In Los Angeles, USA, a second-hand Ford sedan sped west along Route 6. The young man driving seemed a bit intoxicated, with a drunken blush on his face.
Suddenly, a pedestrian crossed the street. To avoid the pedestrian, the young man swerved sharply but crashed into the flowerbed by the roadside. The young man, now with a bloodied face, slumped motionless over the steering wheel.
Onlookers quickly called the police. When the police arrived, they pulled the heavily breathing young man out of the car.
The young man's expression changed. He looked at the traffic police putting handcuffs on him with confusion and was then taken to the hospital for an examination.
Disoriented and at a loss, Evan Williams was just an office worker, dabbling in social media operations and participating in the production of web series.
But following others in stock trading, he not only lost all of his savings but also mortgaged his house. One moment of inattention while crossing the street led to him being hit by a car.
Then, he arrived here, in the body of a 19-year-old named Charles Carpe, who foolishly got himself killed in a drunk driving accident.
"Damn, serves you right for drinking and driving!" Evan cursed silently while semi-reclined on the hospital bed.
Another confused youth ruined by hedonism. All he did was date and mess around. A breakup led him to drown his sorrows in alcohol? Fine. But then to drive drunk? And eventually crash and kill himself!
After arriving at the hospital, the doctor quickly conducted a full-body examination on Charles. Luckily, there were only minor external injuries.
Then the family was notified. Charles was settled into a ward to rest. His mind still in a state of confusion, he began to calm down.
It could only be said that two unlucky souls had collided.
Outside the ward, Charles Carpe's single mother, Evelyn Carpe, was communicating with the police.
"Ma'am, he was driving under the influence. Although he crashed to avoid a pedestrian, there still must be consequences."
"My boy wasn't like this before. He broke up with his girlfriend today and had a few too many drinks. It's his first offense in California; there should be some educational punishment, right?"
The police and Mrs. Carpe spoke for a while. In the end, it amounted to a $300 fine, a verbal warning, and 100 hours of community service.
At dusk, Charles Carpe, who was trying to gather his thoughts in his hospital bed, heard the sound of high heels outside the door.
Evelyn Carpe, clad in a women's business suit, was close to forty, maintained her figure well, and had a few wrinkles on her face, hinting she had been quite a beauty in her youth.
"Are you okay? The doctor said your body is mostly fine, maybe a slight concussion. You'll need to stay for observation for a couple of days," Evelyn said with a frown as she entered the room.
This son of hers was indeed worrisome. As a manager at ETA (Endeavor Talent Agency), Evelyn's income wasn't high.
Charles Carpe didn't attend college and began working various odd jobs at film sets around Los Angeles right out of high school, acting as an assistant or playing background roles.
A handsome young man with blond hair and brown eyes, he made a good human backdrop.
"I'm fine, feeling pretty good physically!" Charles didn't quite know what to say. Having a mother felt strange.
Aren't people who transmigrate usually orphans? And this mom is just a small-time agent without much money or connections!
"Rest up, then. I'll come to pick you up when you're discharged," Evelyn said as she left the room.
It was now May 2001. Charles Carpe shook his head, needing to calm down and organize his thoughts.
After two days in the hospital with no significant injuries, Charles was discharged and went home.
Evelyn Carpe, driven by her career, once had big dreams like many young girls, which led to her having Charles and becoming a single mother.
As for Charles' nominal father, according to Evelyn, he met his maker after passing out drunk in some alleyway.
Evelyn lived in North Hollywood, a slightly better area than downtown Los Angeles, which was chaotic and slum-like, especially parts of East and West Los Angeles.
North Hollywood was a working-class neighborhood. Being close to Hollywood, it had many film-related companies, a plethora of independent film production companies, post-production studios, and so on.
ETA, the Endeavor Talent Agency, was the fifth-largest talent agency in Hollywood but still a long way from the giants like CAA (Creative Artists Agency) and ICM (International Creative Management).
Especially compared to the leader, CAA, there was a significant gap.
For two consecutive weeks, Charles combined community service with familiarizing himself with the information of this era.
Of course, he also focused on understanding Hollywood's situation. He had memories of many hit movies and TV shows. Yet, he lacked the opportunity since he wasn't a screenwriter or director. Based on his previous work experience, he could barely qualify as a web series producer, and not one with much authority.
"Sigh, this guy was truly a mess, not a penny saved. And he worked for two years!" Charles lamented on the last day after 8 hours of community service, walking home.
He had only $220 to his name. Thankfully, living at his mom's place prevented him from being homeless.
Upon returning home, he found several resumes on the living room table, likely belonging to small actors or dreamers aspiring to become stars.
As an agent, discovering new talent was Evelyn's job, and her most notable client was a supporting actor in Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
*****
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