Echoes of Hollywood

Just as Murphy drove out of the estate, he received a call from James Franco. Pulling over to the side of the road, he answered the phone, hearing Franco's urgent voice through the receiver.

"Murphy, where are you? Why aren't you here yet? Are you planning to stand me up?"

"I'm already on my way," Murphy replied calmly. "Don't forget, I attended the Oscar nominees luncheon this afternoon."

Franco's voice softened a bit. "How many nominations did you get?"

"Nine," Murphy replied, slightly speeding up. "Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Director, and Best Picture nominations are all in."

"Congratulations," Franco said, but quickly returned to his previous tone. "Hurry up and get here. I'm waiting for you."

"On my way."

Murphy hung up and resumed his drive toward the Santa Monica Pier.

He knew James Franco had been secretly planning this proposal for a long time and had enlisted everyone's help in keeping it a surprise from Lily Collins. According to Franco, he had prepared a very special way to propose.

Murphy was curious to see what kind of stunt this somewhat unreliable guy had planned. It could also give him some ideas for his own future plans.

Compared to New York, traffic in Los Angeles was relatively smooth. Murphy soon arrived in the Santa Monica beach area and turned onto the scenic coastal road.

As he entered the coastal road, Murphy had to slow down due to the heavy traffic. The Santa Monica beachfront was packed with people.

Just like when he first chose to live in Santa Monica, the area was warm in winter and cool in summer, with convenient transportation. It was not only a great place to escape the heat but also perfect for those wanting to spend a leisurely afternoon. The Santa Monica Beach, with its two-mile-long coastline, was a seemingly endless stretch of sand.

Because of the slow traffic, it took Murphy some time to reach the end of the coastal road, where the Santa Monica State Beach came into view.

Finding a parking spot was a challenge, taking Murphy ten minutes. Fortunately, it wasn't peak summer season, when parking would have been impossible.

After parking, Murphy quickly walked toward a prominent pier. The pier, first built in 1908, was a symbol of Santa Monica, featured in many movies and TV shows.

For instance, in James Cameron's *Titanic*, Jack tells Rose he will take her to Santa Monica Pier to ride the Ferris wheel; in *Forrest Gump*, Forrest runs to the West Coast, ending up at this pier.

James Franco had chosen a famous restaurant on the pier called Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. for his gathering.

"Hey, Murphy!"

As soon as Murphy walked into the restaurant, he heard James Franco's voice. "Over here, we're over here."

The restaurant was nearly empty, with only a few guests. Murphy didn't need to ask to know that Franco had likely rented the place out. Despite the small number of attendees, including Franco's brother Dave, Seth Rogen, and Susan Downey (standing in for her husband Robert Downey Jr., who was in the Far East), renting the restaurant was a wise move for a proposal.

In the age of smartphones, any outsider present could quickly upload the scene to social media.

Stars at Franco's level, whether getting engaged or married, had to consider their future and their entire management team. Without a set PR plan from CAA, Franco didn't want this proposal leaked prematurely.

Even the restaurant had signed a confidentiality agreement with Franco.

Murphy arrived at a large table by the window where everyone was quietly discussing. He pulled out a chair and sat between Seth Rogen and Susan Downey, looking at Franco across the table. "How are the preparations?"

Franco winked. "All set."

He pointed to a storage room in the restaurant, and Dave Franco added, "When James proposes, I'll come out of the storage room with a big surprise for Lily."

Curious, Murphy asked, "What kind of surprise?"

Dave Franco quickly shook his head. "It's a secret. No one will know until the big reveal!"

Murphy looked at Seth Rogen and Susan Downey. They both shook their heads, indicating they were also in the dark.

"Are you planning to learn something?" Susan Downey teased Murphy. "Someone's been waiting for your proposal."

"Very soon," Murphy shrugged, smiling. "I'm just waiting for the right moment."

Everyone at the table laughed, knowing the subtext of their conversation.

Because Franco had scheduled the gathering later to surprise Lily Collins, Murphy and the others chatted and waited, occasionally admiring the view of Santa Monica Beach. They didn't feel bored at all.

Murphy took some time to observe. Due to the weekend, the pier and beach were crowded. During holidays, the area often hosted small concerts and dances, adding a unique charm.

Especially at sunset, the scenery provided a distinct, enchanting experience.

"Juice is here!"

A waiter brought over glasses of freshly squeezed orange juice. Dave Franco reminded James, "The juice is here."

Franco waved off the waiter and, after the waiter left quickly, took out a ring box from his pocket.

"Oh, the engagement ring is ready!" Seth Rogen adjusted his glasses, eagerly saying, "Jim, open it up and let us see how big the diamond is."

Murphy, more practical, asked, "You're not just going to hand the ring to Lily, right?"

Susan Downey shook her head. "That would be too cliché."

"Of course not!" Franco opened the box and took out the small, delicate diamond ring. "I'm going to do it in a very special way."

The ring was particularly small, and Murphy vaguely remembered Lily Collins had slender fingers. Franco had likely had it custom-made.

"What special way?" Seth Rogen's curiosity was insatiable.

Franco smiled and picked up the glass of juice in front of the empty seat next to him, dropping the ring into it. The orange juice completely concealed the ring, making the glass appear perfectly normal.

"Imagine this," Franco said smugly. "Lily drinks the juice and finds a ring. Won't that be a surprise? Then I'll propose, and it'll be very romantic."

Susan Downey was the first to nod. "Much more creative than Robert's straightforward approach."

She then turned to Murphy, saying, "This unique proposal is sure to succeed."

Murphy smiled. This wasn't entirely original—he vaguely remembered reading about a sports star proposing to his model girlfriend in a similar manner in a newspaper.

Regardless, it was more creative than just pulling out a ring, and Franco genuinely wanted to surprise Lily Collins.

After setting the ring, Franco asked Susan Downey, "Could you call Lily and check where she is?"

Susan took out her phone, dialed Lily Collins' number, exchanged a few words, then hung up. "She's already on the coastal road. She should be here in about ten minutes."

Franco exhaled, seeming a bit nervous with the wait.

Murphy noticed Franco's anxiety and deliberately changed the subject to avoid any odd behavior that might alert Lily and ruin the surprise.

"Seth," Murphy turned to the heavyset comedian, "how's your script coming along?"

After Seth Rogen had pitched the idea of combining horror and comedy, he had set aside his acting work to focus on the project. After numerous rewrites, he was now drafting the script.

"The outline is almost ready," Rogen said, scratching his head. "But I still feel something's off and I'm working on it."

Murphy nodded. "I can't help much with comedy. Once Jonah is back, you should discuss it with him."

Rogen sighed. "He's already given some ideas, but they weren't very practical."

"Jonah can add jokes to a finished script," Franco said, shaking his head. "But brainstorming ideas with him... forget it. With him, we'd end up with something about aliens."

"Actually," Rogen thought for a moment, "Jonah had one decent idea: turning Earth into Hell. Good people automatically go to Heaven, leaving only bad people on Earth to suffer."

Dave Franco's mouth dropped. "Then we'd all be stuck on Earth."

Murphy shrugged and added, "Everyone in Hollywood would be."

The restaurant door swung open, and Lily Collins, dressed in casual clothes, walked in. Smiling, she greeted everyone. "Hey, everyone! Why are you all here so early?"

She made her way quickly to the empty seat next to James Franco.

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