Frank had always been polite, and his words weren't overly harsh—they were simply stating facts. But such words were still hard to feel good about. This was the current state of Hollywood: popularity was the only standard by which everything was measured. As for how one gained popularity, there were many ways—perhaps through acting skills, box office success, or simply being a hot topic—but the most important thing was attracting attention, gaining focus, and gathering crowds. Once you had popularity, everything else would follow.
Actually, in Hugo's current situation, if he went to some sportswear brands, he might be warmly welcomed after all, the Golden Raspberry Awards still carried a lot of buzz. But for a top-tier brand like Armani, what they needed was masculine charm and a positive image. Compared to Hugo, choosing Richard was undoubtedly the obvious choice.
Though Frank had always been modest and courteous, there was a clear sense of brand superiority and a subtle disdain toward Hugo that could still be felt. Just imagine—if it were Richard visiting Armani, Frank's reception would be much more than mere politeness.
It was just that this kind of reality was too cruel, too cold, and left people helpless.
Hugo and Joseph had come shopping in high spirits, but now their mood instantly sank. Even attending the premiere of Final Analysis didn't seem like a big deal—after all, it wasn't Hugo's own work.
Even so, Frank still dutifully said, "We have many outstanding new designs for the spring season. If you're interested, I can personally introduce them to you." But looking at the gentlemanly smile on Frank's face now, it just felt cheap—like Hugo was a beggar being casually brushed off.
Hugo returned a warm smile and calmly said, "No need. I can't afford these prices. I think I'll try somewhere else."
Those words clearly acknowledged Hugo's lack of money, a sign of weakness. But after he said them, the atmosphere somehow turned strange. It was as if Hugo had said, "Armani is too upscale—I'm not worthy," a line laced with irony that nailed Frank, with all his perfect manners, to the spot. That smile froze on his face, looking incredibly awkward.
Joseph stood to the side and saw the near-twitching expression on Frank's face, a smile flashing across his eyes. Looking at Hugo's upright back as he walked into the fitting room to change, Joseph felt a rush of satisfaction.
Soon, Hugo changed back into his clothes. He hung the suit back in the dressing room and then gave Frank, who stood at the door still trying to maintain his poise, a polite smile. "Thank you for your hospitality. I hope I can find a job soon. Once I have enough capital, I hope I can buy a proper suit from Armani."
Hugo's words were humble, but each sentence carried a sting, subtly mocking Armani's pretentious self-importance. Frank had no idea how to respond. In the end, he could only pretend not to understand and smiled, "Armani always welcomes your visit." Then Hugo and Joseph walked out of the Armani store with heads held high, leaving Frank inside with nothing but helplessness.
Although they hadn't encountered outright mockery at Armani no salesperson had said anything like "don't touch it if you can't afford it"—and overall their manners had been in place, there was still that deep-rooted sense of discrimination, that arrogant, condescending attitude that made one uncomfortable.
"One day, Armani will come begging you to wear their clothes. When that happens, you must ruthlessly reject them," Joseph said in a flat tone. Though his voice carried little emotion, his resentment was loud and clear.
Hugo chuckled lightly, "Don't worry—I'll let you have that opportunity."
"Still want to keep shopping?" Joseph's mood had lightened slightly thanks to Hugo's teasing, but the mood for shopping had mostly faded. Men don't usually enjoy shopping much anyway, and what had just happened at Armani left a lingering sense of frustration.
Hugo widened his eyes in mock surprise. "What? You want me to wear that same Golden Raspberry outfit to the premiere and get overshadowed by Richard? Or would you rather I show up in a T-shirt and jeans?"
Joseph shook his head helplessly at Hugo's exaggerated expression. Of course, he knew that wasn't possible. Even if they were disheartened now, work was still work—a little setback wasn't reason to give up. Besides, Scent of a Woman had already finished shooting and was now in post-production. Things were on the right track. There was no reason to be dejected. Today's setback surely wouldn't last.
"Then let's keep going. Why are you still standing there?" Joseph shrugged and gave his affirmative response.
Hugo laughed as he walked ahead. "Exactly. There must be at least a few hundred name-brand stores here. The problem isn't whether we can find suitable clothes, but how much time we'll have to spend looking." After walking a short distance, Hugo spotted a beautifully decorated storefront and walked straight toward it. "Let's go check this one out."
But just as Hugo reached to push open the glass door, he noticed that Joseph's steps had stopped behind him. Thinking something had happened, Hugo turned to call out cheerfully, "Relax what happened at Armani was our oversight. There are only two films premiering this week. No way every store would have the same situation."
Joseph still didn't move. His expression looked odd as if the corners of his mouth were twitching or maybe he was trying to hold back laughter. This left Hugo puzzled.
Just then, the glass door was pushed open from inside probably by a store clerk who saw a customer approaching. Sure enough, when Hugo turned around, he saw a woman in a white shirt and black dress pants with her hair neatly tied in a ponytail. Smiling, she said, "Good afternoon, welcome to the Chanel women's clothing store."
"Uh…" Hugo's smile froze instantly. He had been too busy talking to Joseph just now to notice that this store was actually a women's clothing boutique. No wonder Joseph had been acting so strangely earlier. Hugo paused for a moment, then pushed the frozen smile back on his face. "Good afternoon. My partner seems to have gone to the store next door. I'll come by later." After saying that, Hugo nodded politely, then calmly walked back onto the sidewalk.
Joseph, however, suddenly quickened his pace, striding forward as if he didn't even know Hugo. Clearly, he was embarrassed.
Feeling frustrated, Hugo hurried after him. "Hey, Joseph! You should've reminded me. You just watched me make a fool of myself." Hugo kept his voice low as he complained, when suddenly he saw Joseph raise his right hand and point to the sign of the shop next door. Hugo was still talking, but his head turned in that direction. "If I hadn't reacted fast enough, that would've been so awkward. What, were you going to let me stroll in and…"
Hugo's words stopped abruptly. Because he saw the signboard of the next store, which read, "Gucci," and in the lower right corner, there was a small mark that said, "Men's Boutique."
"…Shit." That was the only word Hugo could manage right now.
And Joseph finally couldn't hold it in. He began to chuckle softly, and even his steps became noticeably lighter. Hugo, annoyed, patted himself on the head but didn't dare look back to see if the Chanel store clerk had come out. All he could do was quickly catch up with Joseph. It wasn't until they had walked a full hundred yards away from that area that Joseph finally burst into full laughter he had really been holding it in hard. This was also the first time Hugo had ever heard Joseph laugh out loud.
Looking at Joseph's gloating expression, Hugo couldn't help it either and burst out laughing. Even thinking back on it now, he had to admit that the whole scene just now was ridiculously funny.
Although Hugo had made a big fool of himself, it successfully made the two of them forget about the whole Armani incident and got them back into shopping mode.
There were countless top brands on Rodeo Drive. Giving up on Armani still left them dazzled by the choices. And this premiere was especially important it wasn't just Hugo's first public appearance since the Razzies, but also a chance to counter Richard's mature charm. So their choice of attire absolutely couldn't be sloppy. Even though both men were truly exhausted, they didn't slack off or just settle for something random. After spending nearly the entire afternoon searching, Hugo and Joseph finally found a suitable suit at Givenchy, which cost $4,500 a hefty investment for the upcoming premiere, but at last the torturous process was over.
Holding the suit in his hands, Hugo couldn't help but sigh, "Rent's only $300, and this one suit is nearly five months' worth of living expenses for us. So extravagant." Seeing celebrities under the spotlight all dressed to the nines was certainly enviable, but going through it personally made it feel far less glamorous.
Joseph just chuckled lightly. "Didn't the suit you wore to the 'Hudson Hawk' premiere cost even more? Don't you remember? In Hollywood, these things never have a price ceiling."
Hugo didn't dare ask how much the previous version of himself had paid for that "Hudson Hawk" suit, but he did quietly wonder why nothing in the wardrobe seemed especially valuable.
"But you wore that outfit to a bar last time, got totally wasted, puked all over it, and tossed it out the next day. Such a waste. If you'd had it dry-cleaned and pawned it, you could've gotten a pretty decent price for it." Joseph kept dropping bombs, leaving Hugo utterly speechless.
Seeing Hugo's stunned face, Joseph couldn't help but ask, "What's wrong?"
Hugo froze for a second, then replied, "Have we really gotten so poor that we're talking about pawning stuff now?"
"Come on, that's totally not the point of what I was just saying, okay?" That was probably the only thing on Joseph's mind right now.
.....
Hi For access to additional chapters of
Director in Hollywood (40 chpaters)
Made In Hollywood (60 Chapters)
Pokemon:Bounty Hunter(30 Chapters)
Douluo Dalu: Reincarnated as Yan(40 Chapters)
Hollywood:From Razzie to Legend(40 Chapters)
Join pateron.com/Translaterappu