Nastassja POV -
Woken up in the morning by a faint knocking sound, she mumbled a few rejections in a daze and fell back asleep.
Not knowing how much time had passed, a ray of sunlight peeked through a gap in the curtains, landing right on the head of the bed. Waving her hand to drive away the annoying light, she suddenly remembered there were things to do this morning, and her sleepiness vanished instantly.
She reached for the alarm clock on the nightstand and glanced at it: eight-fifty.
This alarm clock... there shouldn't be anything wrong with it, right?
She shook it in her hand and held it to her ear.
Tick, tick, tick... She buried her head back into the pillow in dejection. After a brief struggle, she still had to face reality.
Picking up the phone by the bed, she dialled a string of numbers. Once connected, she adopted a listless tone, claiming she wasn't feeling well. After some of this and that, she finally managed to muddle through.
Successfully escaping work, her mood became very good.
She couldn't help but think.
It would be even better if things could stay like this forever.
There was such an opportunity.
However, what she wanted was true freedom, not to become some man's private collection.
She sighed inwardly.
Her shifting mood plummeted again in an instant.
Somewhat mechanically, she dressed and washed up. Leaving the bedroom and heading downstairs, she happened to encounter the girl who liked wearing a ponytail coming out of a Room with a stack of documents. Seeing her, the girl greeted her politely: "Good morning, Ms. Kinski".
Glancing at the door behind Jennifer, she nodded. "Morning. Where's Jenny?"
Jennifer walked over and said, "She went shopping and will probably be back around noon. Do you want breakfast?"
"Yes, thank you".
"Follow me".
Coming downstairs, they sat in a small dining Room. Jennifer brought a portion of breakfast over, placed it in front of her, and said, "Ms. Kinski, you can just leave the dishes here when you're done. Call me if you need anything".
Watching Jennifer leave, Nastassja Kinski picked up the utensils and began to eat slowly. The villa was very quiet, yet she inexplicably enjoyed the feeling.
Of course.
It would seem even better if there were a butler and maids.
That man could buy such a large house on a whim but didn't hire any servants; he really was an eccentric fellow.
And then there was the matter of staying over.
She didn't know how to get him to agree. Sigh, what a hassle.
Since she had already cancelled her morning work, there was naturally no rush to leave. After filling her stomach, Nastassja Kinski remembered the scene when she came downstairs, so she went to a door on the second floor and knocked.
Receiving a response, she pushed the door open and walked in.
It was a very large study, over two hundred square meters. The Room was filled with many easels, making it look somewhat like an art classroom in a university.
Seeing her enter, the man typing at the keyboard behind the desk merely nodded before shifting his attention back to the computer screen. She didn't make a sound either, strolling like a cat to admire the movie concept art on the easels one by one.
Batman.
This, she still knew.
However, a burning bat symbol, a flipping heavy truck, exploding buildings, a city like a ruin... could all of these really be realized in a movie?
Unknowingly, she arrived across from his desk. Glancing at the man focused on his work, she pulled a chair over, turned it around, leaned on the back, and watched him curiously for a while before finally saying, "This study of yours is truly unique".
Simon didn't look up, continuing to type a string of words on the keyboard. "The perk of being rich. I said I wanted some easels, and they sent a whole truckload. This study is big enough, so I kept them all. By the way, as a film festival judge, don't you have things to do?"
"I was supposed to attend a premiere this morning, but I woke up late, so I cancelled it".
"The organizers will definitely think twice about a judge like you next time".
"It doesn't matter", she said, reaching out to pick up and flip through a few pages of sketches from the desk. "Is there really such a person who, instead of being a billionaire, goes out every night to fight crime?"
"In reality, there probably isn't".
"Definitely not. Just like that movie 'Patty Hearst' we watched during the screening; that girl was kidnapped, and instead of becoming some kind of hero, she was assimilated by the kidnappers. And she was an adult. By comparison, I don't think a child who witnesses his parents being murdered would resolve to become a vigilante unless he was already abnormal".
Simon looked up at the woman across from him. "Your judgment is quite accurate. I also feel that Gotham is an asylum, and neither Batman nor the Joker is an exception. The only difference is that batman is uncontrollably doing what people consider right, while the Joker is uncontrollably doing what people consider wrong".
"Oh".
Nastassja Kinski responded nonchalantly, clearly not very interested in Simon's viewpoint. Simon didn't mind either, continuing to type characters on the keyboard.
The two were silent for a moment. Nastassja Kinski looked at the man across the desk and suddenly said again, "What about you? Westeros, what kind of person are you? I heard you once broke the legs of five people".
"Self-defense".
"I'm not asking about that".
"I refuse to answer that kind of question".
"Fine", Nastassja Kinski still
looked at Simon and said, "Then, what kind of person do you think I am?"
"Is there a reward if I get it right?"
"If you get it wrong, you let me stay here".
Simon glanced at Nastassja Kinski's glamorous face, which was at the peak of a woman's beauty, and said casually, "You are a person who lacks a sense of security".
"Mhm".
"Because you lack security, you like men older than you. You want something to depend on, yet you pursue independence and fear becoming a subordinate".
Nastassja Kinski's eyes froze for a moment, then she said indifferently, "What else?"
"Inwardly, you crave attention, but you also feel like you don't care about it. Therefore, when you truly become the centre of attention, you become very anxious and often act inappropriately. As a result, in many people's eyes, your temperament seems somewhat withdrawn and eccentric".
Nastassja Kinski stared intently at Simon, no longer speaking.
Simon didn't stop, continuing, "This is actually a form of self-destructive tendency. Perhaps due to childhood experiences, you feel you are an unfortunate person and that the whole world isn't worth cherishing, even if it were destroyed. You are too insignificant to destroy the world, so you can only destroy yourself. If I'm not mistaken, you like to steal things, a habit you haven't kicked even after becoming famous"
Feeling the slightly playful smile at the corner of Simon's mouth, Nastassja Kinski pursed her lips. She fished out a fountain pen from her pants pocket that she had casually swiped while taking the sketches and tossed it in front of Simon. "Fine, you caught me. What do you plan to do?"
"This? Your technique is actually quite good. I was just guessing just now; I didn't actually catch you", Simon said with a smile, pushing the pen back. "If you like it, you can take it. I rarely use fountain pens".
Nastassja Kinski picked up the pen and threw it directly at Simon, saying with some embarrassment and anger, "Westeros, you really are a bastard".
Simon caught the flying pen and said helplessly, "Ms. Kinski, perhaps you should leave. I'll have someone take you back".
Nastassja Kinski sat still, still staring at Simon. "You guessed everything right. So, what reward do you want? Do you need me to sleep with you?"
"Regrettably, I have no interest in a woman in a self-destructive state".
"Oh, really no interest?"
As Nastassja Kinski spoke, she stood up and began unbuttoning her shirt.
Seeing this, Simon calmly saved the draft he had just written and turned off the computer.
Then he fled in a panic.
You can't afford to provoke a crazy woman.
Who knows if she'll actually bite down at the critical moment?