Geisha House

Pretty much the same, sorta important dialogue between Julia and Hallie at the end but thats the only change really.

Geisha House


        With all the excitement after coming home from New York, from dumping David, to landing a spot on Hot Girls That Can Cook, Hallie had completely forgotten about Julia's approaching birthday, until the night of, when Abby requested that she come along.

All of the girls, Abby, Kristen, and a few other friends along with some boys had reserved their spots at Geisha House, one of the most chic spots for sushi in L.A.

"Are you sure it will be alright with Julia?" Hallie wondered aloud.

"Of course! We've all missed you, it will be a surprise for her," Abby replied casually while twirling her long auburn hair around a curling iron. Yeah hopefully a good surprise. Julia was just slightly on the bitchy side, not quite on Jessica's level, but seemed to have an attitude of endless PMS. Actually, Hallie kind of admired her for it.

Geisha House was the type of place you could get away with wearing jeans, a nice top, and flip flops, but being the little fashionista's that they were, Hallie put on her newly purchased Alice + Olivia black sequin one-shoulder dress, and Abby in a blue floral Shoshanna dress. The girls both looked like they stepped out of a commercial, or off a billboard and in Hallie's case, that was pretty much about to come true.

Hallie hadn't informed Abby about anything yet having to do with the show. She had received a call back the next day, from a pleased Roxie informing her that they would start filming next week in front of a live studio audience, and that she needed her for a photo shoot for billboards they were going to post all across Hollywood. Barely able to contain her excitement when she heard the news, Hallie wanted to spill everything at dinner with everyone there.

The two girls left, making a quick stop at Bloomingdales to pick Julia up a matching Juicy bracelet and necklace with an adorable pink cupcake charm attached to them, and head over to Geisha House where Abby and Hallie could already see the colorful array of dresses of their friends waiting for them at the hostess podium.

Once Abby got valet parking, and two girls stepped inside, they both looked at each other silently laughing at Julia's attempt to pull a full blown Paris Hilton with her sparkly silver short dress and matching tiara. But whatever it was her birthday, and if she wanted to stand out, more power to her.

"Oh my god, Hallie!" Julia exclaimed nearly bursting into tears, pulling Hallie into a rather forceful hug. Hallie hugged her friend shaking her head knowing that Julia was already drunk. She was never that friendly sober. Again, it being her birthday, she could look or act as ridiculous as she wanted to.

"She had quite a lot to drink before we left," Kristin explained shyly standing in the background in a berry colored Dolce and Gabbana crisscross dress. She had newly low lighted hair, that was still platinum blonde, but not as well, fake looking as it had been before.

"You look great!" Hallie declared, grabbing a hand full of Kristin's hair playfully, then throwing her arms around her, hoping that Kristin would get the message that she came in peace.

"Oh good," Kristin breathed in relief, "I'm so glad you aren't mad at me."

"Not at all. I was just�well you know how it is with ex-boyfriends. You were just giving your opinion, I shouldn't have been so stubborn."

"What happened with all of that anyway?" Kristin asked seeming like she'd been dying to know for weeks now.

"It's a long story," Hallie tried to say unemotionally, "It's all over with and done, it will be good being single again. I mean you totally had it right, just enjoying being young, not being tied down. I'm going to be just like you from now on."

"Well actually-," Kristin got cut off, when Julia clumsily leaned over them, shouting, "Everybody's here!" announcing it to the hostess, and the entire restaurant.

"Well actually what?" Hallie demanded.

Oh great, it was bad enough Abby had a boyfriend, and now Kristin too? Why the f**k were all of her friends getting boyfriends right when she just dumped one, and sort of got dumped by another one? Hmm the karma of infidelity.

As the hostess led them to the table, Kristin began telling her how some guy Luke, she constantly kept having one night stands with, finally asked her out on an actual date, and they had hit it off. They were only in the beginnings of the relationship, and just as Kristin was trying to convince her how casual it was, the f****r showed up, wrapping his arms around Kristin's tiny waist, surprising her. She squealed with delight totally forgetting Hallie was there, and began making out while everyone was being seated. Just the thing you want to look at before you eat.

"Get a f*****g room," Julia replied belligerently, gazing down at what must have been a blurry menu. Thank god there was someone else bitter enough and drunk enough to tell them no one wanted to see them make out.

Then Hallie immediately began feeling more excluded from the stupid couple fest when she saw Ryan had been trailing behind Luke, lovingly kissed Abby on the hand and pulled out her chair for her to sit down, making Hallie feel even more nauseated.

She had gone out tonight so that she could forget about stupid relationships, and feel the joy of being single again, but here everyone was, practically doing their boyfriends in public, while Hallie sat next to the drunk birthday girl trying to read the menu to her. Oh well, Julia could just be her date for the night, at least she hadn't brought some stupid guy along. Oh dear, there's that bitter hatred of men that makes girls start playing for the other team. Hey after a couple of drinks, you never know.

"A round of sake for everyone, it's on me!" Hallie shouted to the waitress.

"As if Julia needs anymore to drink," Kristin giggled as she nibbled on her boyfriends earlobe. Could she just f*****g cut that s**t out?

After Hallie ordered for Julia and for herself, she smiled over at the two couples across the table. She became sincerely happy for her friends, despite her own previous drama with boys. Finding love was a rare thing, in L.A., actually finding love was a rare thing period. Both couples looked so content with each other, and Hallie hoped it would last longer than what she had tried to make work.

The waitress came and placed the round of sake's on the table, everyone taking one.

"To Julia's birthday, and to the two cutest couples ever! Cheers!" Hallie toasted not sounding the least bit jealous.

"Cheers," everyone happily replied back holding up their drinks.

"Cheers," Julia groaned a few minutes too late, inhaling the shot, then her head collapsed to the table, making a loud thud, her light brown long hair fanning out all over the place, and her tiara half hanging in her hair.

"Oh no, is she alright?" Abby asked standing up leaning over the side of the table.

"Julia honey, people are starting to stare," Hallie put her head down to whisper in Julia's ear.

"Oh f**k what they think," Julia said still face down on the table, wildly waving a hand, nearly knocking the drinks over.

"I'm just going to take our birthday girl for a quick stop to the lady's room. Come on. Up you go," Hallie hoisted a stubborn Julia up by the armpits, positioning her into a somewhat standing position.

As she dragged Julia across the restaurant practically having to holding her up, her vision was immediately drawn to an absolutely gorgeous surfer looking guy sitting at the bar, who whirled around in the barstool to check her out as well. His blue eyes sparkled from across the room, and his light brown, naturally highlighted spiked hair only illuminated his eye color. He looked like he had a to-die-for surfer body underneath his nice attire of black slacks and black suit jacket over a casual t-shirt.

"Hello," he nodded to her casually as she walked by.

Hallie flashed him a quick smile, that said she would talk if she could, but she was afraid her drunk friend was about to puke all over the nice restaurant. She could still feel him staring at her as she shoved open the door to the lady's room.

First thing into the room, Julia flopped down on a red plush chase lounge, her stupid little tiara tilting crookedly in her hair.

"Ugh," she groaned, staring at Hallie with half closed brown eyes.

Hallie went to the sink, and returned back to Julia with a wet paper towel, reaching it towards Julia's face.

"No!," Julia wailed, "You're going to ruin my make up!"

"I'll put it back on for you," Hallie replied dabbing her flushed cheeks. Julia was the type of chick to get extremely red when she was drunk.

"Oh Hallie, you're such a good friend, I'm sorry if I was ever a b***h to you," she whined on, beginning to pucker up her lips as if she was about to cry. Apparently also the type of chick to get extremely emotional when drunk.

"You have your bitchiness, we all do," Hallie replied honestly . Not like she'd remember anyway. Hallie turned over the other side of the towel to dry the water off, and drunken tears that might soon come out.

"Whatever happened with that guy you loved?" Julia asked dreamily.

"Oh David? We broke up, it's a long story. Not exactly stuff you need to hear about on you're birthday."

"No, no not David. I knew you two would break up, you didn't need to tell me that. I meant�.what's his name? That one guy. That guy your face would light up about every time you talked about him."

Hallie stopped what she was doing, placing the damp cloth on the arm rest, and took a seat next to her, staring straight ahead.

"Christian."

"Yeah Christian. Oh my gosh, he was so f*****g fine," gushed practically drooling on herself.

Hallie couldn't help but laugh at that comment. He really was better looking than any other guy she'd ever seen, but that's not why she was sitting there, staring sadly into space.

"It didn't work out. We tried, he says we're too different. Not much I could do to change his mind."

"That's so wrong," Julia said shaking her head. "I mean, here I was thinking that I was the most unhappy person in the world, because I brush guys off, I don't give guys a chance, but then you tell me you actually went and put everything on the line for that a*****e, you finally went for it, and he didn't f*****g want to be together?"

"That's pretty much what happened," Hallie shrugged feeling numb.

"Then I was right all along. Love doesn't f*****g exist. I'm not going to find anyone! Abby and Ryan, and Kristin and whatever his name is, they won't last. It's all bullshit!" Julia slammed her fist down intending to hit the sofa, but totally missing and hitting air, she nearly toppled out of her seat.

"Easy there," Hallie turned to hold her friend up, then looked in horror as Julia clutched her stomach.

"Oh s**t, I think�.," Julia gagged.

"Come on," Hallie said quickly escorting her to the toilet. Thank God they were already in the bathroom, although she felt partially responsible since she had ordered the sake.

As Julia leaned over the toilet retching her guts out, Hallie held back her hair, lost in thought about what she said.

Was love really all bullshit? It seemed like when anyone took the risk in trying to find it, they ended up broken hearted and cynical. Ever since her return from New York, Hallie had been trying so hard to distract herself, and convince herself that she wasn't miserable about failing to be with someone she truly loved, and being single was exactly what she wanted, if she couldn't be with Christian.

When Julia was finally finished, Hallie cleaned her up again, and carefully reapplied her make up.

"Are you feeling better now?" Hallie asked smoothing out Julia's hair.

"Yeah, I'm just really tired," Julia replied peering through her bloodshot eyes.

"Why don't we call it a night? You can stay at my place, I'll cook you a big birthday breakfast in the morning," Hallie offered, regretting the moment she mentioned food, when Julia began to gag again.

"The going home part sounds good," Julia agreed, moving a little more stably out of the bathroom, and back through the restaurant.

As they walked by passing the bar again, the same cute guy smiled at Hallie, but she was too distracted to notice as she helped Julia back to the table.

"I'm going to take Julia home, she's feeling sleepy," Hallie informed the two couples.

"Aw, are you alright?" Abby had enough consideration to look away from her boyfriend for one moment, to see if Julia was okay, while Kristin was still playing tonsil hockey with Luke.

"I'm sorry, you kids have fun without me," Julia apologized.

Just as Hallie gathered her purse and coat, she looked up to see the sexy guy from the bar standing before her.

"Hi, I noticed you staring at me, so I just wanted to introduce myself," he said offering his hand out to Hallie's. "My name is Bryce, and my friends said that I'd be crazy not to take a chance."

Hallie admired his courage. She knew that it was intimidating to even the hottest of guys to approach a girl with her friends all around.

"I'm Hallie," she said shaking his hand.

"That's nice of you to help your friend out like that," Bryce commented, obviously noticing that Julia was wasted.

"F**k you," Julia muttered. "I'll be waiting out in the car," she staggered off out of the restaurant.

"I better go after her, it was nice meeting you," she smiled courteously.

"Hey wait, before you go," he said looking to Kristin to see if he could use her napkin to write his number, but Kristin was too occupied trying to act out the definition of PDA to care. "Here's my number," he said pulling out a pen, and writing neatly as he could across the napkin. "I know you girls have some rule to wait a week before you call a guy or whatever, but I'm looking forward to hearing from you," Bryce said handing the napkin to Hallie.

Hallie laughed feeling nothing but charmed by his non-cheesy, and polite attempt at picking her up. Plus his blue eyes were pretty irresistible close up.

"Nice meeting you Bryce," she smiled tucking the napkin into her purse, and hurrying out the door to go make sure Julia hadn't wandered off somewhere. Thankfully, she saw Julia across the street in the parking lot sitting on the back of her Escalade waiting.

The cars finally came to a stop for her to cross, and Hallie hurried across the street. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw something go flying out of her open tote purse, and realized that it was the napkin Bryce had just wrote his number on. It slowly floated away, and Hallie could have taken a few steps back to pick it up. Instead she stopped, and stared down at it , ignoring the impatient L.A. drivers beginning to honk at her. It was funny how he said that his friends told him he'd be crazy not to take a chance, when Julia was just telling her how taking a chance, taking a risk wasn't even worth it, how you just ended up screwed over in the end.

Hallie could still see the napkin on the ground, but instead of turning around to get it, she continued walking forward across the rest of the street, knowing that by morning she'd forget all about handsome Bryce.

"What took you so long?" Julia complained getting in the passenger seat of her car, knowing that Hallie wasn't about to let her drive. "Are you and that guy going on a date?"

"No, I don't think so," Hallie replied trying to back Julia's enormous SUV out of the tiny parking space.

It wasn't that she didn't find him intriguing, it wasn't that she was afraid of getting her heart broken again, Bryce seemed like a nice enough guy, but it was the fact that her heart belonged to someone else. And while she knew there was the possibility of never seeing Christian again, that turning down every respectable guy who asked her out was just foolish, she didn't know how to open her heart up yet, not when she felt like she was without one.

"I'm tired," Julia reiterated for the millionth time that night, leaning her head back against the leather seats.

"I know you are, I am too," Hallie sighed staring straight ahead at the road. Hallie thought Julia was so wrong claiming that she'd never find a guy. Julia was very attractive, although much more attractive when she was sober, and eventually she'd find love. There had to be someone cool enough to put up with her occasional bitchiness, she'd find happiness eventually.


And what does every girl want when they see all their girlfriends happy and in love? They want the same exact thing, but even better. No matter what happened with Hallie's love life, she knew that back when she was with the man who still held her heart, who would always hold her heart, she was happier than any girl in the world could have ever been.