"Laila, what I wanted to say wasn't about those things." The old man finally matured a bit and immediately realized that his attitude just now was somewhat problematic.
"I admire Roy. He's willing to give up his life for you, and based on that, I believe he deserves to stay by your side. As for the issue of the child's surname, I didn't force him. I just mentioned it, and he agreed. It seems that he doesn't care much about his family or his surname."
Since her grandfather had softened his attitude, Laila wouldn't push further, and his words made her frown. Why did he agree so easily? It seemed that she had not cared enough about Roy. She had always put herself first as if she had never cared about his thoughts. Although she knew about his past experiences, she had never talked to him about them.
Before she thought that since he didn't want to mention it, there must be some shadows in those experiences, so it was better not to touch them. But she forgot that if a wound was left unhealed, it would only continue to hurt. One must face the wound, and remove the rotten parts, to have a good chance of healing.
"Let's talk about this later. I want to talk to Roy first."
Whether she would walk to the end with Roy, she hadn't seriously thought about it. She didn't deny that she liked the feeling of having him by her side. In taking care of others, he could be described as meticulous. Having such a caring boyfriend might be every woman's dream.
But since her previous life, she had always lived alone. At that time, she had never even had a boyfriend, let alone the topic of starting a family. She didn't know if she was ready to continue with him, or if she could handle the responsibilities of being a mother in a family.
After ending the call with her grandfather, Laila didn't put down the phone for a long time. She kept pressing Roy's number but deleted it at the last moment. After editing and deleting, she wasted the whole afternoon without making that call.
Just as she sighed and was about to throw the phone aside, the phone suddenly rang, and the number displayed was from Roy.
"I'm Laila." She hesitated for a few seconds before answering.
"Laila, it's me, Roy."
"I know it's you." Laila quietly breathed a sigh of relief, as if she no longer had to struggle with whether to call him.
Roy seemed to sense something unusual in her voice, paused for a moment, and then said, "Are you busy?"
"Not really. I just had a phone call with my grandfather in the afternoon and have been thinking about some things."
"I see. No wonder your voice sounds so tired like you haven't rested for a long time."
"It's okay. By the way, do you need anything?" She remembered that at this time he should be recording a program in another city, right?
"Not really. I just suddenly wanted to hear your voice."
Laila touched her instantly heated cheeks. "Do you hear it now?"
For his occasional teasing, she probably wouldn't be able to adapt for a long time. She used to think that time could make the passion between them fade, but as they spent more time together and got to know each other better, she seemed to be more and more unable to resist his occasional teasing, which always made her blush and heartbeat.
"Yeah." He chuckled softly. "But it's not enough yet."
"How's the program recording going?" Laila changed the subject, not wanting to give him another chance to tease her, or her mind would be unproductive in the time to come.
"It's okay, just so-so. Always asking almost the same questions and about you. I feel like I'm becoming your spokesperson." Roy couldn't help but complain.
He didn't have a big man complex, thinking that women should be inferior to men. On the contrary, he believed that having an outstanding girlfriend was something to be proud of. However, this "girlfriend" was famous but unwilling to appear in public. Except for important matters, she rarely gave interviews. As a result, those who wanted to know about her but couldn't find a place to ask turned their attention to him.
As a star, he relied on fans and popularity for a living and couldn't escape the media's harassment. So when interviewing him, many media outlets would include questions about Laila.
"Sorry, you know I don't like to be in the spotlight. And I'm just a director." Laila apologized with a smile. She could already guess how the media would pester him to dig out things about her.
"You're just a director?" Roy laughed. Every time he heard her say that, he found it amusing. "I wish you were just a simple director." Where did those accusations of "not focusing on work" come from? Were those things what a director should do?
"I really am just a movie director." Laila blushed at her own words. But she felt that time was short. If she didn't do more when she was young, she might not know when her life would be taken back by the heavens. Both her previous life and the present little Laila were like this, right? She just didn't want to have any regrets before closing her eyes.
Roy didn't want to argue with her on this topic, as they had teased each other so many times, and he had never won.
"Laila, do you think you'll get that award at this year's Oscars?"
"Just some technical awards should be no problem, but don't expect any major awards, let alone a sweep."
"Why?" Roy was puzzled. In his opinion, "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy's quality and reputation completely deserved any award.
Laila shrugged, leaning back in the soft chair. "Don't forget we're a trilogy. If they give all the awards this year, what about next year and the year after? Do you think they'll keep giving them to me?"
Roy had guessed something before, but hearing her say it so casually made him feel sorry for her. How desperate did she have to be for her to say such things in such a light tone? No one knew better than him how much she wanted to win the Best Director award.
"There will be such a day. When you become strong enough that they have to take you seriously."
Laila smiled, didn't say anything, just softly said, "Hmm."
Yes, when her strength was strong enough that if they didn't choose her, the award's fairness would be questioned, and everything would not be a problem. Even if she couldn't do it now, she would definitely continue on this path! She just didn't know if he would still be by her side when that time came.
"Roy." Putting aside the Oscars, she remembered the conversation with her grandfather.