Chapter 604 - 600: I’ve Borrowed Your Light Again

Zora Warner’s gaze landed on Lily Sterling, filled with curiosity.

She was no stranger to Lily Sterling. Or rather, all the new actors who debuted around the same time knew at least a little about each other.

The industry was a brutal environment, so even if they’d never worked together, they were still potential rivals.

Lily Sterling might not have been the most popular of the newcomers, but she was definitely the one with the most momentum and raw talent.

Veterans like Heather Keaton and Jett Hughes, along with big names like Andrew Sutton and Director Titus Ashton—all of whom had worked with her—had praised her on social media and in interviews for her excellent acting, professionalism, and dedication.

Her dual nomination for the Golden Magpie Award was also a popular decision. For a newcomer to achieve so much, there was surprisingly little backlash online—most of the negativity came from dedicated anti-fans.

Now, seeing her in person—and completely bare-faced, just like herself—Zora Warner had to admit Lily Sterling had a captivating aura. Her natural assets were in no way inferior to her own.

Sensing Zora Warner’s gaze, Lily Sterling instinctively looked over. Their eyes met, and they both broke into a smile at the same time.

The look in their eyes was one of mutual appreciation.

Just before the scheduled time, Director Alan finally appeared with the casting director. To everyone’s surprise, they were accompanied by three young, handsome male actors and two agents.

It turned out the male actors had arrived early.

When Lily Sterling glanced up, she was surprised to see her friend among them: Yuri Tucker!

Yuri Tucker was startled to see Lily, too, and a look of delight spread across his face. He didn’t dare say hello before the director did, so he simply responded to Lily’s surprise with a look of his own.

The two hadn’t seen each other since they wrapped the film about human trafficking in rural areas. Lily knew Yuri had stayed in Lorcain, though; he had even sent her a WhatsApp message to congratulate her on her nomination.

"Is everyone here?"

Director Alan, with his usual gentle and scholarly air, smiled as he greeted them.

Zora Warner’s agent was the most excited. Perhaps finally meeting Director Alan in person was too much for him to handle, because he strode forward two steps, hand outstretched to shake the director’s.

The director responded with a good-natured laugh, but to everyone else, the agent’s behavior seemed a bit tacky.

Zora Warner felt a little embarrassed herself and pressed her lips together.

The director gestured for everyone to sit down. Each actor had their agent sitting with them, but Yuri Tucker seemed to have come alone. Seeing an opportunity, he moved to sit next to Lily. Only then did he get a chance to whisper, "Long time no see, Lily."

Lily was genuinely happy to see Yuri at Director Alan’s private audition—happy for him.

"Long time no see."

Director Alan noticed their quiet exchange and asked instinctively, "Do you two know each other?"

They both looked at Director Alan, then grinned and nodded in unison, their movements and expressions surprisingly in sync.

Seeing this, Director Alan chuckled. "Well, that’s quite a coincidence."

Lily explained quietly, "Director, Yuri and I met last year. We also worked together on Director Titus Ashton’s film at the beginning of this year."

"I saw that on Yuri’s profile. I didn’t realize you were in that film of Titus’s as well," Director Alan said, a little surprised.

Yuri seized the opportunity to add, "Lily was the one who recommended me for that movie. Before that, I was just an extra. She gave me an invaluable opportunity."

At his words, everyone in the room, especially the other actors, couldn’t help but look at Lily.

Everyone knew about Lily, of course. Her older sister was a major investor in the financial world. ’So Lily definitely has the connections to recommend people for roles,’ they all thought. ’Yuri Tucker is living proof.’

What they didn’t know was that the original actor had breached his contract and bailed because the filming conditions were too harsh. Lily had only recommended Yuri as a last-minute replacement to save the day.

Lily didn’t bother to explain. Today was about Director Alan auditioning new actors; she couldn’t monopolize the conversation by talking about herself.

However, the fact that they knew each other and had worked together seemed to please Director Alan. "If you’ve worked together, you’ll know each other’s rhythm. It makes building chemistry easier."

As he spoke, he opened a small notebook in his hands and flipped through it before looking up at Lily and Yuri. "We’ve decided on Lily to play Whitt. Yuri, why don’t you try out for Shino?"

Yuri froze, his gaze instinctively flicking to the other male actor, Chester Spencer.

He was the first-choice candidate for the role of Shino.

Yuri himself was auditioning for York Wright, a smaller role.

Chester Spencer was stunned as well and glanced at his agent.

His agent, however, remained calm. ’After all, it’s an audition with a major director. No one knows the outcome until the very last second.’

Shaking himself from his stupor, Yuri gave a dazed nod.

Director Alan looked at Lily kindly. "Lily, you’ve read the script many times, haven’t you? You should be very familiar with the scenes between these two characters. You and Yuri, go off to the side, talk it over, and then pick a scene to perform for me."

Acting was what Lily did best. Even in front of Director Alan, she wasn’t nervous. She nodded immediately, said a quick word to Connie, and then led Yuri to a corner of the room.

Yuri said excitedly, "Lily, I’m riding your coattails again. The director originally had me auditioning for York Wright."

"Riding my coattails isn’t enough; you have to earn it," Lily said, looking at him seriously. "The director is very demanding. You have to be good enough to actually land the role."

"Then you’ll have to guide me," Yuri said, suddenly growing anxious.

Seeing his palpable nervousness, Lily changed the subject and started making small talk. "How did you end up here? Did your agency recommend you? Where’s your agent?"

"I don’t have an agency or an agent," Yuri said, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. "Remember how I told you I was going to sign up for Phoebe Perry’s acting class after I got paid for Director Titus Ashton’s film? I set aside a little for living expenses and spent the rest on tuition. It was Ms. Perry who recommended me to the production team."

"Oh, really? In that case, Ms. Perry must have thought you were a good actor to recommend you to Director Alan’s production," Lily said happily.

But Yuri responded humbly, "My acting has definitely improved, but it’s not like I’m exceptionally talented yet. Ms. Perry’s exact words were that my physical appearance is the type Director Alan likes. She said I have a high brow bone and deep-set eyes, and that features like that look especially good in close-ups on the big screen. I don’t really see it myself. I was pretty embarrassed by the compliment."

Seeing how modest he was, Lily immediately encouraged him. "Well, it proves Ms. Perry was right. You’re really here now!"

Still reeling from the shock, Yuri said, "You have no idea how nervous I was during the guys’ audition earlier. Eight of us showed up, and every single one was more handsome than the last. I was sure I didn’t stand a chance."

"That should make you believe in yourself even more. You can do this!"