It started with a few incoherent words.
"You... that’s... impossible..."
A familiar voice he hadn’t heard in so long as thin streaks of color gradually bled into his field of vision.
"In Hollywood... natural that... like this happen..."
Yet, it was equally one he rather wished he could seal in a noise-cancelling jar and toss into the depths of an ocean.
"Most actors wouldn’t mind kissing a lady that isn’t theirs on the big screens... or even shooting sex scenes," Callow’s voice grated against Niall’s ears like a nagging parent.
"Yet you, vehemently refuse to do anything of such." the forty-something year old agent with dyed-black hair styled in a neat, gentleman’s cut complained like a helicopter parent.
Slowly adjusting to the environment around him, Niall’s cool-gray irises scanned his surroundings as Callow naggingly continued;
"Honestly, you’re fortunate to have such striking looks, because without them, I doubt you’d still be receiving any roles at this point."
The office was sleek and modern, with floor-to-ceiling glass walls that overlooked the Century City skyline.
The floors were fitted with polished marble which reflected a soft, recessed lighting, while framed pictures of expensive art pieces and blockbuster movie posters were hung on the walls, contrasting against the minimalist furniture in the room.
Seated on one of the low leather chairs that allowed for direct eye-contact with Presley Callow, Niall’s agent who sat behind a sharp-edged, sleek mahogany desk, the young actor slowly lowered his head, a quiet, subdued smile of gratitude touching his lips.
’I’m back.’ the words echoed in his mind.
’I’m truly back.’ he repeated inwardly.
"Well, whatever. That’s your cross to bear, not mine," Callow on the other hand vaguely waved him off.
"If you’re fine being a supporting actor or acting in cheesy B-grade movies for the rest of your life, so be it,"
"Just don’t come running back to me once you’re unable to keep up with the financial clawbacks of your contract."
Then he gestured to his pretty assistant who stood next to him, the lady taking the initiative at his behest to place a script on the spotless glass table before Niall.
"Anyway, that role you auditioned for? Well, you got it,"
"It’s also from a pretty high-budget movie, so, lucky you, I guess,"
Pulling out a premium cigar from his drawer, his other hand fiddling with a lighter, the agent lazily gestured to his assistant, delegating the task of bringing Niall up to speed to her;
"Sarah, fill him in."
However, before Sarah, a sharp, petite-looking young lady in her mid-twenties whose brown hair was tied in a neat ponytail could proceed to do as she was told, Niall spoke in a reserved tone;
"I’ll do it."
Callow practically over-inhaled than he’d planned, the smoke dancing through his lungs in places he hadn’t accounted for.
What followed next was a reflex cough that reddened his face and brought tears to his eyes, even as Sarah rushed to help him.
The casual acceptance of the role from his talent had genuinely stunned him... especially since he was always so reluctant to accept movie roles where it seemed he would once again be typecast.
Niall on the other hand, leaned forward casually, palms interlocked as he stared at the script before him.
[The Promised Queen].
This was the movie that had sealed his fate before he knew it.
It was the movie that had finally cornered him into being most rom-com director’s picks for the trope of ’supporting character who always loses to the male lead’.
Yet, upon regression, the first thing he had done, was immediately accept it?
Considering Callow had deliberately sourced those scripts himself--essentially gaslighting his naïve younger self into believing it was a necessary evil to reach where he truly wanted, all so he could milk him for everything he was worth--it was even more jarring that Niall chose to go along with it.
Nonetheless, Niall picked up the script and rose to his feet as he spoke;
"I’ll be out of town for a couple days. Three days max, give or take."
"In the meantime," Niall was already heading towards the door, his demeanor relaxed.
"Kindly forward the contract and the necessary details as quickly as you can. I’d really appreciate it."
No sooner had he said that, the doors gently clicked shut behind him.
Callow could only watch in a mixture of surprised perplexity, the closed door reflected in his dark-brown irises as Sarah gently continued to pat his back.
Ever since he’d gotten new talents, all of whom he believed were infinitely better to cater to than Niall, he had gradually began sidelining the young actor to invest his resources into them.
It also didn’t help that the young man had a strong moral compass, one that essentially made it hard for the agent to exploit and market him as he pleased in an industry that had no place for such.
So, as a way to punish Niall’s convictions, he’d chosen to steadily rebrand the naïve young actor’s image, typecasting him into roles that paid well, but offered no artistic freedom, all in the hopes that he would eventually crack at some point much like many others before him had.
Now though, witnessing him accept the job without a single complaint, the perplexity on his features gradually began to give way to a deviously subdued smile.
’Now we’re talking. Just need to push him a bit more to the edge and he should be subservient.’
Keeping his sinister thoughts to himself, Callow soon dismissed Sarah, and then walked up to a fridge in the corner of the room to pour himself a drink.
Yet, like a bauble playing in the hands of a child, Niall’s relaxed demeanor remained the same as the doors to the elevator opened.
Stepping into the lightly occupied lift and selecting the ground floor, he proceeded to lean backwards on the cool, metal wall.
Regressing to this exact time wasn’t something he had simply come up with on the spot.
It was a culmination of his regrets, way before his regression. Regrets that had often led him to simulate how differently he would’ve done certain things had he been chanced to do it all over again.
Aged twenty-two, and quite literally at the point where film directors, producers and studios had begun to take slight interest in the trajectory of his career, there was practically no better time to regress to.
Also, with the sort of moves he was planning on making, his current standing would at least ensure that could get by on the funds he’d made from the past couple years.
As for Callow, the young man wasn’t particularly bothered by his schemes.
In fact, this time, he was going to flip that dynamic on its head and lead him by the nose instead.
Not because Niall held any particular grudges or fantasies of revenge towards him, but rather because the situation required it.
Revenge seemed like a nice thing and all on paper, but in most cases, it was usually so much effort for too little return.
Still, he needed to be free from the agent’s clutches.
Unfortunately, considering Callow had personally signed him onto Goldleaf Talent Agency, the chances of the agency listening to his request for a new agent would fall on deaf ears.
This was especially true since he wasn’t an A-lister but rather an actor that fell on the much lower end of a B-lister.
Besides, even if they did hypothetically grant him that request, he’d be at the mercy of the agency’s internal politics.
That, Niall was sure, would not bode well for him given he was equally planning to quit the agency altogether.
Unfortunately, he could only place the dilemma on the backburner for now. More so because he knew exactly how to kill both birds with one stone, but didn’t quite have the resources to make it a reality.
As for being typecast, that was something he planned to gradually incinerate to oblivion in this new lease on life he was given.
And though the new role he was offered meandered around the same ballpark of the same old roles he was currently known for, Niall had a pretty neat plan on how he could circumvent that.
In any case, stepping out of the elevator a few minutes later, the youth whipped out his smartphone and began to track the fastest flight he could book to Nashville.
Though booking a ticket on the same day as one’s departure generally came with higher costs, Niall could care less.
All that mattered right now, was seeing his parents. Everything else was secondary.
Settling on an exorbitantly expensive one a few seconds later, the young man soon arrived at the parking lot and slipped into his BMW-2 Series Convertible.
Not even the least bit interested in packing a few essentials for the journey back home, Niall zoomed right off to the airport.
A couple hours later, he was already on the flight home.
And about seven hours after that, he’d arrived in Nashville... or more specifically Leiper’s Fork, a quaint small town on the outskirts of its city.
A few minutes later, his uber rolled to a halt before a fairly big ranch and he stepped out the door.
Taking in the sights of the familiar ranch, Niall lingered by its entrance for a moment.
The property stretched wide, its wooden fencing worn by time and weather as the gentle evening breeze swept through its orange trees and well-maintained grape orchard with a low rustle.
A cozy farmhouse with a wraparound porch stood at its center, and off to its side was a sturdy old barn whose red paint had steadily began fading.
It all paved way to deliver a scenic feel that only served to intensify Niall’s nostalgia.
The last time the young man had seen this, was four years ago... sixteen years ago if one accounted for his regression.
Taking a deep breath, the young man proceeded forwards, the gravel path crunching faintly underneath his boots as it led him towards the farmhouse.
Soon enough, he arrived at the front porch and then proceeded to circle around to reach its back porch.
And there, seated on their individual rocking chairs, was a man in his late fifties reading a book and a woman in her mid-fifties crocheting a shawl, both listening to the radio in shared company.
Upon noticing the arrival of someone though, both figures looked up from what they were doing, only for their eyes to widen in disbelief.
Seeing their faces... actually seeing them... well and truly alive... a deep surge of relief and gratitude unlike any Niall had ever experienced, crashed into him.
Then, amidst the profound silence that had settled between both parties, Niall tried to speak...
...only for him to realize that the words were caught in his throat and his field of vision had blurred considerably.
But before he could completely breakdown into a sobbing mess, his parents had rushed forwards to embrace him in a tight hug.
"Welcome home."
No sooner had Niall heard those words from his parents, every iota of restraint he had collapsed and he completely broke down in their arms.