Despite the glowing adoration from film critics and gushed applause as the cast departed for the evening, Anna's still left alone to pack the leftover profiteroles and empty hot chocolate flasks into Oaken's catering van. It's nearly midnight when she's done, but a heady euphoria had taken over her senses, like she was floating on air. In the silence which followed as she sat in the van amidst Hollywood Boulevard's neon lights, Anna sipped on a leftover mug of lukewarm hot chocolate, pondering if the price she'd pay for this life would be worth it.

"It's like you're selling your soul for a dream," Anna whispered to herself.

"You are!" a voice floated behind Anna.

At once, Anna shrieked in terror as a figure clambered over her shoulder and sat next to her in front. The grin on Elsa's flushed face shone brighter than a star.

"What the hell are you doing?" Anna exclaimed, "t-this is m-my-"

"This is your night!" Elsa sang out, untying her mink scarf and looping it over Anna's neck.

Eyes widened in horror, Anna could only muster a vague stutter, "Oh my god, how long were you hiding in my-"

A chorus of shouting emerged behind the van.

"Go, go, go!" Elsa screamed, pointing down Hollywood Boulevard, "before Hans catches us!"

Anna floored the gas and the van lurched off, evoking squeals of delight from them.

"What do you think you're doing?" Anna exclaimed, "d-don't you have an afterparty to go to?"

Elsa wiped a tear of excitement from her immaculate makeup. For her entire life, tears were reserved for sorrow, rage, for a scene. Until now - Elsa never imagined one could cry from joy or excitement.

"I am at the afterparty," Elsa retorted, reaching behind and pulling out a bottle of champagne, "the guestlist comprises: Anna Miller, and Elsa Sheridan."

"Sorry to burst your bubbly," Anna answered, grinning from ear to ear, "I still have to close the shop."

"...And the event venue is Oaken's Confectionery and Patisserie!" Elsa continued, ignoring Anna's pleas.

"You're more adventurous than your reputation suggests," Anna smirked.

"Well, what does my reputation suggest, Ms Anna Miller?"

Anna looked over at Elsa, who had kicked off her heels and placed her feet on the dashboard. She rested a palm against her chin, cherry-painted lips pouting at the girl.

"Elite, cold, professional," Anna mouthed off, pausing for a second to consider her next words, "like a woman who has everything and nothing at the same time."

The megawatt smile on Elsa's face faded for a split-second, right before it morphed into a smirk.

"That's where you're wrong," Elsa sneered, "because, right now - I have you. And I wouldn't trade this moment for everything in the world."

Oaken was long gone by the time Anna arrived to return her catering equipment. Interspersed with the sound of clinking bowls and pans, Elsa wandered the cluttered confectionery interior, resisting the urge to help herself to leftover chocolate bars on the countertop. Lost in her thoughts, her fingers chanced upon a record player, swept clean and in pristine condition. She couldn't resist playing the record perched on it.

The soothing melody of Etta James' voice filled the store. Anna emerged from the prep room, dusting pastry flour from her hands. The sight of Elsa in her elaborate evening gown, hair undone from the hectic drive, and piercing blue eyes - sent Anna's gaze to the floor.

"I still don't know what we're doing here," Anna confessed, untying her apron, "or what you want with me."

"If you could see yourself the way I do," Elsa sang out, mimicking the song's melody, "you'd see why I'm drawn to you."

Without waiting for a reply, Elsa popped the champagne bottle, cork whizzing past Anna's hair.

"Oh my gosh!" Anna squealed, "I've never had champagne before!"

"First time for everything!" Elsa said, pouring two glasses of bubbly for them.

To Anna, the champagne bubbles appeared like stars scattered across a sun-draped galaxy. She tipped the glass towards her lips.

"Wait," Elsa reminded, "what do we toast to?"

"Elsa Sheridan! The ice queen of Hollywood!"

"Anna Miller! To the success of your Hollywood dreams!"

Clink

The fizzy drink tasted like apple cider from back home, where the Williamsons would press sacks of apples and store the juices in oaken barrels as tall as herself. The sour, alcoholic taste made itself evident on Anna's face.

"You don't drink much, do you?" Elsa asked, putting away her already-finished glass.

"No," Anna answered, remembering how her family would save bottles of wine for special occasions. Or Schnapps when the world melts down around you.

Elsa extended a hand towards Anna, diamond jewellery dangling off her wrist and fingers.

"Do you know how to dance?"

"I've never danced, either-"

"Again, darling - a first time for everything, isn't there?" Elsa giggled.

Anna looked at the softness of Elsa's hands, and at her own, rough, flour-caked fingers. The two couldn't have struck a more contrasting pair, but right there in the store - as the buzz of alcohol took over and Elsa's intoxicating perfume pervaded her senses, the prospect of being close again to her proved too much to resist.

At last

My love has come along

My lonely days are over

And life is like a song

Serenaded by the song, Anna pulled herself close to Elsa and allowed the woman to lead her in a slow dance. Fraught with apprehension, Anna relaxed as Elsa's reassuring touch calmed her nerves, frazzled from an evening of unexpected emotions. She took a step, and then another, before melting into Elsa's fluid movements.

"You're a natural," Elsa commented, twirling Anna around, "you should be a ballerina, or something."

"Maybe it's just you."

At last

The skies above are blue

My heart was wrapped up in clover

The night I looked at you

As Elsa smoothened Anna's unruly red tresses, the girl felt an immense weight lift from her shoulders. The burden of carrying a character she didn't care for, now replaced by her own genuine self - enveloped in the embrace of a woman who wanted nothing else than to be with her. Enchanted by the music, Elsa's entire world shrunk into a single redheaded girl wrapped in her arms, swaying away in this little brick store. All the petty studio politics, her fears and anxieties and desperate longing to be free of her shackles - all evaporated in the warmth of Anna's embrace.

I found a dream that I could speak to

A dream that I can call my own

I found a thrill to press my cheek to

A thrill that I've never known

"Tonight's a first for me too, I've never danced with a female co-star before," Elsa confessed, holding Anna close, "In fact, I've never felt this way before, with anyone. With you."

Anna's lips pursed in a straight line. Of all the fictitious lives she'd played thus far, this one appeared as real to her as daylight. No longer hiding behind the veneer of a character, she told Elsa the truth.

"Me neither."

Elsa's grip tightened. They drew closer, barely a breath separating them. Warmth spread through Anna's body as she felt the quickening thump of Elsa's heartbeat pounding against her. Lost in the moment, Elsa leaned in and stole the breath from Anna's lips. The girl went limp with pleasure, right before she kissed Elsa back with every ounce of strength she had in her bones. The sensation left them gasping when they parted.

"That wasn't your first time, was it?" they asked each other, in unison - only to each receive a giggle in reply.

For an answer, Anna crept up on her toes and crushed her lips into Elsa's, sending her staggering into the prep room and kicking the door shut behind them. Fists bunched around Anna's uniform, Elsa shoved her against the countertop. Anna sighed deeply as the actress allowed her hands to wander beneath her clothes. Eventually, her lips joined in the journey, leaving a faded trail of scarlet lipstick dotting the sparse freckles adorning Anna's neck.

"Definitely not your first," Anna sighed.

Still, Anna's fingertips grazed along Elsa's slender curves. Sensing Anna's apprehension, Elsa reached behind herself and undid her gown, allowing it to pool around her ankles. The sight of Elsa's glowing fair skin, radiant beneath the dim lights, tied Anna's stomach into knots.

"Touch me," Elsa begged, taking hold of the girl's hands and placing them upon herself. Gingerly, the girl complied as Elsa undid the buttons on Anna's jacket. Elsa's shaking hands took an agonisingly long time to expose the rough, freckled skin beneath Anna's clothes, and she wasted no time sinking her lips upon her curves.

Flinging her head back, Anna cried out as she cradled Elsa's head to herself. Tendrils of blonde hair flowed against the girl's skin like a golden waterfall. She noticed Elsa kissing her breasts in the reflection of the oven's window, and her heart raced at the sight.

She's just using you. A thought slipped into Anna's mind. You're probably just another name in her long list of play-things.

"I want you so much," Elsa growled, cradling Anna's face, eyes glowing with desire. Anna's unease melted away as the woman kissed her again, this time, tasting a trace of longing on her lips, mingled with the aftertaste of champagne and tobacco. The fiery touch of Elsa's lips to her skin raised a surge of excitement within her, and her desires spoke on her behalf.

"Then take me," Anna teased.

A mischievous glint lit up in Elsa's eyes, before she lifted the girl onto the countertop, pulling off the rest of her clothes in the process.

"Y-you're not thinking of-" Anna gasped, before Elsa's lips stole the words from her mouth again. A piercing cry of pleasure rang out around the store as Elsa knelt and kissed her there. It took all of Anna's strength to keep her precarious balance on the counter, with one leg flung over the actress's shoulder. In the back of her mind Anna felt a trace of weakness being this naked and vulnerable and kissed on her insides by a famous actress. But the maddening movements of Elsa's lips against hers won out, and she gripped the woman's shoulders hard, beckoning her not to stop.

Anna's chest rose and fell with each passing second Elsa spent between her legs. The record had long stopped, leaving the warm air between them punctuated by Anna's laboured breathing. There was a tinge of discomfort as Elsa pushed a little too hard, before it evaporated into a glowing hot beacon of arousal burning away at her insides. It'd been so long since she'd looked after herself, lost in her new Hollywood life - and when the searing sensation grew within her and threatened to explode, it felt almost alien to her.

Every muscle in Anna's body flexed as Elsa brought her over the edge. Her breaths came in ragged spurts. Her mind was still delirious, fascinated at the apparent ease with which Elsa had unravelled her. She'd barely come down from the raging pleasure still coursing through her veins, before Elsa got up and kissed her again. The honey-sweet taste of her own arousal was potent on her lips.

"Fuck me," Elsa demanded, barely giving Anna a moment to recover. Without another word, she got off the counter and allowed Elsa to lead her hand between her legs. In turn, Elsa pushed herself up against Anna, pressing a palm up against her. With bated breath, they entered each other simultaneously, wincing at the sensation pulsating through their loins. Just like the dance from earlier, both women moved in tandem, shifting their bodies together and giving as much pleasure as they took.

"Ugh, Anna," Elsa groaned in Anna's ear, crushing her entire weight onto Anna's body. She screwed her eyes shut as the pleasure enveloped herself; there was no drug, no drink, no ill-fated fling that could compare to the sensation of being with Anna like this.

In response, Anna pushed back with all her might, intensifying her motions until Elsa's breaths resembled sputtered gasps against her neck. Elsa's body went tense for a moment, before the release cascaded throughout herself, touching every fibre in her being. The throbbing hot orb of pleasure still erupting within herself refused to quench as Anna continued her furious ministrations. Elsa's eyes widened at just how quickly the girl had wrecked her.

"I'm close," Anna moaned, clinging onto Elsa, "don't stop." Eyes screwed shut, Elsa pushed hard. The girl arched her hips in response. Opening her eyes right on the edge of finishing, Elsa caught sight of Anna's face - cherry pink and flushed with longing. She dipped forward and kissed Anna, right as the climax tore through them both.

A sheen of sweat coated their bodies, still heaving from the sex. The scent of arousal floated around the air, and neither found the words to acknowledge what happened. There was a glowing warmth between them, and Elsa felt a shred of guilt as she cradled Anna's face in her hands. Perhaps she'd asked for too much from this girl, and too soon.

"Do you still think you're selling your soul for a dream?" Elsa asked, nuzzling her neck.

Anna paused, looking at the locks of blonde hair intertwined between her fingers.

"I'll take any dream for sale," Anna whispered, "as long as you're in it."

A/N: At Last, Etta James, 1960