The Protagonist
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Urgent knocking suddenly echoed in his ears, followed by a man's impatient voice filtering through the door, "Matthew, why did you kick the makeup artist out? The director and leading lady are already in position, the entire crew is waiting for you, the male lead.
You have fifteen minutes!" The owner of the voice seemed very forceful, "If you're not out in fifteen minutes, I'm coming in to kill you!"
These words buzzed around his ears, drilling into his head. Matthew wanted to open his eyes but couldn't, until the sound of retreating footsteps came from outside the door.
Only then did he use all his strength to open his eyes.
They were eyes as black as ink, filled with a bewildered confusion, unsure of the situation.
His dark eyes quickly scanned the room, and he immediately confirmed, "I've definitely never been here before!" Then he looked down at himself, "Huh? Why am I lying here?"
He was lying crookedly on the wooden floor, his head near the door, which explained why those voices had been buzzing in his ears.
Immediately after, countless pieces of information suddenly flashed in his mind. Two completely different scenes, like movies playing on the same screen, intertwined and tangled, making him instinctively clutch his head in confusion.
As time passed, the bewilderment in his eyes gradually faded, and his mind became clearer.
He propped himself up with his hands, slowly stood up, and faced a large makeup mirror, looking at the person reflected in it.
The person was wearing only a pair of baggy shorts, approximately 1.85 meters tall, with a bare upper body that was clearly muscular and quite robust.
Looking further up, his hair was dark brown, and his face had a high nose and deep-set eyes, with features as distinct as if carved by a knife and chiseled by an axe.
Aside from the ink-black eyes, there was no resemblance to himself whatsoever.
Looking at the person in the mirror, he bit his lip hard, and instant pain and the taste of blood flooded him.
Then, he stood there in a daze for a full five minutes, gradually confirming that something incredible had happened.
His last memory was very clear: he was smashing concrete on a construction site under the scorching sun and high temperatures.
Just as he was wiping sweat and drinking water, a co-worker's hammer suddenly flew off and landed squarely on his face.
He didn't remember anything after that.
Perhaps that tragic twenty-year life had come to an end?
He had lived a very hard life before, born in a poor mountainous area, forced to work after junior high school to support his family.
When he was eighteen, his parents, who had been ill for many years, passed away, leaving him alone and without support.
He became a typical "four-no" person: no education, no experience, no background, and no special skills, only able to do manual labor.
He originally wanted to earn enough money to learn a skill, but he unluckily encountered wage arrears and his boss running away.
His attempts to demand back wages were suppressed, and it remained unresolved.
He could only work the hardest jobs on construction sites, moving bricks and smashing concrete.
He hadn't even earned money before he was done for… Perhaps ending that tragic life and starting anew wasn't so unlucky?
Thinking of the hardships and difficulties of his previous life, such a thought unconsciously emerged, as he could be said to have no attachments.
However, this new life didn't seem to be much better...
Standing in front of the mirror, he vigorously patted his handsome, rugged face, once again confirming that this was not a dream or an illusion.
The foreigner in the mirror was named Matthew Horner. If described using the wuxia novels he once read, he had successfully "seized the body." In the language of his hometown, he had been "possessed by a ghost."
Fortunately, Matthew Horner, who had probably gone to meet Yama... no, probably God, had left behind enough memories.
But as these memories flashed through his mind, his—or rather, Matthew's—face twitched!
Because the past was truly unbearable to recall!
This Matthew Horner came from the slums of Texas, born in 1980, and was just nineteen years old—meaning he had returned to early 1999, the turn of the century.
Like most Americans, he was a product of multiple ethnicities, with a quarter Chinese ancestry.
Unfortunately, this heritage was not evident in his appearance; the only thing it likely contributed were his black eyes.
Aside from his black eyes, both his skin tone and appearance were more like a Westerner.
Nineteen-year-old Matthew Horner also had no special skills.
Having only completed a third of middle school, his education level was limited to barely being able to read newspapers and books; he couldn't understand overly complex English or grammar, and his writing was even worse.
It was imaginable what kind of life such a person would have in this era.
In the memories left behind, Matthew Horner had delivered newspapers and milk, worked as a car washer, washed dishes in restaurants, and after getting his driver's license, worked as a driver.
Later, he spent some time swinging a sledgehammer on construction sites.
His arduous work and life had sculpted his robust physique.
In the latter half of last year, he was somehow convinced by someone that his handsome face and tall stature were suitable for becoming a star.
He foolishly came to Los Angeles to be an actor.
Perhaps his luck turned when, while working part-time as a driver for a party service company, he met an agent who greatly appreciated him.
It was because of this agent that he came here, to this temporary studio converted from a stand-alone house in downtown Los Angeles, where he suddenly fell in the makeup room...
"Sigh..." Matthew sighed, the information in his mind telling him that he was currently in Los Angeles!
He looked around. Whether it was the posters on the walls or the various items on the dressing table, wherever there was writing, it was all in a foreign script.
Pulling out a chair, Matthew sat down and continued to sort through the memories in his brain.
The mental wealth left behind by this person was truly frustrating!
He was uncultured before, and he was still uncultured now.
Before, his education level was at least enough to read novels on certain websites without problems, but now even reading complex things was an obstacle.
Before, he lived a hard life but had a place to stay on the construction site.
Now, the previous owner, for the sake of his Hollywood star dream, directly quit his original job and came here to be the male lead...
Male lead?
Matthew suddenly stood up, remembering the English words of the person outside the door earlier.
These words immediately made him breathe a sigh of relief: he could understand English!
Then, he was overjoyed. The person's words mentioned that the director, the leading lady, and even the entire crew were waiting for him, the male lead!
This was the male lead!
Even if it was the male lead of a TV series, he could still make a lot of money, couldn't he?
Wait...
Matthew felt something was wrong again. Male lead? What kind of male lead? Could it be the male lead of a Hollywood movie?
Instantly, he thought of those young actors who became famous overnight and swept across Hollywood.
Although his education level wasn't high, there were simply too many Hollywood popcorn movies.
Before, after his hard work, he would download some pirated copies to watch, and he recognized some Hollywood stars.
For example, he really liked the "Transformers" series, and he remembered that the female lead, nicknamed "Little Fox" or something, was a typical example of overnight fame!
Matthew couldn't help but excitedly jump up from his chair, walk to the exit of the makeup room, quietly pull open the door, and look outside.
The space outside was much larger than the makeup room, lavishly decorated.
He could see six or seven people gathered around a black camera, seemingly busy setting something up.
Opposite the camera was a cream-colored European-style long sofa, with two people standing beside it, talking.
One was a middle-aged man wearing glasses, and the other was a woman.
"Could these be the director and the leading lady?"
Like most men, Matthew's eyes naturally fell on the woman.
This woman had long, straight blonde hair.
From this angle, her face wasn't clear, but he could see she was tall, long-legged, sexy, and slender.
Especially her attire, which was quite revealing: only a black tight-fitting tank top on her upper body, accentuating her high chest and flat stomach, and form-fitting jeans on her lower body, outlining perfect leg lines.
Although he couldn't see her face, Matthew still categorized this woman as a beauty.
This must be the leading lady!
Matthew immediately affirmed this point. Acting opposite such a leading lady would definitely be a pleasant task...
He couldn't help but smile.
That guy before wasn't without skills, nor did he leave nothing useful behind; he was quite considerate, and this job he found seemed very good.
"Am I about to embark on a broad road to Hollywood?"
Such a thought jumped into his mind, diluting his discomfort at coming to this world.
Anyway, there was nothing to miss about his previous life, so living a spectacular life here wouldn't be bad.
"If I'm lucky, can I even become a big Hollywood star?"
Thinking of the information he had seen on his smartphone before, Matthew suddenly realized that being an actor or a star didn't seem to require much education.
It seemed many Hollywood stars didn't even finish middle school, yet they still made a name for themselves.
Perhaps this was a way out?
Since he had come here and was facing the current situation, complaining was useless; it was better to adapt as quickly as possible.
Just then, the blonde woman turned her head this way.
Perhaps she saw Matthew's face through the crack in the door, and she couldn't help but smile slightly and nod gently.
Matthew also nodded, then glanced at the blonde woman's face.
"Why does she look familiar?"
He closed the door, retreated into the makeup room, scratched his head, unable to recall where he had seen her or in which Hollywood movie.
He simply pushed the thought aside and began to recall information about this male lead role.
It looked like filming was about to start, and he had to figure out what they were shooting.
If he couldn't even understand this, he would simply waste this excellent opportunity to be the male lead!
It was better not to think about it, but once he carefully recalled, Matthew's face instantly turned pale, a layer of fine sweat beads appeared on his forehead, and immediately rolled down his cheeks, as if he had been greatly frightened.
He slightly turned his head and looked at a red bag on the dressing table.
That was the tool bag specially prepared for him by the crew.
The bag was not zipped up, and through the opening, he could see that it contained condoms, tissues, a towel, baby wipes, lubricant, rubber gloves... and several special tools he had only seen pictures of online but never in person!
Matthew stumbled two steps, flopped onto the chair in front of the makeup mirror, and couldn't utter a single word.
This male lead... the male lead he was going to play was the male lead of an X-rated romantic action film!