Chapter 2: A Mermaid Named Nicole.
The outside world was wonderful, yet the outside world was helpless. Ryan was penniless and had been locked up for over half a month; no matter how you looked at it, he looked like a little vagrant. After being repeatedly refused use of the public phone by convenience store owners, he simply gave up on the idea of contacting the lawyer immediately.
He knew nothing about Los Angeles and could only determine direction by the sun. In his wandering and helplessness, the boy set foot on the only road he remembered — the road to the Hollywood Walk of Fame!
It didn't matter if he didn't have money to make a call; he could ask the police for help.
Perhaps his luck had been completely exhausted when he escaped from the orphanage. Until he entered the Hollywood Walk of Fame, he hadn't encountered a single American police officer.
"What should I do?" Standing on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the boy hunched his shoulders. Well-dressed pedestrians saw him as if they had encountered a plague god, dodging as far away as they could.
Under his feet was the terrazzo pavement, inlaid with brass stars. Although the names on the stars were very unfamiliar to him, he knew clearly that these were the traces left by superstars.
For the sake of his goal and his future, Ryan gritted his teeth and stepped in front of a beautiful woman.
"Ma'am, could you do me a small favor?"
The boy bravely raised his head. The moment he saw the woman's face, he couldn't help but curse inwardly: Damn it, is the heavens playing with me?!
The woman was nearly six feet tall — about 180 centimeters — appearing tall and slender. Her fair skin was comparable to the freshest milk, her curly hair was a rare golden-red, and her cold, stunning temperament was exceptionally prominent.
This woman was incredibly beautiful and charming, younger and more stunning than any photos or movie shots Ryan had seen in his past life. But why would Nicole Kidman appear in Hollywood in 1987? Could his incredibly weak butterfly wings actually have influenced Australia?
Nicole Kidman had only recently arrived in Los Angeles. She possessed considerable fame in Australia, and like most Australian actors, after achieving success at home, they often headed to Hollywood to seek greater room for development.
Moreover, just last year, her mother had passed away due to a cancer recurrence, and then her father had passed away due to excessive grief. Nicole simply left this heartbreaking place, purchased property in Beverly Hills, and planned to shift the center of her career to the United States.
To Hollywood, she was, after all, a newcomer. Although she didn't have to start completely from scratch, several consecutive auditions had not gone well. Feeling vexed, she had no choice but to go out shopping to relieve her depressed mood.
Unknowingly, she arrived at the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Looking at the stars, Nicole felt some envy and jealousy. She knew what kind of ambition and ability she possessed, and she was very certain that she would leave her own star in a prominent position on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Just as Nicole was lost in thought, a boy of at most six or seven years old suddenly blocked her path, requesting her help.
The boy was somewhat thin, his light brown hair covering his head like a messy bird's nest. His clothes were worn out, and he looked like a little vagrant, but his sky-blue eyes were as bright as sapphires, staring tightly at her, revealing confusion and sorrow, as if the whole world had abandoned him and she was his only hope.
Having just experienced the death of her family members, Nicole was at her most vulnerable. Her gaze met the boy's, and not only did her heart turn to cotton, but even her soul trembled, as if her coming to Los Angeles and walking on this Hollywood Walk of Fame was solely for this inadvertent encounter between the two.
There was still a look of confusion in Ryan's eyes, but he was calculating quickly in his mind. He hadn't expected that by casting a net at random, he would actually catch a mermaid named Nicole. If the information from his past life was correct, she was a woman who loved children very much, so why not make good use of that?
Nicole didn't know what she was thinking either; she muddle-headedly agreed to the boy's request, took him into a public phone booth, and watched him dial the phone.
From the boy's call, she learned that he was an orphan, that the director of the orphanage he was in wanted to harm him, and that he had gone to great lengths to escape the orphanage and was now requesting the help of a lawyer.
The thin boy, his helpless narration, and his miserable life story all touched the softest part of Nicole's heart. After the boy finished his call, she suddenly said, "Perhaps I can provide you with some help!"
...
After seeing Lawyer Wilson out of the house, Nicole Kidman stroked her fair, smooth forehead and sank into the sofa, undisguisable haggardness and fatigue written across her face.
"It's finally over!"
In order to obtain guardianship of Ryan, this lawsuit had dragged on for several months, not only consuming a large amount of her time and energy but also exhausting all of her savings.
Nicole looked at the boy sitting beside her. Although his temper was a bit strange, he was both smart and sensible. After spending some time together, she had come to like him. Although she had paid a considerable price, it was all worth it, wasn't it?
Looking at her haggard face, Ryan was somewhat moved. He was not a heartless bastard. For this lawsuit, to assemble a sufficiently weighty legal team, Nicole had not only sold the villa she had just purchased but also her car.
Even to obtain guardianship as soon as possible, she had specifically applied for American citizenship. Fortunately, she was born in Hawaii and was already a person of some reputation, so it didn't take much effort.
Even so, she still owed Lawyer Wilson a considerable amount in legal fees.
Gently pulling the boy into her arms, Nicole pinched his still-thin body and said with heartache, "Ryan, from now on, it will just be the two of us. I will definitely raise you to be chubby and healthy."
"Chubby and healthy?" The boy leaned his head on Nicole's soft chest, inhaling the intoxicating fragrance, and said in a muffled voice, "May I ask if you are raising a piglet?"
Nicole gently kissed the boy's forehead and then giggled, secretly sighing at how sharp the boy was, actually using this method to cheer her up.
However, thinking of the increasingly tight expenses and the invitation from London, Nicole decided to seek the boy's opinion.
"Ryan, do you want to live in London for a while?"
"London?"
"A theater troupe has invited me to perform in a stage play. I still have a villa over there, and this apartment will have to be sold."
Ryan understood that Nicole's financial situation was very bad and she urgently needed to get a job.
Stage plays could hone Nicole's acting skills, and living in the UK, he could also set his sights on British novels! Ryan's mind turned a hundred and eighty degrees in an instant.
Lying in Nicole's arms, he rolled his eyes, but thinking of everything the other person had done for him, he finally made up his mind.
"Nicole, can you wait for me for a moment? I have something to show you."
Ryan dashed into his room in a few steps. Soon, from the nightstand of his child's bed, he took out a book and a supplement of The New York Times. After returning to the living room, he handed them over.
Opening the book, Nicole was taken aback. Inside the title page was a cash check, and the number on it was two… two hundred thousand dollars? Where did this money come from? Could it be a fake check?
Nicole Kidman narrowed her eyes slightly.
Obviously, this guy must have some secret he was hiding from her. Thinking of her wholehearted devotion to him, and that he had actually kept something from her, she felt a little unhappy.
"I'm very sorry, Nicole. You know, the environment I grew up in…" The boy understood that no matter who it was, they would inevitably have some misgivings.
Nicole's heart couldn't help but soften. She gently stroked the boy's cheek and said, "Alright then, give me an explanation."
Listening to the boy's story, Nicole's mouth grew wider and wider. She didn't expect that she had actually snatched back a super genius!
Half a month later, the cold, stunning woman and the eccentric boy set foot on the land of the Kingdom of Great Britain. Nicole firmly refused the money. After discussing with Lawyer Wilson, she opened a new personal account for him at Citibank, and Lawyer Wilson also agreed to Nicole's request to use the property as collateral to pay off the debt later.
The two's new residence in London was located in the Kensington district — an independent two-story English-style villa. On the rooftop terrace, one could gaze into the distance at Kensington Palace, the residence of Princess Diana.
In the following time, ignoring Ryan's strong protests, Nicole sent him to school. The poor child walked into elementary school for the second time, and the classroom became the studio for his plagiarism endeavor.
Under the boy's strong request, Nicole hired a private tutor for him. In addition to Spanish and Italian, Ryan began professional vocal training. Although the style of the Philharmonic Orchestra masters was far from pop music, many things were often "the master leads you to the door, but individual practice is up to you," and his talent in music was outstanding enough. He even felt that the great power that allowed his rebirth seemed to be a pop music fan!
London was rainy, and it was rare to have sunny days. The two sat under the tree in the courtyard. Nicole was flipping through the stage play script, while Ryan was flipping through Nicole's photo album.
These were photos from the last two years, mostly taken when Nicole was in Los Angeles. The Walk of Fame, Universal Studios, the Egyptian Theatre, and the Shrine Auditorium were visible everywhere in the album. Ryan couldn't help but think of her situation in his past life and couldn't help asking, "Nicole, do you really want to develop in Hollywood?"
"Yes! Only there can I become a world-class movie star and realize my dream." Nicole didn't care who she was talking to. "Maybe in the future, I can even win an Oscar statuette!"
The boy sighed softly. He and she were truly a perfect match; both had set their goals on that Vanity Fair.
Alright! Miss Kidman, as someone who knows how to repay kindness, and as someone who liked you in my past life, I will definitely help you become the center of attention, and do my best to help you stand on the stage of highest honor earlier and more often!
Also, I will definitely not let that pretty boy break your heart again!