Twitter was already exploding with #Fast5Hits1Billion at the top of the trending list.
The replies were pure celebration:
"They actually did it! Came through at the very last second!"
"The Nolan Effect is terrifying. That announcement alone dragged in another hundred million."
"Is Cassius officially a box-office lucky charm now?"
"Congrats to Fast 5 for joining the billion-dollar club! Congrats to Cassius!"
"So are we bumping Fast 6 expectations up to $1.2 billion already?"
Universal's official account posted a celebratory poster ten minutes later:
"Thank you to audiences around the world! Fast & Furious 5 has crossed $1 billion globally!"
Vin Diesel, Paul Walker, Gal Gadot, and Tyrese all retweeted it immediately.
Gal even posted her own message: "Extremely proud to be part of this. Congrats to Cassius and everyone involved."
Cassius retweeted Universal's post with a simple caption:
"Thank you to every single ticket sold. This victory belongs to the audience and the entire team."
The system panel lit up the second he posted:
[Fast & Furious 5 Global Box Office Surpasses $1 Billion]
[Achievement Unlocked: Billion-Dollar Club Member]
[New Title Acquired: Box-Office Phenomenon (Beginner) – You have proven you can drive major box-office success. Industry recognition greatly increased.]
[Box-Office Phenomenon (Beginner): Any film you appear in is guaranteed not to lose money.]
The movie had finished its theatrical run.
Rob quickly forwarded the final payment and backend confirmation documents.
Base salary: $10 million.
Backend points: $25 million.
Special bonus after tax: $3 million.
Total gross earnings before deductions: $38 million.
After agent commission ($2.8 million), legal and accounting fees (~$500k), and other business expenses (~$800k), taxable income came to roughly $30.9 million.
After federal taxes (top bracket 37%), California state taxes (13.3%), plus the extra 3.8% net investment income tax and 0.9% additional Medicare tax, his final take-home was approximately $16.5 million.
Cassius stared at the number and felt the familiar sting.
"You're walking away with about $16 million," Rob said, cutting straight to the final figure he knew Cassius cared about.
Together with the $7+ million he already had in the bank, his total liquid assets now sat at $23 million.
Roughly 160 million RMB.
Cassius leaned back in his chair.
The interest on that amount alone would have been enough for him to live comfortably for the rest of his previous life.
"You're still donating a million dollars to the Rural Film Quest project?" Rob asked, double-checking.
"Of course," Cassius answered without hesitation.
He had decided on that donation long before the final paycheck cleared.
Over the past two years the Rural Film Quest had been running free screenings in villages . More than a million rural children had seen a wider world because of it.
Cassius regularly read the project updates.
Every time he saw photos of those kids' hopeful, wide-eyed faces, he knew every cent had been worth it.
He closed the banking page and opened the system panel, tapping into [Dream Experience Space].
[Dream Experience Space]
[Instance Library Activated]
[Currently Available Instances: 3]
[Next Refresh: 30 days]
[Manual Refresh: $100,000 per use]
The three available instances were listed:
The Wolf of Wall Street – Jordan Belfort (Beginner Instance)
Cost: $1 million
Expected Rewards: High-pressure sales rhetoric, infectious public speaking, understanding of greed and moral decay
Warning: May cause excessive self-confidence and blurred moral boundaries
The Pianist – Władysław Szpilman (Intermediate Instance)
Cost: $2 million
Expected Rewards: Portrayal of war trauma, artistic dedication, survival instinct
Warning: May cause lingering anxiety and traumatic memory residue
The King's Speech – King George VI (Beginner Instance)
Cost: $1 million
Expected Rewards: Stutter correction techniques, royal bearing, public speaking stress management
Warning: May cause mild social anxiety
Cassius studied the three options.
The Wolf of Wall Street didn't interest him right now—he had no need for that kind of role.
The Pianist felt too heavy, and with Nolan's film coming up he didn't want to load himself with dark emotions.
The King's Speech looked useful. While Nolan's movie didn't require royal poise, the public-speaking stress management and stutter-correction techniques would definitely help his line delivery.
Plus it was the safest option with the mildest side effects.
He didn't select anything yet.
The library wouldn't refresh for another month. He had time to think.
His phone rang again—this time it was Director Justin Lin.
"Cass, you see the numbers yet?" Justin asked, straight to business.
"Just got the update. Thanks, Director."
"You earned every penny," Justin said. "Universal's CEO called me personally. They're bumping your base salary on Fast 6 to $15 million and improving the backend points. They see your value now."
"Great," Cassius replied.
Justin continued, "I've got a friend prepping a small indie film. The script is excellent but the budget is tight. He wants you for the lead. Pay is only around $2 million, but it has serious awards potential. Interested in reading it?"
"Send it over," Cassius said. "I'd like to see it. But I'm shooting Nolan's movie next year, so the schedule has to work."
"No problem. His film isn't starting until the year after anyway. I just wanted to give you a heads-up."
With Fast 5 wrapped, the Hunger Games 2 reshoots notice landed in his work inbox.
The schedule was tight.
Three days later he flew to Hawaii for two days of pickup shots.
One of the scenes was Finnick being electrocuted in the arena and Katniss giving him mouth-to-mouth.
Three days later, on a bright Hawaiian morning, Cassius arrived on set.
He walked into the tent and found Jennifer already there, talking with Director Francis Lawrence.
The moment she saw him, her eyes lit up and she rushed over, pulling him into a tight hug.
"Mr. Billion-Dollar just walked in!"
She stepped back, grinning as she looked him up and down. "I saw the news—Fast 5 crossed a billion!"
"Vin and Paul didn't get there in four movies. You show up and it happens. The press is calling you a lucky charm now."
Jennifer gave his arm a playful squeeze, then let her hand linger.
Cassius looked at her, the longing clear in his eyes.
They held eye contact for a long moment, sparks flying.
Director Francis walked over and shook Cassius's hand. "Welcome back. The reshoots are simple. We're focusing on scene 78—Peeta gets electrocuted and Katniss gives him mouth-to-mouth. The rough cut didn't have enough emotional punch. We need it to feel real."
Cassius remembered the scene clearly.
Peeta is knocked unconscious by the hidden electric fence. Katniss performs CPR to save him.
"How do you want to do it?" Cassius asked.
"You'll be lying on this pad," Francis said, pointing to the gray cushioned mat on the ground. "Jennifer will kneel beside you and give mouth-to-mouth. You need to go from unconscious to slowly regaining awareness."
"And the mouth-to-mouth?" Cassius asked.
Francis glanced at Jennifer. She spoke up. "Don't worry, I got certified in first aid for this scene. I know the standard procedure."
Cassius nodded.
The makeup team stepped in to touch them up while the wardrobe department brought out the dirty arena combat outfits.
Cassius lay down on the mat and closed his eyes, getting into character.
"Hunger Games 2 reshoots, scene 78."
"Action!"
Cassius slipped into unconsciousness.
He felt Jennifer kneel beside him, her hand on his chest. Then she leaned down.
And he froze.
Because Jennifer's "mouth-to-mouth" was way too committed.
It wasn't technically wrong.
It just felt far more like the opening moves of a French kiss than emergency first aid.
Her lips pressed down and stayed there noticeably longer than the required two seconds, with a faint sucking motion.
Cassius kept his eyes closed, but he could clearly feel the warm, wet pressure.
Jennifer was pouring all the longing she'd felt for him these past months into that kiss.
"Cut!"
The director stopped her.
"Jennifer, that was too gentle. This is a life-saving procedure, not a romantic moment. Be more decisive—quick breath, then pull back. Clear rhythm."
"Sorry, Director," Jennifer said, shrugging with a tiny smile. "I'll adjust."
Second take.
This time Jennifer was much more forceful.
So forceful she nearly knocked Cassius's front teeth loose.
She came down hard, lips slamming against his. The impact stung.
"Cut! Too aggressive this time. Softer!"
Third take.
Jennifer found the right pressure, but the rhythm was off again.
When she pulled back after the breath, her lips brushed lightly across his lower lip—that faint, lingering touch was somehow even more arousing than a full kiss.
Cassius lay on the mat, heart rate climbing.
This wasn't acting anymore.
By the eighth take, he could clearly feel his body reacting.
He wasn't a saint.
And he and Jennifer had slept together countless times before.
There was no way he wouldn't respond in this situation.
Jennifer obviously felt it too.
On the ninth take, after she finished the breath and pulled back, her hand stayed on his chest, thumb moving in a small, unconscious caress.
She looked down at him.
Their eyes met.
The air between them suddenly felt thick with heat.
The director didn't call cut this time. He let the cameras keep rolling.
Cassius followed the script, slowly regaining consciousness.
His eyelashes fluttered. His eyes cracked open. In his blurred vision was Jennifer's worried face.
"Peeta?"
Jennifer delivered her line, voice slightly hoarse. "Can you hear me?"
Cassius parted his lips and breathed out weakly:
"Kat…niss…"
"I'm here. It's okay. The fence is gone…"
According to the script, Katniss should now sigh in relief and help Peeta sit up.
But Jennifer didn't move right away.
She kept looking into his eyes, hand still on his chest, lingering for a few extra seconds.
In those seconds Cassius felt her thumb stroke him once more.
Then she snapped back into character and helped him sit up.
"Cut! Perfect!" the director shouted.
"That's the one! The emotional tension was exactly right! Ten-minute break. We're printing this!"
Jennifer stood up, face flushed.
She glanced at Cassius and whispered, "Sorry… I got a little too into it."
"It's fine," Cassius said, standing as well. His lips felt slightly numb. "It's acting."
They both knew the last few takes had stopped being purely professional.
The reshoots wrapped.
The director was extremely happy with the footage.
Cassius and Jennifer went to their separate trailers to change and remove makeup.
At seven o'clock that evening, Cassius had just stepped out of the shower in his hotel suite when the doorbell rang.
He opened the door.
Jennifer stood there in a simple T-shirt and jeans, holding a bottle of red wine.
"Celebration?" she asked, giving the bottle a little shake. "For you hitting a billion… and for me finally getting through a scene without ten straight NGs."
Cassius let her in.
The suite had a living room.
The moment the door closed, the air between them shifted again.
Cassius could smell the faint scent of her shampoo mixed with the light fragrance of her lotion.
Her hand slid onto his shoulder. "I wanted to keep going on set today, but the director kept yelling cut. No one's yelling cut now."
Cassius leaned down and kissed her hard.
Jennifer responded instantly, arms wrapping around his neck, body pressing against him.
They moved from the living room to the bedroom, shedding clothes along the way.
What happened next doesn't need a play-by-play.
Two people who had been apart for too long made up for lost time with a hunger that left the sheets tangled and both of them breathless.
When it was finally over, they lay side by side, chests heaving.
Jennifer turned her head on the pillow and looked at him, a small, satisfied smile on her lips.
"Welcome back," she whispered.
Cassius smiled and pulled her closer.
Three days later he was back in Los Angeles, heading straight to the 2 Broke Girls soundstage.
Season three was about to start filming.
Even though his asking price kept climbing and bigger movie offers kept landing in his inbox, Cassius had no intention of dropping Han Lee.
The character meant something to him.
Plus the shooting schedule was light—just a couple of weeks a season. Easy money and a chance to relax.
7:30 a.m.
Cassius pulled his car into the reserved spot outside the stage.
He had barely taken a few steps when someone jumped out from a nearby vehicle.
"Mr. Cassius! Can we get a few minutes? I'm with Entertainment Weekly!"
Cassius paused, surprised.
He hadn't expected reporters this early.
"Sorry, we're about to start shooting," he said politely, waving them off. "Maybe another time."
He walked quickly into the stage.
The security guard at the door grinned when he saw him. "Welcome back, Mr. Cassius. Getting into this stage isn't easy anymore. Reporters try to sneak in every day."
"Why?" Cassius asked.
"Because of you," the guard said proudly. "You're the lead in Nolan's new movie and part of a billion-dollar film. Everyone wants a story from the 2 Broke Girls set."
Cassius shook his head with a small smile and stepped inside.
The stage looked exactly the same as it had a year ago.
Same simple diner set.
But the number of people had changed.
Normally at this hour there would only be a handful of crew adjusting lights. Today there were at least thirty people—cameramen, lighting techs, production assistants, and several suits who looked like studio executives.
"Cass!"
Kat's loud voice came from the makeup area.
She was wearing an outrageous floral dress, sitting in front of the mirror while the makeup artist worked on her.
The moment she saw him she jumped up and gave him a big hug.
Cassius felt the familiar pressure against his chest.
"The billion-dollar man is back!"
She stepped back, grinning as she looked him over. "I saw the news—Fast 5 crossed a billion!"
"Vin and Paul didn't get there in four movies. You show up and it happens. The press is calling you a lucky charm now."
Kat gave his arm a playful smack, then let her hand linger.
Cassius looked at her, the old easy chemistry still there.
They were in the middle of catching up when the producer walked over.
The usually serious producer was smiling ear to ear today.
"Cassius, welcome back!"
He shook Cassius's hand warmly. "For season three we're expanding Han's role. The writers had a meeting and decided to give him more depth and a stronger presence in the love-triangle dynamic."
Cassius smiled.
He was home again.