So raise your hands and celebrate with me

And raise your voice and sing along, oh please

And raise your glass

'Cause we all could use a drink sometimes

Celebrate 'cause life is fine

~*~*~*~*~*~

Friday, March 11, 2019

"Holy shit!" Hanna squealed on our ride back home. "He's even hotter in person. And oh my God, he likes you. And you like him! Ugh, just imagine if you really do get the part and how much time you'll spend together then. Imagine doing a kissing scene with him." She gasped excitedly. "What if there's a sex scene in the movie?"

"You do realize that both kissing scenes and sex scenes are highly choreographed, right? It's not exactly romantic to have multiple old guys standing around you while you pretend to do it and have a director yelling instructions at you."

She pulled a face. "Way to rain on my parade," she whined. "But you'll still be kissing Henry Cavill. That's gotta count for something, right?"

It did. Especially because I was growing to like him more and more. Curse me and my habit of always falling way too fast. I refused to acknowledge that to Hanna, though. I parked on the driveway and told her, "I don't really wanna hear about Henry or the movie anymore, okay? I'm already nervous enough as it is."

She sobered up quickly. "You're right. I'm sorry. I'll shut up about it for now." A sly grin covered her face. "As long as I get to shower first."

I chuckled. "Sure. Just as long as you don't finish up all of the hot water. I know how long you tend to shower."

She pouted. "Fine..."

We dumped all of our stuff in the living room and she went upstairs to shower while I stayed downstairs. I turned the TV on and grabbed my phone, realizing I'd received a message from Cynthia, a really good friend of mine who'd also be at the party tonight, while I'd been driving.

OH MY GOD, JULIETTE. YOU HAVE SOME 'SPLAINING TO DO.

There was a link attached to the text, and I opened it curiously. The link led to a Perez Hilton article, and to my surprise and utter shock I saw my own face on the webpage. The title read 'Henry Cavill lunches with mysterious babes.' Underneath, it said a little something about how we'd been sighted together at a lunchroom and they wondered just who the hell we were, but what mattered to me most were the pictures attached.

There were at least a dozen pictures of us talking and laughing while eating our lunch, and sadly, my clear embarrassment could be seen in a couple of pictures as well. I hadn't even realized there was a photographer. Had I really been so tuned in to Henry that I hadn't paid any further attention to my surroundings? I usually was pretty good at spotting paparazzi, even though I was never really the one they were going after. But still, this was Los Angeles after all, and paparazzi were everywhere. It was honestly a wonder (and a very lucky thing) no paparazzi had witnessed and recorded the whole situation with Henry defending me from that drunk guy last week.

I'll explain everything tonight.

I turned my phone off after that, not interested in any more messages that would undoubtedly come in. These things had a way of spreading fast, and if Cynthia already knew, it wouldn't be long until Chelsea knew, too, and she would ask enough questions to drive a teacher crazy. My parents would probably encounter the article, too, with how many times they checked all the gossip sites. I didn't even want to imagine the torrent of messages I'd get from them, or how quickly they would spread the news of me being on a gossip site to the rest of the family.

I groaned, burying my face in my hands as I wondered if Henry would be mad about the pictures. I knew some actors and other celebrities could get really mad about their pictures being taken unwittingly. Henry seemed like a pretty laid back guy, though, so I hoped he wouldn't mind. Just as long as he didn't think we had tipped the paps off.

I couldn't mull the whole situation over forever, though. Hanna was out of the shower sooner than I'd expected, and I went upstairs to take a shower of my own. Before I closed the bathroom door behind me, though, I told her, "Check Perez Hilton."

She looked confused, but still reached for her phone. That was the last I saw before I locked the door behind me and turned the shower on. Waiting for the water to get hot, I reluctantly got out of my clothes. I could still smell Henry's cologne on my shirt, and it was a delicious scent. A little wistfully, I threw the blouse in the laundry basket and took my bra off.

Once I was fully undressed and the water had turned hot, I stepped under the soothing stream. I decided to forget about the pictures as the water cascaded down my back. It probably wasn't a big deal anyway—just me and my annoying habit of always thinking too much into literally everything. But as I forced myself to forget about the pictures, the memories of everything that had happened from the moment I'd accidentally bumped into Henry at Barnes & Noble forced themselves to the forefront of my mind.

Henry had always seemed very serious to me, but he could be really funny, too, I knew. He was really sweet and humble, and the more I thought about it, the more I realized just how much my type he was. I found myself smiling as I squirted shampoo onto my hand, thinking about how blue his eyes were apart from that small patch of brown in his right eye, and how his deep laugh stirred something in my stomach. I was screwed.

After my shower I changed in a clean pair of pajamas to try and keep the dress wrinkle free for as long as possible. I wrapped my hair in a towel and applied a face mask before going downstairs.

Hanna was waiting for me there, staring at me wide-eyed. "I'm on the internet."

"You have Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Of course you're on the internet."

"I don't mean that, and you know it. I'm on Perez Hilton."

I sighed. "I know. Cynthia sent me the link while you were in the shower. I just hope Henry's not mad."

She furrowed her brow. "Why would he be mad?"

I shrugged, sitting down next to her on the couch. "I don't know. What if he thinks we tipped the paparazzi off or anything?"

Hanna shook her head. "He won't. He was around us the whole time, and we didn't grab our phones once." She grinned deviously. "That only shows how hot you think he is. You didn't look away from him for a single second."

I blushed, but thanks to my mask, Hanna couldn't see that. "Ugh, shut up. Do I think he's hot? Well, yeah. He's Henry Cavill. Who doesn't think he's hot? But you're making it seem like I'm head over heels for him."

"Aren't you, though?"

I sighed, having to refrain from covering my face with my hands because I'd mess my mask up otherwise. "No. But I would be lying if I said I didn't like him at least a little bit."

Her grin returned, and this time it was triumphant. "I knew it. So, what are you gonna do about it?"

"What I always do. Never tell him how I feel while hoping that he makes the first move. You know I'm much too chicken to tell him I like him."

"How about I tell him for you?"

"How about you don't," I countered. "Him not knowing I like him works fine for me. Besides, I might never see him again, so I don't want to think about him too much or get my hopes up. For now, I'm just gonna wash my mask off and do my nails."

Hanna sighed. "You're so stubborn sometimes. No, forget sometimes. You're stubborn all the time."

I smiled sheepishly at her—or at least, I tried. The mask had hardened already. "Sorry. It's a trait I inherited from my parents."

"I know. Now go wash your mask off before you can't move your face anymore."

I tried to laugh without moving my face too much, making Hanna crack up. Before I knew it, the pictures and my potential feelings for Henry were forgotten as I burst into giggles, triggering even more laughter from Hanna. "Stop making me laugh," I hiccuped. "I can feel it cracking."

That only made her laugh harder and she shooed me up the stairs, unable to speak because of her laughter. She was still giggling when I came back, completely fresh-faced.

With the TV on in the background, Hanna and I did each other's nails, as was our tradition before a party. Once they were finally done and dried, hours had already passed. We cooked a quick pasta dish and whipped up an easy salad for dinner and then went upstairs to get dressed. I kept my makeup simple, but played my green eyes up with a bit of gold eye shadow and black eyeliner. My hair was in a fishtail braid—which took a really long time to do, considering the length of my hair; the straight, golden brown locks fell even below my waist.

We took a taxi to Colin's place, seeing as it probably wouldn't be too safe to drive ourselves home after most likely consuming copious amounts of alcohol. When we got to his house by the beach, some of our friends were already there. I made my rounds, saying hi to Cynthia, Keegan and Klarissa, and wished the birthday boy himself a happy birthday.

I smiled and gave him a tight hug, rocking him from side to side. "Happy birthday, babe!" I said, my smile widening as I watched him turn flustered.

"Thanks," he said, and before he could say anything else, Hanna engulfed him in an equally tight hug.

As she wished him a happy birthday, I sat down next to Keegan, who wrapped his arm around me and pulled me close, still holding his girlfriend's hand with his remaining free hand. "Hey, sis. What do I hear about a ménage a trois with a certain super hunk?"

I grimaced. Keegan had always been like a brother to me, and like an actual brother would, he had a serious lack of filter around me (seriously, I've heard things about him and Klarissa I can't ever un-hear). "It was hardly a ménage," I protested. "It was just lunch."

"Speaking of," Hanna said, nudging Colin in his side, "Henry Cavill wishes you a happy birthday."

He scoffed. "He did not."

"He did, actually," I said, knowing he was more likely to believe it if it came from me—Hanna had a tendency to tell tall tales. "He even helped us with your birthday present."

"Superman picked out my present?" Colin asked, his voice drenched in disbelief.

"Well, no, but he did show us the store," Hanna said, grabbing the wrapped print she'd propped up against the wall before she hugged him. She gave it to him to unwrap and sat down next to me.

Colin carefully pulled off the tape instead of just tearing the paper off. After he was done, he folded the paper and set it aside before turning the print around, revealing the picture of the wolf in the snow. His eyes widened slightly. "It's gorgeous. Thank you, Han."

"No problem," she said with a carefree grin.

Colin gently set the print aside and I handed him the wrapped coloring book first. He unwrapped it just as carefully as he had Hanna's gift, folding the bright blue wrapping paper and putting it atop the other wrapping paper. He took one look at the book and smiled. He turned a few pages. "These are gorgeous. Thank you, Jules."

I shrugged. "That one is just a joke, really. This one is your real gift," I said, and handed him the print.

He unwrapped it curiously, a little more eagerly now that he'd seen Hanna's gift. When he saw it, though, his reaction was entirely different. He stared at it, slack-jawed, his hands starting to shake a little. "Oh my God," he whispered nearly inaudibly. He looked up at me, and I noticed with surprise that his eyes were watery. "Oh my God," he said again, louder this time.

I smiled. "You're welcome. I couldn't believe it when I saw it standing there, but I knew I just had to get it for you."

Colin set the print down with great care and then turned to me to give me a tight hug. I laughed, awkwardly patting him on the back as he stood in front of me, me still sitting down. "Thank you so much."

"You're welcome, Colly."

When he sat back down, Cynthia said, "Okay, now I really want to know what's up with you two and your lunch with Henry Cav—"

She was interrupted by the doorbell ringing. Colin stood up, even though he looked like he kind of wanted to hear an answer too, and went to open the door. When he returned, the last four guests followed him into the living room. I said hello to Ryley, Braeden, Alfie, and Shaye, thankful for the distraction they provided.

When they'd each given Colin his presents and wished him a happy birthday, Braeden said, "All right, let's get these drinking games started." His blue eyes sparkled excitedly.

"Wait, hold up," Cynthia said. "Juliette isn't going to get away with this so easily. I want answers."

Ryley furrowed his brow in confusion. "Answers to what?"

"Answers to why the hell she and Hanna were having lunch with Henry Cavill."

"Henry Cavill played Superman and that dude in Immortals, right?" Klarissa asked.

I nodded, trying not to grimace as everyone stared. Hanna seemed far less affected, probably because she didn't actually like him the way I did. "Uh, yeah, he did. He also stars in the movie I auditioned for. I screen tested with him last week, and today we bumped into each other. He helped Hanna and me to find a present for Colin, and then we had lunch. That's all."

Hanna scoffed and shook her head. "'That's all,' she says. You forgot to tell them about what happened at Harvey's."

"Harvey's? He came to your work?" Alfie asked, his eyebrows raised.

"Yeah, but he didn't know I worked there. He was really nice about it all, though."

"Yeah, if 'really nice' means giving you a five hundred dollar tip and totally protecting your honor when a drunk guy harassed you."

"Oh my God, he did that?" Shaye asked. Her brown eyes were so wide I was afraid they were gonna pop out. "Holy shit. Talk about living the fucking dream."

Braeden raised his eyebrow at her. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that Henry Cavill is fucking hot and he seems to be into her, from what I hear," she said, not caring at all that she'd just told her boyfriend that she thought someone else is 'fucking hot.'

"Not only that, he also gave you a five hundred dollar tip?" Ryley asked. "I'll drink to that." And he moved to sit at the table, opening up a bottle of vodka.

We joined him there as he started filling ten glasses with vodka and Coke. Keegan started shuffling a deck of cards. "Shall we start with high low again?"

Hanna groaned. "No... That game screwed me over way too hard last time."

Klarissa laughed. "Who knows, maybe you'll hit a streak of luck this time."

Hanna reluctantly agreed and Keegan placed the deck in the middle of the table, the cards facing down. He grabbed the first card and turned it, laying it down next to the deck. It was a seven of clubs. "Who wants to start?"

"I think Colin should start," Hanna said, "considering it's his birthday."

"Are you kidding me? That is one of the suckiest cards to start with."

Hanna grinned. "I know."

Colin sighed, but still agreed to go first. "Fine... Everyone gets three turns, right?" He studied the deck of cards, hesitantly reaching to grab the top card. "Um... Higher," he guessed, and turned the card. It was a three of hearts. "Dammit." He took a sip of his vodka soda and glared at Hanna. "I hate you."

"You love me and you know it."

We went clockwise, so Braeden was up next. "Higher," he said, and got a ten of spades. "Lower." A five of hearts. "Higher." The last card he turned was a jack of hearts. "Yes!" He poked his tongue out at Colin, who just rolled his eyes.

Shaye was up next, who guessed wrong at her second try. Then Hanna was up, who, to her own surprise, guessed right all three times.

It was my turn then, and I studied the eight of diamonds thoughtfully. "Lower," I said hesitantly, and turned the next card. "A nine of clubs, are you kidding me?" I called out. I pouted and took a sip of my drink. The alcohol burned my throat a little, but not in an unpleasant way.

Within an hour, all ten of us were drunk. Colin had cranked up the music, the cards already forgotten on the table. Hanna climbed up on a chair and held her hands up in the air. "Okay, guys, I can do this!"

"Do what?" I asked, a sliver of concern making its way through my drunken haze. Hanna had always been a lightweight and tended to get a little adventurous when she was drunk.

"Somersault off this chair onto the floor," she said, showing me a bright grin.

I hastened my way over to her and wrapped my arms around her hips, throwing her over my shoulder and carefully (or as carefully as possible in my drunken state) set her down on the floor. "Oh, no, you don't," I told her sternly. "And you never will because I don't want you to get hurt, okay?"

"Okay, Mom," she told me, and burst out in giggles, making me laugh, too.

Then Alfie grabbed me by the hips, handed me a glass of scotch, and promptly started dancing with me. "That dress looks absolutely amazing on you," he said into my ear. "Like, wow." I laughed, downed the scotch in one go, wrapped my arms around his neck and started dancing along with him.

By the time the party finally started breaking up, it was four a.m., the alcohol was nearly all gone, and everyone was as drunk as they could be without puking their guts out. All in all, it was a pretty great party.

Hanna and I took a cab back home, crashing almost immediately. I'd had the mind to remove my makeup and hang my dress up as neatly as possible, though, before I crawled into my bed in my underwear and heels still on.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Saturday, March 12, 2019

'Cause everything, everything makes me think of you / And everything, everything that I wanna do / I know you can't say no when you look at me / I want you, so tell me—

"Hello?" I asked groggily, my eyes too sensitive to look at the caller ID.

"Juliette? This is Ryan Zachary."

I shot up in bed, one of my heels falling onto the floor. The sound resonated painfully in my head, but at the moment I couldn't really care. This was the director of If You Love Someone. Within minutes, maybe even seconds, I would know if I had the part of Amelia Brenner or not. "Oh, hello, Ryan," I said, trying to sound as calm and collected as possible, as if my future wasn't possibly about to change in a few short moments.

"So you must know I'm calling about whether or not you got the part," he said, and I nodded as I held my breath, even though he couldn't see me. "Your performance during the screen test with Henry was truly great, but there were other girls who gave a good performance, too."

I pressed my lips together and shut my eyes tightly, trying not to cry. I wouldn't be getting the part, just like I was trying to tell everyone who wanted to convince me otherwise. I just wasn't good enough to play in the big movies.

"However," Ryan said, "good isn't great. So that, and the fact that Henry thought you were definitely the best in his opinion, made us choose you for the part of Amelia Brenner."

I couldn't respond. I'd been so ready to be told no that I hadn't at all prepared for the possibility of hearing a yes. It was like all my systems had shut down, leaving me looking like an idiot as I pressed the phone tightly to my ear, my mouth hanging open. I actually had the part? I, Juliette Morrison, would play in a big budget movie?

"Juliette? Are you still there?"

"Uh, yeah, I am. Sorry, I just... Oh my God. I hadn't expected this."

Ryan laughed. "Henry already told me to expect a reaction like this. It's okay. I just want you to know that you really are the right girl for the part. In every single audition, you delivered your lines perfectly. You have great comedic timing but you can do the emotionally challenging scenes as well. And not only that, you have great chemistry with Henry, which is what we were looking for."

"Uh, wow, thank you. So much, really. I... I don't really know what to say."

With another laugh, Ryan said, "You don't have to say anything. Just enjoy it for now, and when the time comes to film, just make me glad I chose you, okay?"

"Okay."

"Good. Filming starts in Miami in a month, and we'll arrange the transfer, so you won't have to worry about that. I'll call your agent about the contract negotiations, and she'll get back to you on that."

"Okay, thank you. I'll... I'll see you in a month, I suppose."

"Yes, you will. Enjoy your free time while you still can. I have a feeling you'll be very busy starting next month."

Ryan hung up, and I sat there for several moments before it even occurred to me to put the phone down instead of keeping it pressed to my ear. I stood up to race over to Hanna's room so I could tell her, but the sharp stab of pain in my head and black spots dancing in front of my eyes convinced me to grab some Advil first. Very slowly.

"I hate hangovers," I muttered to myself as I filled a glass with water. The journey down the stairs had been torture. I swallowed the Advil with a sip of water and took a few minutes to finish the whole glass, drinking slowly. Once it was finally empty, I put it in the sink and slowly made my way up the stairs again.

I knocked on Hanna's half opened door and entered her room. She was sprawled horizontally on her bed, her dress still on. Her hair was in a bun so high that it hung over her forehead. She looked exactly like you'd imagine a girl who just had a really good night would look. The sight of her made me giggle. The sound made her shift in her sleep, but she didn't wake up. I hesitantly approached her, knowing I'd be risking her wrath if I woke her up, but I hoped the news I had would soften the blow.

I sat down on the edge of her bed and gently shook her shoulder. "Go away," she croaked.

"But I have something to tell you."

"Tell it to the crazy party I have going on in my head right now." She grabbed a pillow and tugged it over her head.

"But it's really important."

"No."

I couldn't help but laugh. "It's about the movie."

She stiffened at that before she removed the pillow and slowly sat up, blanching at the glaring sunlight. "What about the movie?" she asked slowly, almost suspiciously.

I grinned. "I got the part."

"You're not just messing with me because I teased you about getting it for sure, right?"

I shook my head, then flinched a little at the movement. "No. I really got it. I'm going to play in a big budget movie."

"Oh my God!" Hanna yelled, and threw her arms around me. "Ow..."

I chuckled softly, gently pulling away from her. "Are you as hung-over as I am?"

"Quite possibly even more," she said, squeezing her eyes shut and massaging her forehead with her fingers.

"Need me to get you some Advil?"

"Get me two," she said. She looked up at me again and grinned. "And then we're gonna celebrate for real."

I laughed. "Deal."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lyrics at the start of the chapter are Sometimes by Ron Pope.

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