Julianne: Oh, believe me. I was terrified...
Rose listened intently.
Julianne: ... every after a show, I'd hyperventilate for hours. Sometimes, I'd even pass out.
Rose: Really?
Julianne: Mmm... hmmm. If it wasn't for my husband encouraging me, I would've acting a long time ago.
Rose: (gasp) Really?
There was something to be said about her honest interest in Julianne Hunter.
Julianne: Really.
She took a good long sip of her freshly squeezed drink.
Julianne: Thanks for the juice, by the way. It tastes great.
Rose blushed.
Rose: It's no problem, really.
Julianne: Hmm. Anyway....
Julianne went on to talk about her troubles becoming a movie star.
Rose: That sounds horrible!
Julianne: I know. I had to do that many big movies all in one year. Needless to say, I was stressed beyond belief.
Rose covered her mouth completely and winced loudly.
Julianne: It was absolutely terrible.
Her eyes faded away as she seemingly reminisced about those days. It was a long time ago, and she had long since quit the profession.
Julianne: Between the overworking and the constant changes, I found myself overwhelmed and almost quit.
Rose: Oh....
Julianne's tone changed to something more serious towards the end.
Julianne: Buuuut.... I made it through that and did all those movies, giving me enough money to do quite basically whatever I want.
Rose: Really? Whatever you want?
Julianne: Mm... hmmm. Showbiz may be tricky, but it sure pays big.
Rose: Oh, how much?
Julianne: Oh... let's just say that... it's not a number most people can deal with.
Rose: Really?
Julianne: Mmm... hmm...
Once she'd explained how much money she earned from one movie premiere alone, a surprised coutenance was left on a face.
But that face was Julianne Hunter.
Julianne: Hmmm?
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
Rose: Hmm?
Julianne: Oh, sorry. I'm used to humans being scared of such numbers.
Rose: Oh, that's not it.
Julianne: Hmm?
Rose: It's just...
And Rose went on to explain that her own parents were loaded, much to Julianne's surprise.
Julianne: I... see....
Curiouser and curiouser. Just who was Rose Wright?
And their day went like this for a while as they ate lunch. And once they'd finished eating....
Julianne: Take a break. No need to leave so soon.
Rose: Really?
Julianne: Mmm... hmm. Take all the time you need.
Rose, according to her instructions, sat on the couch and, on Julianne's suggestion, started to watch TV.
While Julianne was in the bathroom, Rose found a cooking channel, much to her delight.
The speaker was Mrs Viola Dupree.
Viola: Baking a red velvet cake is easy with a few simple steps.
Rose was immediately engaged.
Name: Viola Dupree
Age: 30
Description: Lean mean cooking machine, apparently
Occupation: TV cooking channel speaker and cook
Fact: She's allergic to raisins.
Rose: Red velvet cake....
She intently stared at the TV screen, watching Viola's every move, as she energetically stated the ingredients.
Viola: All you need is, baking soda, sugar, butter, eggs, salt, cocoa powder, butter mik, red food colouring, vanilla, vinegar, all purpose flour, cream cheese and powdered sugar. All those ingredients should show up on the screen right here.
As she said, the ingredients conveniently popped up on the right side of the screen, where they could be easily read.
As Rose continued to watch this... Julianne returned from the bathroom, only to find the teenagers eyes glued to the screen.
Julianne: Rose?
Rose: (Surprised) Oh, sorry, Mrs Hunter.
Julianne's eyes turned to the TV screen.
Julianne: Red velvet cake, huh?
Rose: Ummm... yeah. It looks really tasty.
Julianne: It does... doesn't it.
The pair continued to watch in silence as Viola carefully stacked the layers of the cake, leaving frosting in between the layers.
It was then that an odd suggestion entered Julianne Hunters mind.
Julianne: How about we make one?
Rose: Huh?
The suggestion was a huge shock to Rose.
Julianne: It can't be that hard.
Rose: But... it could take a lot of time.
Julianne: It's no problem, Rose. I've got time. After all, (smiling) it could be fun.
Naturally, Rose didn't want to be a burden and overstay her welcome, but in this case, with Julianne Hunter so willing to cook with her, ...
And so they started.
Julianne: You know, I bet Max would like some of this cake.
Rose: Really?!
Those words only served to further motivate Rose to continue baking with Max's mother.
And, perhaps one would call it a feminine instinct, the pair did not stop there.
Viola's channel was still on. And so were other cooking channels.
This culminated in... Rose and Julianne Hunter cooking... for a very long time. Several hours, in fact.
Neither one looked at the clock. Both simply enjoyed themselves.
Perhaps because Rose was a lone alien before that day. Perhaps because Julianne Hunter wanted someone to cook with.
The reasons were up in the air, but common sense finally returned to Rose once she'd noticed that it was getting dark.
Rose: Oh... Mrs Hunter?
Julianne: Yes.
There was a black forest cake on the table and a white forest cake in the oven. There was also a bit of a mess in the kithen.
Rose: It's getting dark.
Julianne: Hmm... It's ok. You can stay in the guest room.
Rose: R... really?
Julianne: Absolutely.
Rose was shocked to hear that, after all, that would be the second time she'd been in her house that week.
But she was also happy, after all, she had a friend.
Rose: (smiling to herself) Ok.
It was a few more hours before Rose and Julianne finished cooking, or perhaps it would be better to say, decided it was time to go to bed.
Julianne was the first to go to bed, surprising herself again by leaving an awake Rose in her house, alone and unguarded.
Julianne: (thinking: My, how things have changed.)
As she fell asleep, she heard a gentle "Good night, Mrs Hunter," from Rose, to which she returned, "Good night , Rose."
One thing did leave her slightly bothered, though. Where was Max?
He sent her a text, saying he'd be back later that night, but she couldn't help but worry a little.
Julianne: (thinking: It's fine. After all, it's not that late. It's only 8pm.) (sigh) (What could that boy be up to now?)