Hot Lips >> OPEN.

[ISRAEL YADIRA MONROE]

Unless she was traveling, which was quite often, Israel kept a nail appointment every two weeks. She was a regular at Luxe, getting her finger and toe nails pampered by the same technician each time. The services were quite expensive, but well worth the cost in Israel’s opinion. Their basic mani-pedi was the best in town and it was anything but basic. But Israel usually opted for something a little more complex. Her job required her to use her hands in harsh hair products and she stood on her feet for most of her work. Spoiling her hands and feet wasn’t just a treat, but a necessity. And every now and then she opted for some extra special services like a massage or facial. And today she was doing both.

But it wasn’t just the service that Israel enjoyed at Luxe. She loved the chatter. All beauticians were cut from the same cloth. They loved to talk and gossip was their game. Israel already knew a lot of the latest rumors floating around the salon, having spread some of them on her own. But even still, she always left with a juicy story. “Yeah, she’s obviously pregnant,” her technician said as she worked on her feet. She was wrapped up in a fully white robe, freshly massaged and feeling loose and relaxed. There were several other people getting worked on at the same time, but that didn’t stop Israel from talking loudly. It was more fun if someone overheard anyway.

“Well she’s definitely put on some weight and I noticed that she’s been photographed wearing really baggy clothes,” Israel replied, referring to actress and model Bianca Tanner. Bianca and Israel were friends. She could easily get the truth straight from the source, but where was the fun in that? Besides, Bianca had practically gone M.I.A. and they hadn’t been in touch for a while. “She was always going on about wanting to have a baby,” Israel said truthfully.”And I bet the father is Richard Nolan. But I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if it was some random. She’s always all over everyone,” the technician said. Israel nodded in agreement. She glanced around, doubting if she’d see Bianca in the spa as well. It wouldn’t have been the first time one of the topics of conversation was sitting just a few feet away. Not this time. But there were still plenty hot topics sitting around getting pampered too.

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[AALINA MARIE GREY]

Stepping into the salon, Aalina's senses were quickly overpowered by acrylic and nail polish. Offering a polite smile, she followed one of the technicians back, being guided to one of the plush pedicure seats. She wasn't a regular at this sort of thing, not one for pampering herself very often. She had a steady hand, and preferred to spend her money on clothing rather than paint for her nails. But, she was feeling whimsical, and she didn't want to spend her day off sitting alone in her apartment.

Slipping out of her heels, she plunged her feet into the warm, relaxing water pooling in the tub at the base of the chair. Taking a moment, she glanced around, looking for a familiar face; either personal or professional. A few chairs over, she noticed someone of both, smirking slightly as she spotted Israel. Rae was engrossed in a topic of what she could only guess was gossip, rarely did she speak much of else.

Catching the tail end of the conversation, Lina could pull from context what they were speaking of. It was hard for her to hold her tongue, Bianca once being a friend. Until she just dropped off the planet, not returning phone calls or attending events that she had hired Aalina to style her for. Finally it was too much when Richard Nolan was mentioned. "It could have been Camden Carter," She finally chimed in, adding a little friendly wave to Rae. "They both kind of disappeared at the same time. Though, Cam is supposedly in Brazil working on his latest film."

She felt a little devilish gossiping so openly. She was a closeted gossiper, feeling more comfortable in an one on one gossip session than in an open floor. "Who knows, though, right? Maybe she's just getting fat."

ELECTRIC OF GS AND BTN

[ISRAEL YADIRA MONROE]

It was abundantly clear where Israel’s interest in gossip came from. Her parents were very conservative and kept to themselves. They believed that family matters were private matters and that it was disrespectful to discuss the business of other families in detail. But even the church had its scandals and gossip. It wasn’t until Israel left the preacher’s daughter’s life behind and became a permanent fixture in salons that the gossip bug hit her. And ever since then she could not shut up. And perhaps it had to do with the fact that she had so little going on in her personal life. Usually she was hanging on the arm of some Hollywood big shot. And often despite his best efforts, she’d blab about their relationship to anyone who’d listen. She was not shy about talking about herself and some thought that she may even be too open about herself. Perhaps that’s why none of these relationships lasted very long. As far as Israel was concerned, she had nothing to hide. Especially as of late. So it was easier now than ever to pick someone else to be the topic of discussion.

Rae had decided on a yellow and blue design patter for her toes, something funky and fresh, and perfect for the spring to summer transition. She was a California girl, tried and true, and while the weather was practically perfect year round, this was definitely her favorite time of year. Everyone loved being outside, showing off their beach bodies, even if they really shouldn’t. From now until the fall, she would be rocking sandals and a lot of sunscreen. Probably some shorts, sundresses, miniskirts, crop tops, and just about anything maxi as well. Rae intentionally took fewer clients and fewer gigs in the summer so she could enjoy her home state and even travel a bit. She frequented the beach and the pool and did a bit of island hopping each year. Business picked right back up in the fall, especially around award show and fashion week seasons, so she could afford to take it easy.

When a familiar name uttered by a familiar voice hit her ears, Israel looked up to see none other than her friend Aalina. It’d been a while since she’d seen the bottle blonde. Rumor had it she’d bounced off back to England after having dumped her last boyfriend. Israel smiled at the woman but it didn’t quiet reach the corners of her eyes. Though Israel wasn’t in a relationship with Camden Carter, it wouldn’t be fun to find out that he’d impregnated one of her friends while simultaneously hooking up with her. She knew that he was quite the ladies man, but baby daddy wasn’t a label she wanted to brand him with. “I suppose that’s quite possible,” Israel replied. “They were hooking up for a while, but I don’t really know to what extent or for how long.” As far as she knew, things between him and Bianca had fizzled out, but maybe not fast enough to avoid getting her pregnant. “I’ve been keeping in touch with him,” she said nonchalantly. “And as far as I know the only women he has on his mind right now have huge asses and amazing tans.” Neither of which were Bianca Tanner.

“It’s good to see you, Lina!” Rae finally said as she leaned back into her massage chair. The technician was massaging her feet so well that she could fall asleep. “I would have called you and asked you to join me, but I heard you were out of the country.” And that was always Israel’s problem. All the information she got came through the grapevine rather than directly from the source. It was all fun and games until it came back to bite her in the ass.

TAGGED: AALINA MARIE GREY

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GS AND BTN

[AALINA MARIE GREY]

Though they were friends, the two weren't nearly as close as they could appear toward others. They didn't call and text each day like she and Mikaela did, and rarely did they spend time together except for a few planned days. Or random outings as such. Aalina was closer with her guy friends than many of her girl friends. It was neither of their faults, just a personality flaw within her. One of the reasons Lina didn't gossip was because it made her feel catty, on edge, and feeling as if she needed to prove something. She didn't keep up with people enough to have gossip to contribute, and that made her feel left out. She often questioned why people felt the need to involve themselves in others lives, but, the answer was clearly obvious.

Mulling over her color choices as the nail technician removed her old polish, she vaguely listened to Rae as she commented back on Camden Carter. "Ah, yes, well, what's the saying? It only takes once?" She offered a teasing smile to her comment, though some where deep down she wasn't teasing. For some reason the subject of Rae and Cam had never rubbed her quite the right way. Perhaps it was jealousy. Not of the person, Camden was cute, but not her type. Most likely of her actually having someone. Or not having someone. She wasn't exactly sure, but with her response, she was leaning toward them having a past.

Aalina was often casted as the 'friend' to most men, and any relationship she seemed to get herself into tended to self-destruct quite quickly. She was cursed with being the cool, easy going girl that could keep up with the boys. Case in point, Jedidiah Cayhill, quite easily the closest person to her, besides Mikaela. There had never been a question of 'more' between them, they had always just been friends. Not to say that Lina didn't have a crush on him, but she would never take the chance on blurring the lines with them. He was too important to her. "Nice to see you as well, Rae." She returned the pleasantry, finally settling on a metallic silver paired with black. It was just enough flashy without going overboard. Plus, metallics were in for the spring, so it fit well. "Ah, yes, England." She nodded, laughing a bit. She had been back for nearly a month, and she started to question where Israel was getting her information. "I've been back since mid April, but, I've been busy catching up on work and things." Her phone buzzed, but she didn't bother with it, shrugging slightly. "It never ends does it?"

ELECTRIC OF GS AND BTN

[ISRAEL YADIRA MONROE]

Gossiping gained Israel quite a few enemies. Despite being a kind hearted fun loving gal, it was no surprise the Israel had made it on a few hit lists. Whether directly or indirectly, Israel was often the reason nasty rumors spread and got out of hand. She could never keep her big mouth shut. It was never her intention to be malicious. She didn’t really have any ill will toward anyone. But before verifying if rumors were indeed fact, Israel let them flow out of her mouth like steady stream. There were times when people got hurt by the things Israel said, but it was as if they were no consequence to her. Spreading rumors and gossiping wildly was actually quite selfish, but Israel didn’t see it that way. To her, she was just having fun, albeit at the expense of others. Hollywood was a touchy place when it came to rumors, especially in the entertainment industry. While many celebrities have accepted the rumor mill as a permanent staple in their lives, they still didn’t take too kindly to anyone that made matters worse. It made having friends in the industry difficult, but Israel was fortunate to have people in her life that could overlook this particular flaw. They just watched their mouths around her and trusted her about as far as they could throw her.

Israel’s brief fling with Camden, if you could even call it that, had been refreshing. He was just as fun to talk to as he was to look at. They took it easy, just enjoying each other’s company. There were no strings or commitments. So it didn’t bother her that he was off gallivanting with other women. If she wanted to, she could indulge in the company of other men as well. But Israel would be lying if she said that she wasn’t looking forward to his return. Truth be told, she did miss him a bit and was grateful for the opportunities to keep in touch. “Yeah, I suppose you’re right, though I imagine Cam is too careful for that,” Israel replied with a shrug. “Though that’d totally be a buzz kill, so I’m just going to hope that she’s getting fat too.” As instructed, Israel dipped her feet back into the warm water.

At this point Israel couldn’t remember who’d told her that Aalina had left the country, but she vaguely remembered hearing that it had to do with her breakup. “April?” she repeated curiously. Israel had worked on the Justice League set with Camden, Aalina, De’Sean, Bianca, and Dominic (among many others). The set had been filled with so much drama, turning it into a gossip gold mine. “What have you got going on?” she asked sincerely wanting to catch up. While she may not have been super close to Aalina, she still cared enough about the young woman to know what was going on in her life, and not just so she could have more ammunition in her gossip gun. Israel was nosy by nature. “You seeing anyone? You back with De’Sean?”

TAGGED: AALINA MARIE GREY

CODED BY ELECTRIC OF GS AND BTN