To be honest, even though everyone had their secrets, as upper-class individuals, they rarely hosted such blatantly scandalous parties like Harvey did, where people were essentially pimped out.
The next morning, Wayne eagerly brought his new sheet music to Avril. Thanks to his enhanced brain, it only took him a day to master all the theoretical knowledge of composition and arrangement, allowing him to transcribe songs from memory into sheet music.
"Huh? Sheet music? Darling, what's this?" Avril was, unsurprisingly, stunned when she saw the sheet music in Wayne's hand.
"This is a song I wrote for you."
Avril, just regaining her senses, was once again taken aback.
"You wrote it yourself?!"
"That's right!" Wayne, full of affection, continued, "Actually, the first time I saw you, a melody popped into my head. I then deliberately sought out a composition teacher to learn how to write music, and I've finally finished this song!"
Their eyes met, and it was as if Cupid's arrow had struck Avril's heart. An indescribable joy and sweetness flowed through her entire body, making her throw herself onto Wayne, clinging to him like an octopus, as if she wanted to merge with him completely.
With a bang, the door slammed shut.
A few seconds later, in the spacious foyer of the villa, Avril still looked at Wayne with love, as if she wanted to etch him into her very soul.
However, the surprises didn't stop there.
After regaining some energy, Avril grabbed a torn and tattered t-shirt that barely covered her and looked even more tempting, put it on, and grabbed her guitar. She began to sing the song Wayne had written.
At first, she thought the song would be just average, since Wayne wasn't a professional singer or musician. What she valued most was his heartfelt gesture.
But to her surprise, the song was of incredibly high quality.
She hadn't even finished the first run-through and was already wide-eyed by the time she reached the chorus.
No wonder! Wayne had shamelessly presented her with Katy Perry's "Firework." This song had been certified a diamond single by the RIAA with over 10 million copies sold and had topped the Billboard Hot 100 for four consecutive weeks!
Avril's best performance with her debut album's lead single, "Complicated," only reached second place on the Billboard Hot 100. As for her other well-known hit, "Sk8er Boi," it peaked at just number ten on the chart.
The first part of "Firework" was fine, but the chorus was absolutely stunning.
Most importantly, this song suited Avril, a singer with immense energy, perfectly.
"Baby, you're a firework! Come on, let your colors burst."
As she sang the chorus again, Avril couldn't help but jump on the bed while singing, instinctively knowing how to deliver the song's powerful high notes, so loud that even the soundproofed bedroom was struggling to contain it.
But Wayne's gaze was fixed on Avril, who was bouncing around.
Though she wasn't particularly big, maybe average, in this situation, she was incredibly alluring.
With a cry of surprise, Wayne pulled Avril into his arms.
"Darling, did you really write this? Sorry, I don't mean to doubt you, I'm just so surprised!" After another round of intimate interaction, Avril clung to Wayne's neck and asked, unable to contain herself.
It was no wonder she was surprised. The quality of this song far surpassed anything she'd written herself. It would be strange if she wasn't shocked.
"Of course I wrote it," Wayne shamelessly grinned. "Otherwise, who would give away such a good song? Even if someone sold it, they'd surely keep the copyright."
Avril thought this made perfect sense.
In the U.S., copyright protection was taken very seriously, unlike India across the sea.
A song this good would be something any musician would hold onto for life, even if they sold it, keeping the rights to it.
"And the melody in my head isn't just for one song," Wayne said as he massaged her chest, hoping it might grow a little larger.
"There's more?" Avril's face lit up with excitement.
Seeing this, Wayne didn't tease her any longer and picked up a pen to write out the sheet music for "Complicated."
At this point in time, Avril had just arrived in Los Angeles. She hadn't met Cliff Magness yet, let alone worked with The Matrix team to write the song.
When Avril saw the song that originally belonged to her, she fell in love with it instantly.
Compared to the original, the song now had an entirely new meaning.
"Well, what do you think?"
"Darling, you're amazing!" Avril sweetly said, wrapping her arms around Wayne's neck. At this moment, this punk princess might have been sweeter than Britney Spears.
"That's why I told you to renegotiate your contract with Arista Records. Otherwise, letting them profit off such good work would be a huge loss."
Avril nodded enthusiastically, completely trusting Wayne by now.
"And the lyrics?"
"You'll write the lyrics! That way, the song will be something we created together~"
Hearing this, Avril's heart melted with joy.
At that moment, her phone rang.
Her manager, Sandy Robertson, had convinced the record company to renegotiate her contract. To show their confidence in Avril's potential, they were flying to Los Angeles that afternoon to sign the new contract.
"Have them come to my office. It'll be easier for me to bring in a lawyer." Wayne said.
Due to this, Wayne had to adjust his schedule for the day, canceling an afternoon appointment with Anne, and Naomi Watts, who had just wrapped filming for *Resident Evil* and was about to start work on *Taken*. But taking a break once in a while wasn't bad, especially since Avril was more enticing than both of them combined right now.
At 3 p.m., Wayne, along with a somewhat recovered Avril, arrived at his office to meet with the owner of Arista Records, who had flown in.
"Hello, Mr. Wayne. It's a pleasure to meet you!"
The owner had clearly done his homework before coming, aware of the vast difference in their statuses, so he acted with great enthusiasm and humility.
No wonder—his net worth was only about 40-50 million dollars, and his label, Arista Records, was valued at less than 10 million.
Wayne, on the other hand, had an estimated net worth exceeding 300 million, thanks to his acquisitions of shares in Marvel, Industrial Light & Magic, and Pixar Animation, as well as his own successes.
They were on entirely different levels.
"Hello!"
Following the principle of not being rude to friendly faces, Wayne also smiled and shook his hand, engaging in small talk. But when it came to business, Wayne wasn't going to be lenient just because of the man's humility.
After about 20 minutes of negotiations, the new contract was signed. Avril would still release two albums with Arista Records, but all digital rights now belonged to her.
This meant that any royalties from radio or television broadcasts of her songs would go directly to Avril.
In a few years, when online music platforms became more prevalent, those websites would also negotiate directly with Avril for the rights, cutting the record label out of the process.
Additionally, her share of physical album sales was now set at 20% for sales under 5 million copies and 30% for sales over 5 million, a staggering rate.
Even megastars like Michael Jackson, Madonna, or Britney Spears couldn't secure such a high percentage for physical album sales.
Given their massive sales numbers, even a 1% difference could mean millions or tens of millions of dollars, and record giants like Sony, Universal, and PolyGram would never let such a large share slip away.
Unless Michael Jackson or someone else used contract termination as leverage to renegotiate with the labels.
Unfortunately, stars of that caliber had breach-of-contract penalties in the hundreds of millions of dollars, amounts even they couldn't afford.
This made Avril extremely lucky.
Because she hadn't yet debuted, she had signed with a small label, and her breach-of-contract penalty wasn't high. With Wayne's help, she was able to avoid the typical constraints imposed by the industry giants.
"You really hit the jackpot with this one!" Sandy Robertson, who had been a silent observer throughout the negotiations, couldn't help but mutter under her breath.
After Wayne impatiently threatened to buy his own record label if Arista didn't agree to his terms, they had no room to negotiate.
Both the owner and Sandy knew Wayne had the financial means and was fully capable of following through on such a threat.
After all, Wayne was known throughout Hollywood for his generosity toward his women.
Avril, hearing this, proudly raised her chin and corrected her, "He's my boyfriend! And his generosity goes far beyond just this~!"
Clearly, Avril's love for Wayne had reached its peak by this point.
Though Wayne liked Avril a lot as well, he stuck to his schedule. After dropping off the reluctant Avril at home, he drove off to see Nicole Kidman.
Nicole's little schemes were proving quite effective.
Thanks to Camilla, and Nicole's own charm, Wayne had been visiting her much more frequently than before.
Time flew by, and it was already March 18th. That afternoon, Wayne had just finished a 1v4 battle with Sarah Michelle, Isla Fisher, Annie, and Martina. After returning to Wayne Manor, he was immediately dragged off by Meida and two maids to try on clothes.
As a proper noble, strict standards for clothing were a must.
Normally, Meida couldn't override Wayne's lazy nature, but since they were attending a high-end party that night, she seized the opportunity to make sure he dressed appropriately.
Luckily, through her connections at the Butler Academy, she had placed an order back in January for custom-made suits and formalwear from London, which had just arrived today.
It took Wayne over an hour to try on all ten-plus outfits from the current season, leaving him no time to even take a bite of dinner before heading out to Lily's house.
"This is terrible!" Wayne complained as soon as he shut the car door.
Mia and Hannah shared the same sentiment, and even Jessica, who usually enjoyed shopping and trying on clothes, wore a look of dread.
Wayne was exhausted after trying on just a dozen outfits. They, on the other hand, had tried on dozens, many of which were far more complex and troublesome than men's suits.
They had started right after lunch and didn't finish until just before getting into the car.
However, the results were worth it. Wearing gowns that cost over a million dollars collectively, with each averaging no less than $80,000, they certainly looked stunning.
Although the designs might not be cutting-edge in terms of fashion, the dresses perfectly showcased their figures and temperament, exuding an air of nobility.
Fashion trends change quickly, but these slightly "simpler" gowns wouldn't look outdated even years from now.
Moreover, a complex suit made up of four or five individual pieces (not counting ties, belts, or shoes) was surprisingly as comfortable as casual or athletic wear. Wayne, who was experiencing this type of high-end tailoring for the first time in two lifetimes, couldn't help but be amazed.
There's no denying that custom-made clothing, despite the high price, is worth every penny.
It's worth mentioning that the cost of these suits and gowns was covered under the film crew's prop budget.
Due to the large amount and long lead time, the cost was split into three parts: *The Bourne Identity* covered the deposit, while *Taken* and *The Notebook* each handled part of the remaining balance.
It must be said, Wayne was becoming increasingly familiar with Hollywood's financial maneuvers.
About ten minutes later, the Silver Angel car arrived at a luxurious mansion on Ricksford Avenue, covering around 1,000 square meters. This was Lily's house.
(End of Chapter)