cherry wine

“ i feel like every bone in my body is in the wrong place, right now. ” never one to truly exercise, the last place she’d imagine herself in would be a hot yoga class. but spending forty five minutes looking at the instructor in yoga pants did seem like a great idea. in retrospect, she wishes she had picked something more mild. “ how —– how can these people even do this? and for fun? ”

“kinda  early,  isn’t  it?”  corey  wonders,  beguiling  and  smiling  quietly.  the  question  is  inherently  sardonic,  as  evidenced  by  the  styrofoam  cup  of  coffee  she’s  got  clasped  in  one  hand,  smoking  cigarette  in  the  other.  sunglasses  sit  tucked  on  the  crown  of  her  head,  useless  to  the  dawning  sun  slipping  up  over  the  horizon.  “you  waking  up  or  only  just  going  to  bed?”  she  leans  in,  playful  as  she  looks  them  over  with  an  assessing  eye.  “– ooh,  caught  you  in  the  last  stretch  of  a  walk  of  shame?”

she’s startled by the other’s voice. she was far too busy playing animal crossing on her baby pink nintendo switch to have noticed she hadn’t been alone as she began to walk up the steps of her apartment building. after her workplace had extended their hours to cater yet another hollywood event this week, she, unfortunately, had to stay overtime to make up for the kitchen being short-staffed once again. “the latter. apparently, no one ever sleeps in l.a.” she was due for a nice hot shower and a big, fat nap before her shift began again. she could only dream. after all, how could she pass up a chat with corey? 

         “can’t even get a fucking cameo in a wright movie.” baz tosses his napkin onto his plate and tips his head back, pinching the bridge of his nose. he knows that he’s far too privileged to be bitching about not getting a role, but fuck, it’s getting old. he leans back into his seat and looks at the other across from him, shaking his head slightly. “am i gonna have to start applying to shit on the cw to start getting semi-serious jobs? is that how my career takes a nosedive?”

         “Oooh Mami that sound painful, are you okay?” She questions, brow raised. “I once spilt a bowl of hot ramen down my stomach, that seriously hurt like a mother effer.” She shakes her head. “And for the record— I don’t eat caviar, it’s g r o s s.” 

luci mostly still felt like a fish out of water in los angeles sometimes, having grown up in new york, he was used to the hustle and bustle there. and l.a. was still busy, but in a different way. and as he stood in line for a green juice after a session with his new trainer, he thought that maybe he was starting to fit in more than he thought. he voiced this to the person beside him, “i don’t think i’ve ever been this l.a.” 

hollywood luncheons were, quite possibly, the thing henry hated the most. well, if you exclude polyester, maybe. tired from all the kissing ass done by people lesser than him, he’s a permanent fixture at the bar. as he finishes another old fashioned, henry turns to the nearest figure. “ god, if i see one more blonde skinny wannabe margot robbie bitch i’m shooting myself in the head. ” the drink is replenished, like magic, and he brings it to his lips. “ and if you’re here about the elizabeth short biopic, we’re not greenlighting it. ”

“ okay, but has one ever burned the left side of your lip? trust me, it hits different. ” he was half-joking. he’d eaten a lot of hot pockets in his twenty seven years of existence ; enough to argue the cause.  “ though,” he began to whisper, looking around them to make the secretive ruse more believable, “ i’d be careful about what you say about caviar. those rich enough to buy that stuff are rich enough to hire a hitman. ” 

it  wasn’t  unusual  for  people  to  approach  jill  for  a  career  boost  but  in  reality ,  she  didn’t  know  how  much  help  she  was  anymore .  a  hollywood  has - been  with  a  job  that  made  her  miserable ,  she  still  couldn’t  let  go  of  the  familiarity  that  kept  her  afloat .  if  she  weren’t  jillian  davis :  academy  award  winner  ,  she  was  nobody …  “  i’ll  see  what  i  can  do .”  she  sounded  less  than  enthusiastic  but  felt  used  as  it  was .

maitê had hoped she hadn’t been too transparent in seeking the other’s advice on a work-related matter. truthfully, she had wanted to go to someone who had actual experience in hollywood as an actor and not someone behind the scenes or calling the shots in the background either; jillian davis had fit the bill. “ you will ? thank you, jillian. i owe you one. ” she could tell the older actress had probably been asked this before, judging by her tone. regardless, she was still grateful she’d taken time out of her day to listen to her. “ you have no idea how good it feels to have someone who gets it in this industry. ”

esther frowned as she listened to maitê lament about her agent and the roles she’d been offered, “i mean, you are sexy, but not in, like, a degrading, gross way…” she paused, tilting her head slightly and wishing for, even a moment, that she ever thought before she spoke, “i’m not saying- fuck, what i mean is-” she let out a breath, “i’m really sorry that happens to you. hollywood can be so ugly. you’re so much more than that stereotype, mai, really.” 

imogen could only wish for a hot pocket to burn the roof of her mouth. at the moment the only thing in her refrigerator was moldy cheese, a jar of minced garlic and soy milk. nothing spectacular or appetizing. “i can’t think of anything better than a hot pocket,” she paused. “maybe pizza rolls. i hate when i have to go to events and it’s all food i don’t know the names of and can’t pronounce.” 

                 “     love   the   confidence .     you   definitely   are   too   talented   to   be   dealing   with   the   same   stale   white   men   who’ve   been   running   shit   since   films   were   in   𝚋𝚕𝚊𝚌𝚔   𝚊𝚗𝚍   𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚝𝚎 .     ”     the   brunette   took   a   small   sip   of   her   latte     - —     she’d   been   working   with   the   same   brand   of   bullshit   since   she   moved   to   l . a .   herself .     she’d   gotten   lucky .     and   she   was   a   𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐦   𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫  in   spreading   her   success   to   other   people   facing   that   same   struggle .     “  nothing   i’m   working   on   personally   will   be   ready   to   cast   for   the   next   year .    there   are   a   few   things   we’re   producing   at   hira   nur   that   you   might   want   to   audition   for ,   though .     i’ll   get   you   in   the   room ,   if   you   like .   ”

        meredith looks at the other with a puzzled look– truth be told, she’d be zoning out through most of bettina’s words, only catching onto a select few. hot pocket. dangerous. caviar. brave. she finds herself wondering what exactly she’s missed before she slips into what she hopes is a convincing smile. “oh, yeah, for sure. i live for danger.”

“y’know… i went grocery shopping the other day- we have plenty of non-hot pocket meal options. you’re a chef, b!” esther told her- pretty hypocritical considering she’d had a hot pocket for lunch, “did you put ice on it?” she didn’t know if that would help a burnt lip, but it seemed like a good enough answer.