Free Reluctantly Famous by Heather Leigh Page A

kept calling me to get to
him.
    “ I have my ways,” she says
deviously.
    I laugh at my old roommate. “Yeah, you’re
about as devious as a kitten, Beth.”
    “ Honestly, Allie? I
stopped by your parents’ house and they gave it to me.”
    “ You’re in town?” I
haven’t seen Beth since my sophomore year of college. After I left
B.C., we only spoke sporadically. Then I graduated and she
graduated, my phone number changed and she moved out of state, and
well… that’s pretty much it.
    “ I am. I’m here for an
event.”
    “ An event? What kind of
event?” I’m puzzled. My old roommate, who I haven’t spoken to in
almost six years, is in town for an event and calling
me.
    “ Some charity thing,
something about teachers and hospitals or something. You know me, I
never was good at remembering stuff.”
    “ You sneaky little bitch,”
I say, laughing. “What are you doing right now?”
    “ Sitting in my hotel room,
staring at what could be the most hideous piece of art I’ve ever
seen in my life.”
    She always knows what to say to make things
less awkward. “Lunch?”
    “ Of course. We have a ton
to catch up on, and from what I understand, you won’t have a lot of
free time at the ball.”
    “ No, probably not. Where
are you staying?”
    “ The Copley Square
Hotel.”
    “ Ooohhh, we can go to the
Met Back Bay!”
    “ I love that place. One
hour?” Beth asks.
    “ One hour.”
    I’m so excited to see Beth again. I rush
around the high-rise condo that Drew insisted on buying for me a
few years back. He said he wouldn’t let me live anywhere without
full time security and locked doors. As annoying and bossy as it
was, I relented because I felt bad about not letting him help me
after I left B.C. He never forgot how messed up I was, and I’m sure
the guilt at not being able to do anything about it just about
killed him.
    I decide to walk to the restaurant since my
condo is only a few blocks away. Big mistake. It’s July in Boston,
which means it’s hot and humid. By the time I’m seated across from
Beth, I’m sweaty and sticky and more than ready for a cold
drink.
    “ You look so good!” I
squeal, taking in my old roommate after a long hug.
    “ You look tired, girl,”
Beth replies, her grin wide enough to be seen on the other side of
the Charles.
    “ Yeah, I always take on
too much for the fundraiser.” The waiter comes by and takes our
drink order. I decide on sangria since I need something to help
cool me off after walking in the blistering heat.
    “ Not tired like that,”
Beth says. “I saw the recent articles. It brought back a lot of
memories and not good ones.” Her mouth twists into a frown, her
chocolate brown eyes harsh and angry.
    It touches me how much she still cares about
what happened back then, about what’s happening now.
    “ It was good while it
lasted, Beth.”
    “ What was?”
    I let out a sarcastic chuckle. “Having a
life.”
    She reaches across the table and takes my
hand. “You can still have a life, Al. Just not the kind that
everyone else has. No one died, you’re healthy, you’re smart, and
you have a loving family. You’ll just have to… I don’t know,
adapt.”
    “ Adapt.” I test the word.
Let it roll around in my head for a moment. “I think I like that
description.”
    “ Remember freshman bio?
Darwinism, only the strong can adapt to survive. That’s you.
Strong.” Beth removes her hand when our drinks arrive. She holds up
her extra-dirty martini. “A toast…”
    Smiling, I hold my sangria up with hers, not
correcting her when she calls me strong. I feel far from it most
days, sometimes, I feel downright weak.
    “… to
evolution.”
    “ Ha! To evolution,” I
reply.
    We clink our glasses together and I realize
just how much my life really has evolved. Maybe this is just
another adaptation I have to make, another turn in the road to
survival. Is leaving my job the end of my life?
    My answer? Fuck no.
     
     
     
     
    Declan –