“Did you wear some kind of a harness in case you fell?” asked Klassie. She was back, wearing a neck brace but otherwise unscathed.
“Oh sure. Yep. They put us in some harness thingies. It was like wearing a big diaper attached to a big wire. Not very romantic if you ask me. When we were at the top we yelled ‘Viva France!’ at the top of our lungs. It was so cool. The producers told us to do that, but they told us to make it look like it was a spontaneous decision. I thought that was pretty darn smart of them. Bellamy and I are getting really serious. I told him that I want to have five kids and he said he wants to have five kids too. I hope you guys don’t mind me gushing about him. I’m just so excited I can’t shut up.”
“Five kids?” asked Klassie.
“Or more,” said Deb. “I wouldn’t mind having twenty kids. I thought about it and if we had a couple sets of twins, it would be very doable.”
“How would having twins make it more doable? You’d still have twenty kids to take care of,” said Klassie.
“So I wouldn’t have to have babies for twenty years straight. If I had some twins, I could have babies for maybe just ten or fifteen years straight, and we’d be child-free and ready to travel before we were too old to enjoy it. This trip is making me realize I want to travel the world! With Bellamy! Gosh you guys, I hope all my talking about Bellamy and how much I love him and how I’m going to marry him isn’t making you guys mad at me. I’m just so crazy about him. Anyway, back to our family plans, I’ve got it all worked out. Except where we’re going to live. I want to be close to my family, but Bellamy wants to be close to his family too. I’m not sure how we’re going to handle that.”
“What did you do after you climbed the Eiffel Tower?” asked Alanna. To my shock, she’d sent the hockey player home and was holding out for Bellamy.
“We had a fancy French meal at a teensy little bistro table that was set up on a balcony overlooking the city. It was so pretty! There was a man playing a fancy instrument and then fireworks went off. Did you see them? They were for us.”
“I guess we missed it,” said Alanna.
“Oh. Too bad! They were pretty. Lots of hearts exploding out of other hearts. Those are my favorite. I’m starting to wonder how I’m going to handle it if I have to go home. Every day is so full of exciting stuff. I can’t imagine having to go back alone to Duluth without Bellamy. I would die of a broken heart. What do you guys think? Isn’t it exciting being on this show?”
I shrugged. I had been bleaching my teeth for forty-five minutes to avoid having to speak. The whitening strips were French and very, very minty. They made my gums burn. I was a little afraid to remove them for fear my teeth might have completely eroded. The upside was that I could blame my tears on them.
I couldn’t get my argument with Pete out of my mind. Somehow I’d been able to sneak back to the room undetected, but if I wasn’t careful, my emotions were going to give me away.
“No kidding,” said Klassie. “I woke up in Paris, fell off a balcony, got taken away in an ambulance…”
“A French, foreign ambulance,” Deb interjected.
“We didn’t think you’d be back,” Alanna added, accusingly.
“Yeah, okay,” said Klassie, “but I’m fine, so here I am. Anyhow, as I was saying, I’ve had a crazy day too. Not as crazy as Vanessa though, I guess.”
“Is she really gone?” asked Deb.
“Yes,” Alanna said smugly.
“Wow. That’s insane! And she’s engaged now? I can’t believe it. Did you see the guy?” asked Deb.
I nodded.
“He was so ordinary that it made me want to cry,” said Alanna.
“I wonder why just you three got put to the test,” said Deb. “They didn’t have any exes lined up for me or Klassie. Don’t you think that’s kind of strange?”
“I know,” said Alanna. “Why would they have ever questioned my loyalty towards Bellamy? Honestly, I feel like they were trying to set me up for failure. But I proved them wrong. So did you, Emma.”
“Mmm,” I said, nodding.
“Well, they were on to something,” said Klassie. “I mean, not with you two, but with Vanessa. They suspected that she loved someone else more than she loves Bellamy, and they were right.”
“Does she have to give back her jewelry?” I asked.
“We can’t understand you with those whitening strips in your mouth,” said Alanna.
There was a knock at the door. “You know what that’s going to be, don’t you?” asked Deb, her eyes gleaming. “I’ll bet it’s invitations to meet Bellamy’s family!” She dashed across the room and yanked open the door.
Instead of a date card, Bellamy was standing there. It was almost midnight and none of us were prepared to see him or to be filmed, but he came with a camera crew in tow, as always. I pulled off my whitening strips and chucked them beneath the sofa, giving a quick swipe to my mouth with the back of my hand. Alanna gasped and stuffed her glasses into the book she was holding, simultaneously shaking out her hair that had been piled in a messy bun on top of her head. Klassie and Deb just smiled at him.
“Hey. Surprise,” said Bellamy. He looked tired and depressed.
“Hi,” we all said. I ran my tongue over my teeth, making sure they didn’t feel gummy.
“I’m glad you’re still up,” he said to us. “I was afraid I might wake you.”
“Bellamy, of course we’re still up!” said Alanna. She stood up and made her way over to him, faux-absentmindedly twisting her t-shirt into a knot until her entire stomach was exposed. “Do you know that you’re just totally my favorite person ever?” she asked him, giving him a little hug.
“Emma, could I have a word with you outside?” he asked.
My heart dropped. How stupid of me to think I could get away with having a phone conversation with Pete when there were cameras everywhere.
The other girls looked at one another, trying to gauge if this turn of events was in their favor or against them.
“Right now?” I asked.
“Yeah, right now,” he said.
“Sure,” I said. I grabbed my sweater and slipped my shoes on. I decided to let him do the talking, and he didn’t say anything until we were outside and had walked quite a ways down the street. I noticed the cameramen were lingering far behind us, which I thought was strange considering that a bunch of drama was about to get unleashed.
We walked and walked, in silence. I began to let my guard down, wondering if I might still be staying around longer despite my call to Pete. After all, Bellamy had made it clear that I meant nothing to him. That I was like a sister. That I was just a spy.
“Come this way,” Bellamy finally spoke. He took my hand, pulling me down a dark cobblestone passage. “Run with me,” he said, so I did.
It had just rained a little and the streets were wet. The air felt misty and the night felt magical. Despite the knots in my stomach, I couldn’t help but appreciate this magical place and Bellamy’s hand in mine as we ran. In the distance I heard music and people laughing, but where we were, there were no other people but us. I knew that if I looked back, we’d probably still be in view of cameras, but they seemed very far away. I looked up at him and he looked down at me. I realized he wasn’t tired and depressed; he was… emotional. It was the same look I’d seen on his face when he’d realized Alanna was in love with Antonio. A look of vulnerability and sweetness and heart wrenching agony.
We stopped running and faced each other. I knew he was going to tell me to go home. I deserved it, but now that I was in the moment of it actually happening I realized I wasn’t ready to go. I was ashamed of myself and dreading having to defend my actions. I looked down at the pavement but he touched my chin, tilting it up, forcing me to look in his eyes.
“Bellamy, I’m sorry,” I whispered.
“Why would you say that?” he asked. “I’m glad.”
“You’re glad?”
“Emma, I know how you feel,” he whispered. His face was in
ches from mine. We were stopped now in a doorway and his arms were around me. “Bob told me that you love me. He wasn’t supposed to, but he did. It’s what I wanted to hear.” He kissed me. He was so tender, so passionate, that I found myself pulling him closer, kissing him back. I stood on my tiptoes, wanting to be even closer to him. We kissed for several minutes. Just as he slid his hand beneath my sweater and touched my back, I felt Bob’s camera lens bump my face.
“Whoopsadaisy. Sorry ‘bout that,” said Bob. I took a step back. Now we were surrounded by cameras.
“Emma, does this mean you’d like to come home to Denver with me?” asked Bellamy.
“Yes,” I said. And for the first time since I’d landed in Los Angeles so many weeks earlier, I really meant it.
Chapter 27
“I can’t believe it’s finally happening,” said Deb, looking out the window of the plane. “I had no idea Denver had mountains. This is so exciting!”
Alanna leaned over me to peer out the window. “I love it here. The last time I met Bellamy’s family, in case you forgot that I’ve met them, they were so amazing. I really could imagine being a part of their family. I mean, you did see me meeting them, right? Remember how much they liked me? I think they’re going to be really happy to see me again. I know I’ve missed them a ton, so I assume they’ve missed me too. I hate to say it, but they loved me.”
“I saw that episode, and I remember it differently,” said Klassie.
“Differently how?” asked Alanna.
“Just, um, less intense. Less love.”
“I guess you had to be there,” said Alanna.
“And now we all will be,” said Klassie.
“Are you trying to start a fight with me?” Alanna asked Klassie.
Klassie shook her head. Then nodded it when Alanna was no longer looking.
“We all remember that episode,” said Deb. “Of course we do! After all, it just happened. You wore the peach and turquoise strapless sundress, right?”
“Yes. It’s Michael Kors.”
“It’s what?” asked Deb.
“Never mind. Forget it,” said Alanna. Her lips began to tremble and her eyes grew moist.
“There, there. I know who Michael Kors is,” I said, patting her arm. She shoved me away and shook her head.
“I remember that they served corn on the cob and you ate it so delicately,” Deb continued, squinting a little as she recalled details of Alanna and Bellamy’s previous Meet-the-Fam date. “Like a little rabbit. Not one kernel got lodged in your teeth. And you totally clicked with Bellamy’s family, Alanna. They adored you. The rest of us might as well not even bother meeting them.”
“I did click with them. Thanks for backing me up, Debbie,” said Alanna. She glared at Klassie and then at me; I was guilty too, since I hadn’t stuck up for her.
“Do you think it’s a little odd that we’re going to Denver instead of to Arizona? I’d like to see Bellamy’s place instead of his parents’ house. What if he lives in a shack, or an efficiency apartment? I’m on to something here, right?” asked Klassie. She adjusted her neck brace and twisted her white-yellow hair.
“The point is to meet the fam,” said Alanna. “Meet the fam. Not the roommates. Not the co-workers. Not the frat boys. Not the skanky ex-girlfriends. Not the neighbors. The fam-i-ly. That’s what ‘fam’ stands for. Seriously Klassie, did you ever watch the show before you came here?”
“Yes Alanna. God! Back off. You’re such a piranha. Anyhoo, what do you girls think of my hair? It’s blah, right? Not at all me, right? I think I’m going to dye it back to red. Don’t you all think so? I just don’t feel like myself right now without my red hair.” She twisted a chunk of it around her fingers over and over and made a face. Ever since she’d fallen off the balcony, she seemed to be experiencing bouts of skittishness I hadn’t noticed before.
“Alanna, tell us more about his family. Are they amazing?” asked Deb.
“Yeah, Debbie. They’re really great. You know what the best thing about them was? I mean, besides their general awesomeness? They’d heard of the band I was in! Isn’t that so sweet of them?”
“You were in a band?” asked Deb.
“Sure! Chipmunk Super Highway. I mean, this was years ago, back when I was a kid. We were über-famous in Saskatchewan. That’s where I lived when I was little. Never mind. I mean, now I’m blabbing about nothing, just like you, right Debbie?”
“I don’t know,” said Deb.
“So,” Alanna continued, “his parents are really nice and normal, and he has a younger sister who seems really sweet and sporty, and an older brother who also seems cool. I’m not so sure about the brother’s wife, she seemed a little off, like 2007 Britney Spears, or Sylvia Plath or something, but otherwise they’re a great bunch. I hope they don’t have any hard feelings towards me, you know, for not picking Bellamy last time. It’s just, I was confused, you know?”
“Sure,” said Deb. “Who’s Sylvia Plath?”
“Oh Debbie, you poor little fool,” said Alanna.
“Are you for serious?” asked Deb.
I was so annoyed that Alanna had been in Chipmunk Super Highway. I wondered now how I hadn’t realized it sooner. Chipmunk Super Highway had been a band made up of five adorable little girls with chic bobbed haircuts and shiny yellow raincoat themed clothing. They’d had their own television show that played on Sunday afternoons after Saved by the Bell reruns. They had even had a somewhat-known song that got a little radio air time called School Blues. I bit my lip to keep from humming it.
“So,” said Deb, already having forgiven Alanna, “do you think they’re still mad at you, or have they gotten over it? I’ll bet they’re over it.”
“Yeah, Debbie, I think they’ve had enough time to heal. If I can heal, so can they, right? Honestly, I was the victim in the whole ordeal. More than Bellamy and certainly more than his parents. None of them had to deal with Antonio and his lies. But like I’ve said, I’m over all that and ready to move on. Time heals all wounds. Yeah, I’m sure they’re over it. Case closed,” said Alanna. Then she turned to me and narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “You know, Emma, you’re being awfully quiet.”
“I’m sleepy,” I said. When I closed my eyes, reruns of the Chipmunk Super Highway girls singing and dancing overtook my brain. I could see clearly now that the little tambourine Chipmunk was Alanna. Remembering that, I next recalled that I had once owned a lunchbox with her face on it. Not even a nice lunch box, but a pathetic, thermosless hand-me-down from my younger cousin. My own futility smothered me like a lead blanket. I sank down farther and farther in my seat.
“What’s bothering you? Tell us,” said Alanna, giving me a poke in the forehead.
“Nothing,” I said. I blinked my eyes a couple of times, trying to erase the memory of that lunchbox. On top of the annoyances of the moment, I was distracted by worries about Pete and the pillow fight girl. I’d tossed and turned all night, obsessed with scenarios of the two of them frolicking naked in goose down ecstasy. Then, while trying to sleep at the airport, I’d overhead some producers discussing Vanessa. It turned out that she and Bernie had called off their engagement, and she was coming back. She would be meeting up with us in Denver. I hadn’t bothered to tell the other girls. I wasn’t even supposed to know about it.
Also, I’d realized when I’d looked at my plane ticket that somehow it truly was two months later than the day I’d first arrived in Los Angeles, and that Pete had every reason to be upset with me. Not to mention that it was my mother’s birthday. I’d asked a producer if I could call her and I was told I couldn’t. I resented having to ask for permission for something so basic, and then being told No. It reminded me of being a child and having to ask to use the restroom during school. It was outrageous. I felt all around horrible and was considering quitting the competition. I figured that with Vanessa’s return, perhaps they’d all barely notice saying goodbye to me. If only I hadn’t developed the teensiest bit of real feelings for Bellamy.
“Do you know what a Chipmunk Super Highway is?” asked Alanna, with her pretty, sneery little smirk.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I said.
“I think I heard you start to hum School Blues a second ago.”
“I did not.”
“Maybe just the first few notes?”
“No.”
“I think you did.”
“Uh uh. No way,” I said.
“Were you in my fan club? We had a fan club, but I also had my own fan club. Did you belong to both fan clubs or just mine?”
“Neither.”
“Hmm. I’ll bet there’s a letter from you in the giant crate of fan mail at my parents’ house.”
“I’m certain there’s not,” I said, fully aware that there might be. “How sad of you to hold on to those old mementos of your better days,” I added.
“Well played, Drabby. You’re more of a bitch than people know.”
“So are you,” I said.
“I hope that doesn’t make you think we have anything in common. Anyway, do you know what a Chipmunk Super Highway is?” she pressed on.
“No.”
“It’s a downspout,” she said. And then she burst into giggles.
I crossed my arms and sighed. It was like being trapped in seventh grade.
“Why are you such a grumpy-puss today?” asked Deb.
“No kidding,” said Klassie. “I’ve never seen you so miserable.”
“I don’t know,” I said.
“They’re right,” said Alanna. She replaced her sneer with a look of sappy, condescending concern. “You’re so… pardon me for saying this, but I’m worried about you. You’re so… bitchy looking. Are you suffering from something you’d like to share with us?”
“It’s my mom’s birthday,” I said. “I asked them if I could call her to wish her a happy birthday and they told me I couldn’t. I think they’re taking this whole lock-down thing a little too far.”
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