The Reunion by Kayla Olson(49)
It’s the perfect reply from Ransom, especially paired with his follow-up text—just an unbroken string of exclamation points, more of them than I care to count.
absolutely, yes, we can take a rain check, he writes back in a new bubble. liv, this is amazing! today was torture, though, wasn’t it?
I grin, even though he can’t see me. 100%, I type. Hit send. The best sort, though.
Just thinking about how close we were today, how much longer I could have stayed there, makes me want to cancel my plans and head straight over to his place.
Are we sure I shouldn’t rain check Vienna instead? I write, very much wishing I could be in two places at once.
go do the thing, liv, he writes back. i’ll still be here tomorrow xo
Spotted: Flirty, Fiery Ford
By Zenia DiLitto // Editor in Chief, Pop Culture, DizzyZine.com
Ohhhhhhh, Spinners—do I have a tasty scoop of gelato just for YOU: Ford Brooks (best known as Girl on the Verge’s Tyler Thatcher) was spotted this afternoon down at Manhattan Beach looking hot and cozy (emphasis on the hot, because heart eyes for dayyyyyyys) with a blonde who’s very much NOT his longtime girlfriend-from-across-the-Atlantic Juliette Wells. I don’t know about you, but I was totally under the impression that Ford and Juliette were in it for the long haul.
Now? We here at Dizzy aren’t so sure.
Find, here, THE EVIDENCE.
We submit for your perusal Photograph #1: Gorgeous Not-Juliette, laughing as she takes a bite from Flirty Ford’s soon-to-be-melted double-scoop cone of mint chocolate chip gelato. Also worth noting, Ford’s eyes are crinkled in that totally genuine way that says, “YES, Gorgeous Not-Juliette, I’ll give you absolutely anything you want!” Just try to convince me that isn’t the look of someone falling hard—and fast! Really, go ahead and try. I’ll wait.
Next, Photograph #2: Flirty Ford with his arm around Not-Juliette. Now, we fully admit this is a pretty G-rated exhibit of arm draping—no thumb hooked into the back pocket of her quite-short shorts, and I’ve definitely experienced this very casual sort of bro hug on numerous occasions from my actual brothers. BUT STILL, do you see the way she’s looking at him? Whether he meant to get her hopes up or not, Not-Juliette 1000% wishes he’d pull her in even closer. Tell me I’m wrong.
Finally, Photograph #3: Flirty Ford morphs into Fiery Ford in an instant—specifically, the exact instant where he realizes he’s being watched and photographed. Would a guy who’s not cheating on his girlfriend look that upset at being caught out with another girl? Uhhhh… we think not.
It appears Juliette’s time on set with Jonathan Cast up in Iceland is causing trouble in the lovebird nest she and Ford have built together.… You’d better believe we’ll be following this as it unfolds! Until then, we wish you all the mint chocolate gelato your heart desires (and someone who’ll look at you the way Not-Juliette’s looking at Ford)!
15
As far as trekking across Los Angeles is concerned, the drive from the London West Hollywood to Vienna’s hilltop bungalow in Silver Lake isn’t the worst. The house is a tiny, secluded little thing, and from the road, you’d never guess a renowned filmmaker like Vienna calls it home. Probably the exact reason she was drawn to it, now that I think about it.
“Liv!” she welcomes me, flinging the door open wide. “It’s been ages—you look stunning! Come in, come in.”
Vienna and I are close to the same age—she’s actually a year younger—but it sometimes feels like she has five or ten years on me. She knows exactly who she is and makes no apologies. Nowhere are those qualities more evident than in her work—that she trusts my creative input still feels like a mystery—but the decor here in her new place also feels carefully curated. Every wall is bright white, clearly designed to make the room look airy, and the floors are an immaculate blond wood. The overall feel is crisp, clean, and minimal, neutral grays with the occasional pop of jewel-toned accent colors, potted plants scattered in all the right places to add a touch of warmth and life.
All of this is the perfect backdrop to Vienna herself, who is anything but neutral. She radiates light and creative energy, from her messy topknot to the light denim cutoffs unraveling at a length that accentuates her toned, tan legs to the oversized cardigan knitted from thick wool she probably commissioned from someone on Etsy (someone, no doubt, who dyes their own yarn with indigo and henna).
“Have you eaten?” she asks, leading me into her postage stamp–sized kitchen. “I made a big batch of soba noodles with peanut sauce and lime—you’re not allergic to peanuts, are you? Or, hmm, let’s see… just made a trip to the farmers market yesterday, so I’ve got lots of produce on hand if you want something like that. Or I can make us tea? My sister sent me the most amazing shortbread cookies if you’d like to try those; I’ve got some plain ones and also some with orange zest that’ve been dipped in chocolate. Really, you’re welcome to anything, everything!”
I take her up on the tea, and ten minutes later we’re settled in on her back patio. Like the rest of the house, it’s minimalistic, a simple gray deck with walls made of stained wooden slats and some modern bohemian outdoor furniture. What it lacks in size, it makes up for in view—the LA skyline looks incredible from this vantage point, high up in the hills.