Last Flight to L.A.

chapter twenty-three: l.a.'s finest therapist

"There is nothing more reassuring than realizing the world is crazier than you are."

~Thor: The Dark World

Kelsey gripped the steering wheel of her car so hard her knuckles turned white.

Becca was silent, for once. She sat in the passenger's seat, hands clutched together in her lap, sniffling every once in a while.

Kelsey didn't ask any questions. She figured she'd wait until Becca got some rest before she found out what was going on.

There was a darker part of Kelsey that resented helping Becca after everything she'd done to her.

But then she kept looking at the bruise on Becca's cheek. No one deserved that.

Kelsey had just never expected to be the one helping Becca Lynn out of her world-famous relationship.

She pulled into the dimly lit apartment complex and unbuckled. "Not exactly The Ritz, sorry."

"No, no, it's fine," Becca murmured in a surprisingly soft voice.

Kelsey glanced at her before getting out.

She unlocked the door to her apartment and began rummaging through a box. She found a sheet, two pillows, and a blanket.

"I don't have another bedroom," she explained. "So you'll have to sleep on the couch."

Becca nodded. "Okay."

Kelsey awkwardly tried to make the couch more comfortable and patted the cushion. "Uh, home sweet home."

"Thanks," Becca said. She sat down on the couch with a faint smile. "I used to sleep on the couch when my sisters and I shared a room. It was in the basement."

Kelsey raised her eyebrows. She picked up her purse and gave a forced smile. "Goodnight."

"Night."

Kelsey retreated to her room and closed the door. She tossed her things onto the bed and sighed.

"Oh, L.A., I did not miss this," she muttered.

~~~~~~~~~

Kelsey woke up and rubbed the sleep from her eyes.

She stumbled to her feet and put on a fresh pair of clothes, wondering if last night had been a dream.

But when she went into the living room, Becca was sprawled across the couch, mouth hanging open, hair strewn over her face.

"This is so weird," Kelsey muttered as she snuck to the kitchen and began making breakfast.

She poached a couple eggs and opened a Tupperware of yolks that she'd saved when she made a merengue to make hollandaise sauce.

Soon she had a quick eggs benedict served on two plates just as Becca stumbled into the kitchen.

"Morning," Kelsey said, barely glancing at her. She didn't want to stare at the bruise on her cheek that looked worse than it did last night.

"Hi," Becca said.

They sat down at Kelsey's small round table that was littered with junk mail and ate in silence.

Kelsey picked at her food as she watched Becca inhale hers.

Becca caught Kelsey staring and gave an apologetic smile. "It's really, really good."