Hopes and Dreams...down the drain(Natalie tag any)

[Natalie Webb]

Natalie couldn't really believe it. She'd really thought that this was it...everything would work out. She knew that moving to LA would be stressful on her relationship with her boyfriend...but she had really thought they'd make it.

Texas had been so different. Natalie had been a star there. She'd was popular in school...dating the quarterback of the football team. Doing commercials here and there...people thought she was so great. Then moving to LA. She'd done a made for TV movie...it was supposed to be her big break. But the movie hadn't aired yet and she hadn't picked up anything since. She was mostly okay with that though...Natalie was idealistic. She knew it would work out. Once the movie aired things would change.

It was her boyfriend that was upsetting her. He'd broken up with her. Not only broken up with her...but had done it with a text message. Tears stung Natalie's eyes and she just didn't want to go home. She rode her bike towards Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica. It wasn't too far from home after all. She let her sunglasses hide her tears as she walked along, looking in the different stores, wondering if buying something could possibly make her feel better. Could anything make her feel better? Maybe she was only 15, but she'd thought that she was going to marry him. Stupid, she supposed.

A tear slid down her cheek and she wiped it away as she sat down on a bench and took in a deep breath. She sat there for a few minutes before someone came and sat down next to her on the bench. She looked away. Normally friendly, Natalie really wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone. More tears slid down her cheeks and she wiped them away with the back of her hand.

[Bree Marcus]

Bree stepped out of a small gift shoppe and looked down the street. She had told the servants she would be out for the evening and not to plan dinner so she was looking for someplace appealing for dinner. Her eyes lit on a rather pathetic looking figure sitting on a nearby bench. Not sure why or what she could do, Bree moved to sit beside her and managed not to get offended when the girl turned away from her.

"I just spent way too much money on bath things. I find that when I can't handle stuff, spending money helps me to at least keep myself afloat. Do you have a favorite scent? I really like cucumber-honeydew. I always feel fresh and alert while I am wearing it," Bree continued, babbling in hopes something would strike a chord with the younger girl.

"It looks like it might rain pretty soon," Bree said quietly. "I was thinking about going into that cafe across the street for dinner and I really hate to eat alone. Would you like to join me? Oh... I'm sorry. I am Bree Marcus. You look vaguely familiar, do you go to Gould too?" She looked around Bree's age maybe a year younger.

Bree didn't normally go around inviting virtual strangers to dinner, but there was something about Natalie that seemed like she might have a grief that called to Bree's own rather ambivalent losses.

[Natalie Webb]

Natalie heard the voice of the person sitting next to her but did not recognize it. However the babbling was, well, endearing. It sounded like something Natalie would do if the situation was reversed. Natalie was a really good person...genuinely nice, and always helpful when she found a way to be. She was by no means popular at her new school, Gould, she was still too new, but even though she'd been the creme'de'la'creme at her high school in Texas, she still had always been nice to everyone no matter what. Really, Natalie was too sweet for her own good.

She smiled, despite herself. "I'm so sorry," she said, "I really didn't mean to be rude," she told the other girl as she turned to face her, glad that her heart shaped sunglasses hid her red teary eyes. "My boyfriend back home...well...he...I guess he didn't like the long distance thing. He's dating someone...well...someone who I thought was a friend I guess," she admitted. She had a little trouble getting the words out. She really sounded pathetic.

"Bree Marcus," she said. "I know you. You invited me to your party," she said with another smile that surprised her, remembering the invitation she'd received from that really cute boy Tyler, earlier that day. "Thank you so much." Her southern twang wasn't over bearing but it was there. "I know we don't really know each other too much...me being rather new and all...but I really appreciate it. I will be there," Natalie said, offering the other girl another smile, even if it was a little forced, only due to the circumstances.

"I will go to dinner with you," Natalie said nodding. "Again...I'm sorry. I'm really not myself today. I guess this thing...was well...rather unexpected. I knew that moving away would change things....but I guess I thought there were things that wouldn't change too...then they did and..." Natalie cut off her words, wiping another tear away. "I promise I'll try and be more cheerful," she said.

[Bree Marcus]

After hearing why Natalie was so dejected, Bree was doubly glad she had stopped. "Well I think that is terrible. Men! They are so terribly selfish! Well at least most of them," she said with a fierce frown. "I think the best revenge would be to do so well here in L.A. that he can't help but be jealous. The first step to that is looking your best. After we eat we should go to this spa I know, it is perfect for helping you look your best and helping you to relax and revitalize," Bree advised, thinking she wouldn't mind some pampering herself. She stood up and offered her hand to Natalie. "We should have time for a couple of treatments at least."

"Do you like Crepes? Arcadie Crepes has lovely food and they are right across the street, but there are lots of lovely places in this area, I am easy to please when it comes to food," Bree said with a smile, just wanting Natalie to have something she loved to cheer her up.

[Natalie Webb]

Natalie felt rather pathetic venting about her new found boy problems with the girl she hardly knew. Sure she went to her school, but Natalie didn't have a lot of friends at this school. She'd been at Gould about a month now but she was still trying to find her place. She pushed some of her curls behind her ear, "Yeah...I suppose your right. I guess...I just don't know all too many people here yet," she explained. She'd moved to LA for her career. She wanted to be a singer really but she'd also done some acting too. She didn't really feel like talking about her talents at the moment though.

"A spa," Natalie said. "I...suppose that could be good...I've never been to a spa before," she admitted. Natalie's family was by no means poor but they weren't uber rich or anything either so she wasn't used to treating herself to things like spa treatments and all that. She did still have the money she'd earned for the made for TV movie she had been in though....perhaps that would be sufficient for a spa treatment. Natalie didn't know how expensive spas were but she was pretty sure that they weren't cheap.

"Crepes, yeah...love them," Natalie said with a smile. This Bree girl seemed too good to be true in the niceness category. She was probably like Natalie was though...overly nice for the most part. "I haven't had the crepes there though, so I suppose it would be great to try them," Natalie said, standing up, and looking towards the place Bree had mentioned. "Let's go," she said, feeling slightly better already but she still felt rather pathetic.

[Bree Marcus]

Bree smiled, kind of surprised at how happy Natalie's acceptance made her. Despite being part of the jet set and a cheerleader, Bree had never really felt that she was accepted for herself rather than the tragic mistake of her birth and her father's place in society. She was pretty sure Natalie wouldn't know about him or anything else really. They began to cross and sure enough she began to feel some fat drops of rain. She picked up her pace some and they were soon enough seated at a window table with their drink orders already taken. She ordered a fruit punch and looked at her menu.

"Why did your parent's decide to move to Los Angeles, Natalie? Was it for your parent's work?" Bree asked, realizing it wasn't her business, but still interested. She had always lived in Santa Monica and really couldn't imagine wanting to live anywhere else. She liked to travel, but home was Southern Cal. and probably always would be.

"What was Texas like? I have never been there. My father never had business interests there," Bree asked, thinking it seemed like a very alien kind of place from what she had read.

[Natalie Webb]

As the rain started to fall, Natalie took Bree's lead and picked up the pace. One of the things she liked about Los Angeles is that it didn't rain very often, but that didn't mean it never rained. Due to the nature of Natalie's hair, she wasn't really fond of the rain...or humidity. She could tame her curls on a nice day but add rain and/or humidity and her hair turned into frizz central. However, luckily they reached the place quick enough that her hair hadn't gotten too wet. Still, she smoothed it over with her hands as she sat down, ordering a lemonade when the waitress took their drink orders.

"Well, my parents got divorced not too long ago...I mean it was okay and all, it wasn't nasty or anything like that, but I guess my mom was figuring out what to do after the divorce and I've always wanted to be a singer...back home in Houston there is actually some stuff for showbiz. They film a few things there and I did a bunch of commercials... But then I did this audition there for a Lifetime movie and well, got it, only they were filming here. I guess given everything, my mom thought it might make sense to movie here for awhile and see what happened," Natalie explained. She didn't really mind talking about why she moved, or about her parents divorce, although she usually left out he part about them getting divorced because her dad had turned out to be gay. She wasn't embarrassed...it was clear her dad was happier now, but some people took it the wrong way. Plus, it was rare that anyone asked why her parents divorced. It just wasn't a question that usually came up, due to the delicate nature of it. And Natalie liked it that way.

"I guess I should have known the long distance thing wasn't going to work..." she said with a shrug. "But we talked on the phone and on skype and I guess...I guess I just thought maybe it would be okay. I feel kind of stupid now. I should have known."

Natalie was used to people asking her about Texas. It seemed that unless people were from there or had family there, it wasn't a place people traveled to often. "Well, I'm from the city so its kind of the same as every city. But I guess in general people are pretty relaxed in Texas, wear a lot of cowboy boots..." she laughed. "I guess its probably what you'd expect it to be," she shrugged, not really sure how to describe her hometown. "What does your dad do?" she asked. She normally wasn't one to ask those sorts of questions but since Bree had mentioned him, she was a bit curious, especially in the way she'd mentioned it...never had any business interest there. It made him sound important.

[Bree Marcus]

The waitress came back and Bree ordered the Harvest Crepes along with a cup of French Onion soup. "I will try not to breathe in your direction, Natalie. I love onions, but I rarely get to indulge myself," she confessed, as she handed the menu to the waitress. After Natalie ordered and the waitress left, Bree leaned forward. "I'm sorry about your parents, that must be hard. And then moving right away would be hard. But I'm glad you're here now. I will have to introduce you to my best friends May and Sloane."

Taking a dip sip of her juice, Bree regarded Natalie solemnly. "Men... for the most part... cannot be trusted, but there is no way to know that until you grow up since adults don't really talk about it," she said displaying her own take on the male/female thing.

"Texas sounds interesting," Bree said, wishing she could go see it, but she had another year and a half before she could freely travel. "My dad passed away recently. It was rather sudden, so I am slowly learning his business concerns. He was an executive at Universal Studios, but he also had a lot of businesses he purchased. Some were just to turn over after being turned around and others he kept to run himself. Basically he was a money broker. He was in the production end of the movies," she said with a sigh, she wished he had more creative a role but he did well at what he did."

[Natalie Webb]

Natalie ordered, laughing when Bree mentioned the onions. "That's okay, I'm a garlic freak myself but lucky for you there really aren't too many garlic crepes," she laughed. She was starting to feel better. She was still torn up inside, however, Bree was offering a really nice distraction, which really was all Natalie could ask for.

"It's okay," she said about her parents, "they're happier now," she shrugged. "That's really all I could ask for. I'd rather them be apart and happy instead of together and not happy." She still didn't mention her dad being gay since people always reacted funny to that. However, that was perhaps the one factor that helped Natalie be okay with the divorce. She knew that it wasn't her parents faults. Her dad's sexuality prevented any sort of reconciliation too.

"I suppose you're right," she said about men. After all, even her dad had lied to them all those years. But then again, it was hard the be a gay man in Texas, which was a rather conservative state by nature. "I guess I just thought he was different...I mean...its one thing if he wanted to break up with me because of the long distance...but to be with one of my friends now...well, someone who I thought was my friend...I don't think that a real friend would go out with my ex-boyfriend," she shook her head. "But yes, I'd love to meet your friends. Perhaps you can introduce them to me at your party?" she said, raising her eyebrows slightly. Natalie could use more friends after all. Maybe she wouldn't be the homecoming queen here like she had been at her old school, but she could still use some friends.

"Oh I'm so sorry to hear that," Natalie said. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to lose a parent. "And here I am going on about my trivial problems and you're dealing with the loss of a parent...I'm so sorry," she shook her head. "Perhaps this spa treatment is what we both need," she said, nodding her head.

Tag for Wrap? Wrapped?

[Bree Marcus]

Bree smiled trying to inject an expression of loss into it at the same time. No one would understand how far from mourning her father she really was. "I will be fine, I am just trying to stay busy and helpful. I find it helps with most kinds of pain," she said softly, grateful when the food came to distract them. "I always love a spa treatment though."

wrapped