The Best Director

Chapter 387: Chapter 387: If I Become a Memory (Vote for Monthly Ticket)

“Amazing Yang, do you need anything?”

Above the vast Pacific, a Boeing 777 from All American Airlines cut through the azure sky, leaving behind a long white contrail.

In the airplane’s comfortable and elegant first-class cabin, passengers were either sleeping with their eyes closed, reading books, or enjoying various audiovisual entertainment, with flight attendants occasionally walking by with light steps. Nowadays, not all American flight attendants are pretty girls; on the contrary, most are aunties who are not easy on the eyes. Even the young women go to first-class and business classes. Like Kelly, who definitely fits the traditional “stewardess” image, she naturally recognized this handsome Asian guy and often took the initiative to come over and ask if he needed anything, occasionally managing to chat with him for a bit.

“No, thank you,” Wang Yang smiled, shaking his head while wearing headphones and listening to music. Seeing her look a little disappointed, he shrugged and laughed, “Actually, I’ve had too much water. I need to go to the restroom, but I’m fine by myself.”

At the sound of “Oh,” Kelly, realizing he meant “you’ve given me too many drinks,” thought she had misunderstood his frequent glances and attentiveness, hoping to at least get an email address. She felt a pang of loss in her heart—what a good man! Kelly smiled and walked away, saying, “Okay.”

Whether before marriage or after, Wang Yang had never been short of temptations from beautiful women. With a big heart, he had smoothly made it to this day. Now, there were only three women in his heart: his mother, his wife, and his daughter. In less than two hours, he would be able to embrace his two darlings! Humming a cheerful tune to himself, Wang Yang stood up and headed to the restroom.

It was a leisurely weekend in Los Angeles, just like a few days ago, when Jessica returned to her parental home for lunch. After a lunch full of laughter and chatter in the living room, she saw it was about time to leave, her heartbeat suddenly quickened, and she said with a smile to her family, “I’m going back now, I need to tidy up the home a bit.” Watching her 20-week pregnant daughter, Kathy habitually reminded, “Drive slowly.” On the couch, Joshua quickly yelled out, “Jessica, send my regards to Yang, and don’t forget my gift!”

“Enough already,” Jessica, holding her exquisite handbag, slowly stood up and gave her brother an annoyed glare, “You only think about gifts.” As she walked past, she rubbed his head with force and teased with a snickering voice, “Yang said he bought some pretty sexy anime costumes in Japan. Pumpkin, you can take one.” This time, Joshua rolled his eyes, “Keep them all for yourself. Are there any military uniforms?” Watching TV, Mark Alba remained indifferent, while Kathy smiled.

Jessica paused for a moment, not expecting her tease to be bounced back at her. She froze for a few seconds, then suddenly burst into laughter, and with a “shh” sound, she beckoned him with her fingers. Joshua, puzzled, sat up straight, and she leaned down and whispered in his ear, “Not every Catholic girl will do these things for her man. Hahaha—” Swirling her handbag around, she left the room with a laugh, lips pursed and looking triumphant.

“Nonsense!” Joshua couldn’t hide his discontent as he yelled out, but Leah really hadn’t… “Wait, wait!” He called after his sister, running up and bending down to yell at her belly, “Lakers! LA! Girl, you got that? Lakers!” Jessica rolled her eyes upward, patting her stomach, “Sweetheart, listen to mommy, Warriors Team.” Joshua, exasperated, threw his hands down and cursed in Chinese he learned from “Firefly,” “Dammit!” Jessica laughed, “That’s me.” Watching her receding figure, he kept mumbling, “What about the Warriors? No superstars, no legendary coach, no championships…”

“Oh my God—original sketches, storyboard, where did I put them?!” Nancy screamed, frantically searching the living room. Amazing Yang was returning today, and in a couple of days, “500 Days of Summer” could start shooting, but she had misplaced her previous work!

On the other side in San Francisco, the heavyset Harry-George, who would operate the camera for “500 Days of Summer,” wandered tirelessly all weekend in search of suitable scenes, constantly recording his findings to provide as references for the director team, photography team, art team, and location scouting team; Natalie was also working nonstop over the weekend, reading the script she had gone over many times, immersing herself in the character of Summer, occasionally engaging in what seemed like neurotic self-dialogue and acting: “Hi, Tom, I’m Summer, I’m Summer…” But she couldn’t quite grasp some of Summer’s mental attitudes, deciding she would have a thorough talk with him tomorrow!

“Incredible,” Mark-Strong often exclaimed these days. “Unbelievable,” The North American box office for “Firefly” had surpassed “Titanic” to become the new champion in film history, while the Japanese market performance was explosive!

“Assassin’s Creed” was about to premiere in North American Cinemas on August 5th, and the company’s various new film projects had made encouraging progress; meanwhile, Flame was initiating multiple collaborations with IMAX, including IMAX-3D technology; they were also striving to get involved in the DreamWorks acquisition case, hoping to take a slice of the pie; plans to expand the film library through acquisitions of Newmarket, Red Bus, and other film companies were ongoing; they were considering whether it was time to establish “Oriental Flame Company,” aiming to launch films targeting the Asian market; whether to set up regional branches in the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Japan, and other cinematic powerhouses; if it was time to create “Flame Music” to expand the group’s businesses; how to invest in the game development company “Firestarter” to produce a “Firefly” video game; whether Blue Sky Studios should launch a new series plan; and when YouTube would introduce online video-on-demand services…

Under the leadership of the young BOSS, Flame Group was making big moves!

“Hey, hello! Yes, it’s been a long journey, can’t wait to get back home.”

On a US Boeing 777 flying over the Pacific, Wang Yang, after using the restroom and returning to the cabin and responding to other passengers’ greetings, was chatting and laughing with people when, without warning, he was sent flying! Accompanied by the screams of the other passengers, “Oh NO——,” “God——,” the plane suddenly plummeted and shook violently! Wang Yang slammed hard into the ceiling before crashing to the floor; flight attendant Kelly and two other passengers who were up and about had the same fate.

“Aah——” In the clear blue sky, the plummeting airplane left a startling white streak, people in economy, business, and first class were all sent flying, the severe turbulence hurling unbuckled passengers from their seats, heads striking against the overhead bins!

What had happened! The entire Boeing 777 was plummeting as if bereft of fuel, the color drained from most passengers’ faces, hearts tightened in fear, too shocked to react! Abruptly, one side of the plane tilted again, and Wang Yang, already dizzy and in pain as if his whole body had fallen apart, was flung into the air once more, crashing again into the aircraft’s body; his already injured right arm, which seemed broken, was smashed underneath him once again, naturally eliciting a cry of pain; “Ah! Ah…”

Seeing Wang Yang being thrown around, his forehead gashed and gushing blood, passengers around him cried out urgently, “Yang, get back to your seat!” The unsteady flight attendant also shouted, and Wang Yang, enduring the severe pain and with a somewhat blurred vision, struggled to his feet. It was then that Captain Solomon’s calm and rapid announcement came through: “Please take your seats and fasten your seatbelts! I am your captain, Solomon, we’ve encountered clear-air turbulence, and I regret not warning you in advance, but please be assured, we will get through this safely…”

As Captain Solomon spoke, the aircraft lurched violently, almost throwing the unsteady Wang Yang to the floor. He laboriously sat down and buckled his seatbelt, feeling utterly disoriented. His right forearm was likely fractured, and it hurt so much! His head was spinning!

“Oh my God! Yang should be okay, right?” Susan McCarthy in business class wasn’t injured, but she could only sit in her seat, anxiously enduring the plane’s continuous turbulence, thinking about her family one moment, worrying about the young boss the next, and praying devoutly.

Passengers sat in silence, but no one was free from anxiety. Although the captain sounded relaxed, those who understood turbulence knew that if it was intense enough to damage the plane or even shatter the fuselage, the consequences could be unthinkable! To those who didn’t understand clear-air turbulence, the sudden drops and the shaking were bewildering; even if the plane was the safest model, the Boeing 777, who could tell if it might suddenly disintegrate in mid-air or explode? Who could survive? No one could breathe easily; many felt nauseous and struggled to breathe, some even feeling life was worse than death.

“Wah, wah, wah!” Both in economy and first class, children began crying in fright, so helpless and confused: “Wah, wah, wah—”

If I die, if I can’t make it back… Wang Yang now profoundly understood the sentiment one often hears in movies and on TV, “I have a family.” He hadn’t hugged his daughter, kissed her, seen her cry or laugh, or heard her call “Daddy” or “Mommy.” How could this be!… If he were no longer there, how heartbroken would Jessica be? How long would she grieve? What about his parents, and all those who cared for and liked him? He didn’t want this, he didn’t! He still had movies to make, so many things to do…

The plane was still shaking occasionally, whether it was related to his dizziness or not, the fear felt as intense as the end of the world. Mom, Dad, Jessica, baby… Wang Yang was breathing heavily with discomfort, and he pulled out his wallet from his pocket, looking at a photo taken years ago in Salt Lake City, both so young at 18 and 17, faces full of youthful innocence. A drop of blood, then another, fell onto the photo, blurring Jessica’s smile. Wang Yang reached to wipe it away, but suddenly, his vision went black, and he knew nothing more as he passed out.

“US5202 has encountered clear air turbulence; there are multiple injuries, multiple injuries!” The ground air traffic department at Los Angeles International Airport went into a tense mode after receiving the emergency report from flight US5202. Whether the plane would land on time, the condition of the injured, how many ambulances needed…

In Beverly Hills, Jessica was humming a cheerful lullaby, walking around her house, tidying up the living room and straightening the study. She went to the open kitchen and looked at today’s reminder note on the fridge: “Yang is coming back!” She smiled and flicked the note with her right hand while gently stroking her just-kicked belly, softly telling the baby, “Daddy must be off the plane by now, right?” She noticed that the flight arrival time had passed by nearly ten minutes. Why hadn’t he called back yet? She took out her phone and dialed, but why wasn’t anyone answering?

“Hm?” Jessica was a little confused. Could it be that Yang left his phone on the plane? Such a scatterbrain! She smiled and slightly frowned, but what about everyone else’s phones? She thought of calling Susan McCarthy, it rang several times before connecting. She asked with a laugh, “Hi, Susan! Have you guys arrived? Why isn’t Yang answering his phone?”

“Jessica…” There was silence on Susan McCarthy’s end, punctuated by a series of harsh noises. Jessica’s heart suddenly lifted with apprehension. “Is that an ambulance? I think I can hear an ambulance…” Susan McCarthy explained gently, “Jessica, our plane encountered clear air turbulence about an hour before landing. Yang is injured, but it’s nothing serious. We’re in an ambulance on our way to the hospital now; Yang’s phone is broken.”

Upon hearing about clear air turbulence, Jessica’s lips quivered and her face turned pale. Hearing “Yang is injured,” her breathing became labored, her heart ached as if it were no longer there, her eyes lost focus, and she asked with a sobbing voice, “Is he okay? Oh, oh god, can I talk to him?”n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

“Well, Yang is explaining his condition to the doctor.” Susan McCarthy replied while Jessica’s eyes brimmed with tears. As she hurried toward the garage, she urgently asked, “How is Yang? What happened? Which hospital are you going to?” Susan McCarthy calmly said, “He’s fine, just a fall that injured his right hand. He needs to get a few stitches at the hospital. Don’t worry!” Jessica, however, couldn’t calm down, not in the slightest. She demanded adamantly, “Let me talk to him on the phone; I need to speak with him!” She was already in tears when she suddenly lost control of her emotions and shouted, “Let him listen—”

“Yang, Jessica wants you to listen,” Susan McCarthy seemed to call out to Wang Yang on the other end and then exclaimed in frustration, “Oh! Why is there no image? Is it broken too? Oh…”

Beep, beep, beep—the sound of the line disconnecting almost sent Jessica to the ground, her mind and heart a blank void, not wanting to consider the worst. But what about Yang, what exactly happened to him? Just then her phone suddenly rang. Jessica quickly answered, “Yang!!” But what followed was the last voice she wanted to hear at the moment, anyone but him. Joshua chuckled and said, “Susan just called and told me! Yang’s fine; just stay at home, and I’ll pick you up and take you to the hospital.”

“These people just refuse to tell me which hospital it is, they won’t tell me about Yang’s condition!” Jessica cried her eyes out, covering her reddened and sore nose, and then suddenly cried out again, “Enough, you’ve all done enough! I know him, I know Yang better than any of you!! No matter what, he would call me first thing, what the hell happened!”

“Mary.” At that moment, the person on the other end of the phone became Kathy, her voice both gentle and serious, “Stay calm, calm down! Don’t hurt the baby, remember pregnant women can’t get overly emotional! We didn’t tell you everything yet because we didn’t want you to worry recklessly. Yang is really not in serious trouble, he just has a concussion, and he’s not very lucid…”

“Oh my God, oh my God…” Jessica felt her legs go weak, as she slumped to the floor by herself, shaking all over, with tears blurring her vision. She knew these people, and she knew Yang even better—why wouldn’t they let her hear his voice? Kathy on the other end knew her daughter’s thoughts and continued to explain, “Yang was unconscious when he got off the plane, he woke up for a moment and then fell back asleep, don’t worry! Jessica, you stay at home, we’ll come and get you. Listen to your mother, all right? Listen to your mother…”

The latest news of an airplane accident quickly dominated the headlines of the online media. An American Airlines Boeing 777 flying from Incheon International Airport in Korea to Los Angeles encountered a severe case of clear-air turbulence about an hour away from Los Angeles International Airport. The plane reportedly experienced a sudden drop and violent shaking, causing injuries to 21 passengers and five crew members, six of whom were severely injured and had to be carried off the plane on stretchers. All the injured were immediately rushed to the UCLA Medical Center for treatment. There were a total of 195 passengers and 15 crew members on the plane.

“It happened so fast,” a female passenger sitting in the front cabin said during a live television interview with NBC, “The plane suddenly dropped, and it lasted for nearly 10 seconds. My friend was seriously injured; she was thrown up, hit the ceiling, then fell down. But then there was another drop before anyone could react, and I had to watch her get thrown up again, it was heartbreaking.”

It is understood that clear-air turbulence, which is often referred to as “the invisible killer of planes,” can cause a plane to suddenly drop several hundred feet in an instant. According to the laws of physics, passengers in the cabin can’t keep up with the falling speed, meaning that anything not secured will be thrown up to the cabin ceiling in an instant, then fall down vertically—personal baggage, food trolleys, and passengers not wearing seat belts, among others, would be affected. And if the turbulence occurs more than once, the G-forces from the impact can be unimaginable.

The news exploded! It was truly explosive! A side report drew even more attention than the main news, shocking the world! Yahoo, USA Today, and AOL all reported that the superstar director, the marvelous Wang Yang who just set a new box office record in North American Cinemas with “Firefly,” was on this flight, this Boeing 777! Furthermore, it was rumored that he was one of the six severely injured passengers, and he had been in a critical coma on the plane ever since the incident!

“What!? The marvelous Wang Yang in critical condition!?” Upon hearing the news, fans of Yang, haters, and the curious alike couldn’t help but gasp. What!!

Looking for a concept art book, Nancy Reno was suddenly struck dumb, location scout Harry George froze, and the main cast and friends of “Firefly,” Michael Pitt, Robert Downey Jr., “Heath” Ledger… “Oh heavens!!” Mark Strong clenched his brows tightly. Yang was so young, nothing better happen to him! He couldn’t help but ask loudly, “What’s Yang’s condition now?” As he listened to the news on the other side, he sighed with concern—the young boss had received two serious blows to the head, the initial diagnosis was a concussion, and it was still unknown if there was any cerebral hemorrhage. A CT scan was underway.

“What!?” When Natalie got the call from her agent, she was stunned and asked urgently, “Is this real? How is he? Oh! Ah…” Pacing back and forth in the living room with her phone, after she understood the situation, she let out a big sigh of relief and laughed, “It’s nothing! A concussion’s no big deal, want to bet? That guy will be awake tonight, and in a couple of days, he’ll be too energetic! Hehe, okay, goodbye!”

Ending the call and lowering her phone, Natalie’s expression became blank. A concussion’s no big deal, it’s not cerebral hemorrhage, right? “FUCK—” She suddenly snatched up a floor lamp beside her and smashed it forcefully towards the distance. The exquisite floor lamp shattered on the ground with a “pom-pom” sound. She gasped for air, cursing out loud, “FUCKKKK! Can’t he give people a break! Here we go again, FUCK—” (