Chapter 222 I Choose to Give Up
Sylvie was floored when James mentioned he wanted to introduce her to the head of a film company. She shot him a look that screamed disbelief.
"Why are you staring at me like that?" James asked, feeling a bit awkward under her intense gaze.
"Did you just say you wanted to introduce me to the head of a film company?" Sylvie asked, her excitement barely contained.
"Yeah, so what?" James shrugged nonchalantly.
Sylvie hesitated, then pouted. "Come on, stop messing with me. You're just a broke student. How could you know anyone important? And even if you did, they're probably just creepy old guys looking to take advantage of young actresses. No way I'm going."
James felt a bit embarrassed by her words. She had no idea who he really was, so it made sense she didn't believe him.
"If you don't believe me, then whatever," James said calmly. He figured if she didn't trust him and he didn't want to blow his cover, it was easier to let those execs approach her directly.
Sylvie sighed, "I didn't say I don't believe you. It's just that the entertainment industry is full of scams. I'm worried you might get tricked. And even if you do know some film company heads, why would they cast me? Unless you're their boss, they have no reason to help me!"
She patted James on the shoulder and smiled, trying to comfort him.
Despite everything, Sylvie was really touched by James's offer to help her.
James looked at her and thought, 'You're right. I am the boss of those film companies. If I want someone to be the lead actress, they wouldn't dare refuse!' But he kept that to himself.
Just then, Sylvie's phone buzzed with a notification from the StreamVerse platform, letting her know the competition had started.
Sylvie walked over to her computer, opened the PK competition interface, but didn't enter her own live room. So, the PK interface only showed one female streamer, while Sylvie's screen was black.
Her opponent was Seraphina, one of the top five streamers on StreamVerse. In terms of looks and talent, she was way ahead of small-time streamers like Debra. James had watched Seraphina's streams a few times.
Seraphina had a sweet appearance and a lovely singing voice. There was a lot of buzz about her online.
At that moment, the words "PK Begins!" flashed in the livestream room.
As the countdown started, the competition between Sylvie and Seraphina was on.
Seraphina greeted her audience briefly and then started singing.
Meanwhile, viewers in Sylvie's live room began flooding the chat, asking why she hadn't started streaming yet.
[Sylvie, the competition's on. Why aren't you streaming?]
[Is Sylvie taking a bath?]
[Sylvie, even if you're in the bath, turn on the camera, or we're toast today!]
The chat was buzzing with playful comments, but some were downright nasty.
[Is she too ugly to go live?]
[Yeah, she's probably scared of Seraphina and doesn't dare to stream!]
[Sylvie, come on! Even if you lose, we won't laugh at you!]
These were Seraphina's fans, taking jabs at Sylvie.
Seeing these comments, Sylvie's face darkened. She glared at the screen and snapped, "Jerks! How dare they say I'm too ugly to stream. James, do you think I'm ugly?"
"No way!"
James was caught off guard and quickly shook his head.
"If so, then why are you just standing there? Start typing and roast them for me. Roast them all!"
Sylvie pointed at the computer screen, fuming.
"There are so many of them. How can I roast them all by myself? And why aren't you streaming?" James asked, clearly frustrated.
"I'm not streaming because I don't want my fans to waste their money. If I start now, people will send me gifts, but I can't win today. All that money will just go to the platform. I don't want them to profit!" Sylvie pouted.
James was surprised by her reasoning and said softly, "I didn't expect you to be so smart."
"Of course! They won't get a dime from my fans!"
Sylvie said proudly, then added, "Forget it. I'll just turn off the computer. Let's play a game. Do you know how to play MOBA games?"
"Nope." James shook his head.
"What about shooting games?" Sylvie asked again.
"Nope." James shook his head again.
"Are you really a student? You don't even know how to play MOBA or shooting games?" Sylvie looked at James in disbelief.
"My old phone was so bad it couldn't even download Facebook, so I never played those games," James explained awkwardly.
"Oh, I see. No problem, I'll teach you!" Sylvie said, pulling out her phone to show James the ropes.
But just then, Sylvie's phone rang again.
"Mrs. Brooks, what's up?"
Sylvie answered, sounding a bit annoyed.
"Sylvie, the competition's started. Why aren't you streaming? What are you doing?" The voice on the other end of line asked, clearly agitated.
"Mrs. Brooks, I already told you. I can't beat Seraphina, so I gave up!" Sylvie replied calmly.
"How can you do that? If you don't make it to the top three in the PK competition, you won't get the lead role. Are you giving up on the chance to act in the web series?" The woman on the other end of line asked loudly.
"What?" Sylvie's expression changed instantly, and she shouted excitedly.
"Mrs. Brooks, you must be joking, right?" Sylvie stammered into the phone.
