Chapter 309

There were people waiting outside the airport. Despite Giselle's opposition, Nolan held her all the way to the car and sat next to her. "I never realized you were quite heavy," he commented nonchalantly as soon as he sat down. Giselle was speechless. "I never asked you to carry me." "You were knocked down and stepped on by my fans," Nolan said seriously. "I couldn't just stand by and watch." Giselle took a deep breath. Choosing to remain silent, from their exchanges, she realized she could never outtalk Nolan. At this moment, Nolan's assistant came over. The male assistant sat in the passenger seat while the female assistant moved to the next car. "As soon as I got in the car," the male assistant said to Nolan, "many people were taking pictures just now." Nolan didn't care. "Let them take photos." "You're not afraid of rumors spreading about us?" Giselle asked. "Idols like you in the entertainment industry can't tolerate such things." "Who told you I'm an idol?" Nolan asked. "Do you know what people in the industry usually call me?" He raised his eyebrows. "Young Master. You understand? Just the title tells you that I have a strong backing. What have I to fear?" Watching his arrogant ado, aside from rolling her eyes, Giselle could only think of one thing: the entertainment industry is doomed, what is this nonsense? Nolan thought Giselle's headache expression was due to worry. He continued to explain, "You don't have to feel pressured; it's just a simple hug, absolutely no effect on me. My uncle is a renowned director, my aunt was once a dramatically acclaimed actress known across the country. My father's film company is among the top three in the industry. My mother is ridiculously rich. She used to be the chief editor and a partner of an international top-tier fashion magazine. Although she's retired now, she still owns top-tier fashion resources. Stepping into the entertainment industry is just a trifle for me. As my uncle put it, as long as I don't gamble, evade taxes or break the law, I'd have a free rein in this circle." Giselle tugged her lip—a sarcastic smile, "Your family seems to have cornered the market." Nolan, far from being modest, retorted, "You should hurry up and hang on to me. If you want to pursue photography, I can help you score projects." Giselle closed her eyes, not caring to continue the conversation. She was really having a headache. By the time they got to the hotel, it was dinner time. Giselle's foot was a bit sore when she got out of the car, as she'd twisted it slightly. Thankfully, the female assistant had a medical kit on hand which contained an oil for treating bruises and sprains. After rubbing the oil, her foot warmed up a bit. The female assistant commented, "This medicinal oil is very effective; one night and your foot will be completely recovered." Giselle only nodded in response. The hotel's restaurant was on the second floor while she and the female assistant were staying on the first. She'd managed to conceal her limp earlier due to her long trench coat. However, now that she'd changed into a lighter outfit and flat shoes due to the hotel's heating system, her limp was more evident. As they made their way to the elevator, the female assistant kept glancing at her. When Giselle noticed, she chuckled, "Do you think I'm walk awkwardly?" The assistant shook her head. "No." She replied, "I just feel it's a pity; you usually look so perfect." Perfect? Giselle sneered at herself slightly in her heart, but said nothing. .... That night, the photo of Nolan and Giselle appeared on foreign platforms and domestic Weibo. The gossip started to ferment in the evening and was just about to become a trending search, but it was hastily suppressed by Nolan's father, who was also his boss. Even if it didn't make the headlines, but the heated discussion about the hot search term – thanks to Nolan's female fans – couldn't be stopped. On that day, Maverick was still busy until late. As it neared midnight, he clocked out and was ready to return to the hotel, but he began to feel a stomachache on his way. This ailment of his, he didn't know when it had first appeared, but it would bother him from time to time. Bearing the pain, he parked his car at the entrance of a 24-hour pharmacy. Maverick got out of his car and bought two boxes of painkillers. At the cash register, there were two young girls in the store, one scanning the price, and the other continually gossiping. "This woman can't really be Nolan's girlfriend, can she? I feel like crying...." "56, I'll scan yours." The other one stated the price. Maverick opened his payment code. While scanning, the one checking the price said to the other, "That woman is pretty beautiful, she's got fair skin, even looks good in sapphire blue, she's a good match for your brother, your brother wouldn't be at a disadvantage." "Are you blind? Clearly, my brother is more than good enough for her, look carefully." The speaker showed a defiant attitude, pushing his cell phone forward. After Maverick paid the bill, the cashier was handing the medicine to him. The phone slid into her hands, was mishandled, and the phone fell squarely on the table with its screen facing up. Maverick glanced unintentionally, and the next second, before the woman could pick up the phone, he grabbed it from her hands. "Hey, this phone..." The man in front of her seemed very disturbed, faltering the woman's voice, "It’s mine." Maverick didn't reply. He was piercingly staring at the picture on the phone. How long had it been? Less than half a year. How could Giselle be so audacious to have such an intimate relationship with another man? The hand holding the mobile phone tightened grip gradually until the knuckles turned pale. The woman was profoundly upset, “But it’s my phone....” ― Thud! Before she could finish her sentence, the phone screen shattered under Maverick's fingers. The shattered screen fragments scratched his hand, but he showed not a hint of a flinch. At last, he put down the mobile phone, flicked a sum of money on the table, and left. Back at the hotel, Maverick sat on the couch without even turning on the lights. His stomach was roiling in pain. The painkiller was tossed onto the coffee table in front of him. He picked it up, clutching it in his hand, the paper box was crushed as his palm closed up. At last, with a forceful throw, it was hurled away. In the darkness, something fell with a crisp 'plop' sound. Probably it was a cup! ..... Capturing the aurora not only required favorable weather conditions but also the Earth's mood. For two days, Giselle and her team returned empty-handed. But on the third day, they were successful and captured the stunningly beautiful aurora. Nolan was professional when posing. Every shot felt like it came out of a blockbuster. He and Giselle cooperated well; both understanding each other's cues. The shoot was completed rather quickly, with Giselle having a good amount of time to take the aurora photos she wanted. By the time they got back to the hotel, it was already 3 am. After a sleep, Giselle went downstairs for breakfast and ran into Mike who said, "Let me show you a video." The magazine company also brought a photography team. Mike showed Giselle a video shot by a drone. In the video, there were various postures of Giselle taking photos of Nolan, as well as the excitement everyone had when they first saw the aurora. In short, everything was filmed. Mike said, "We intend to edit this video into behind-the-scenes footages. Of course, there will inevitably be shots of you, so we need to ask for your consent first." Upon hearing this, Giselle simply replied, "Are you paying?" Mike chuckled. "Of course, you can name your price. We can negotiate." The behind-the-scenes video was released quickly. Giselle returned to Frystonia after just two days and saw the video on Instagram. As she watched the whole video, she became somewhat disheartened after seeing the last part. That was some kind of move. The last part of the video showed her taking photos of the aurora, and Nolan was standing behind her, slightly bending over, as though looking at the picture in her camera. However, due to the angle, the two of them seemed to be very close, very intimate.