The Premiere

The day of the premiere arrived before long. Early that morning, fans of Britney had already gathered at an independent theater near Century City.

The premiere drew not only the film's cast and crew, but also movie fans, critics, and, of course, some entertainment reporters. Still, the turnout today was nothing special.

Irene arrived neither early nor late. She didn't work in front of the camera, so she had no need to spend much effort on a glamorous gown. Dressed in a simple white suit, she strolled down the red carpet.

The junior reporters gathered around the perimeter snapped pictures before they even realized what they were doing. Then one turned to a senior reporter beside him and asked, "Who's that?"

The senior reporter checked the pictures he'd taken and answered casually, "That's Irene Coppola, the director of this movie."

The junior reporter couldn't help exclaiming, "Damn, she's so young."

Indeed, at seventeen, Irene still looked as fresh as a willow bud in early spring, despite doing her best to dress more maturely. There wasn't a hint of artifice about her.

"I thought there'd be more people here today." The junior reporter looked around and, seeing that no one else was coming in, turned back to chat with his partner.

"For a rookie director, this is already a pretty good turnout. She has a good father and a great friend to thank for that." The senior reporter shrugged. "Besides, Mr. Cruise's movie is premiering today too."

"Tom Cruise?"

"Yeah. The Cruise couple's movie, Eyes Wide Shut. It's a real star-studded affair over there, much livelier."

"Then why are you over here with me?"

"Because I have a feeling this movie won't be bad." While the two were talking, the film's leads, Reese Witherspoon and James Franco, arrived hand in hand.

Reese had made a bit of a name for herself already, at least enough that reporters knew who she was. James was a complete newcomer, but at least he had the looks, so plenty of reporters called him handsome.

They spent a full twenty minutes on the red carpet outside before making it to the lounge. Irene had already been sitting there bored for half an hour. She wasn't much of a conversationalist, so after greeting her father and her godfather, she settled down by herself.

She couldn't be bothered to listen to all the mutual flattery between those so-called big shots. Hearing it more often wouldn't boost the box office.

"Hey, boss. You're here early." James Franco came over with the easy familiarity of an old friend and gave her a fist bump, not treating her like a girl at all.

"I've been sitting here for half an hour. You finally made it. The movie starts in half an hour. How's it outside?" Irene had already gotten used to his way of greeting people on set.

"It looked pretty busy to me. The audience and fans should be coming in soon too. Boss, it's almost time to see how your work turned out. Nervous?" James raised an eyebrow at her.

Irene folded her arms. "What do I have to be nervous about? If it's getting a wide release, that means the film company believes in my movie. You two are the ones who haven't seen the finished film yet. Looking forward to seeing how you did?"

"My part isn't that big. I think I did okay, haha." James laughed, then turned to Reese. "What's up, Reese? You haven't said a word since you got here. Something on your mind?"

Reese tried to smile, but couldn't quite manage it. "Boss, have you heard? Tom Cruise's movie is getting a wide release today too!"

"Of course. The Cruise couple's new, racy movie, Eyes Wide Shut. How could I not have heard? Their publicity started later than ours, but they've got a lot more momentum." Irene answered casually, sounding completely unconcerned.

"Boss, aren't you worried? I heard their movie cost more than sixty million dollars to make. And Tom Cruise is the hottest star around right now. Some people are predicting it'll be the next Titanic. Everyone's going to see their movie. What about us?"

"To be precise, it cost sixty-five million. But don't worry. Our audiences are completely different. We're a campus comedy, and theirs is a psychological thriller. There's hardly any overlap." Irene sounded calm now, but she still felt annoyed when she learned that the 1,200 theaters they'd originally arranged had dropped to 800 because of Eyes Wide Shut's last-minute release.

Each additional theater showing her movie could bring in thousands, or even tens of thousands, more at the box office on opening day. Who wouldn't want the biggest possible opening? But what could she do against Tom Cruise?

Fortunately, she knew the Cruise couple's film wouldn't do well at the box office. Otherwise, she'd probably be as uneasy as Reese. Still, she didn't know just how badly it would do. Surely it wouldn't earn less than it cost to make.

"Enough about that. The critics will be here soon. You two should go over and greet them enthusiastically. Because of the Cruise couple's movie, we could only invite some second- and third-tier people. They can't compare in prestige, but at least it saved us money, haha."

Watching her tough-minded director, Reese thought every laugh was just Irene trying to make the best of a bad situation. She must be terrified inside, but couldn't let anyone see it. That was why her smiles looked so strained.

If Irene had known what Reese was thinking, she probably would've patted her on the head and told her she was overthinking it. Rather than worrying about the Cruise couple's film taking off, she was more wary of Runaway Bride, coming out in two weeks.

It was a comedy in the same genre as hers, directed by Garry Marshall and starring Julia Roberts. They were both heavyweights in the industry, with countless classic roles to their names. The leads had worked together before, too, so the movie already had a huge fan base. Unlike their film, it didn't need to rely on crowds like the ones outside, where only a few were actually there for the movie. Most were reporters and Britney's fans.

"Ahhhhh! Brit, over here!"

A sudden wave of screams came from outside. Britney must have arrived.

Irene stood at the entrance to the lounge and watched Britney approach, wearing a pink T-shirt, low-rise jeans, and a pink graffiti baseball cap. Dressed like a hip-hop girl, she took two steps at a time and threw herself at Irene before she'd even reached her.

"Careful." Irene hurriedly caught her.

"How's my outfit today? Doesn't it fit the theme perfectly? The costume designer suggested I wear a gown, but come on, this isn't some super-formal event. A gown would've been ridiculous."

Irene smoothed her hair. "You can wear whatever you want around me. You don't have to worry about the occasion." Then she took Britney's hand and led her into the theater, where they found seats in the front row.

"That's what I said too, so I came dressed like this."

"Mm, you did great."

"Hey, ladies. How have you been? The fans outside are so enthusiastic. It'd be even better if they were here for me." As soon as Edward Nelson came in, he sat beside Britney. The front row was reserved for the cast and crew, so there wouldn't be any strangers there.

The other actors saw Edward take the seat they'd all wanted and regretted not moving faster.

"Hey, Edward. Long time no see. That rare Elvis album you gave me last time was so precious. I had no idea what to get you in return. What do you like? I'll buy it for you." Britney beamed even more when she saw Edward.

Clearly, the two had quietly gotten in touch without Irene knowing.