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Late summer/early fall 2023

Francesca Louise Westbrook (née Blanche) (May 24, 1998) is an American actress. She rose to celebrity status following her first starring role in the critically-acclaimed film Preachers (2015) when she was just seventeen years old.

Grazing over the introduction, I scrolled down Francesca's Wikipedia page, bypassing all of her other film roles until I got to one of the sections I interested in.

Early Life:

Born in Nice, France, Westbrook is the daughter of American musician Stella Lincoln and French literature professor Alexandre Blanche. After spending the first eight years of her life in France, Westbrook and her mother moved to Los Angeles following the separation of her parents. Westbrook had little contact with her father growing up. Although Westbrook has never addressed it, rumors circulate that she and her father have spent most of her life estranged. Westbrook went so far as to change her last name from Blanche to Westbrook on her eighteenth birthday.

As a teenager, Westbrook attended The Hollywood Academy of the Performing Arts, a prestigious performance school at which she was a scholarship student. Her mother struggled financially, moving the two of them from residence to residence as banks threatened foreclosure. Much like her relationship with her father, her relationship with her mother was also strained. Finally, after many confrontations at home, 16-year-old Westbrook moved in with her boyfriend at the time, Logan Reese, who was three years her senior. In a ploy to force Westbrook to move back home, her mother went to The Hollywood Academy and demanded they revoke Westbrook's scholarship as she no longer lived at the address stated in her financial aid forms. Westbrook, a minor, was powerless to intercede as her scholarship was dismissed and she could no longer attend the school. However, undaunted, Westbrook went to court to fight to be legally emancipated and won. She was re-enrolled at The Hollywood Academy within a week.

I blew out a deep breath through pursed lips. This was wrong. Although all of the information was public knowledge, this felt like an invasion of Francesca's privacy.

I glanced out the airplane window on my right. Clouds were all I could see, but I knew in a few hours, my view would be of the Swiss Alps. I had a long six weeks of filming ahead of me, and I knew communication with anyone not involved with the film would be extremely limited. The fact that Francesca and I were still on rocky terms left me feeling unsettled. Although we'd been civil at brunch, we had discussed nothing. Francesca had told me she wasn't ready to discuss the argument we'd had at Nora and Axel's house, but I knew we couldn't let this fester.

But first, I had a phone call I had to make.

I opened my contacts, scrolled for a bit, and then hit the FaceTime audio button, knowing that I'd have no cellular service at 35,000 feet.

I listened as the line rang until I was certain I would get a "FaceTime unavailable" notification.

"Hello?" said the voice on the other side of the line.

"Rowan," I said. "Hey. We need to talk. Is now a good time?"

xxx

I waited until I made it to my hotel before calling Francesca. It was 8:30 in the morning in Geneva, which meant it was nearing midnight for Francesca. I hoped she was still awake.

I stalled a bit, brushing my teeth and freshening up. I changed from the trousers I was wearing into a pair of joggers and sprayed a fragrant air freshener that I always brought with me while traveling. I always felt comfortable when I could smell home.

Pulling back the covers, I crawled into bed. I unplugged my cell phone from the wall, turning onto my back.

After a few deep breaths, I'd pulled up Francesca's contact and before I knew it, her voice spoke down the line, quiet.