While people sunbathing on the beach stand up in groups and go to the shore for afternoon tea, the camera zooms from Santa Monica, California's most attractive coastal city, to the domain of middle school students.
From the chemistry building of Santa Monica Middle School, a tall black-haired boy with a backpack hurriedly walked out.
At first glance, it looks like black hair, but on closer inspection, it should be said that dark brown hair is more appropriate.
In addition to the thick and dark brown hair, the boy also has a handsome face, a high nose, deep facial features, and dark green eyes exuding a unique mysterious temperament, which makes people can't help but want to stick their eyes to his body.
Not to mention, the height of more than six feet, and the figure that is not strong but by no means thin, makes him not inferior even when standing among adults.
The boy was none other than William Bradley, the dream of two-thirds of the girls at Santa Monica High School in Los Angeles.
In American high schools, where athletic boys are popular, William is neither the captain of the basketball team, nor the football quarterback. In fact, even his skills in baseball and ice hockey are not very good. But the reason why he is so popular in school is that he can often appear on the screen.
Although he has just turned 18, William Bradley has been a Hollywood actor with two years of acting experience, and has made several minor appearances in popular series such as "Law & Order", "ER" TV-series and "The X-Files". He had also appeared in a local jeans advertisement.
What's worth noting that besides all of that, he still maintained an A for his coursework. Imagine stuffing all of those achievements with his extra-curricular activities, isn't this the proper template of "other people's children"?
So it's no wonder that he would take away more than half of the girls' hearts from the muscular campus idols at Santa Monica Middle School.
"Hey William, man, slow down!"
As William Bradley was about to walk out of the school gate, a red-haired young man suddenly caught up from behind, panting roughly.
The red-haired man's name is Danny, William's chemistry classmate and an old friend from sixth grade of the Calgate School in New York. Because Danny's father's business was more and more involved in Hollywood, their whole family had moved to the West Coast afterwards. Coincidentally, William also transferred to Santa Monica later, and the two reunited, rekindling their friendship.
William stopped and turned to look at the other man, "What's up, Danny?" "
"I saw you rushing out. Are you heading to the city for filming again?" Danny asked, trying to mask his curiosity with a casual tone. However, the gossipy glint in his eyes betrayed his excitement.
"I left in such a hurry as soon as I got out of school, and I still have to go to the city to film today?" Danny asked solemnly, trying to make his tone less curious. But the gossip glimmer in his eyes had completely exposed him.
Danny's "in the city" does not refer to the centre of Los Angeles, but to Universal Studios Hollywood, which has eight major film studios and countless film and drama shooting locations.
Gossip in American high schools always circulates quickly, no one knows where a piece of news originally came from or who is deliberately spreading it, but as long as it is a bit topical, it will always reach everyone's ears overnight.
A week ago, when William returned to school after all his roles in "ER" TV-series, there was already rumors circulating in the school that he had auditioned for another hit drama, and this time not only for a few minutes of cameo, but for several episodes as a regular character in the TV series.
So for a week, everyone has been guessing, which series will William Bradley star in next. Is it Friends? Beverly Hills 90210? Or Lois & Clark? Do they have a chance to get the American sweetheart, Jennifer Aniston's, signature through William?
"Nope, not this week" William shrugged at Danny, "I have a date in the evening. "
"With Claire?" Danny teased.
Everyone knows about William's love affair with cheerleader Claire, and in fact, at Santa Monica Middle School, there are many boys secretly betting on when they will go to bed, or if they have already been laid.
Danny nodded to himself, smiled knowingly: "I got something fun. Do you want to try it at my house at night?"
"Marijuana?" William asked.
Although marijuana is a controlled substance, young people in the United States, especially boys in high school and college, except for freaks and nerds, have mostly tried all of them. In their opinion, marijuana, like cigarettes and alcohol, is a rite of passage that must be completed before going to college.
The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also conducted a survey last year. It was discovered that there are almost as many people smoking as ones using marijuana in the young generation in the United States today.
Danny winked at him: "That's right, I only got a little bit through special channels, only you, me and Tom have a chance to taste it. My parents went abroad the day before yesterday. There will only be a few of us tonight. Rest assured, my home is very safe. No one will find out."
William pretended to ponder the idea but still turned down politely yet firmly. "Sorry, not interested. Like I said, I've got plans tonight." Although he had never ready been to such a drug party, William had no intentions of touching any drugs or addictive substances.
After rejecting Danny, William waited a second for the other party's dissatisfaction and complaints.
But he realized Danny was actually not focusing on his face. His mouth wide open, and let out an exclamation, "Oh my God, that's—"
William raised an eyebrow in confusion and followed Danny's gaze to his back.
"A Bugatti Veyron!" Danny exclaimed: "Such beautiful lines, such stunning colors! And listen!The sound of this engine is Bugatti EB110, one of the best sports cars in the world! God, what year was this launched? 89? 91? Or 93? Why would such a car appear at the gate of our school?! "
The Bugatti EB110 is a supercar produced by Bugatti Veyron in '89, in honor of the company's founder Ettore Bugatti. Its price reached a staggering of $480,000 when it was revealed in '89, almost four times the price of the Porsche 911.
Billionaires may drive their children to and from school in such a car, but they will never give them one before they reach adulthood. And even if there is a parent driving a Bugatti EB110 to pick up their children, such parents will only appear in private boarding schools like Webb Middle School, Sacred Heart School or Southwestern High School with annual fees tens of thousands of dollars a year.
Obviously, at the entrance of Santa Monica Middle School, there are many students or parents who have the same idea as Danny, and they look at the royal blue supercar with amazement, speculating the identity and purpose of the owner of the car.
Under the watchful eyes of countless people, intentionally or unintentionally, the door of the Bugatti Veyron slowly opened, and a teenager stepped down from inside.
Maybe it's not appropriate to call him a teenager, because the other party's height, temperament and appearance are quite mature.
He was about six feet an inch tall, with light brown hair with blonde hair, his face was too thin with a few wisps of pale morbidity, and his peacock blue eyes shone with a faint cold light, which made the comer's already arrogant posture look more elegant and withdrawn.
In the resort town of Santa Monica, locals and foreign tourists are all dressed very casually every day, Hollywood stars wear sunglasses and floral shirts and beach pants to surf and sunbath. But the young man was wearing a formal shirt vest and casual trousers. Although wearing a goose yellow tie looks young and lively in contrast, it still makes him stand out in the crowd even more.
Many of the girls at Santa Monica Middle School were already screaming.
Young girls can't resist the temptation old-money aristocratic men of their age, just as the main character of a Julie Garwood or Linda Howard's novel. And older women are also not too resistant to a young rich and handsome teenagers. so for a moment, the unidentified teenager becomes the brightest figure in the neighborhood of Santa Monica Middle School.
Until a cry of surprise rang out—
"Lance!"
Parents of Santa Monica Middle School students turned around to see William Bradley walking up in surprise and giving the handsome young man a tight hug!
From the moment the young man got out of the car, he looked indifferent. The beautiful man who exuded a cold and unapproachable aura around him actually showed a shallow smile and hugged William Bradley back.
"Wow!" Many people couldn't help but exclaim.
...
"Your home in Los Angeles." Lance Roderick's finger slowly ran over the photographs and posters that William had pasted on the bedroom wall: "It's exactly the same as the one in New York, though the room is only one-fifth the size of what it used to be."
"Mom can't forget the past, and neither can I." William put a glass of water on the table next to Lance. He then sat down on the bed, looked around the bedroom, and said with some nostalgia.
William and Lance were classmates at Calgate School on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, New York. Both of them were sent to the best private boys' boarding school in the United States at the age of six, and later became good friends when they were about eight years old. Their friendship has continued to this day, even after William moved to Los Angeles with his mother after the eighth grade.
Lance held the glass in his hand and took a sip for a long time.
William was suddenly a little embarrassed: "In addition to milk and orange juice, my family only has white water, although there is also a coffee machine, but the price of coffee beans that my family can afford now, I'm afraid you can't drink it, so ..."
"I'm hesitating not because I'm disgusted with the blandness of the water, but because I'm hesitating to tell you something, my friend." Lance looked at William with those deep blue eyes: "I'm going to England." "
"England? Where in the UK? Why?" William's dark green eyes widened in disbelief.
"Mr. Roderick is going to send me to Eton, and later to Oxford or Cambridge." Lance hooked the corners of his mouth mockingly: "As for the reason? Probably because he didn't want to see me dangling under his nose anymore. "
Mr. Roderick was referring to Lance's father, Taylor Roderick, the owner of Roderick Industries. He's a total dictator, both in business and in the family.
Because of Taylor Roderick's violent temper and the very bad relationship with the sole heir, Lance, he never called him "Daddy" to the outside world, but rather called him "My Father" or "Mr. Roderick" in a polite and distant manner.
"But it doesn't make sense." William popped onto the bed in frustration: "Mr. Roderick only has you as an heir, why did he send you to Europe for no reason?" There must be a reason. Tell me, Lance! Did you ruin another one of his lovers again? Or did you make him lose face by having a big fight with him on the board of directors? "
Lance remained silent.
"Alright, I get it. You must have done something more serious than this. Everyone has their own secrets, and if you don't want to say it, I won't ask, though." William patted the position next to him, waited for Lance to come over and sat down. He then wrapped his arm around the other party and put his head on the shoulder: "Do you have to go to England?" "
Lance shook his shoulders, took William's hand from his body. He was apparently awkward at William's familiar and affectionate movements as always. Then he said with a cold and indifferent look, but also full of pride: "After I go to England, all the business of Roderick Industries in Europe will be handed over to me to take care of This is a transaction I made with Mr. Roderick. So Will, put away your sympathetic and pitiful expression, I am not being exiled."
"I'm going to miss you, man." William put his hand on Lance's shoulder again: "I'm gonna miss it. Miss it very… very much. "
Lance curled the corners of his mouth into a shallow smile: "I know. "
William grabbed his hair, suddenly crouched down, pulled out a very tightly sealed box from under the bed. He subsequently opened it carefully, and took out a model of the Apollo XIII spaceship protected by a glass cover outside, and then held it with both hands and showed it to Lance: "I remember that you always wanted to collect a 1970 Apollo XIII model yourself. And a while ago I found it in the thrift market with a small part missing, and then ran all over Los Angeles to find a replica of the parts, Now that it's finally assembled, I originally wanted it to be a Christmas present for you, but since you're leaving now, I'll give it to you in advance. " (T/N: Apollo 13 - 1970 is the spaceship that was launched to the moon in 197)
Lance looked at the model full of age in the glass cover, and a trace of emotion gradually rose in the captivating blue eyes.
However, this emotion was quickly swept away by him with the blinking of his eyelashes. When he raised his hand to look at his watch, Lance said to William: "I'm leaving, the plane will take off in an hour, and the driver is waiting for me downstairs." "
"Driver?" William asked suspiciously, "Didn't you come alone in a sports car?" "
"Driving a sports car from New York to Los Angeles? Are you kidding?" Lance's cold demeanor softened as he usually does in William's presence.
He then rolled his eyes indecently: "I came by plane, and the sports car is just about to leave the United States, and it's just a pleasure to drive it before leaving. Since you sent me Apollo XIII…"
Lance picked up the model and walked out, and at the same time threw a string of things into William's hand with a flick of his wrist: "Then I will give you a gift. Make use of it and don't wreck it. "
Only after seeing Lance's back disappear into the doorway, William finally had the energy to pay attention to the key in his hand, and he almost screamed immediately-
"Jesus Christ, this seems to be the key to that Bugatti EB110?"