Chapter 130 - Call Me Hot Or Sexy

"Good to know, I heard from the crew you were very impressive during your auditions." Leo came earlier than everyone and that's when he heard two people from the crew discussing Jimmy's audition yesterday and that's how he found out about it.

"Thank you, I am glad everyone thinks so but I need to work harder." Jimmy smiled.

Leo nodded in agreement and he too liked Jimmy's personality when he said this as that's how an actor should be, never satisfied with themselves, only then an actor can grow is what he believed.

Amanda was glad to see Jimmy and Leo interacting, she is very smart and already knew the real personalities of her actors.

When she saw her two male actors bonding with each other, she sighed in relief as in the play their characters are close friends and it was necessary for them to have a good bond off screen too as that could be well reflected in the play, there are actors who don't interact offline at all but still have good chemistry on screen but if they have the same relationship off screen then it comes more naturally on screen which is the style Amanda prefers.

After some time they all discussed more about the roles they would be portraying, Amanda first wanted to know their own perceptions on the characters and based on it some dialogues in the script were adjusted, Amanda too explained her vision to them and the four actors paid utmost attention to her words and tried to understand it so that they could align their vision with hers for the best outcome.

For the next few hours more such discussions continued and it was time for lunch. 

Amanda had lunch plans with her boyfriend so she took her leave and they all decided to meet after two hours.

The four people decided to have lunch together and so they went to a restaurant which was in the same area at a walk-able distance.

Zoey insisted to visit a five star hotel in the same area but Jimmy honestly told her he can't afford it, Leo and Megan too were impressed with his straightforwardness so they too boldly told her it is not something they too can afford so they all settled on a decent restaurant.

Megan knew Jimmy could afford it and lied to give face to her and Leo and thought, 'This guy is not as bad as I thought'

Jimmy and Zoey sat on one side of the table, Megan and Leo sat respectively opposite to them.

Zoey was a bit disappointed when Jim said he can't afford an expensive place and decided not to show too much interest in him, for a moment she thought she came across a rich guy and now she was sad and a bit dejected that she judged him too soon and on other side she was also happy that she found out the truth earlier itself before she entered too deep into a relationship with him.

Jimmy ordered a pizza which Leo agreed to share with him, Megan ordered a plate of pasta for herself and Zoey ordered the most expensive steak.

Then they shared their histories with each other and everyone found out Megan mastered in English Literature and her parents are professors, Leo's parents were divorced and they got married to other people and have different families so they don't bother with Leo's life decisions and he occasionally meets them, he too studied liberal arts. 

Zoey comes from a well to do family, she won some beauty contests in her hometown and later landed small modeling jobs and from there she got an opportunity to work in some TV series, where she played the second lead role but that series was discontinued and she still didn't taste success properly and decided to explore the world of theater as it always fascinated her. 

Jimmy then told them he comes from a middle class family and after going through a lot of struggles his father set up a small family business and he is taking it forward.

Megan rolled her eyes as Morris' family is reputable and Morris industries was a well known name, she knew Jimmy was lying, 'He is a damn good liar' she scoffed but Leo felt touched knowing their family struggles and felt connected with Jimmy. 

Zoey thanked her stars as she didn't get involved with him or it would have been a huge loss for her.

They were discussing their histories meanwhile the food was served and they all liked the food, it was damn tasty, after the meal Jimmy insisted on paying the bill for all four but the other two didn't agree and they all decided to split the bill so Zoey too had to agree, after lunch they still had another hour to kill, Megan recommended a cinema museum which was in the same area so they all went to visit it.

Leo and Jimmy really liked the museum, Zoey too found it interesting, they didn't even realize when almost an hour passed, they reluctantly came out, they wanted to explore it more, Jimmy and Leo decided to visit this place again together some day.

They went back to the theater.

...

Daniel and Rachel reached a big mall to shop for his home decor. 

The showroom they chose offered unique decorative home accessories with a sophisticated range of various themed objects. They both looked for antiques, ceramics and paintings.

They first glanced across various offerings of different kinds of decor. 

While walking Rach stopped in front of a crystal piece which looked unique and beautiful. 

"I think this aquatic Poseidon horse sculpture painting would be perfect for the empty wall that leads to the guest room, what do you think Daniel?"

He too liked the painting and agreed to her suggestion. 

He was impressed with Rachel's good taste in art. They asked the helper to pack it for them meanwhile they will continue to look around for more.

They both then looked around the showroom and bought some sofa cushions, vases, decor pieces, wall hangings and a few more wall paintings. After shopping they both went to a restaurant for lunch.

"What would you like to eat?" Danny asked her.

"How about pizza and baked lasagna?"

"Sure"

They ordered the food. Rachel felt like there is something that is bothering Daniel but he was trying to act normal for her sake, she knew he won't tell her what it is so she decided to deviate his attention as much as she could, also she was curious to know more about Daniel so she asked him,

"What are your other hobbies other than cooking and painting?"

"I love reading books but these days I don't get time to indulge in it." He replied.

"What kind of books do you prefer?"

"Only non-fiction, I mostly love reading biographies and autobiographies of people."

"Wow do you watch movies?

"I used to watch them for Jimmy's sake as he is a big fan of films but I personally don't like them much, I'd rather read a book or cook some food."

"Wow, I would like to try every dish made by you"

"Yeah someday I'll invite you over and make some amazing dishes for you" He promised her.

She then remembered how her close friend Kate turned out to be his cousin and they didn't discuss it at all, "Dan what a coincidence it was right that my close friend is actually your second cousin, to be honest I was very surprised when I saw those two at your place."

"Yeah I too never expected you to know Kate, although we are second cousins we were not that close, we used to live in Italy and she lived across Europe so yeah had no idea about you two being friends."

"Yesterday I was shocked seeing them but now I am very excited with this revelation as we can all attend their wedding together, I'll introduce my other friends to you at that wedding."

"Sure" He smiled seeing her getting all excited.

"What?"

"Nothing, you just look very cute when you are all excited." He caressed her cheek

"That's offensive" she got upset with his comment.

Daniel was surprised and wondered what he said wrong.

Rachel laughed at his reaction, "You should call me hot or sexy and not cute."

"Well for that you need to look hot or sexy and not cute"

Rachel opened her mouth wide in shock, "Mr. Morris that is very offensive."

"So no matter what I would say you are going to be offended." He smiled at her weird antics.

"Yes and I'll throw tantrums and you have to bear with it."

Daniel nodded his head thinking of something, then asked her, "Rachel, is it too late for us to break up or is it okay if we do?" He joked but she looked sad hearing what he said.

Daniel felt guilty when he saw her looking sad