Hollywood: The Greatest Showman

Chapter 86: Pure and Simple

Renly did tell the truth. He really doesn't care about the "Thor". In the previous life, Thor's role was originally in Chris's hands; besides, he had already decided to reject the script of "Thor" early on. If Chris had asked, he wouldn't have minded sharing the script.

What really disappointed Renly was Chris. He thought they were friends.

Maybe not close friends, but at least ordinary ones. Although they hadn't been roommates for long, they got along very well, never had any conflicts, and cooperated well in daily life. Or you could say they were even more familiar than ordinary friends. After all, they were roommates living under the same roof, and they were roommates with the same actor dream. At least they shouldn't have been strangers.

Although he lived two lives, he didn't have much experience in dealing with people.

In the previous life, he focused on his mother's schedule in the first half of his life, even planning the time to go to the bathroom. Not to mention making new friends; in the second half of his life, he spent it in a hospital bed, with the only chance to make friends being the patients in the next bed, then watching them come and go, leaving him alone.

For Renly, friends were not a strange term, but they always felt fresh. Perhaps, compared to the passion of love and the purity of family affection, friendship seemed to have a bit more politeness and distance, but friendship was an eternal harbor, accompanying everyone through different stages of life, from birth to death, maintaining a distance that was neither too close nor too far, yet never leaving.

He thought he and Chris were friends, but obviously, he was wrong.

Perhaps, in the world of fame and fortune, friendship was ultimately different.

After leaving home, Renly had originally planned to go to the supermarket and find a corner to sit down, but then he realized that what he needed now was not a quiet moment alone. So, he made his way to the Mount Sinai Hospital.

Many people don't like hospitals, and Renly didn't like them either, but in fact, after getting used to the ups and downs of life and death in the hospital, you could feel the tranquility belonging to this place because it was a place where miracles happened.

Indeed, life always came to an end here, but at the same time, it also gave birth to new life; indeed, hope often faced disappointment here, but it also gave birth to hope. Compared to darkness, Renly always preferred the sunlight in the hospital, thin but warm, which made people grateful for their health, grateful that they had escaped the scythe of death, and hopeful for tomorrow.

As soon as he entered the inpatient building, the sounds of playfulness whizzed past. A group of children chattered and ran towards the backyard. "Renly!", "Hey, buddy!", "Hey handsome!"... The children saw Renly, who hadn't come in yet, and greeted him one after another.

"Catherine!", "George!", "Oh, isn't this Stephanie?", "Eric, you look taller!", "Alex, slow down, don't run too fast."

Renly squatted down, raising his hands high, and the children automatically slapped his palms as they passed by. Renly could accurately call out the name of each child and greeted everyone cheerfully. A smile climbed onto his lips involuntarily. "Hey, who's this? A stranger?" When he saw new faces, Renly still greeted them with a smile, his cheerful tone dancing in the gradually sinking sunset.

"Anita? What's going on?" Behind the children, Nurse Anita Tunisia also followed the queue with small steps. Renly hurriedly stopped her and asked.

Anita grabbed Renly's arm and invited him to come along. "It's choir time, and today we're going outside. Hurry, join us." Anita's face was filled with a bright smile. "You came just in time. We're giving you the guitar. We were worried earlier, and Kelly wasn't the best choice."

Renly's footsteps subconsciously followed. After hearing the explanation, he pointed in the direction of the elevator. "You guys go ahead, I'll go upstairs to visit Heather first, then join you."

Mount Sinai is a children's hospital. Every so often, they gather the children together, whether it's to celebrate holidays, play together, or have outdoor activities, to bring laughter to the children as much as possible, hoping that the disease won't deprive them of their childhood.

However, some children cannot participate in these activities. Apart from those who need to stay in the intensive care unit, there are also many children like Heather Cross who are not allowed due to their physical condition. In such cases, after consulting with the doctors, parents push their children in wheelchairs to join everyone.

Renly was unsure of Heather's current condition and whether she would be willing to come downstairs to join the activities, so he needed to go upstairs to confirm.

"The Crosses have just come. They pushed Heather to the backyard just now." Anita quickly explained. Renly suddenly realized and didn't refuse anymore, following the children's footsteps out.

The sunset on the horizon was still burning fiercely, and the entire courtyard was illuminated in bright orange. The laughter and chatter of the children filled the air, pure and simple, without any pretense, calculation, or burden, just pure, unrestrained laughter.

The melancholy and loss in his heart were momentarily set aside. Renly, with a guitar on his back, joined the children's procession, enjoying the moment and the music, enjoying the childhood.

"Renly, 'Hey, Soul Sister', come on, sing 'Hey, Soul Sister'." Amidst the lively crowd, a cheerful voice shouted, and looking over, it was Alex Ritchie, sweating profusely, calling out. His reddish face seemed a bit abnormal. The nurse beside him walked up and grabbed Alex's arm, "Kid, you can't get too excited."

Renly raised his chin to Alex jokingly, "Hey buddy, which girl do you want to confess to? Tell me, I'll help you."

'Hey, Soul-Sister' is the debut single from the alternative rock band Train's new album released in the second half of last year, combining folk and rock styles. It tells the story of a man confessing his love to his beloved girl. When it was first released, the single was low-key, but after more than half a year of promotion, it became very popular, climbing the charts and reaching an incredible third place last week, setting a new record.

It can be said that this song is one of the hottest singles on major radio stations recently. Despite Alex's young age, he evidently didn't listen less to the radio.

The banter made the children laugh, but Alex was unabashed. He loudly declared, "Kelly, I want to confess to Kelly!"

Kelly Patton, a nurse who joined the hospital this year, was only twenty-four years old. Originally, she was supposed to play the guitar for the collective choir today, but after Renly arrived, the responsibility for the guitar changed hands, and Kelly was responsible for taking care of the children on the side.

Upon hearing such a high-profile confession, Kelly wrinkled her nose in apparent dissatisfaction, but before she could speak, the guitar strings next to her had already begun to sound. Renly strummed the strings and sang loudly, "Hey... hey, hey hey..." All the children followed the catchy melody and sang loudly. Kelly couldn't help but look at Renly, slightly surprised.

Renly shrugged and flashed a brilliant smile, then turned to greet the children. All the children followed Renly like a train, and as Renly played the guitar, they danced around Kelly, who was soon surrounded by children. Alex caught up, bouncing beside Renly, singing loudly, "Hey, soul sister, I don't wanna miss a single thing you do tonight"

The atmosphere was lively.

Seeing everyone cheering, Kelly finally gave up resistance and approached Alex, extending an invitation. Then the two danced in the center. The nurse's white uniform fluttered lightly, and Alex's rosy face showed the happiest smile in the world.

Now, the children were even more excited, clapping and singing at the top of their lungs, even causing the song to go out of tune, like a warped vinyl record under the sun. But Renly didn't mind, and a smile climbed onto his face as he followed the children's steps, joining in their dance.

"All right, all right, today's activity should be over." After the performance of "Hey, Soul Sister," Anita, though reluctant, had to step forward and interrupt everyone's revelry. "Let's give a round of applause to Kelly and Alex!"

Renly was the first to raise his hands high and cheer. The other children followed suit, cheering loudly, "Oh yeah!"

Alex turned his head and looked at Renly, who nodded slightly in affirmation. Then Alex performed a noble knight's bow, expressing his respect.

Kelly looked surprised but couldn't help but smile. Then she picked up her uniform skirt politely, took a step back with her knees slightly bent, and returned the gesture.

Everyone cheered loudly, and Alex finally felt a bit shy. He ran to Renly's side and jumped up as Renly crouched down, raising his right hand high. Alex jumped up and slapped Renly's palm heavily, then screamed excitedly and ran towards the hospital ward building.

Straightening up, Renly wiped the sweat from his forehead. Thirty minutes of choir singing, even more exhausting than a sixty-minute performance in Pioneer Village. A light breeze blew, cooling things down, and Renly saw the kite in the sky, soaring freely under the bright sky, embracing the freedom of the wind.

It was a butterfly kite, the one Renly left in Heather's hospital room.