interrupted

For Winona, who slept all day yesterday and all night, she is more alive than ever. She woke up early and decided to spend her time shopping in the high-end stores in the city of Massachusetts, not caring if the press was watching.

But her heart kept beating with some signs of discomfort, which she had been enduring since 1992, amid many problems. She entered a high-end nightclub around five in the afternoon to have a drink and head home; however, feeling the gazes of all the men only made her a bit more uncomfortable.

She hailed the first taxi she saw, with a few bags in her hands. She was planning to have a movie night with Gilliam. Upon reaching the hotel, she was delighted to see Trini Alvarado along with Samantha, Theodoro's new girlfriend, and, of course, the one playing Amy March.

-Girls, - Winona said.

Both women were gossiping about something specific in hushed voices. - Come, Wina, we have something charming to tell you, - Trini said.

-Oh, I'm all ears, - Winona said, invigorated to find someone who could listen to her ramblings for a while.

-Well, it turns out that in the next few days, a secret wedding took place—the wedding of the year. Michael Jackson is marrying Elvis Presley's daughter, Lisa Presley. Everything has been private, and the press knows very little. They have managed to cut off all communication directly from the top. It is understood that there is some secret agreement that cannot be revealed, - Samantha said in a secretive tone.

Winona's cheeks blushed at the juicy secret that began to circulate among the Hollywood elite and executives who knew about some secrets.

-Confirmed! - Winona exclaimed a bit louder than usual.

-Not at all. It's a secret, and there's a lot of mystery involved. Even if I wanted to know, my boyfriend, a music producer, mentioned that Michael had a secret wedding, and only the upper management of Epic Records knows. They want to create a buzz for his upcoming album, - Samantha declared.

-Dear, you have a boyfriend! That's something you were keeping deep, - Trini said.

-Please, you're the one keeping secrets. Your co-star in that cop movie you participated in, and the passionate romance you lived, is something to envy, - Samantha said.

Trini opened her mouth in surprise, the blush spreading from her cheeks to her ears, with a red flame. The laughter of the girls didn't take long.

-You know, I think the director of photography is in love with you, - Winona told Samantha, envying the confidence with which the blonde spoke.

-He's a bit old, - Samantha said.

A waiter arrived with a tray, a glass of vanilla ice cream with a small chocolate cup, and a glass of water, along with other more sinuous chocolate and vanilla desserts, strawberries, and fruits.

-We haven't ordered dessert, - Winona said.

-The gentleman over there sends a note to the ladies, - said the waiter, pointing to Billy, who waved greetings to the three ladies.

-The gentleman mentions that it's his favorite dessert, gluten-free and sugar-free for the ladies. Good night, - said the waiter, leaving quickly.

Billy was with a notebook, calmly drawing. He wore a black suit; blonde locks fell on his forehead, with brown highlights. The dye was starting to show some blonde roots, still incipient.

-I swear he sent it for you; there's a certain tension between you two, - Trini said to Winona, with a hint of mischief. The differences were evident—how Billy would give certain looks to Winona, and she would only dedicate him to certain periods. Though trying to conceal it, Billy couldn't help but fall for Winona's beauty. With her short hair, she was surprisingly stunning.

-It's not happening, - Winona said, opening her eyes wide, like lanterns, a signal she used when feeling not just uncomfortable, but something worse than uncomfortable—a signal she acted upon when truly uneasy.

-Give the guy a chance, - Samantha said.

-B-but, it's not possible, - Winona stammered, strongly affected by the words that reached her.

-He's just a kid, - Winona said.

-A kid with excellent manners, hardworking, wonderful, and handsome, - Trini said, imitating Winona's voice.

-Shut up. I only said it because you wouldn't stop asking. I don't like him; he's someone I consider a friend, - Winona said, closing the conversation and focusing on her dessert. Now she couldn't even have friends; everyone thought she slept with everyone, thought she was a shameless woman.

***************************************************************

Billy was eating diced fruits at the table, attending to his sketchbook. With utmost care, he began the intricate plotting necessary to organize the upcoming chapters of One Piece. The entire series was based on various styles, each contributing to the elaborate narrative—a long and painful story with many webs, all pointing towards a single outcome.

-Raimon, did you sort out the issues with the Comics distributor? - Billy asked.

-Everything's sorted out with Felicity; we've finalized the deal. Steve will officially step down to focus on Image Comics. By the way, we've received a new offer from George Lucas, - Raimon said.

-Wonderful. Shipments will be made promptly, just like we've been doing for the past two years, - Billy said.

-Of course! We'll even distribute toys! - Raimon said, responding to the majestic distribution of toys they were delivering to all available toy stores in the country—plushies, plastic figures, and more. A substantial investment filling every shelf in the country.

-Good, good. Now, focus on organizing all operations. I understand the cable companies are a bit hesitant, - Billy said.

-No problem, no problem. We can always launch the channel as a national channel. Initial profits are the same; it's just that we'd have to invest a bit more in maintaining the channel, whether via satellite or cable. However, if we succeed, we'll double our profits. I doubt it, but we can partner with some other channels and share the costs or fees, - Raimon said.

-Thanks for that, - Billy said.

-How's it going with your Dungeons and Dragons project? - Billy asked.

-Bad, terrible. I haven't had much reception with my new ideas to revitalize the series. Now I realize how complex it is to create those games, and I'd rather focus on the business side of things, - Raimon complained.

-Well, your idea is quite innovative—sea wars in the world of dungeons and dragons are something very new for the time. But you can develop the idea more deeply—sea monsters, captains, mermaids, water mages, and those half-animal sea people are good ideas, - Billy said.

-I know, and I envy that, - Raimon said.

-It's predictable; imagine, it's easier to do it on a computer. An open world of possibilities, where it extends across an entire continent, embodying all games and possible ideas in one big game that contains everything and every conceivable possibility, - Billy said.

-I have to hang up, - Raimon said.

...

we got to chapter 200, which is pretty mmmm this arc is much longer than I originally thought, I'm trying to give a lot more connection and start detailing some plots.

on Patreon we are at chapter 240, I'm uploading more or less 6 chapters at 8 chapters per week. but, the series is going fantastic.

this week I plan to write a lot, I don't have that many to do so I think I will be able to write a lot.