"Vogue sent someone to the island to meet me."
In the warm changing room, Gal Gadot took off her coat and put on her ski jacket. She tossed the men's jacket to Murphy. "They heard I was coming to the Southern Hemisphere for vacation and wanted to shoot some snow-themed photos, but I refused. We'll arrange it after our vacation."
Murphy put on his black ski jacket, sitting on the bench to change into other ski gear. "Did Anna Wintour also want you to pull me in for the shoot?"
They had discussed this last night, and Gal Gadot had finally agreed to the Vogue interview. Vogue had sent someone to the Caribbean to meet with her and suggested a fashion shoot with both her and Murphy, but Gal Gadot had declined.
Gal Gadot put on her hat. "I know you're not very interested in these things."
Wearing a thick down jacket, gloves, and heavy boots, Murphy picked up his ski poles and skis, following Gal Gadot out the door.
It was currently a very cold season in the Southern Hemisphere, especially in the mountainous areas. The cold air at the door made Murphy shiver. Looking up, he could vaguely see a towering snow-capped mountain.
Perhaps due to her upbringing, despite specifically requesting a skiing vacation, Gal Gadot was not handling the cold as well as Murphy. The biting wind made her face feel like it was being cut with a knife, turning it bright red.
"Come on, dear." Murphy took her skis, carrying them on his shoulder and leading the way to the ski slopes. "Didn't you want to learn to ski? Let's go!"
Murphy already knew that Gal Gadot couldn't ski. She had been influenced by Margot Robbie to come skiing.
The ski resort had three slopes: beginner, intermediate, and advanced. The advanced slope was usually closed to the public. Murphy and Gal Gadot only stayed in the flat and beginner areas.
Although Murphy could ski, his skills were just average.
Putting on his skis, Murphy was about to give it a try when he heard a thud behind him. Turning around, he saw Gal Gadot had fallen into the snow, her red face and orange ski suit covered in snowflakes.
"I'm fine!" Gal Gadot shook her head at Murphy, trying to stand up with her ski poles, only to fall back down.
"Make your skis perpendicular to the slope!" Murphy could see that Gal Gadot really didn't know how to ski. "Keep your feet under your hips; it's easy to stand up."
Gal Gadot looked around, relieved that it wasn't the weekend or a holiday, so the ski resort wasn't crowded, and no one was nearby.
She tried what Murphy suggested and found it somewhat effective. After some effort, she finally stood up.
With the experience of the first fall, Gal Gadot was cautious and asked Murphy, "What do I do next?"
"The core of skiing is control. You need to control your skis and speed to ski smoothly on any terrain."
Frankly, Murphy's skiing knowledge came from his own falls. He couldn't explain the theory well, so he said, "Dear, lean slightly forward, make an inward V with your skis, push your right foot out to turn left, push your left foot out to turn right, and push both feet to brake..."
Following his instructions, Gal Gadot tried a move and fell again.
"Are you sure that's right?" Gal Gadot rubbed her sore bottom and looked at Murphy.
Murphy skied a circle around her and shrugged. "I'm more of a practical person, not great with theory."
"Forget it..." Gal Gadot waved him off. "You go for a run; I'll practice with the book for a while."
She had read some skiing theory books before coming to New Zealand.
"I'll stay here with you." Murphy extended his ski pole to help Gal Gadot up, but she shook her head. "No, go ahead."
She didn't want Murphy to keep seeing her fall.
Gal Gadot urged, "Go enjoy yourself elsewhere."
Murphy, helpless, slowly skied away. This was the flat area, not crowded, with safety personnel around, so he wasn't too worried about Gal Gadot.
Skiing was enticing to many, but for most beginners, it was a great way to practice falling. Perhaps lacking talent in this area, Gal Gadot fell nearly ten times in just five minutes, her interest in skiing rapidly diminishing.
"Hey, Gal, you're as slow as a snail."
Leaning on his ski poles, Murphy skied past Gal Gadot, making a sharp turn to circle around her skillfully. Ignoring the biting wind, he called out, "Still struggling?"
Bracing herself with her ski poles, Gal Gadot carefully maintained her balance, ignoring Murphy, and moved forward at the slowest, most stable pace.
Compared to Gal Gadot, Murphy had much better athletic talent.
"You're too slow." Murphy exhaled a puff of white breath, circled Gal Gadot again, and pointed to a nearby slope. "I'm going to check that out."
"Go ahead." Gal Gadot nodded, also reminding him, "Don't go too fast coming down; be careful."
This was the world-famous Treble Cone ski resort in New Zealand, boasting the largest ski area on New Zealand's South Island. It was considered the best place for powder skiing and snowboarding, with 550 hectares of terrain and the largest vertical drop in the Queenstown/Wanaka region, up to 700 meters.
Treble Cone's forested geography made it an excellent skiing destination, attracting skiers from all over with its high latitude and elevation. Whether experienced skiers or families on vacation, everyone could find their place here, enjoying the pure New Zealand scenery, the charm of Lake Wanaka, and the snowy peaks of the Southern Alps.
After skiing down the slope, Murphy found Gal Gadot missing. He removed his skis and walked into a small VIP lounge they had booked next to the changing room. There, he saw Gal Gadot sitting by the window, warming herself by a windproof stove and gazing at the snow-covered mountains and forests.
"Thanks, dear." Murphy took the hot coffee Gal Gadot handed him and held it in his hands. "Why did you come back?"
Gal Gadot shrugged, taking a sip of hot water without speaking, continuing to admire the Southern Alps ski resort's view. The slopes had deep snow in some places and steep drops in others, with snow as fine as champagne bubbles.
In the distance, tourists skied across the vast snowfields, with snow powder flying behind them. Gal Gadot looked at the silver-coated pine forest, the vast and majestic Southern Alps fully visible.
Gradually, the frustration from her repeated falls began to fade.
Seeing Murphy holding the coffee cup, watching the scenery with her, Gal Gadot's frustration finally dissipated completely. She asked, "When did you learn to ski? How come I didn't know?"
"Me?" Murphy wasn't sure how to answer. He couldn't exactly tell the truth.
Born in Los Angeles, before entering Hollywood, he struggled just to survive. Who would believe he had time to ski back then?
"Forget it." Gal Gadot shook her head. "Let's go back to Wellington."
Murphy asked with concern, "Why? We just got here."
Gal Gadot pouted, "Margot said skiing was exciting, so I thought it would be great..."
Shaking her head, she continued, "I tried it for a bit. It's not interesting; let's go back."
Looking at Gal Gadot, Murphy confirmed she really wanted to leave, likely losing interest after all the falls.
"Alright." Murphy pulled out his phone. "I'll call the driver."
He called the hotel's driver, and soon a Mercedes SUV arrived at the ski resort. Murphy and Gal Gadot returned to the mountain hotel, packed their things, and took the hotel's helicopter back to Wellington.
Back in Wellington, Gal Gadot called Margot Robbie to give her a piece of her mind.
Margot Robbie, in Australia, invited Gal Gadot to vacation there, but Gal Gadot preferred a vacation for just the two of them, politely declining Margot's invitation.
Over the next ten days, Murphy and Gal Gadot toured famous spots on New Zealand's South and North Islands. They even visited Queenstown to see the locations where Peter Jackson filmed "The Lord of the Rings." Tourism was now Queenstown's main industry, with the most famous attraction being the "Lord of the Rings" tours.
Unfortunately, it was the off-season for tourism, and the timing wasn't right, so Murphy missed the "Lord of the Rings" parade.
By early July, Michelle Williams and some 20th Century Fox people arrived in Wellington. Murphy ended his vacation to meet Richard Taylor with them. Both sides were interested in working together, making the negotiations much smoother.
Staying in New Zealand until mid-July, Murphy prepared to return to Los Angeles. Kara Faith had previously informed him to attend the upcoming San Diego Comic-Con to continue promoting "City of Chaos."
Meanwhile, an animation company had approached him, wanting to adapt "City of Chaos" into an animated series.
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