"Hello, Ms. Hemera."
Two hours later, neatly dressed and still full of energy, Wayne followed Mia into a pleasant café near the school. There, they met Mia's mother, Sera Hemera.
Sera Hemera glanced at Wayne's strikingly handsome face that even she found impressive, then looked at her daughter, who was clinging to Wayne's arm. Despite her tired expression, Mia appeared more radiant than usual, and a glint flashed in Sera's eyes as a graceful smile appeared on her face.
"Can I call you Wayne? Mia has mentioned you to me often, but I didn't expect you to be as handsome as she described. Feel free to call me Aunt Sera or just Sera if you prefer."
"Sure, Aunt Sera. Mia should have told you by now, but I'm interested in 'buying' Hemera Productions," Wayne stated, getting straight to the point, understanding how direct Americans can be.
One party wanted a mature production company to speed up their money-making efforts, while the other wanted to get rid of the massive burden that could bankrupt them.
With both parties aligned, Wayne and Sera quickly reached an agreement that satisfied them both.
Wayne bought all the shares of Hemera Productions for just one hundred dollars and assumed all its impending debts.
The condition was that Sera, with her over ten years of experience as a producer, along with the company's key personnel, would remain with Hemera Productions to manage its day-to-day operations.
Sera would serve as CEO and, for the next five years, could not resign voluntarily. She would also enjoy a 3% profit share.
With both eager to complete the deal, that same evening, they called in their lawyers, signed the agreement, and finalized the transfer of shares.
Wayne then went to the bank and transferred $600,000 into the company account, to be used as the first installment for loan repayment and as operating capital for the company.
"Thank you, Wayne. You've saved Mia and me!" Sera's smile became much more genuine as she stared at the $600,000 now sitting in the company's account.
Hollywood is a brutally pragmatic place.
Chasing after the successful and distancing oneself from the failures is a basic rule here.
Even though Sera had built up a network of connections over her many years as a producer, the massive $2 million hole in the company's finances was too deep, and no one wanted to help her in the face of such crushing failure.
There were dozens, if not hundreds, of small production companies like Hemera Productions in Hollywood. Independent producers were countless.
People who could help her weren't willing to assist a failure like her.
It wasn't an exaggeration to say that even if she sold her house, her car, and even herself and Mia, she still wouldn't come up with enough money.
Wayne truly had saved them.
Wayne smiled slightly in response, "No need to thank me. After all, Mia is my girlfriend."
After a pause, Wayne continued, "I need to take a look at the company's script library."
"You're the boss now, so of course, that's no problem. But are you sure there will be investment funding?" Sera hesitated before voicing her concern.
"Of course!" Wayne said confidently. His handsome features and calm demeanor made his words especially convincing.
"This investment comes from a private equity fund in England. They've chosen me as their agent in Hollywood," Wayne explained.
"They have no restrictions on the type of films I make, but their only request is that a finished product be delivered within a month and that it be released within two weeks."
As soon as Wayne finished speaking, both Sera and Mia, who had been sitting quietly beside him, were stunned.
"A completed film in one month, released within two weeks? That's an incredibly tight schedule!"
While it was true that low-budget independent films often had shorter production cycles, with some films that didn't even make it to theaters taking as little as ten days to shoot, theater-release films generally took at least two months to produce, with marketing adding another six months before the film could be released.
Sera, a seasoned producer, and Mia, who had been exposed to the industry from a young age, both immediately thought of one word: money laundering.
Sera hesitated but didn't ask further questions.
Mia, however, couldn't help herself, being young and inexperienced, and softly asked, "Darling, is this... is this for laundering money?"
Wayne didn't answer directly but instead asked, "Isn't that a common occurrence in Hollywood? We don't need to inflate the budget excessively, just by 30 or 40% above industry standards."
"That's fine then!" Sera actually sighed in relief at that point.
As Wayne said, this sort of thing was all too normal in Hollywood. Excluding films funded directly by the seven major studios, over 90% of co-produced films had some element of this.
Why else would so much international money flow into Hollywood every year? Why else would Hollywood like to register individual project companies for each film?
Without such funds, Hollywood wouldn't be as prosperous as it is today.
"As for the short production schedule, I believe money can solve that problem, don't you?"
"I understand." Sera nodded and smiled.
Mia, sitting quietly nearby, watched Wayne and Sera's conversation, her eyes flashing with an unexplainable excitement.
Thanks to her female intuition, Mia could sense that Wayne was different now. The calm confidence he exuded was something she had only seen in the big shots her mother mingled with at high-end social events.
Undoubtedly, this Wayne was far more attractive than the cheerful but poor boy she once knew.
Her heart raced, and her breathing quickened as she thought about it.
Later, after Sera had someone deliver the scripts, Mia quickly declined her mother's offer to take her home. She hurriedly dragged Wayne back to school.
Wayne walked into the living room, and Mia, sitting quietly nearby, watched him. She had been eyeing him since he got home from work, and as he came into the room, she couldn't help but stare. He looked so good, so sexy in his work clothes, that she could hardly contain herself.
Wayne noticed Mia staring at him and smiled. He walked over to where she was sitting and sat down next to her. "Hey, what's up?" he asked, looking at her with a playful smile.
Mia's heart raced, and her breathing quickened as she thought about it. She had been thinking about this all day, and now that he was here, she couldn't hold back any longer. She leaned in and whispered in his ear, "I want to suck your dick."
Wayne's eyes widened in surprise, but he couldn't help but feel a rush of excitement. He had always known that Mia was adventurous, but he had never expected her to come out and say something like that.
Mia stood up and started to undress. Wayne watched as she slipped off her dress, revealing her perfect, naked body. She was so beautiful, so sexy, that he couldn't help but feel himself getting hard.
Mia walked over to Wayne and knelt down in front of him. She looked up at him with a seductive smile and started to undo his pants. Wayne's heart raced as he felt her hands on his cock. He couldn't believe what was happening.
Mia pulled Wayne's cock out of his pants and started to suck on it. She swirled her tongue around the head, teasing him, before taking him all the way in. Wayne moaned as he felt her mouth on him. It felt so good, so amazing, that he couldn't help but close his eyes and enjoy the moment.
Mia sucked on Wayne's cock for what felt like hours. She loved the way it felt in her mouth, the way it tasted. She could feel him getting closer and closer to cumming, and she couldn't wait to taste him.
Finally, Wayne couldn't hold back any longer. He grabbed Mia's head and started to fuck her mouth. Mia took it all in, moaning as he filled her mouth with his cum.
Wayne pulled out of Mia's mouth and looked down at her. She was still kneeling in front of him, his cum dripping from her lips. He couldn't believe what they had just done.
Mia stood up and walked over to the couch. She sat down and spread her legs, inviting Wayne to come and join her. Wayne didn't need to be asked twice. He walked over to her and slipped off his pants.
Wayne knelt down between Mia's legs and started to eat her out. He loved the way she tasted, the way she moaned as he licked her clit. He could feel her getting closer and closer to cumming, and he couldn't wait to make her explode.
Finally, Mia couldn't take it any longer. She grabbed Wayne's head and pushed it deeper into her pussy. Wayne sucked on her clit as she came, her juices flowing into his mouth.
Wayne stood up and slipped on a condom. He knelt down between Mia's legs and entered her. She was so wet, so tight, that he could hardly believe it. He started to fuck her hard, their bodies slapping together as they moved in rhythm.
Wayne and Mia fucked for what felt like hours. They explored every inch of each other's bodies, tasting and touching and teasing. They were lost in their own little world, a world of pleasure and desire.
Finally, Wayne couldn't hold back any longer. He grabbed Mia's legs and pulled her closer to him. He thrust deep inside her, filling her with his cum. Mia moaned as she felt him explode inside her, her own orgasm still pulsing through her body.
Wayne pulled out of Mia and collapsed next to her on the couch. They lay there, panting and sweating, their bodies spent. They had just experienced something amazing, something incredible. And they knew that they would never forget it.
Wayne looked over at Mia and smiled. "That was amazing," he said, his voice husky with desire.
Mia smiled back at him. "I know," she said. "I can't wait to do it again."
And with that, they drifted off to sleep, their bodies entwined, their hearts beating as one. They knew that they had just shared something special, something that they would never forget. And they couldn't wait to do it again.
Two hours later, Wayne glanced at Mia, who was exhausted and fast asleep in bed. He dimmed the lights, sat down at his desk, and started flipping through the scripts.
Unlike the seven major studios, which had script libraries containing tens of thousands of scripts, some sitting on the shelf for over a decade, Hemera Productions, as a small company, had only 62 scripts.
Most of these were submissions from unknown writers hoping to get lucky. Only two scripts were from writers who had a long-term relationship with Hemera Productions.
Wayne prioritized those two.
The stories were mediocre, and the company had estimated production budgets of $630,000 and $950,000, neither of which were enough for his plans.
Casually tossing them aside, Wayne continued reading through the other scripts.
The initial genetic enhancement serum had strengthened his body, or perhaps mental energy was connected to physical strength. Either way, despite having been busy all day, Wayne still felt full of energy.
To put it simply, someone like Mia? He could handle ten of her on his own.
Unfortunately, there was a reason these scripts hadn't been chosen before. The best of the remaining sixty was about as good as the first two, but its production complexity and cost were significantly higher.
This was a common mistake for new writers—they wrote without considering the difficulty and cost of production.
Wayne didn't mind high costs, but higher difficulty meant a longer production schedule, which was a no-go.
He picked up the first two scripts again and fell into deep thought.
His future income would mainly come from his acting fees and box office shares, so it would be best if he starred in the film to boost his fame and value, which would allow him to set higher fees for himself.
In other words, this first film couldn't just be any film.
He glanced at the clock. It was already midnight.
After hesitating for a moment, Wayne picked up his phone and called Sera.
"Sorry to bother you so late, Aunt Sera. I've looked through the scripts, but none of them work. However, I've come up with an idea. Could you help me contact a screenwriter—someone with quick thinking and speed? I'll provide the framework, and they can help fill in the content. The genre is a feel-good campus comedy, so it's best if we can find someone good at writing humorous dialogue. Alright, see you at the office at 9 a.m. tomorrow."
(End of the Chapter)