The door of the conference room slowly opened. Mrs. Runkle, standing nearby, looked at her husband, who came out behind Eric. She happily smiled after Charlie Runkle gave her a slight nod.
Brian Kurtzman held out his hand to Eric and said, "Mr. Williams, I hope we can work together in the future."
Since the matter has settled, he no longer cares about the unpleasantness during the negotiation. As an agent, maintaining a good relationship with a famous director like Eric was very important to him.
"I, as well," said Eric as he smiled and shook the agent's hand.
Brian Kurtzman's temperament was indeed admirable. Any normal person would've slammed the door and stormed off if they had been in his position.
Brian Kurtzman didn't plan to stay. After speaking with the Runkle couple for a few minutes, he found an excuse and left.
Scrutinizing his actions, Eric had a feeling that even though Brian Kurtzman would be able to make a lot of money as Stuart's agent, he would soon withdraw from that position.
It is estimated that any outstanding talent agent would find it unbearable to work for a pair of incompetent and uncooperative clients.
Eric looked at his wristwatch and noticed that it was half past noon.
He looked at the Runkles standing nearby and asked, "Charlie, would you all like to have lunch together?"
Charlie Runkle looked at Eric and noticed that he had a friendly expression on his face like just another boy next door, but Charlie Runkle knew that Eric had changed. He would likely not forget Eric dominating him in that tiny meeting room for a long time.
Charlie Runkle replied apologetically, "I'm sorry, Eric, we have some things to do."
Little Stuart heard his father's refusal and immediately shouted, "No, I wanna go!"
He even tried to rush to Eric, but his mother held his hand tightly and glared at him in warning.
Eric realized that the divide between him and the Runkles due to their conflicting interests had now become irreconcilable. He said a few words to calm the little guy and left with Elisabeth and Alan.
**********
In a restaurant in Century City, Alan and the driver consciously sat at a separate table, leaving Eric and Elisabeth alone.
After she ordered her food, Elisabeth quickly asked, "Eric, how come your talks ended so soon?"
"How long did you think it would take?" asked Eric.
Elisabeth recalled something and said, "I remember that Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman's negotiations for Rain Man lasted more than half a year, and even came close to breaking down. And your negotiations with C.A.A. for Running Out of Time had also been in a deadlock for a long time, right?"
Eric smiled and replied, "The situation this time was different. If I had talked with C.A.A, it might've taken a long time, but I talked directly with Charlie Runkle."
Elisabeth's eyes flashed as she understood his meaning. She then asked, "How much is the pay for that little guy this time?"
"$8 million plus 3% North American box office gross."
Elisabeth suddenly looked wary and asked, suspiciously, "You agreed so easily? You don't have ulterior motives towards me, right?"
Eric felt annoyed as he muttered, "Such a typical woman."
Elisabeth asked, "What did you say?"
Eric decided to just ignore her and soon they arrived at the parking lot. He looked around and asked, "Where's your car?"
She shrugged and said, "I didn't drive today."
Eric got in his car and said, "Get in."
After the two had dinner, it was half past eight by the time they left the restaurant.
Eric looked at Elisabeth who was sitting beside him and asked, "How are you going to get back? Why don't you call your driver to pick you up?"
She looked at Eric and asked, incredulously, "How can you ask me that? Isn't it obvious that you should drop me home?"
Eric scoffed and said, "Spare me, Your Royal Highness; your home is in Malibu. It takes two hours for a round trip!"
Elisabeth snorted and said, "Alright, then I will take a taxi."
She walked out of the car with her hands in the pockets of her jeans as she took a few steps down the sidewalk. She looked at the traffic on the road and said, "I've heard that there have been several taxi robberies in Los Angeles in recent days.
I heard that the victims are usually young women, but you don't have to worry. Even if I have an accident, my father won't blame you."
Eric watched Elisabeth's performance as he sighed and yelled, "Get in!"
Elisabeth cheerfully smiled and quickly pulled the door as she sat down beside Eric. She noticed the annoyed expression on Eric's face when she laughed and said, "Don't worry, I lied to you; I've lived with Julia over the past few days."
Eric snorted and stepped on the gas pedal. Not long after the car started, Elisabeth suddenly pointed to the side and said, "There is a movie theater nearby. Let's go watch a movie. I haven't seen a movie in a long time."
Eric parked the car on the side of the road, but kept his hands clasped over the steering wheel and asked, "Liz, what do you want?"
Elisabeth noticed Eric's annoyed expression and waved her hand as she said, "Forget I mentioned it. We don't have to watch a movie if you don't want to. Come on, just drop me at Julia's."
Eric sighed and said, "Forget it, it's just a movie."
"That's more like a gentleman," said Elisabeth cheerily before she untied her seat belt and got out of the car.
Eric parked the car into the parking lot and walked into the nearby theater with Elisabeth.
In the ticket booth, she pulled out a small wallet from her large handbag and said, "I'll pay; which one?"
Eric glanced at the few posters on the wall before he pointed to one of them and said, "This one."
"When Harry meets Sally?" mumbled Elisabeth before she narrated the words on the poster, "'Can two friends sleep together and still love each other in the morning?' It seems interesting!"