Chapter 5 What's He Doing Here

"My dearest Mr. Bohr, I'm sure you know what I'm trying to say. I just think that Ms. Bluebell here would be perfect for the role of Jenny." Jenny's Diaries was another upcoming film in the middle of casting at the time of speaking. Thousands of actresses had shown up to audition for the role of the main character, Jenny, but Albert had not been satisfied with any of them. Finally, he narrowed the list of potential candidates down to two people, and one of them was Carolyn. However, he had yet to come to a decision since the ultimate choice for the casting would require input from the movie writers as well. "Mr. Albert, I'm not planning to star in any movies yet, and I can't very well say if I'm suitable for the role of the character Jenny that you mentioned. After all, I'm here today to audition for the role of a voice actress," Marjorie said. One would be exposed to extreme scrutiny in front of the film cameras, with every minuscule expression being recorded and enlarged for the audience. Marjorie had left the film industry for over two years now, and thus, she did not think she could jump back into acting just yet. "Hello, Ms. Bluebell." All of a sudden, a man showed up. He had sharp, bushy eyebrows that immediately stole the attention of everyone who laid eyes on him. Marjorie recognized him; he was Caine, her tutor back from college. "Mr. Caine, I'm so happy to finally see you again! I didn't think I'd bump into you here." Marjorie grinned as she stepped over to give him a warm hug. "When are you planning to start your acting career?" Caine asked solemnly. He was a little disappointed in her. She had been one of his brightest and most talented students, and everyone thought she would go off to accomplish great things in the film industry, but she vanished as soon as she graduated. Not long after that, they heard through the grapevine that she had gotten married to a rich man and had retired from her career in film. "Mr. Caine, I never gave up on acting. I just chose to use my voice instead. I believe that art comes in many forms, and my voice is just one of them," Marjorie replied calmly. Caine shook his head in disappointment. He was skeptical. He thought Marjorie was capable of much greater things and that she should not be stuck in minor roles in voice acting. "Since you say you've never given up on acting, I'm in no place to comment. You have all the freedom to decide what you want to do in life, but you are responsible for how your life plays out. Don't limit yourself when you can do better." With that, he turned to glance at Bohr and asked, "Has she signed the contract?" No one ever imagined that Bluebell would turn out to be Caine's old student. Bohr's expression turned from one of admiration to awe. When Caine spoke to him, he initially did not break out of his stupor and echoed blankly, "Contract? What contract?" After a few moments, he finally came to. "Oh, the contract! Not yet. I'll draft it right now." He returned not long later with the drafted document. "She can't sign it." A familiar voice rang out behind Marjorie. She turned around and came face-to-face with Stephen's cold, penetrating stare. She did not know if she was imagining it, but there was a hint of admiration in his look. This was an expression that she had never seen on his face before. "Why not, Mr. Stephen? She's very talented." Stephen was the largest shareholder of Blue Ray Films and possessed the most authority, so naturally, Bohr and Albert valued his opinion a lot. "I don't think she's made for this role. Please find someone else to fill this role, or else I will cut off all the funding for this film. I'm sure all of you know that I'm a man of my word." Stephen frowned. With that, he turned and strode out the door. However, he turned around after just a few steps and said to Marjorie, "Aren't you coming?" "What is the meaning of this, Mr. Stephen?" Marjorie asked, trotting after him. "Don't you know what I'm doing?" He tossed the question back to her, his expression as cold as always. "I didn't think the all-powerful Mr. Stephen would stoop so low as to bully an innocent girl." Marjorie sneered. "Well, I didn't know you're the famous voice actress Bluebell either. If I remember correctly, you listed out all of our individual assets in the divorce settlement, but I don't recall seeing anything belonging to Ms. Bluebell on there. Explain yourself?" The corner of Stephen's mouth twitched when he said this, and Marjorie had a sudden urge to slap him. Instead, she let out a self-deprecating chuckle and replied, "I didn't think you'd even want the money, Mr. Stephen. After all, you make much more than my measly salary as a voice actress." "No, no, please don't say that. Ms. Bluebell is one of the most renowned names in the voiceover industry. Yet all through the past two years, you continued to spend my money. For instance, this black dress you're wearing now, what a beautiful dress, but I believe you bought it with my card." Stephen sneered as he gave her a once-over. "What are you trying to do?" Marjorie asked, staring at him with a hostile look. "I want you to move back home and fulfill your duties as a wife." "Fulfill my duties as a wife? I can't very much do that if my husband is impotent, Mr. Stephen." With that, Marjorie even snickered, glancing at his private part. Stephen was infuriated by this. It was one thing to insult him but another thing entirely to make fun of his manhood. He stepped forward and grabbed hold of Marjorie's chin, forcing her to stare straight at him. "I'm warning you; if you don't come home with me, I will cease my funding of your father's company. You know full well where most of my money comes from. I'm the major shareholder of over eighty percent of the film production companies in the city, and you know full well that the remaining twenty percent would rather go bankrupt than cross me." As soon as he finished, Marjorie's phone rang. It was Stephen's mother, Vicky. Although Marjorie did not have any qualms about divorcing Stephen or offending him, the one person she would miss the most after her divorce was Vicky. She was a close friend of Marjorie's late mother, who had passed away when Marjorie was only ten years old. After that, her father remarried, and she was left without any family. It was Vicky who had taken her in and treated her like her own. She would fulfill every single one of Marjorie's wishes, no matter how big, and would do anything for her. "Mommy…" "My dear Marjorie, it's been a while since you came to visit me. I'm making roast turkey tonight. Would you and Stephen like to join me for dinner?" Vicky's voice seemed to lift the storm clouds from Marjorie's mood. "Okay." However, Stephen and Marjorie did not exchange a single word on the journey. Marjorie finally regained her composure the moment she saw the familiar red-tiled roof. "Don't bring up the divorce. My mom isn't doing so well, and we have to look out for her," Stephen reminded her just before they got out of the car. "I know, but remember; I'm not doing this for you. I'm just looking out for Vicky." The moment they got out of the car, Marjorie caught sight of Vicky standing in the front yard in a red dress with matching red high heels. She grinned at them and called out, "My dear, you're finally back! We haven't seen each other in ten days and twenty hours! Your mind is on this rascal, and you've forgotten all about me!" The next moment, Marjorie was engulfed in a hug so tight she felt like she was going to suffocate. Stephen was left behind, forgotten and ignored.