The Favoured, The Fair and Ms. Vérité Claire

12 Twist and Turns (part 2)

So Don, Brom and Orson went up a hill while Julia, Nina and Anita stayed at the base of it. They grabbed coffees in a lively pedestrian village cafe popular on their side of the mountain, and then buzzed from shop to shop rummaging through hats and totebags and trinkets which only really made sense until they left the stores that sold them. Nina mentioned Julia needing a swimsuit for the hot tub later. Julia had intentionally left hers at home to avoid the situation all together, but when Nina explained how she'd booked them an entire New Year's Day of hydrotherapy treatments at a spa, Julia hated to disappoint her and miss out. Fortunately, there was a store which carried bikinis for just such an emergency.

From inside her neighbouring change room, Nina wanted to continue giving Julia the head's up about Anita before her resolution clock ran down. With Anita gone to the jewelry store next door, Nina was free to fire away.

"She bought a bracelet from another store yesterday with charms to spell her name and forgot the I. Keeps calling herself the 'Anta of the Opera'. It was funny the first time, but now my ears are bleeding. She sings jingles all the time. Like commercial jingles for lawyers offices and hardware stores. Who the hell has cable anymore? I say, goodnight, Anita. She sings, 'Ny-tol will help you get your ZEES!' I'm going to kill her. She's so goddamned happy all the time and I don't buy it for a second. Who does she think she is, Christie Brinkley?"

"Except with a beautiful head of dark hair," Julia said, squeezing into something the yellow colour of a highlighter.

"It is gorgeous. If it's natural and not a million extensions. Stop liking her, Julia! We hate her!"

"Do we have to? What's wrong with being happy?"

Nina grunted. "God my astrologer is right. I am a villain. But trust me, when she sings you where you can get your car windows fixed or screams because electricity works I'm going to be looking straight at you and you're going to be looking at me like you want to kill her too."

"I think she's sweet."

"She's laughs when people say 'Oui'! Every time!"

"I haven't heard her laugh once. Not once all day except for when we met."

"What?" Nina squeaked. "Wait! What?"

She knocked on Julia's change room door. Julia had the same bikini on in lime green. "You haven't heard her laugh all day?"

"Not on the ride over, not when went for coffee..."

"Holy crap, you're right! I'm right! I've been listening to that fake Witch Hazel cackle for two days and now she runs out of bobby pins? I knew nothing was that funny."

"Maybe we're not that funny."

"That phony! I hope she gets a polyp. I really do. If this is what women have to resort to then God help me."

"Why God help you?"

Nina admired herself in a black one piece with tropical flowers and cut outs. She looked amazing, but still sighed.

"Hal's not here yet because he's cheating on me."

"Oh, Nina. You really think so?"

"I don't think he's going anywhere, but men are stupid. I might get side swiped. I always thought being fifteen years younger was my insurance policy. Forever the younger, hot wife. Problem is, no matter where you start, there's always someone hotter and younger around the corner. What's killer is it's not even the tight asses and the chipmunk cheeks that reel them in. It's the fresh set of eyes that don't reflect their flaws. That don't know their bullshit yet. The girls who are dumb or smart enough to play dumb, they're your real enemy. When you're old enough to know better I guess you fake it as much as you have to. If you still have it in you. Which girls like Anita do."