The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era [BL]

ASTRID and Ellis spent the morning touring around the island they would be filming in. Although he kind of expected it, seeing all the facilities on the island still came off as a surprise for Astrid.

The island really looked like a coastal town. There was a small market where one could buy groceries and other amenities while staying here. There's only one hotel, but it's enough to accommodate one filming crew. The hotel also served food, so there's no problem on that part.

From what he heard from Ellis, not every island in FS11 had these kinds of amenities. That's why most of the crew filming here stayed at the one known as the Central Island, which is literally like a small city. Which meant they had to travel every day to the island where they were filming. Good thing their crew didn't have to do that.

Following their brief tour, Astrid and Ellis returned to the hotel for lunch. As they entered, they encountered some of the actors slated for today's filming. Not every cast member was set to arrive today; some were scheduled for tomorrow, while others were expected to join next week.

Snow was scheduled to come here much later. He didn't have much scenes to film, so it would be unproductive for him to be here on the very first day. Especially since he's a student as well. After all, Redwood Academy only recognized official schedules as what they called 'artistic leave'.

It's when students had to skip class because they had a job. Of course, only jobs related to the entertainment industry, like filming a movie or a show. The number of days they were working would count as attendance. They're flexible that way.

It's one of the reasons Astrid chose Redwood. Because he already planned to work while still in Redwood. He wanted to graduate on time. His goal was to graduate on time, and he had no intention of prolonging his college tenure merely due to insufficient attendance.

Anyway, Snow would probably come here in about two weeks or so.

When he and Ellis entered the elevator, Astrid was momentarily surprised when he saw the two figures standing inside. It was Charlotte and her manager. The other seemed to be also a bit startled seeing him.

He smiled and greeted the two. Ellis also did the same. The manager greeted them back, while Charlotte gave them that 'business smile' of hers.

"Have you been well, Miss Anderson?" Astrid asked.

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"Yes." There was a pause, then, as if she realized that she should ask back, Charlotte added, "How about you, Mr. Townsend?"

"I'm doing good. Thank you for asking."

Silence filled the elevator as it ascended. This silence made Astrid wonder if this would how their interaction would be for the rest of the filming. That's definitely not very ideal in his opinion.

In this film, they were portraying a pair of youth experiencing the innocence of first love. No matter how good the both of them were in acting, it wouldn't matter if they didn't have an ounce of chemistry.

Although there were actors who just had that natural chemistry on-screen, those who couldn't stand each other but could still make their audience believe that they were hopelessly in love, Astrid believed, he and Charlotte didn't belong to this category. If that was the case, then they should at least cultivate it. But how could they do that if Charlotte was feeling awkward around him?

He should break this invisible wall between them, so the other could at least be comfortable in his presence. And he knew the best way to do that.

"Have you eaten lunch?" he asked.

Charlotte looked like she didn't expect he would ask such a question. "We haven't yet."

"Then how about eating lunch with us?" Astrid asked with an inviting smile.

Before Charlotte could answer, the first one to respond was her manager.

"Yes!" The manager glanced at Ellis before clearing her throat, as if trying to calm herself. "Ehem, I mean, we would love to."

Her manager's behavior obviously confused Charlotte. But in the end, she could only nod in agreement.

-----

On the rooftop of the hotel, four people were sitting inside the pavilion-like structure there.

Charlotte looked at all the dishes in front of her. She wasn't familiar with any of the food, but they all looked appetizing. Not to mention the delicious scent that could make anyone's mouth water. As evidence, she heard Krysta gulping a few times already.

She sighed a bit and looked around. From here, they had a good view of the sea. When Astrid asked them if they wanted to have lunch, she thought they would be going to the cafeteria. She didn't expect that the other would bring them here.

"It's a beautiful view, right?" Astrid said. "When I saw this earlier, I thought it was a good place to eat lunch. What do you think?"

"Yes," Charlotte said almost subconsciously.

"Thank you for inviting us. But where did you buy these dishes? They must be from some high-end restaurant, right? Just one look and anyone could tell they're not ordinary food," Krysta said.

"They're home-cooked," Ellis answered.

Krysta appeared shocked for a moment, and then she looked at Ellis with shining eyes. "Did you make them?"

"No, Astrid did."

Astrid wasn't sure if it was his imagination, but the manager looked disappointed when she heard that. Did she want to eat Ellis' home-cooked meals that much? He glanced at Ellis and then at Krysta who kept on staring at the former. Then he suddenly remembered Yujin's agent. He shook his head, thinking that Ellis really was such a woman attractor.

"Shall we eat?" he said.

Everyone picked up their spoon and fork and started eating.

Astrid kept his attention on Charlotte. At first, the other didn't have much reaction, but when she put a piece of braised pork in her mouth, her eyes visibly widened. And then she picked another one, and another, and another.

He smiled secretly seeing that. As expected, food was the best way to make friends.