Chapter 5
709words
After his tongue-tied performance at the ceremony, combined with his crash course in fan culture, James finally cracked the code: with Sophia, his usual bulldozer approach would fail spectacularly. She required subtlety—the patient persistence of water gradually wearing down stone.
Merely supporting from afar no longer satisfied him. He needed legitimate reasons to enter her orbit, to approach her with such natural ease that she wouldn't sense his calculated intent.
His opening gambit leveraged his position as "Global Fan Club President"—an unimpeachable reason to establish direct contact with Sophia's management team.
"The fans have noticed Professor Sullivan's intense schedule lately and are concerned about her wellbeing. Would her team consider accepting our offer of a wellness consultant? Perhaps the specialists who work with Olympic athletes?"
"Regarding next month's brand activation, we'd like to coordinate the fan experience zone with your team to ensure everything aligns perfectly with Professor Sullivan's preferences and comfort level."
His pretexts were bulletproof—framed entirely around Sophia's comfort and benefit, delivered with such apparent sincerity that questioning his motives would seem cynical.
After a series of interactions, Sophia's team developed a genuine appreciation for this unusually professional and resource-rich fan organization.
Emma began dropping casual comments to Sophia: "That Trent guy may have unconventional methods, but damn if he doesn't deliver. Most reliable supporter we've ever had."
Sophia typically responded with noncommittal hums, but privately, her initial wariness about his extravagant gestures had begun to fade. At minimum, he'd stopped those cringe-worthy grand displays that made everyone uncomfortable.
For his next move, James strategically deployed his "investor" persona.
Sophia's new sci-fi project was filming in a remote desert location with brutal conditions. James "coincidentally" needed to visit another actor he'd backed financially and "while in the area" brought along a full Michelin-starred culinary team to provide 24/7 gourmet meals for the entire production. The crew—previously surviving on lukewarm sandwiches and instant coffee—practically built him a shrine on the spot.
Sophia observed as the dusty break tent transformed into what resembled a pop-up fine dining establishment. Crew members who'd been dead-eyed with exhaustion now moved with renewed energy. Her gaze shifted to James, surrounded by fawning producers and directors, maintaining a carefully casual "this is perfectly normal" expression. Despite herself, she felt the corner of her mouth twitch upward.
James, whose peripheral awareness had been entirely devoted to monitoring her reaction, caught that microscopic smile and felt his heart soar. Outwardly, he maintained his aloof executive persona while inwardly experiencing the emotional equivalent of winning the lottery.
More critically, he'd evolved beyond the rookie mistake of flashy gifts. He'd tasked Kevin with discreetly uncovering Sophia's genuine interests—not the public-facing preferences, but her real passions.
The intelligence gathering revealed that between takes, Sophia devoured obscure academic journals on quantum mechanics and cosmological mathematics. She'd once offhandedly mentioned to a co-star her frustration at being unable to locate a rare 17th-century astronomical text.
The next time James "accidentally" crossed paths with Sophia, he carried not flowers or jewelry but a simple archival folder.
"I understand you're researching metamaterials, Professor. One of our R&D labs just published some findings that haven't hit the journals yet. Thought you might find them useful."
Or:
"A colleague mentioned you were looking for Flamsteed's 'Atlas Coelestis.' I happened to acquire a first edition at Sotheby's last month. It's just collecting dust in my library—perhaps you could make better use of it?"
These offerings—often worth more than diamonds but presented without fanfare—struck the perfect note of intellectual respect rather than material display, landing precisely in Sophia's blind spot for gifts.
When Sophia accepted these treasures, her eyes lit with authentic excitement rather than polite acknowledgment. "This is… incredibly thoughtful, Mr. Trent." Her thanks carried a warmth previously absent from their interactions.
Watching genuine pleasure animate her features, James felt he would gladly empty museum vaults and raid university archives to see that expression again. He'd finally discovered the key that might unlock her carefully guarded world.
