Reborn in Hollywood

Forty minutes later, they were sitting in a run-down cafe by the beach.

At 4:30 a.m., it was still dark.

The sound of waves came from afar, mingling with the deep jazz music coming from the café.

They were the only customers at the restaurant.

Jessica held a hot chocolate and looked out the window.

"I had a dream," she finally said.

Li Rui waited for her to continue.

"I dreamt that I was in my forties, married to a director's assistant, had three kids, and lived in a run-down house in the San Fernando Valley. You appeared on TV, walking the red carpet with your new girlfriend."

Li Rui remained silent.

Jessica turned her head and looked at him.

"That dream was so real, so real that I can still feel that despair now."

"and then?"

Then I woke up.

Li Rui looked at her, his gaze calm.

"So you called me?"

"right."

Why?

Jessica thought for a moment.

"Because I don't want to regret it when I'm forty."

Li Rui picked up his coffee and took a sip.

"You know I have other women around me."

"Know."

"You know how tabloids write about me."

"Know."

"You know what being with me means."

Jessica met his gaze.

"I know. But I have confidence in myself."

Li Rui looked at her, and the corners of his mouth slowly turned up.

"What kind of confidence?"

Jessica smiled.

That was a smile she had kept hidden for a long time, a smile that truly belonged to a twenty-year-old girl.

"I'm confident I can beat them!"

From that day on, everything changed.

The crew on set were the first to notice something was wrong.

Jessica started to chat with Li Rui, and during breaks, the two sat in a corner, talking about something.

During rehearsals, her gaze no longer darted away, but met his eyes with a light.

Director Biller Woodruff was pleased with the outcome.

"marvelous!"

He shouted into the monitor, "That's the look! Jessica, yes, just look at him like that!"

Producer Mark Pratt also noticed. He pulled Li Rui aside and asked in a low voice, "You guys..."

"What?"

"It's nothing."

Mark smiled. "Continue."

The famous "Dance in the Rain" was filmed in the third week.

In the script, Nora and Taylor first truly get close to each other—not during a rehearsal or practice, but late at night on the street when it suddenly starts raining. The two take shelter in an abandoned warehouse and begin to dance.

It actually rained in Los Angeles that night.

It's not artificial rain; it's winter rain that God blessed us with.

Rainwater leaked from the broken roof, splashing on the concrete floor.

The lighting crew scrambled to adjust the lights, but the director said, "Don't move them, just shoot like this!"

Li Rui and Jessica stood in the rain.

She was wearing a white sundress, which clung to her body after being soaked by the rain, revealing her curves.

He was wearing a simple white T-shirt and jeans, the T-shirt was soaked, and the outline of his six-pack abs was clearly visible under the fabric.

Rainwater slid down his neck, flowed over his collarbone, and disappeared deep into his collar.

The music is ringing.

They started dancing.

It wasn't the kind of dance that had been rehearsed.

Biller Woodruff made a last-minute decision to have the choreographer give them only a few key moves, leaving the rest to their own interpretation.

Li Rui placed his hand on Jessica's waist, and she could feel the burning heat of his palm.

She looked up at him, raindrops dripping from her eyelashes.

At that moment, the sound of rain, the lights, and the camera lens all disappeared.

Only the two of them remained.

He spun her around, her skirt splashing up beautiful sprays of water.

She leaned against his chest, feeling the rhythm of his heartbeat—fast and strong, mingling with the rain. His body pressed against her through his soaked T-shirt, the contours of every muscle clearly visible. Broad shoulders, a strong chest, the definition of six-pack abs, and that V-line extending down from his waist—

With his final movement, he lifted her up by the waist. Her body traced an arc in the air, her long hair cascading down, raindrops dripping onto his face.

He looked up at her.

She looked down at him.

At that moment, Jessica had only one thought in her mind:

The version of myself in that dream was such a fool.

The camera captured that look in his eyes.

Biller Woodruff muttered behind the monitor, "Damn, this doesn't need to be acted at all."

After filming that scene, they didn't return to their respective trailers.

Li Rui took her hand and walked into the rain, all the way to the dark edge of the film set.

Jessica.

"Um?"

"I don't want to wait anymore."

She looked at him, raindrops dripping from her eyelashes.

"Then let's not wait."

He kissed her.

Rainwater slid down their faces and into the corners of their mouths, making it hard to tell if it was rain or something else.

-----------------

When the filming of "Step Up" ended after more than 30 days, the amount of footage far exceeded expectations.

Biller Woodruff told the producers, "I need an extra month to edit because every scene is fucking good. I don't know which parts to cut. This footage could even be edited into another movie!"

On the night filming wrapped, the crew held a small party on set.

Li Rui drank two glasses of wine and stood in the corner watching the crowd.

Jessica walked over, holding a glass of champagne.

"It's over," she said.

"Um."

"Where to next?"

Li Rui thought about it.

Do you have somewhere to go?

Jessica paused for a moment, then laughed.

Are you inviting me?

"right."

She looked at him, his blue eyes sparkling under the party lights.

"My home is in Malibu, I live alone, it's quite big."

Li Rui raised an eyebrow.

"Is this an invitation?"

"Yes! Shall we come?"

The next day, Li Rui moved out of his apartment in San Marino.

He didn't have much luggage—a few boxes of clothes, some scripts, and a training lightsaber he'd swiped from the Star Wars set.

All the cargo fit in the Mustang's trunk, and there was still room to spare.

An hour later, he parked the car in the garage of Jessica's villa in Malibu.

Jessica was waiting for him at the door.

She was wearing loungewear, her hair was casually tied up, and she wasn't wearing makeup.

But those eyes were still so bright.

"The guest room is on the second floor, and the master bedroom is also on the second floor. You can choose."

Li Rui looked at her.

How many beds are in the master bedroom?

Jessica smiled.

"One."

"Then let's go with the master bedroom."

The tabloids reacted faster than Li Rui had anticipated.

Three days later, the cover of US Weekly featured the headline: "Fast & Furious Star Lives with Sweetheart Jessica!"

The accompanying photo is of them shopping at a supermarket in Malibu.

Li Rui pushed the shopping cart, Jessica linked arms with him, both dressed casually and smiling.

Following this, People magazine published an article titled "Jessica Alba's New Boyfriend: A Deep Dive into Raphael Lee's Scandalous Romantic History."

The radio talk show started making fun of the incident. The host laughed and said, "This young man was vacationing in Miami with two Brazilian supermodels last month, and this month he's moved into a mansion in Malibu. That's incredibly efficient."

The day the phone rang, Li Rui was making breakfast in the kitchen.

Jessica was sleeping upstairs. He was wearing a t-shirt and sweatpants, flipping eggs in a pan, his phone vibrating on the dining table.

He glanced at the caller ID.

Adriana Lima.

He answered the call.

"Bad boy".

The tone on the other end was so cold it could freeze you.

"Adriana".

"I read the magazine."

Li Rui didn't say anything.

"You really moved into that woman's house?"

"right."

silence.

Five seconds, ten seconds.

"Are you fucking serious?"

"Adriana, I said—"

"I won't listen!"

She hung up.

Li Rui looked at his phone but didn't call back.

Two minutes later, a text message came in.

We're over. Don't look for me again.

He glanced at it and put the phone back on the table.

Another hour later, a second text message came in.

It's Ambrose.

There is only one word:

【WHY?】

There was no anger, no questioning.

Li Rui didn't know what this meant.

Is it that she doesn't care? Or is she waiting for him to explain?

By the time Jessica came downstairs, the fried eggs were already cold.

"Whose call was that?"

"Adriana".

She walked over and sat down opposite him.

Did I insult you?

"Um."

"What did you say?"

Li Rui looked at her.

"I told you I've moved in."

Jessica nodded, picked up her fork, and speared a cold fried egg.

"And one more?"

"Why did you send a text message?"

Jessica paused for a moment while chewing.

"She...is quite interesting."

Li Rui did not respond.

Jessica finished her fried egg, put down her fork, and looked at him.

Do you regret it?

Li Rui thought about it.

No regrets.

Why?

"Because I want to do it."

Jessica looked at him, and something seemed to melt in her blue eyes.

She stood up, walked around the table, sat on his lap, and put her arms around his neck.

"Then I won't regret it."

That afternoon, Li Rui made a phone call to Lima.

She answered after it rang for a long time.

"What are you doing?"

"Adriana, we need to talk."

"What are we talking about? The fact that you moved into someone else's house?"

"That was for movie promotion."

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

"...What?"

"Step Up, the musical we made. The producers wanted us to project a couple image during the promotional period. A lot of Hollywood movies do that."

Lima did not speak.

"We're just living together, not engaged. Nobody knows what will happen after the publicity period ends."

Silence again.

"You swear?"

I swear.

"What oath?"

Li Rui thought about it.

"If I'm lying to you, may my next movie flop."

Lima snorted.

"What's the use of your worthless oath? How could your movie possibly flop?"

Li Rui smiled.

"So you can trust me."

Lima remained silent for a long time.

Finally, she said, "I'll give you three months. If you're still living with that woman after three months, I'll personally come to Los Angeles to settle accounts with you."

"it is good."

"Also, you can explain Ambrose's side yourself. I'm not getting involved."

"it is good."

After hanging up the phone, Jessica came down the stairs.

"nailed it?"

"temporary."

She walked over and kissed him on the cheek.

"That's good. What would you like to eat tonight?"

Li Rui looked at her and suddenly smiled.

"Aren't you afraid I'm really lying to her?"

Jessica thought for a moment.

"I'm afraid, but I'm even more afraid of the 39-year-old version of myself in my dreams."

Outside the window, the setting sun in Malibu is sinking into the Pacific Ocean.

The sound of waves could be heard in the distance.

It was late at night, and Jessica was already asleep.

She lay on her side, breathing evenly. Moonlight streamed in through the gaps in the curtains, falling on her face.

Li Rui stood on the balcony, looking at the dark sea in the distance.

He knew what Jessica's dream was.

He knew what he had done.

The dream simply materialized Jessica's existing fears—it allowed her to see what she was truly afraid of and then make a choice.

He did not change Jessica's mind, nor did he distort her judgment.

He gave it a gentle push.

That's it.