Alice in La La Land Read Online Free Page B
Author: Sophie Lee
herself, she felt confident she'd done some interesting work.
Alice slid the remaining pancake round her plate to sop up the last remnants of butter and syrup. Her jeans' pocket started to buzz.
Rebekah flashed on the caller ID. Alice's heart jumped. Could they have decided already? She cautiously answered the call.
'Hey, Alice,' Rebekah said, her voice casual. 'How are you?'
'I'm well, thank you. These silver dollar pancakes sure are tasty.'
'Oh my God, Alice, you are so eccentric. It's dinner time, not breakfast!'
'Uh-huh, well, I needed to cheer myself up after the audition,' she said, letting the word hang.
'Oh really? That's funny, I don't know why you'd want to cheer yourself up because they loved it.'
'What?'
'You're still in the mix, Alice, and as far as I know it's just you and the other British Name I mentioned! I know someone over at HBO who gave me the low-down but it's all hush-hush, okay?'
'Oh my goodness, that's so wonderful!' Alice beamed at the waitress as she cleared her plate away. 'Gee, I thought it would probably go to the Kitten, or the other nice girl!'
'The kitten?'
'Never mind, it's not important, that's great. So when will we know?'
'I've told them they need to move fast as you're optioned for something else, so it should be real soon.'
'Really? Are you sure you should have lied to them like that? I have bugger-all on, as far as I know.'
'Relax, Alice. Order yourself some other breakfast food and celebrate. Oh, and maybe don't say "bugger" while you're here. It can be a little shocking.'
Alice smiled, sat back and looked out the window of the diner to the parking lot. Two swarthy parking attendants in dark green jackets dashed between expensive SUVs. It took Alice a couple of minutes to notice that every single driver emerged with either a cell phone clamped to their ear or was tapping messages into their Blackberry with an earpiece attached. Nobody seemed to be merely handing their keys to a valet. Apparently, time was a precious commodity in Los Angeles. It was as if people, in their eagerness to get ahead, felt they were being underproductive if they were not multitasking at every available moment. Mel's Diner's valet and waiting staff were probably all actors too, waiting for that special break. Alice thought it amazing that even a '50s diner on Sunset had a valet service.
'Anything else?' asked her waitress. She had short black hair and several facial piercings. Her nametag read 'Betty' but Alice figured her name was not as her tag indicated. It was probably Cheyenne or Deniqua.
'No, all done. That was lovely. I'll get the bill.'
'The cheque?' said the girl, sounding bored.
'Sorry, the cheque. There's a couple of cats and a swimsuit model waiting for me at home.'
'Lucky you,' Betty muttered, and raised a pierced eyebrow.
Yes, lucky me, Alice agreed, and made her way to the cash register.
Alice drove the Daewoo down Sunset Boulevard. Lights twinkled and ritzy clothes shops beckoned. She passed the billboard of an ageing Hollywood diva straddling a chair and wondered whether Fenella Farmer looked as airbrushed in real life as she did in the poster. She remembered reading an interview with the actress where she'd said that she needed to hang upside down like a bat to preserve her looks. Even though Fenella was rapidly approaching fifty, she was still showing off her assets in size-nothing clothes that would be better suited to a teenager. The pressure to maintain her looks must occupy her every waking moment, Alice mused. In her blissful state she felt a rush of affection for Madame Fenella and smiled up at her shiny plastic features.
Alice turned right down San Vicente and headed toward the Miracle Mile. It was becoming chilly and she wound up her window. She fiddled with the heater setting and turned the radio to a hip-hop and R&B station that seemed to play only three tunes on high rotation.
Alice shivered as she waited for the heat to kick in. The sooner she could get
Alice slid the remaining pancake round her plate to sop up the last remnants of butter and syrup. Her jeans' pocket started to buzz.
Rebekah flashed on the caller ID. Alice's heart jumped. Could they have decided already? She cautiously answered the call.
'Hey, Alice,' Rebekah said, her voice casual. 'How are you?'
'I'm well, thank you. These silver dollar pancakes sure are tasty.'
'Oh my God, Alice, you are so eccentric. It's dinner time, not breakfast!'
'Uh-huh, well, I needed to cheer myself up after the audition,' she said, letting the word hang.
'Oh really? That's funny, I don't know why you'd want to cheer yourself up because they loved it.'
'What?'
'You're still in the mix, Alice, and as far as I know it's just you and the other British Name I mentioned! I know someone over at HBO who gave me the low-down but it's all hush-hush, okay?'
'Oh my goodness, that's so wonderful!' Alice beamed at the waitress as she cleared her plate away. 'Gee, I thought it would probably go to the Kitten, or the other nice girl!'
'The kitten?'
'Never mind, it's not important, that's great. So when will we know?'
'I've told them they need to move fast as you're optioned for something else, so it should be real soon.'
'Really? Are you sure you should have lied to them like that? I have bugger-all on, as far as I know.'
'Relax, Alice. Order yourself some other breakfast food and celebrate. Oh, and maybe don't say "bugger" while you're here. It can be a little shocking.'
Alice smiled, sat back and looked out the window of the diner to the parking lot. Two swarthy parking attendants in dark green jackets dashed between expensive SUVs. It took Alice a couple of minutes to notice that every single driver emerged with either a cell phone clamped to their ear or was tapping messages into their Blackberry with an earpiece attached. Nobody seemed to be merely handing their keys to a valet. Apparently, time was a precious commodity in Los Angeles. It was as if people, in their eagerness to get ahead, felt they were being underproductive if they were not multitasking at every available moment. Mel's Diner's valet and waiting staff were probably all actors too, waiting for that special break. Alice thought it amazing that even a '50s diner on Sunset had a valet service.
'Anything else?' asked her waitress. She had short black hair and several facial piercings. Her nametag read 'Betty' but Alice figured her name was not as her tag indicated. It was probably Cheyenne or Deniqua.
'No, all done. That was lovely. I'll get the bill.'
'The cheque?' said the girl, sounding bored.
'Sorry, the cheque. There's a couple of cats and a swimsuit model waiting for me at home.'
'Lucky you,' Betty muttered, and raised a pierced eyebrow.
Yes, lucky me, Alice agreed, and made her way to the cash register.
Alice drove the Daewoo down Sunset Boulevard. Lights twinkled and ritzy clothes shops beckoned. She passed the billboard of an ageing Hollywood diva straddling a chair and wondered whether Fenella Farmer looked as airbrushed in real life as she did in the poster. She remembered reading an interview with the actress where she'd said that she needed to hang upside down like a bat to preserve her looks. Even though Fenella was rapidly approaching fifty, she was still showing off her assets in size-nothing clothes that would be better suited to a teenager. The pressure to maintain her looks must occupy her every waking moment, Alice mused. In her blissful state she felt a rush of affection for Madame Fenella and smiled up at her shiny plastic features.
Alice turned right down San Vicente and headed toward the Miracle Mile. It was becoming chilly and she wound up her window. She fiddled with the heater setting and turned the radio to a hip-hop and R&B station that seemed to play only three tunes on high rotation.
Alice shivered as she waited for the heat to kick in. The sooner she could get
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