Last Flight to L.A.

chapter thirty-one: dressing for the occasion

 "I don't like to do what people expect. Why should I live up to other people's expectations instead of my own?"

~10 Things I Hate About You

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Kelsey snapped a picture of the beach as she and Jacob walked along the sand.

The sun was drowsily hanging in the sky, casting off orange and yellow hues on the cloudless horizon.

"This has been so great," Jacob said, placing the neon green sunglasses he'd bought at a tourist stand on his head. His Hawaiian shirt from the same place billowed in the wind.

"It's not a bad place, eh? I love this part of it." She gestured to the empty beach.

"Are you liking it better?" Jacob asked, his face a rare mask of seriousness. "I mean, with everything that happened?"

Kelsey tucked her wild hair behind her ear and nodded. "I'm getting used to it. It was just a lot at once when I first arrived, you know? Now I'm taking things slower and thinking through things."

"Like that movie premiere?" He pried, with a lift of an eyebrow and a grin.

Kelsey cringed and rocked back on her heels. "Yeah."

"You sure about that?"

"No," she admitted. "But I think it's the right thing to do. If I want this to work, Ethan and I have to compromise."

Jacob nodded and squinted at the water. "Hey, what about Sandy? Have you talked to her since you left?"

Kelsey swallowed. "No. I tried to call twice after I got back, but she never answered. Honestly, I haven't really thought of her that much. It's like—" Kelsey searched the horizon for words, "it's like I didn't know her. She was so different, Jacob."

"Is she okay?"

Kelsey lifted her shoulders and let them fall. "I don't know. I hope so."

The life she lived with Sandy was a blur. It was a whirlwind of madness and Kelsey was ashamed to admit that she didn't miss her friend. She enjoyed having Becca Lynn as her roommate far more than her childhood friend. Guilt gnawed at her stomach.

"What, about Mom?" Jacob asked.

Kelsey glanced at him and tightened her jaw. "No."

"Dude, I know she called you. She said you never called back."

"Oh, is she telling on me now?" Kelsey snapped. She shook her head with a bitter laugh. "She doesn't call me for months or bother to come see me when I visit, and then complains to you that I don't have time for her crap anymore?"

Jacob lifted his hands. "Woah, don't get so upset."

"I'm not upset," Kelsey muttered.

"Yeah, I can tell by the way you're shouting," he replied. "But maybe give her another chance too. You're good at that kind of thing."

Kelsey gave a tight smile. "Maybe." But her heart shouted an adamant no.

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Kelsey frowned at a thin soup broth that tasted like dishwater.

"Fix it, intern!" Chef Romano growled as she passed by.