Rooney picked up the phone, even though she knew nothing good could come out of the conversation that would follow.

-Hey, Charlie.

-Roons, look. I've been thinking about it and I think we should work on this, I think we can fix it, but we must both try.

Rooney did not answer right away.

-Roons, can you just come home for some days? You've not starting filming yet, so come home before filming begins.

-We begin tomorrow.

-Then let me come visit for a few days.

The young woman took some seconds, so that she could phrase her answer in the most painless way possible. How nicely could she possibly tell him that she really did not want to see him right now?

-I can't do that, Charlie. We've just finished rehearsing and we start filming tomorrow, I really need to focus. I really want this to go well.

-But obviously you don't feel the same about how you want our relationship to go.

-What does than even mean? Rooney almost stuttered, she knew perfectly well what that meant. More than that, she was embarrassed to admit it was true.

-I feel like I'm the only one trying to work things out! Charlie was almost shouting now.

-Charlie, that's not true..., Rooney started saying but she couldn't even convince herself.

-No, ever since that movie came along, I feel like I'm losing you! Do you even care about us anymore?

Rooney was looking for something, anything to say that would sound remotely convincing but she couldn't utter a word.

-Ok, Rooney, got it.

And just like that, Charlie hung up on her. Rooney stood still for some time, trying to process what had happened. Had they just broken up? Probably not. Would they break up soon? Probably so. Yet, somehow, she couldn't bring herself to feel sad or to call him back and apologize. What should she apologize for? That she cared so much about her job? That she loved this movie and wanted to do her best and couldn't afford to be distracted if she wanted to do so?

Rooney was walking on the street all by herself. They had finished another rehearsal about an hour ago, but she had hung back for some time. She could catch a cab to get to the hotel, but she chose not to. She felt like she needed to walk.

She had been with Charlie for about four years now and she had loved him, she knew she had. But even in her thoughts, she used a past tense. Had. Had loved him. She knew she had stopped loving him for some time now. But was he right? Was this movie the reason for it? No,of course not, how could it be? None of the movies she'd made so far had had that kid of effect on her. But then again, none of the movies she had done so far had her in the cast. In no other movie up until now had she starred opposite her. But she had nothing to do with it. Not in that way at least. Sure, she was really nervous about this movie because Cate had been her idol since she was thirteen. And because she was one of the best actresses in the world. And also one of, if not the, most beautiful, in her opinion. And she'd have to kiss her pretty soon. Yeah, like you're dreading that, said a little voice in her head.

"Shut up", she said aloud to herself as she was entering the hotel.

Cate was sitting in an armchair in her hotel room, looking outside the window and sipping her drink. She really felt like she needed that drink after the conversation she'd just had. Arguing, arguing, arguing, that was all she and her husband seemed to do these past few months. And again, some time ago on the phone. Cate never used to make movies to escape her life but now she felt that was exactly what she needed. It was pretty late, but she couldn't sleep. She felt tired but every time she had tried to go to sleep that night she ended up tossing and turning for what seemed like hours and then just got back up. She ended up going through the script one more time, as they were starting filming the next morning. She remembered Todd had said that their first scene would be the one with her and Rooney in her, Carol's , house.

From the moment they'd met she had liked Rooney, but there was something about them working together that made her nervous, although she could not quite put her finger on it. Maybe it was just the fact that the girl was so quiet, even though Cate was sure a thousand thoughts ran through her mind but she seemed to almost never say what she was thinking. Instead, she watched everything and everyone carefully, like she was observing a world in which she did not quite belong. Even when Cate was not looking at her, she could sometimes feel the younger woman's eyes on her, picking up her every little movement. Cate was not annoyed at this, but it made her incredibly self-conscious at once. When she would turn to look at her, because she could always feel it when Rooney's stare was fixed upon her, the girl would smile shyly, or just look away blushing a little. Cate wondered if she was working on her character or if it was something else. She wished it was something else but she did not know what else she wanted it to be.

Could she ask Rooney? No, of course not. What could she say? "Why are you staring at me?" It seemed like such a childish thing to say. No. Besides, it was obvious Rooney was working on her character, it seemed like something Therese would do and obviously, given the script and what Todd had told them so far, they would spend a lot of time staring at each other in the following weeks. And probably something more than staring. Like kissing. Probably a lot. Yeah, like you're dreading that, said a little voice in her head.

"Shut up", she said aloud to herself in the empty hotel room, confused by her own thoughts. She opened her purse to get her cigarettes and pulled her scarf from the purse, so she could find them. But as she lit a cigarette, she glanced at the scarf again and realised it was not hers.

Rooney got out of the shower and wrapped a towel around her body. She felt like she needed a cigarette, so she lit one and sat in an armchair, careful not to make it wet, as her hair was dripping. She looked outside the window. She remembered reading the book some months ago and she could remember a chapter in which Carol and Therese shower together. Was it too late to talk Phyllis into adding that scene in the movie? Probably not, right? It was worth a try. After all, it was a very important scene. How could the film get made without that scene in it? Actually, Rooney thought, any film could use a scene with Cate Blanchett showering.

Rooney shook her head. She truly needed to get a grip. She put out her cigarette and threw her towel on the bed, getting ready to put her pyjamas on, blow dry her hair and go to sleep. It was pretty late anyway. Just as she was walking towards her suitcase, she heard a soft knock on the door.

Notes: Okay, obviously, this is just a fanfic, and NOT based on any real events, I repeat, just a fanfic. I've never written anything before but I've wanted to write this for a while and I decided to give it a try. I know it's kind of short, but I don't know if anyone's going to read this or like it, so we'll see. Also, really sorry for any mistakes, English is not my first language. Thanks for reading, please leave a comment with your opinion, I'd really appreciate it! :)