On the way back from Universal Studios, silence once again accompanied them. Neither of the two spoke. Joseph focused intently on driving, while Hugo leaned against the car window, quietly gazing at the scenery outside.
Palm trees, billboards, and bushes cast their reflections in his eyes, and the golden sunlight filtered through the cloudless blue sky, pouring over the entire City of Angels, draping everything in sight with a golden veil. The dazzling color blurred his vision, but Hugo was reluctant to close his eyes. He greedily took in the view before him, trying to find a trace of the city he remembered in this unfamiliar world. For a fleeting moment, he truly felt the illusion—that he was still racing down the palm-lined avenue of Sanya, with the band leader driving. They were on their way to a small gig, and from the back seat, one could even hear someone's awful snoring mingling with the roar of the engine.
At the age of fourteen, Hugo watched a movie called Cinema Paradiso (Nuovo Cinema Paradiso). He was moved by the line, "If you don't go out and see the world, you'll think this is all there is." That was when he realized that chasing his dreams was what truly mattered.
So Hugo put into action the musical dream that had begun when he started listening to the Beatles and Oasis at age ten. He formed a band with a group of like-minded friends. At first, the band didn't even have a proper name, but that didn't diminish their love for music. Everyone thought it was just a childish whim. Surprisingly, they taught themselves and managed to make some headway. They even began composing their own music in a clumsy, clueless manner. While the early works were painfully bad, that period was the happiest time of their lives.
On the band's first anniversary, Hugo gave it a name: Death Or Glory. The name came from a Japanese manga, and it embodied all their youthful dreams and ambitions. With a name, the band no longer wanted to play just for fun. They wanted to perform publicly and dreamed of standing on a real stage.
In fact, they succeeded. At their school's New Year's Eve party, they brought the house down—even though they weren't performing original songs. Still, the sense of achievement left a deep mark on the five band members. This gave birth to an even stronger desire: to go out into the world, take part in performances, and become a real band. The dream was so powerful that they were even willing to go against their families.
Hugo was not a rebellious or flamboyant person. Before forming the band, he was a model student in both conduct and academics, which made it even harder for his parents to understand his obsession with the band. Forming a band was already unbelievable, but at fifteen, how could parents possibly agree to their children abandoning their studies to fool around with a band? Of course, that was out of the question.
The outcome was clear: all five members of Death Or Glory left home including the well-behaved Hugo and joined the vast underground rock scene in China. This departure lasted ten years. Time seemed to pass in a blink. Later on, Hugo ended up here.
If someone asked Hugo, "Do you regret it?" he might answer "No," but he wouldn't be able to hide the bitterness behind his smile.
The journey of pursuing his musical dreams was hard, but it was worth it. Even ten years of effort were worthwhile. While others were still studying in school, he had already found his goal and began working toward it. Such a life was exciting, beautiful, and unforgettable. So, no, Hugo didn't regret it.
It's just like what was said in How the Steel Was Tempered: "Man's most precious possession is life. It is given to him but once. And he must live it in such a way that he can look back and not be ashamed of the years spent in idleness, nor his life lived in vain—so that he can say, 'All my life and all my strength were given to the finest cause in the world—the fight for the liberation of mankind.'"
Of course, Hugo wasn't that noble. He didn't fight for all mankind. He merely gave all his life and strength to his dreams.
Only, the price of chasing dreams was too high—not the hardships of life or the uncertain future, but the fact that he had let down his parents. Hugo chose the path of music against their earnest hopes. Though he had been trying to repair his relationship with his parents over those ten years, the results were meager. His father, in particular, never managed to understand, let alone accept it. Because of this, Hugo spent many years drifting far from home. The bitterness of that could only be savored in the quiet of the night.
Closing his eyes, he could still vaguely see the grandeur of the Midi Rock Festival. Hugo couldn't help but wonder what it would've felt like if Death Or Glory had stood on that stage—would they have been one step closer to their dreams? After transmigration, he often wondered how his bandmates were doing now. What had become of his parents?
Hugo took a deep breath and tried to pull himself out of his melancholy. He was now in 1992 and couldn't go back. Focusing on the present was the most important thing.
The audition for Scent of a Woman had given Hugo great confidence. Though it wasn't a breakthrough in music, becoming an actor had always been another of his dreams. Actors perform different lives on the big screen, bringing people joy, sorrow, nostalgia, pain, and happiness. The magic of film is so enchanting and enduring that one can't help but fall into it.
Before the transmigration, Hugo had made some progress in music—being invited to the Midi Rock Festival was a huge opportunity—but he had few chances in film. He could only study acting through watching movies and fantasize, while observing filming on set, about what it would be like to stand in the protagonist's shoes.
Now, however, Hugo had participated in auditions for two films. Though "A River Runs Through It" had ended in failure, the progress with "Scent of a Woman" was very encouraging. Even though Hugo hadn't secured the role of Charlie yet, it still convinced him that he had a talent for acting, and all his years of effort hadn't been in vain. This was the best news since his transmigration.
As he looked at the scenery flying past outside the window, Hugo clearly realized—this was Los Angeles, this was Hollywood, this was the center of the film world. Here, stories of overnight stardom played out repeatedly, scenes of instant success emerged endlessly. Hugo didn't wish for overnight fame; he only hoped to have more opportunities to realize his dreams. That was enough, because for the rest of the journey, he would rely on his own strength to make it to the end!
"My vision is incredibly broad. I enjoy every day walking down this path forward. Watching the world outside the window means saying goodbye to the past and beginning a new journey today." Hugo softly hummed, conveying his emotions through music—his best skill.
Music is a magical thing. People say music knows no borders, because it's made up of notes, transmits emotion through lyrics, and is ultimately brought to life by the performer. This makes music one of the most direct forms of emotional communication for humans. Every seemingly ordinary note, once pieced together following emotional rhythm, becomes a resonance from deep within the heart. This feeling is simply too wonderful.
After "Death Or Glory" was formed, Hugo and his teammates had been studying music and teaching themselves how to compose. Of course, for the first few years, their skills were just child's play. It wasn't until they entered the underground rock scene that they began systematic training. Hugo's musical talent was more evident in composing. On the other hand, he was average at playing instruments. So far, he had only learned guitar, and not even that very well. But when it came to composing, his progress was extremely fast.
Unfortunately, Hugo's composing experience was still too short, which meant "Death Or Glory" original music was never of high quality, constantly delaying the band's rise to fame. Today was the first time since transmigrating that Hugo experienced a spark of inspiration. This inspiration was different from before; it seemed to have a touch of brilliance, a kind of spiritual essence. Maybe it was a result of long-term accumulation reaching a turning point, or maybe the journey through time and space had refreshed his thoughts. So Hugo simply hummed it out loud.
Hearing the music drifting from Hugo's mouth, Joseph finally reacted. He turned to look at Hugo and asked, "What song is that?" He couldn't quite hear the lyrics because Hugo was humming vaguely, but the melody was so moving that it instantly caught his ear and aroused his curiosity.
Hugo turned his head with a big smile. "Just wrote it myself."
Joseph's first reaction was to look at Hugo in surprise, which immediately made Hugo realize something might be wrong—was his previous self tone-deaf? No way…
Just as Hugo was wondering how to explain, he caught a glimpse of the road ahead through the corner of his eye. "Watch out! You're driving!" he shouted. Joseph quickly turned his eyes back to the road. There was a truck directly in front of them. Thankfully, Hugo shouted in time—any closer and it would've been a problem. Joseph quickly tapped the brakes, getting the car back under control.
That brief moment allowed Hugo to gather his thoughts. He explained, "Just something I made up for fun. Why, do you think it's good?"
Joseph didn't turn back this time, eyes still fixed on the road ahead. "Yeah, very good. Just surprised—I didn't know you had that talent."
Hugo let out a sigh of relief. Thank goodness he wasn't tone-deaf. That would've been a mess to explain. He chuckled and jokingly said, "Well, if I can't land an acting job, maybe I can sing for money. Who knows, maybe I'll even release an album one day and become a singer!"
"Tch. What, you think you're John Lennon now?" Joseph scoffed, throwing a bucket of cold water on Hugo's dreams.
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