The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era

AS the last string of notes come to a close, the teenager standing barefooted on the beach with his feet submerged on the sea slowly looked back.  There, a girl with hair the color of peaches stood.  The skirt of the white dress she was wearing was flowing around her with the gust of wind.  She reached out her hand to him and smiled. 

The teenager standing on the shallow water seemed startled.  And then, his whole expression changed.  The slight smile that showed that he had already accepted his situation and he’s now ready to move forward became a full-blown bright grin.  As if the girl in front of him was the one he had long been waiting for.

He laughed, full of happiness, and ran towards the girl.  His whole being was simply glowing.  Like a small sun that finally shone after such a strong and dark storm.  Completely lighting up even the darkest corner. 

He stopped in front of the girl and reached out to his outstretched hand.  When their hands clasped together, the two looked at each other.  And a beautiful smile both bloomed in their lips. 

Holding hands, the two turned towards the setting sun.  Their gazes full of expectations for the future. 

“And Cut!” the director shouted.  “That’s a wrap, people!”

Astrid let go of Miria’s hand and smiled at her.  “Great job today, Miria.”

A small smile crossed Miria’s lips.  “If we’re talking about someone doing a great job, I think it’s you and not me.”

She arrived here after lunch because she had another job she had to attend this morning.  When she came, Astrid had already finished all his parts.  So, this afternoon, they had to shoot her part and the part of the two of them.

Because she wasn’t really that great of an actress, it took a while before the director get a satisfactory take.  Good thing that it was already decided beforehand that she wouldn’t have that many scenes.  Which was just fine by her.  But still, the scenes that she had to shoot still lasted far longer than it should because the director was too strict. 

But surprisingly enough, when it was a scene that involved her and Astrid, her performance improved by leaps and bounds.  She actually thought that it would be the exact opposite.  That performing with Astrid would only make her shortcomings even more noticeable.  But that didn’t happen at all.

It’s like whenever they were on the same scene, for some reason, her performance just became better.  It took a while before she realized that it was because she was being affected by the other’s acting.  In short, because Astrid was so good in showing the right emotions, she also managed to give out the right response. 

Miria wasn’t mad about that.  In fact, she was even thankful.  Because of him, the number of her NG take became significantly less.  But despite that, it didn’t appear like he was stealing her limelight.  In fact, it was more accurate to say that he was sharing his with her. 

She realized just how big the gap was between their acting talent.  But that didn’t depress her.  Instead, it greatly motivated her to improve more.     

“Well, let’s just say that we both did a great job,” Astrid said, as if compromising.

Then he felt something soft landing on his shoulders.  He raised his head and saw his twin brother covering him with a warm blanket. 

He smiled.  “Where did you get the blanket?”

“The staff gave it to me,” Reas answered.  Then he bent down and gave him his pair of shoes.  He stood up after that.  “Wear this first.  I already asked the staff and you can take a warm bath at the seaside cabin.”

“No, that’s too troublesome.  Since the filming was already over, let’s just go back home,” Astrid said.

“What troublesome?  You’ve been soaking your feet in cold sea water for almost all afternoon.  Not to mention how thin the clothes you’re wearing,” Reas said in a scolding manner.  “So, before you ended up having a cold or some other thing, just go and have a warm bath.”

Astrid smiled helplessly and nodded in agreement.  Really, sometimes he wondered which of the two of them was the older one.

He turned to Miria who was watching their interaction with interest.  “We’ll go ahead first.”

Miria nodded and the twins walked towards the direction of the director.  Probably to bid goodbye. 

Her assistant walked to her and also have her a blanket. 

“If we weren’t told that those two are siblings, I would really think that they’re lovers,” the assistant said while looking at the back of the Townsend siblings.  “What if they’re only using that as a front and the two of them are really not blood-related at all and just—”

Miria glanced at her assistant coldly, stopping the other from continuing speaking.  “Don’t talk nonsense.”

And then she also walked towards the director.

—–

The twins at this time were already nearing the seaside cabin. 

“Reas, let’s leave immediately after I took a bath,” Astrid said, hugging the blanket to him.

Reas glanced down at his brother.  “Are you worried that that guy would still pester you?”

They both knew who ‘that guy’ was, so there’s no need for Astrid to ask who Reas was pertaining to.  “A bit.”

Although the prince didn’t really show himself after that accidental meeting this morning, he was still worried that he might suddenly pop up in front of him and then do the same antics he did back when they first met at Delryria.  With that guy, one could really never know what was going through his head.

It’s better to be safe rather than sorry.

Reas understood his worry and agreed to what he suggested. 

They arrived at the seaside cabin.  There were only a few staffs there from the crew since most of them were still at the beach right now.  The twins walked towards an AI robot and asked him if he could guide them to a free room that had a bathroom.  The AI quickly led them to one.

“I’ll wait here for you,” Reas said when they entered the room, sitting down on one of the couches.

“Yeah, I’ll try to be quick.”

Then Astrid entered the bathroom.  He saw a wooden bathtub inside, probably to give this place some kind of rustic feel.  He decided not to take a bath and just take a quick hot shower.

After just five minutes, he was already done.  He took out clothes from the space stone embedded in his necklace.  He always brought extra clothes and other amenities just in case of emergency.  After drying his hair, he walked out of the bathroom and immediately noticed that Reas was not there.

That got him a bit confused.  He opened his Terminal to send his brother a message, asking him where he was.  Also, at the same time, he walked towards the door.  He hadn’t yet sent his message but when he opened the door, all his movements stopped.

Because right there, standing in front of him, was the ever-annoying prince of the Empire – Wulfric de Lunaris.