Beyond Love

Incoming

A/N: Hi everyone! So as per schedule, the first chapter of Vanilla is up on a completely new book, [Vanilla]! ^0^/ enjoy.

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[Rachel]

Minutes later of nonsense through the gap in the door, I was on my way back to my room—so shaken from the escalation of events that I'd completely forgotten about the chocolates meant for Mr. Yamazaki.

Having heard close to everything that the critic had to say, I was certain of exactly how adamant he was to make the trick up his sleeve work to his advantage. Whether it be for purposes of vengeance or sheer hatred, there hadn't been enough to tell. He must have, in some way or another without justification, figured that I had something to do with him being fired. Yet, I was so sure that someone like him had not the resources to do anything about the current situation and would be kept out of the picture.

I must have been dreaming to think so simply.

Returning to my room, I thought of why and how I would be facing the rest of the judges later at the dinner party. Unable to keep myself in check however, I decided first to pick out a dress. No use sitting around doing nothing, after all.

I'd called Jennifer over with the intention to share my findings but she had arrived, then, with information about tomorrow's segment and we spent the rest of the time planning the upcoming recipe instead of discussing the matter at hand.

It wasn't that I'd forgotten about it; it in fact plagued my every thought and refused to leave the back of my mind even for a brie second. The dinner party was a disaster inside, simply because everything, even the smiles of the judges, looked so dull with this newfound anxiety that nothing was real.

That night, I could not sleep. I'd even decided to take my medication that I'd hadn't touched in quite a while but I remained in bed, tossing and turning. At last, I decided to give my best friend a call.

"Trudy?" It had taken her about several rings before she picked up, which probably meant that she was still at work. Or perhaps busy with other matters regarding her father's company.

"I was about to call you," her voice sounded distant, leading me to assume that I had been put on speaker mode. "Did something go wrong on your end? I was informed about an additional candidate for the prize but I'm sure they wouldn't be able to win against your popular vote."

"No, Trudy—listen," I sighed, reaching for the light. "It's not just anyone they're considering all of a sudden. It's Honeycutt... all because of that critic from before. He came over in the afternoon to hand the Times some profiling. I think he was bribed."

"Honeycutt?" I could hear the change in her tone at once. "It can't be. Wasn't he the critic going on about hating their red velvet cupcakes? He gave them a two the previous time!"

"I know. I heard," I shook my head, massaging my temples. There was nothing more that came to mind. Everything else was a flurry of complaints and yet, I did not know how to voice them.

"Get some sleep Rachel. You have tomorrow to work on. I'll handle this," her voice was clearer now, and I had made myself some chamomile tea to soothe the nerves. "It's pretty simple. We just have to get the profiling. They wouldn't have anything to work with without that."

I nodded unconsciously, forgetting that she couldn't see. "Thanks Trudy. Sorry, I'm a little tired..."

"There's nothing to worry about when I'm taking care of things," she'd laughed then, and I did too. After a day's worth of worrying over a matter she could so easily solve! There was nothing I should have worried about in the first place. Perhaps I'll spend some time rethinking my recipe for tomorrow while finishing the tea before turning in.