Acting Out of Character (GL) - Chapter 35

Chen Ge’s body heat passed clearly through their clothes and pressed against Luo Jingyi’s skin.

In the quiet, stifling room, even Chen Ge’s soft breathing sounded unusually distinct.

After several seconds of silence, Chen Ge raised her head. The neurotic pressure and seductive sensuality from a moment ago had already vanished, replaced by the familiar little white rabbit Luo Jingyi knew.

“Sister Luo.”

Chen Ge immediately stepped away from her. The hand that had casually held the kitchen knife soon became two hands clasped carefully around the handle.

The terrifying murderer concealing an enormous secret transformed into an adorable little rodent holding a nut.

“I’m sorry,” Chen Ge apologized. “I only meant to perform the scene for you, but somehow, while I was acting, I started treating you as my scene partner…”

The little face and ears that had shamelessly rubbed against Luo Jingyi’s face moments ago could no longer be described merely as “red.”

They were completely crimson.

Without revealing anything, Luo Jingyi calmed herself. She silently cleared her throat and steadied her voice.

“You don’t need to apologize. I know you became immersed in the scene. You performed very well. You entered the character’s inner world completely.”

Over the past several days, Chen Ge had studied the script every day, analyzing the character’s emotional trajectory and the development of her personality.

Now that her efforts had received Luo Jingyi’s praise, Chen Ge was extremely happy.

Only after lowering her head and smiling did she realize that she was still holding the kitchen knife. She hurriedly placed it aside.

“Actually, the script itself is excellent,” Chen Ge said. “I haven’t acted in many films, but I’ve read a fair number of scripts. I really like the one you gave me, Sister Luo. It feels as though both the characters and story have so many layers waiting to be explored. Who wrote it? They’re genuinely a genius.”

Luo Jingyi nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly.

“It is rather well written.”

“Oh, right.”

Chen Ge walked to the door, raised her arm, and removed the phone mounted above it.

She had not forgotten Luo Jingyi’s instruction to set up a camera.

She had specifically found a wall-mounted phone holder and positioned it diagonally above the door.

The angle captured the scene perfectly.

Chen Ge checked the recording.

Just as she had expected, the angle was excellent.

Although there were no changes in shot size, almost every important detail—even her facial expressions—had been recorded clearly.

“Sister Luo, take a look. What do you think of the result?”

Chen Ge handed Luo Jingyi the phone.

“If you think this performance style works, I’ll use the same method for the other two scenes.”

Luo Jingyi watched the video with her.

The recording was extremely clear.

Chen Ge’s expression as she stood behind the door holding the kitchen knife was not exaggerated in the slightest, but her narrow eyes and expressionless face alone were enough for viewers to sense everything taking place within her.

Just as Luo Jingyi had thought, Chen Ge was an actress with an immense sense of story.

She naturally inspired the desire to explore her.

After the confrontation at the door, Luo Jingyi entered the frame.

The footage of Chen Ge approaching, clinging to her, and constantly seducing her made both people involved fall silent as they watched.

“Cough…”

Chen Ge coughed lightly.

Luo Jingyi’s silence made her panic.

“Sister Luo, do you think I… overdid it?”

Luo Jingyi stroked her chin.

Since you asked…

“The phone screen is too small. I can’t see the details clearly. Let’s cast it onto the television.”

Chen Ge said, “Huh?!”

Luo Jingyi acted immediately. She switched on the television, and the tiny phone image was instantly projected onto the sixty-five-inch full-screen display.

Every detail became perfectly clear: Chen Ge’s alluring smile, her soft ear rubbing against Luo Jingyi’s, and the way she nestled in Luo Jingyi’s arms.

Chen Ge: “…………”

An actor should be able to face her own performance and appreciate every interpretation as art.

But Chen Ge was ultimately still too inexperienced and had never acted in this kind of passionate scene before.

Suddenly seeing herself seducing Luo Jingyi in her arms made her short of breath.

Luo Jingyi watched the entire scene again, seriously and meticulously, before saying:

“I think it’s slightly too fast.”

Chen Ge covered her face with both palms, trying to cool her burning cheeks.

Hearing Luo Jingyi’s criticism, her eyes rounded curiously.

“Mm? Which part moves too quickly?”

“After you say, ‘But you probably ate outside already, so you aren’t hungry, are you?’ The character still feels resentment at that point. She wouldn’t immediately come over and seduce him.”

Chen Ge thought about it.

It truly was slightly rushed.

The shift in her emotional state needed more layers.

Chen Ge closed her eyes and immersed herself once more in Chen Yao’s world. After considering it for a while, she said:

“I think I should look at you for longer. All the emotion and thought should be contained in that gaze—perhaps for two seconds—before I come over and cling to you.”

Luo Jingyi said, “Exactly. Let’s try again.”

Only after hearing Luo Jingyi’s suggestion did Chen Ge realize what she herself had just proposed. She became slightly embarrassed.

“Actually, Sister Luo, you can watch from the side. I can perform it by myself.”

Luo Jingyi teased her.

“What, you’re going to perform the entire scene without a partner?”

Chen Ge poked her own cheek with a fingertip.

“That’s possible too…”

Luo Jingyi said with extraordinary “consideration”:

“Wouldn’t you perform better with a scene partner? I want the perfect audi—”

She had almost said “audition,” but stopped herself in time.

“The perfect immersive theater experience.”

Chen Ge laughed.

“So it really is a stage-play script? Is it going to be performed soon?”

Luo Jingyi did not answer. She merely smiled at her.

Chen Ge realized that she might have become too curious and asked about something unrelated to her.

Since she had agreed to perform for Sister Luo, there was no need to ask so many questions. She only needed to perform well enough to satisfy her.

She simply liked the script too much and loved portraying Chen Yao.

The feeling of dissecting such a complicated character completely, then expressing her in a vivid performance, was incredibly satisfying.

In truth, Chen Ge was not content with only the three scenes Luo Jingyi had given her.

She wanted to know the entire story’s causes and consequences, as well as the complete arcs of every character. That was why she had asked.

If the stage play was genuinely going to be performed, she wanted to see it at the theater as soon as possible.

But Sister Luo did not seem interested in explaining, so Chen Ge stopped asking.

She would carefully consider the present scene’s rhythm and satisfy Sister Luo first.

Luo Jingyi returned the phone to its previous perfect position and stepped outside the door.

Chen Ge picked up the kitchen knife again.

The earlier part of her performance flowed naturally and appropriately. When Luo Jingyi entered, Chen Ge found genuine hesitation and vigilance on her face.

Luo Jingyi was acting opposite her.

With Luo Jingyi’s support, Chen Ge entered the character’s emotions even more smoothly.

After adjusting the rhythm, Chen Ge grasped Luo Jingyi’s arm.

But she did not touch her with wholehearted intimacy. Her character suspected that her husband might have been involved with another woman outside and felt repulsed, so she only brushed against him lightly.

Yet she also feared he might suddenly escape her control. She therefore hooked Luo Jingyi’s little finger and stared at her.

“You aren’t hungry, are you?”

Chen Ge deliberately lowered her voice, giving it a husky texture that sounded extremely seductive.

Her already soft and burning ear pressed against Luo Jingyi’s once more, rubbing against it again and again.

Her cheek brushed along Luo Jingyi’s slender neck. Her lips parted slightly, and a restless breath swept across Luo Jingyi’s skin.

Chen Ge leaned entirely into Luo Jingyi’s embrace, like a flattering little cat begging for food.

Luo Jingyi closed her eyes and tried desperately to empty her mind.

Chen Ge thought the performance had ended, but Luo Jingyi did not call for her to stop.

She did not say anything at all.

This…

Had Chen Ge failed to perform something properly again?

Had she not satisfied Sister Luo?

With her eyes still closed, Luo Jingyi extinguished every strange thought and flame that had appeared from nowhere inside her. Then she said coldly:

“Get up.”

“Oh, okay!”

Receiving Luo Jingyi’s order, Chen Ge straightened immediately as though suddenly enlightened. She stood like a soldier awaiting her superior’s inspection.

“How do you think you performed?” Luo Jingyi asked.

Chen Ge looked at her.

Why did Sister Luo seem slightly angry?

The question sounded completely like an interrogation…

After putting down the kitchen knife, Chen Ge unconsciously intertwined her fingers.

“I-I think… there’s still room for improvement.”

“You mean you want to do it again?”

Chen Ge immediately shook her head at the rhetorical question.

She assumed Luo Jingyi had begun disliking the physical contact.

She should have performed without objects or a scene partner in the first place. She had long known Sister Luo was a clean freak.

Yet for some reason, whenever Chen Ge imagined this scene, she felt she could perform it better with Sister Luo.

Looking back at that thought now, hadn’t she completely lost her mind…?

She could not read Sister Luo’s emotions, but felt a vague anxiety that she had offended her.

Could Sister Luo think I was using the opportunity to take advantage of her?

Ahhh, I genuinely wasn’t!

A violent storm raged inside Chen Ge’s mind.

Meanwhile, Luo Jingyi—the person who had genuinely benefited—was not angry at all.

She felt remarkably satisfied in both body and mind.

But that pleasure came from the sweetness Chen Ge gave her. It made Luo Jingyi feel controlled and held within someone else’s grasp, which was even slightly humiliating.

Therefore, she absolutely refused to reveal that frivolous delight.

When someone wanted to suppress an emotion, pretending to be fierce was an extremely suitable approach.

“There’s no need to do it again.”

Luo Jingyi lowered her head slightly and projected the newly recorded video onto the television once more, watching it in silence.

Chen Ge shrank beside her like a quail, not daring to speak.

After finishing the video, Luo Jingyi said:

“You worked hard.”

Chen Ge asked, “…Did I perform badly? Were you dissatisfied, Sister Luo?”

Luo Jingyi shook her head.

“No. I’m very satisfied. Your performance was even better than I expected.”

“Really…?”

Chen Ge was almost frightened to tears.

Why did Sister Luo’s words completely contradict her expression?!

There were three scenes in total.

One showed Chen Yao’s gloomy past as a minor. Another depicted her shock and panic ten years later when the face she had once erased from the world suddenly reappeared.

All three were crucial scenes from A Minor’s Final Wish, moments when every aspect of Chen Yao’s personality erupted.

They could effectively demonstrate an actress’s abilities and test whether she matched the character.

Luo Jingyi had carefully selected these three scenes for Chen Ge to try.

Long after finishing them, Chen Ge still could not separate herself from the character. Her emotions remained depressed.

She said to Luo Jingyi:

“I’m going to take a shower and clear my head.”

Luo Jingyi gave an acknowledging hum.

Chen Ge slowly walked toward the bathroom door, lost in thought.

Luo Jingyi continued selecting the recordings, intending to send Director Tao the three clips in which Chen Ge had performed best.

Chen Ge had entered the bathroom but did not continue farther inside.

She stood just beyond Luo Jingyi’s line of sight without moving.

Hearing no sound from the bathroom, Luo Jingyi stretched her head slightly and looked over.

She saw Chen Ge’s back rising and falling faintly.

Luo Jingyi understood what was happening.

After pressing “Send” on the selected videos, she put down her phone and walked behind Chen Ge.

She patted her back. No longer fierce or concealing her emotions, she said gently:

“In the end, she was finally freed.”

Chen Ge’s body trembled lightly at Luo Jingyi’s words.

Luo Jingyi knew that she had identified the point Chen Ge could not move past.

The heroine had suffered domestic violence since childhood. She watched her father torture and kill animals and witnessed her mother having an affair.

A child who had once been cheerful and kind was forced to mature too soon, and her mentality gradually became distorted.

She envied everyone around her who was happier than she was and hated the world.

She clearly loved her best friend deeply, yet she hated her as well.

In the end, she finally understood that she had done many things wrong, but it was already too late.

She never understood how to love another person or how to love the world.

She could have done better.

She could have avoided hurting those who treated her kindly.

…

Like the script itself, an actor’s performance made no judgment.

It merely presented.

It presented the complicated layers of the world and the diversity of human nature.

Chen Ge’s style of performance was deeply affecting, but it also harmed her.

The heroine’s emotions had severely influenced her. Having completely understood the character, Chen Ge could not immediately separate herself from Chen Yao’s tragic life.

She had wanted to calm down alone. She would have recovered after a while.

But Luo Jingyi’s comfort made her emotions even harder to control.

Covering her face, Chen Ge began silently sobbing.

Seeing her look so pitiful made Luo Jingyi’s heart ache even more. She pulled Chen Ge into her arms and gently stroked her back…

Chen Ge cried until she became exhausted and finally calmed down slightly.

She raised her head and looked at Luo Jingyi, saying in embarrassment:

“I got your clothes dirty.”

Unexpectedly, Luo Jingyi neither scolded her nor pulled a sour face. She smiled.

“Are you feeling better?”

Chen Ge nodded shyly and no longer dared look at her.

“Good. Go take your shower.”

“Mm-hmm!”

“Call me if anything happens.”

Chen Ge said quietly, “Nothing will happen while I’m showering.”

During a performance, she possessed effortless tension and charm.

The moment she left the role, she became an obedient child again.

It seemed some people were simply born to be actors.

An actress like Chen Ge was someone Heaven chased from behind, forcefully insisting that she earn her living through acting.

Chen Ge went to shower.

Once the bathroom door closed, Luo Jingyi sat down again.

Director Tao still had not replied.

She neither watched television nor used her phone casually. There was a question in her heart that she wanted answered.

Sitting upright, she took out her phone and searched:

【If I experience sexual desire while touching someone of the same sex, does that mean I’m gay?】

The results appeared quickly.

Someone had genuinely asked the exact same question.

Filled with curiosity, Luo Jingyi opened it.

The answer contained only three words, simple and direct:

【What else?】

Luo Jingyi: “…”

Author’s Note:

Chen Ge (thinking deeply): Sister Luo, may I ask what this “sexual desire” refers to…?

Luo Jingyi: You don’t need to know yet →_→

Chen Ge: Oh!

Luo Jingyi: Because you’ll experience it personally very soon.

Chen Ge: 0v0?