The Greatest Showman
Chapter 150

Renly was momentarily stunned, then let out a muffled laugh — was this the plot of Notting Hill? But this was the Toronto International Film Festival, where actors were everywhere, and journalists and paparazzi were too numerous to count. So, encountering something like this wasn’t exactly surprising. What was surprising, however, was who he had run into — if he remembered correctly, the person behind him was also an actor.

The absurdity of this situation made him curl the corners of his mouth upward. Renly glanced around but still couldn’t tell who was a paparazzo and who was just a regular spectator — he clearly lacked experience in this sort of thing.
“I think no one has noticed us,” he said. That much he could be sure of — he hadn’t sensed any particularly watchful eyes. The crowd bustled past, full of life and noise.

The woman behind him carefully stepped out, glanced around, and finally let out a slight breath of relief.

Only ten seconds or so had passed since the unexpected moment — Renly hadn’t even had time to get a good look at her. Now, he finally caught a glimpse of her profile. The slightly angular lines of her face were quite distinctive. Though the spirit and sharpness he remembered seemed a little dimmed, the commanding presence in her gaze still hinted at a deep-rooted intelligence. She looked cool and unreachable.

Natalie Portman. This actress, who began her career with Léon: The Professional, was clearly a rare type in Hollywood — smart, rational, and assertive. Her brilliance and independence beneath the glow of her academic achievements set her apart, allowing her to hold her ground in the fiercely competitive world of fame and fortune.

Black Swan is one of the films in this year’s festival lineup, so it wasn’t surprising that Natalie, as the lead actress, was here. What was surprising was that he had run into her like this.

“Phew…” Natalie let out a long breath, adjusted her beret to make sure she wasn’t exposed, then looked up at Renly, pressed her lips together slightly, and said, “Thank you.”
But before the words had fully left her mouth, she turned and once again stood behind Renly.

Renly gave her another muffled laugh, this time with a hint of teasing in his voice.
“I think the best solution right now is to buy a movie ticket and go into the theater. Isn’t that how it goes in the movies?”

“Don’t act strange, don’t talk, just behave normally and wait for those paparazzi to leave.” Natalie ignored his joke, her voice tense and slightly stern, as if she was giving a command.

That made Renly a bit uncomfortable. They were strangers meeting for the first time. Offering a helping hand had been his kindness, not his obligation. He could’ve just said no. Still, good manners held him in place, and he remained polite.
“The one acting strange right now is you, not me, Miss Portman.”
His tone remained courteous but carried a subtle coolness, quietly widening the invisible gap between them.

When she heard her name, Natalie immediately tensed up. She whipped around, glaring at the man in front of her, ready to explode — but out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of the reporters still walking by. Forcing down her anger, she composed herself, stepped to Renly’s side, and took hold of his left arm.

“Just buy two tickets, any movie will do. Let’s go into the theatre now and pretend nothing happened.”

It was that commanding tone again — something Renly didn’t appreciate. A faint smile tugged at his lips as he replied politely,
“Miss, is this how you usually order strangers around the moment you meet them? Or is this your general way of interacting with people?”

Natalie frowned. The man in front of her was being ridiculously petty, fussing over such a trivial matter. But given how urgent the situation was, she didn’t have time to argue. It was all that damned Benjamin Millepied’s fault — she had waited a full fifteen minutes for him, and still, he hadn’t shown up. If he had, she wouldn’t be in this mess.

In a split second, Natalie made a decision. She took a deep breath, looked up, and maintained a calm demeanour as she spoke:
“I apologise. Please forgive my rudeness. I’m in a bit of a situation right now and need to avoid those paparazzi. Would you be willing to help me?”
The priority was to get through this moment — she could deal with the rest later.

“Sorry.”

Renly’s response caught Natalie completely off guard. She clearly hadn’t expected that answer.

Renly knew that, as a gentleman, the proper thing to do was to offer a bit of help in a moment like this. But he also understood clearly: Natalie was only doing this out of temporary convenience. There was no real apology, no gratitude — she was just using him. If they were friends, it might be different. But that was the issue — they weren’t friends.

“You—” Natalie obviously hadn’t expected that under Renly’s gentlemanly exterior lay such pettiness. She had already lowered herself to apologise — what more did he want from her?
“You’re not even a man!” she blurted out. She was simply too anxious at the moment.

If reporters discovered that she was dating Benjamin, this wouldn’t just be some juicy gossip — it could severely disrupt the PR strategy for Black Swan. This was a pivotal moment in her acting career. She absolutely could not be caught by the paparazzi, and especially not seen with Benjamin.

But before she could even finish her outburst — before the next curse could rise to her lips — she spotted two reporters walking straight toward them. Not paparazzi this time, but actual reporters. She instantly lowered her head and clenched her jaw.

“Act normal. Act normal. If we act like nothing’s going on, they’ll just move on.” Her hurried whisper was laced with a trace of sharpness.

At that moment, the only thought running through Renly’s mind was:
‘What would happen if I pulled my arm away from hers and just walked off right now?’

But gentlemanly etiquette stopped him from acting on the impulse. He stayed where he was and lowered his gaze to flip through the program booklet in his hand.

What he didn’t expect was for the two reporters to stop right in front of them.

Renly didn’t look up, pretending to be absorbed in the booklet. But after a moment, he realised that the two weren’t just passing by, nor were they reading the bulletin board behind him — they were clearly standing there, facing them.

Had Natalie been recognised?

A powerful twisting force suddenly came from the inside of his left arm — Natalie had grabbed the soft flesh on the inside of Renly’s arm and was twisting it hard. The sharp, sudden pain startled Renly; she was clearly using her full strength. He could even feel her nails digging into his skin like blades. Instinctively, he looked up — and that’s when he saw the two reporters standing right in front of him.

Cameras hung around their necks, and press badges were pinned to their chests — their identities were obvious. Both were staring intently at Renly. As soon as he raised his head, six eyes locked together. He saw a flicker of delight in the eyes of the two reporters. But before Renly could figure out the source of that excitement, Natalie’s voice came through gritted teeth:
“Aren’t we running late? Let’s get into the theatre quickly.”

Her voice sounded like it had been squeezed through clenched teeth — so if Renly dared say anything other than “yes,” he’d lose his head the next second.

“Renly Hall?”
Garvin Hunter beamed with a wide smile and said cheerfully, “I’m a reporter from Us Weekly. Would you mind if we asked you a few questions?”

“I said we’re already late, didn’t I?” Natalie, hearing the words “UsWeekly,” abruptly looked up and fixed a fierce glare on Renly — a look that practically screamed:
If they find out anything, you’re dead!

Renly was a bit overwhelmed. The inside of his arm still throbbed with pain — Natalie was gripping him even harder now. The reporter’s greeting was hanging in the air unanswered, and he couldn’t figure out why his name had come up. Meanwhile, Natalie’s aggressive pressure left him no room to breathe.

Renly turned to her and flashed a dazzling smile. With elegant composure, he said,
“Miss, he’s looking for me.”
But the sarcasm and sharp edge in his tone were completely undisguised — his words landed with unmistakable weight.

Natalie froze, and a rebuke slipped out reflexively:
“Ridiculous!”
But the moment she said it, she realised something was wrong — she had made a mistake. The situation had taken an unexpected turn.

“Natalie?”
Only now did Garvin recognise her standing beside Renly. She looked low-key and nearly unrecognisable, dressed in a black shirt and jeans. Her beret and scarf covered most of her face. He hadn’t noticed her before. He had merely stumbled across Renly by accident— a rising name recently generating buzz — and was thrilled at the chance for a face-to-face interview and maybe even an exclusive scoop. He hadn’t expected to get a “buy one, get one free” surprise — a very lucky bonus indeed.

Natalie’s face instantly turned black, as dark as the bottom of a pot. She shot Renly a furious glare. This was all his fault.
If he had just gone along, there was no way she would’ve been recognised.
This damn drama queen!
But despite her rage, she had no choice but to turn to the reporters and tug her lips into a smile—one that looked more painful than tears.

“It really is you!” Garvin’s voice practically jumped with excitement. Standing beside him, Cornell McGregor was also beaming with delight. Today’s luck was off the charts — they had managed to catch both of them!
“I didn’t recognise you at first — you’re dressed so low-key today!”

Natalie felt a tightness in her chest. At that moment, she finally realised: these two reporters hadn’t come for her — they were here for the man standing next to her. Now this was awkward. Even someone as sharp as Natalie found her brain clouding over after all these surprises, and the smile on her face froze.

Cornell’s eyes flicked back and forth between Renly and Natalie. Suddenly, inspiration struck him.
“Are you two on a date?”
Thinking back to their earlier interaction, the more he considered it, the more plausible it seemed. A current rising star — and he’s dating Natalie Portman? This was explosive news!

Cornell was practically about to burst like fireworks.

“Yes.”

A crisp, clean, one-word answer — and it came from Natalie.

That took Renly by surprise. Out of politeness and respect, he hadn’t immediately denied anything, but Natalie’s unexpected reply made him turn toward her with a slightly amused look in his eyes.

Not only Renly, even Garvin and Cornell were now staring at her with heightened curiosity and interest. Natalie could feel all three pairs of eyes boring into her shoulders, so intense it felt like her skin was about to catch fire. She instinctively closed her eyes as a headache started to throb at her temples.

And just when she thought things couldn’t get any messier.

“Natalie? What are you doing here? I’ve been looking all over for you!”

Apparently… it could.

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T/N – Ooooh boy…

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