She turned around and faced the TV. An old rerun of Seinfeld played quietly. “What’s on six?”
“Oh, you’re gonna want to see for yourself.”
She turned off the chicken and let it sit, located her remote, and changed the channel. She sat on the arm of her couch, curious as the screen filled with Aspen Wakefield giving clues to a portly gentleman with a bad comb-over.
“Are you obsessing about Aspen Wakefield again?” she asked Trip. “I know she’s beautiful, but I’m glad you chose a different Halloween costume.”
“Wait for it, Lala.” She did. She watched as a portly guy gave amazing clues and Aspen Wakefield spaced for half of them. Poor guy.
The shot cut away to the other duo, and when it did, Lauren slid off the arm onto the couch cushion in surprise. It was Carly, grinning and joking with the host. Lauren covered her mouth as she watched, her heart full, her eyes brimming with tears. It felt so good to see Carly that Lauren almost couldn’t contain the emotion that bubbled straight to the surface.
“Lauren? You there?”
She’d forgotten all about Trip. “Yes. Sorry. I’m watching. I’ll call you after.” She dropped the phone and leaned closer to the TV. Carly was actually really good at the game, and she looked like a million bucks wearing a maroon sweater dress and lipstick that matched perfectly. God, she looked sophisticated and beautiful.
As she watched, Lauren placed a hand over her heart, feeling it thud away. Adrenaline coursed as she rooted for Carly and her partner, Jennifer. When they won in the Winner’s Circle, Lauren leapt from her spot on the couch. “They did it,” she told Rocky, who turned in a circle next to her, never one to be left out of a good celebration. She picked him up, hugged him, and placed a kiss on top of his head.
Lauren was hit with so many emotions that she wasn’t sure what to do with them. She’d avoided allowing herself to look up Carly on social media, and she certainly wasn’t permitted to watch any of Carly’s movies. This was the first time she’d laid eyes on Carly since that day in her office just a few weeks back.
“She looks happy,” Lauren said to Rocky, who’d moved back to his mission of garnering some of that chicken for himself. He stood beneath the stove, snuffling. As for Lauren, seeing Carly’s face brought up a myriad of emotions she wasn’t quite sure how to process. She felt joyful seeing her face, heartsick knowing where they stood with each other, and sad because she missed Carly a lot.
Lauren dished out the chicken for herself, and a little for Rocky, as she ruminated on the state of her life. She’d fled LA for one main reason—she was flat-out terrified. The jobs that she’d booked had to all be mistakes, and it was only a matter of time before the world understood that. Carly was clearly unhappy and resenting the hell out of Lauren and the clock was ticking on how long it would be before she realized she could do better for herself.
Lauren had taken off before either of those things could happen.
For the first time since she’d been home, she admitted one thing to herself. Carly wasn’t the only one with issues to work through. Lauren had come to the table with her own basket of neuroses, which surely hadn’t helped things.
Maybe I’m not as innocent as I thought in all of this, she typed to Trip.
Later that night, she allowed herself to watch the episode of Pyramid one more time on her laptop before bed. She gently touched Carly’s smiling face on the screen, remembering their time together onstage and off, and wondering if there was a chance for more memories ahead.
What if…?
It was a powerful sentiment.
* * *
“So, here’s the thing,” Alika said.
Carly held the phone to her ear and grinned from her window seat at a quaint little café just off Franklin. She had a chicken avocado salad that was knocking her socks off and a window seat that let her watch the world go by. Her new neighborhood was shaping up to be a true gem. “I’m listening.”
“You’re now the game show queen.”
Carly laughed and paused with a forkful of chicken. “That’s me. Still awaiting that crown, but the title will do for now. How many is it now?”
“You’ve had seven appearances air, with three more coming up.”