me, a small, insignificant person, and you understood me.

She paused.

"Later I figured it out."

Yang Ning waited.

"You're that kind of person," she looked up at him, "you won't stop for anyone."

A sliver of light peeked through the curtains, illuminating her face. Her eyes were bright, and a smile played on her lips—a smile that held something more than sadness; it was one of acceptance.

"That's why I don't want you to stop," she said. "I just want to... stay by your side for a while. For as long as I can."

Yang Ning looked at her.

Twenty-two-year-old Xue Kaiqi lay on his chest, saying these words. Her face still had a blush from earlier, her hair was messy, but her eyes were bright and clear.

He remembered his previous life.

In his previous life, he didn't film this movie, didn't go to South Africa, and never met the 22-year-old Xue Kaiqi.

He had only seen her in television and movies—the "Hong Kong Succubus" Xue Kaiqi, who was charming, adept, flirting with anyone, and keeping her distance from everyone.

That's something honed by the industry and tamed by time.

Not the one in front of you.

The person in front of her would be so nervous that she would become incoherent, blush so much that she wouldn't dare to look at him, and clumsily take the initiative to kiss him, then tremble so much that she couldn't speak.

Even after pondering my thoughts for so many days, when I finally spoke them out, my eyes were still clear.

He reached out and tucked the stray hairs from her forehead behind her ear.

"Go to sleep," he said.

She froze for a moment.

"You...you're not going to kick me out?"

"I'm not a man-eating tiger, so don't be nervous or think of me as superior. You can leave tomorrow."

She looked at him, her eyes reddening again. But this time she smiled, and as she smiled, she buried her face in his chest.

"Director Yang," she said in a muffled voice, "you...you're so kind."

Yang Ning didn't say anything, but gently patted her back.

The night outside the window is very quiet.

Occasionally a car would pass by, its sound distant, as if coming from another world.

The person in my arms gradually calmed down and fell asleep.

Yang Ning stared at the ceiling.

A thought suddenly popped into my head—

What a person ultimately becomes is truly shaped little by little by the people and events they encounter.

In his past life, Xue Kaiqi hadn't met him, hadn't filmed this movie, and hadn't blushed in that cosmetics store in South Africa.

She took a different path, met different people, and eventually became someone else entirely.

Will her life be different this time?

he does not know.

But at this moment, she was sleeping soundly in his arms, a slight smile on her lips.

That's enough.

He closed his eyes.

Let's talk about tomorrow's problems tomorrow.