32 Calm before storm - Lillian's book release ritual

It is a beautiful Sunday morning with pleasant weather appealing to its audience.

A perfect day to celebrate living and relish the atmosphere for its natural beauty.

But not for Lillian Grey.

..

The D-day has arrived, and her book is getting released this evening. The announcement is ready, and the copies to deliver are waiting for the time to come.

At Lillian's residence:

Lillian was up early morning. The release day gets always filled with nervousness, fear, and all kinds of anxieties. For every book release, Lillian performed some rituals to clear her stress. She woke up early and finished all of her morning routines- brushed, bathed, and wore a tracksuit. For the next one hour, Lillian commenced her sudden exercise routine. After that, she took another shower and wore another tracksuit. Throughout this, she would have downed up to six cups of tea. Lillian had a music player with large speakers. She turned them on and started dancing randomly to the rhythm. It wasn't any exact type, but the styles evolved. She danced until her limbs exhausted and could move no more. It was not because Lillian's a weak dancer; in fact, Lillian loves to freestyle and enjoys the western dancing to her heart's content. It is Lillian's strategy to dance wildly when in fear or frightened mood. During this little extreme morning ceremony, Lillian had a guest come over. When she heard the doorbell, running swiftly without stopping to welcome the visitor.

"Ms. Grey, I seriously can't get used to this. Could you please stop doing all this crazy stuff? Your book is going to do well. Why do you have to do all these? Plus, why am I getting dragged into this?" It was Jenna, the only one who can tolerate and go through with these, is Lillian's beloved editor Jenna.

"Did you get them?" Lillian couldn't care less. She went straight to the point. Lillian called Jenna and requested to stay with her until the press release. It was the ritual that Lillian follows. In between this support, anything can happen, so it wasn't for the weak-hearted person. As said, Jenna gets dragged into this stayover every single time. Although it doesn't happen often, the impact of even a single stayover is immense and will remain as lasting in memories forever.

Since Jenna is familiar with this type of activity, the first thing she did after entering the home was to turn down the music. She didn't completely shut down but lowered the volume.

"Ms. Grey, is that a costume that you're wearing? What is it a red top and a green pant? Are you cosplaying the traffic lights, then where's the yellow?" Jenna teased her harshly. It got severe enough to make Lillian go and get changed into a decent casual dress. Once she came back to the living room, Jenna handed her the breakfast.

"Here you go, Ms. Grey. Three grilled cheese sandwiches for you, and I got some sliders for me."

Lillian, after receiving the breakfast, still kept looking at Jenna and the bag she had.

"Ms. Grey, what you're searching for isn't available for you today?" Jenna coldly replied.

Lillian fell into despair. She had requested Jenna to buy whiskey and Gin bottles. However, Jenna didn't buy them this time. Disappointed, Lillian went on full mode dancing again with the loudest volume set in the speaker. Jenna's ears became void, and she started to hear the beaming sound. Unable to take it anymore, she walked straight to the music player and unplugged the cable in a single swift move.

"Ms. Grey, please let me have good ears to listen." Jenna cried as she begged. It was outrageous.

"Calm down, Ms. Grey, nothing is going to happen. I already heard from the sales team that your fans are excited about the upcoming book. They're prepared to go full crazy once the book is released. Please, I can't possibly handle this much of craziness," Jenna reassures while catching her breath.

"S... Sorry, Jenna. You know me, right? I don't know how to overcome this much pressure. It happens every single time. I needed something more boisterous than this to make me feel small. Sorry, it was an impulse," Lillian pants and apologized like usual. Both of them lay down on the couch to get some air.

Lillian, who was on the verge of breaking up, finally slept without eating her sandwich. Looking at her sleeping in this odd position on the couch, Jenna grabbed a blanket from Lillian's room to cover her up. It will calm her down. Meanwhile, she went to the kitchen to make some food. There she saw six empty cups unwashed, still on the counter.

'Ms. Grey is getting weirder every time.' - She thought.

Jenna washed those cups and placed them on the cup holders. Aside from the food, Jenna had bought some vegetables and fruits. She made a quinoa salad with the bought ingredients and fruit salad independently.

Jenna remembered her first time when Lillian called her suddenly on the book release day. When she came home, Lillian got already drunk, along with the loud music that could kill anyone's hearing sense. The habit of drinking tea was encouraged by Jenna. Lillian drank tea whenever she feels happy, sad, or depressed. Those days were worse than now because Jenna never had the guts to shut down the music or raise her voice against Lillian. But now, it was possible. Their relationship was stronger, more than being an author and an editor. Lillian Grey was Jenna's guide and teacher, and Jenna was the girl who cared deeply for Lillian with all respect and care. As they worked together for a long time, both of them started to feel like 'being family.' Hence, it became easy for Jenna to take control and be strict with her author.

The afternoon arrived soon enough, but Lillian woke up from her sleep late. She tried to look at the time but found no clock or her phone around. It was the trick Jenna learned during the last time stayover visit, hiding the god damn time so that it doesn't make Ms. Grey go crazy.

Seeing her awake, Jenna brought in cups of salad and tea. Lillian ate in silence. Watching Lillian's action, which is being tranquil, Jenna decided to report the time because she thought that Ms. Grey had calmed down after a good short sleep.

"Ms. Grey, it is 3:30 PM," Jenna shared with a hope that the author will maintain her composure.

Lillian's eyes widened big enough to make them fall out of her eye socket when learning the time. She then screamed out of her lungs.

"Not again, MS. GREY," Jenna felt exhausted already, thinking of how she is going to handle the rest of the main event.