THAT LOVE IS LIKE A STAR !

"well  ---  the  last  job  i  had,  i  got  a  solid  nine  an  hour."  that  was  when  he  was  like,  twelve  and  also  it  was  a  lemonade  stand,  provided  by  production.  obviously  it  wasn't  real  ---  but  it  was  real  to  him  ---  and  even  then,  doesn't  know  how  to  bargain  for  shit.  "dunno.  how  much  you  willin'  to  give?  i'd  say  twenty  an  hour,  at  the  lowest."

mei's brow rose for a moment at the low numbers, unaware of his last job being from when he was just a kid. "nine... twenty... thousand?" she asked with a tilted head, and then pretending to write down some notes as if she were interviewing him. "i'll need to speak with hr and see if that's within our budget." she responded in a serious tone but clearly messing around.

       leon woke up at the most random time that afternoon. his sleeping schedule was truly out of sorts. so he quickly got dressed and decided to grab a quick snack from the grocery store. he went to grab some cheez-its, one of his F A V O R I T E S , when he bumped into someone familiar. eyes shot up to look at her and he smiled. " no, definitely not, " he said. " you look like you haven't slept in days, ruby, is everything okay? " he said, clearly knowing who she was. " should i be worried ? "

it was a weird convenience that ruby's ex (and now close friend) just happened to be at the grocery store, especially while she was in this state. hearing his question, they quickly nodded their head in an attempt to reassure leon, but she knew that he could see right through her. "yeah, just adjusting to a new family member.." they responded a bit vaguely.

she    doesn't    go    out    often    ---    always    paranoid    in    a    self    centered    kind    of    way    that    she'd    be    mobbed,    recognized    or    one    or    the    other.    briar    doesn't    mind    it,    usually,    but    on    days    like    today    it    can    be    the    annoyance    that    sets    her    over    the    edge.    grocery    store    trips    were    usually    done    by    an    assistant    or    not    at    all    (    doordash    or    whatever    is    just    not    working    or    taking    her    cards.    it's    sick.    )    and    today    of    all    days    is    one    briar    doesn't    want    to    be    out,    but    given    no    choice.    the    voice    catches    her    out    of    her    own    thoughts    in    front    of    the    cat    food,    briar    glancing    over    at    the    younger.    "no    ---    you're    fine."    a    once    over    has    an    eyebrow    raising,    almost    concerned    at    the    dishevelment.    "are    you,    like,    good?"

ruby was so focused on trying to figure out which cat food brand was the best that she almost missed the other's question. it took them a moment of silence before popping her head back up, raising a brow in an attempt to catch what she had just said. once her brain finally connected two and two, she remembered. "oh, yeah.. just haven't gotten much sleep. new family member." they responded quickly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

       " i'm happy that the series is coming back, but damn, it's only been like a few years, " he joked. " it feels like the 2010s again, i swear. new hunger games, harry potter series, twilight most likley announced soon, " he sighed. " i'm honestly so happy for rick, though. he finally gets to have the series that he D E S E R V E S on screen. i'm for sure going to give it some love, " he smiled.

"i feel like recently-- for the last five years or whatever-- it's just been remakes on top of remakes. normally they kinda wear me out, but i'm excited about this one." ruby agreed with their former co-star, a soft smile dancing on her lips. "it's just gonna be on disney plus, right?"

shoulders reaching up towards her ears sarcasm dripping from her every word, " i don't like to talk about it too often, can't have people thinking that i actually work for a living. what would the tabloids say ? " phone already in hand as she shot off a text, " it's no problem, in fact, it's already done. just make sure you treat this human like gold a good assistant is hard to find. " already she was getting texts back, " alright so a few questions; are there benefits, do you expect them to do your errands like dry cleaning and this person wants to know if they have to come with you on vacations. "

a playful smirk appeared on mei's face at isa's sarcastic joke, only for her eyes to widen a bit at the responses that isa received within seconds. it always baffled her how quickly she was able to make connections in la. without hesitation, she shot back answers. "yes, no, and only for business trips. i don't like when other people deal with my dry cleaning anyway, i have a specific way i like it being done." she responded, secretly hoping that she wouldn't have to look for much longer for the perfect candidate.

“trust me, having an assistant is a GODSEND.” marlene responded with a turn of her head, dark eyes examining the younger woman by her side. “oh no, darling, you couldn’t afford me.” her words were spoken in jest, an amused chuckle escape her blush stained lips. “although, i’m more than happy to aide you in your search for an assistant. i know of a few — only the BEST of the best, of course.”

mei genuinely chuckled at marlene's response to hiring her; making mei actually laugh was no small feat. "i wouldn't want to put you through the horrors of these client emails anyway-- you don't deserve that." she responded back in a light tone before raising a brow in interest. "you have no idea how grateful i would be if you did that. i can't seem to find anyone who's competent enough to deal with this workload."

kennedy: hiiiii kennedy: what're you doing tonight? kennedy: i'm bored!!!

he's  never  assisted  anything  in  his  life  ---  and  it's  probably  for  the  better.  much  like  every  phone  he's  had,  things  end  up  broken  on  the  floor.  "depends  ---  how  much  would  i  get  paid,  and  can  i  paint  everything  neon  green?  it's  a  conversation  starter  of  a  color."

mei's eyes widened in horror at zac at the idea of painting gorgeous, historical yet timeless homes... neon green. of course, after a quick moment of realizing that he was hopefully joking, a nervous chuckle escaped her lips. "unless we're redesigning nickelodeon studios, i don't think so. how much are you bargaining for?" she asked semi-jokingly.