Chapter 24 #2
Seeming satisfied, Audrey turns down the hall. “You can come back anytime!” she calls out to Ramona. “If you need anything, or if you want some freshly baked cookies—I bake, too!”
Ramona waves good night with a laugh. “I might have to take you up on that.”
“Thanks, Aud,” Nick says, a hand on Ramona’s shoulder as they head outside.
Back in the guesthouse, Ramona buries her face in Nick’s shirt.
“Oh god, did I completely ruin her image of me? Should I have picked a different song? Now that she’s seen me like this, she’ll probably toss all my CDs and put all her merch on eBay.
And she’ll probably make some decent money, too!
I can’t even blame her!” This last part comes out in a half wail, though she can tell by the rumble in his chest that Nick’s trying not to laugh.
When she pulls back to meet his gaze, the way he looks at her makes something bloom in her heart that she’s not sure she can name. A gentle hand tucks hair behind her ear. “I don’t think you could disappoint anyone,” he says.
—
This week’s hike is Franklin Canyon, and even when Ramona’s thighs start burning, all she can focus on is how beautiful it is outside, the crisp perfect blue of the lake.
“You’re complaining less than usual, jellybean,” Betty remarks. “Thinking about your professor?”
Ramona can’t help grinning. “These days…almost always.”
Despite most of her thoughts centering on Nick, her mind is fairly uncluttered.
Like maybe she really is figuring out how to be a normal person, and it’s actually kind of great.
Her classes are going well, and with finals just around the corner, she’s pretty confident she’ll end the quarter with grades she’s happy with.
And last night she made something in her kitchen that was edible.
Pasta, but still, she reserved the starchy water to cook the sauce in just like the YouTube chef told her, and felt unreasonably accomplished afterward.
Arlie J texted about getting together again soon, but Ramona’s not sure yet how to respond to that one. She’s wary of being dragged back into industry circles by someone she has little in common with anymore. One lunch, sure. Something else? That feels like Arlie’s extending a pity branch.
Otherwise, things seem…peaceful.
“I can complain more, if you want. Or talk about Nick,” she says, and Betty beckons her for more details. “Did I tell you I accidentally met his niece? She’s absolutely adorable. And I don’t think I completely screwed it up?”
“Meeting the family. Big step.”
Ramona’s shoe slips on a rock, and she takes a moment to catch herself.
Is it still a big step if it wasn’t intentional?
She knows Nick talked to his sister afterward, mentioned how crucial it is that Audrey not tell anyone about the two of them, and Audrey seemed to understand the gravity of the situation.
And even if Nick met DeeAnn, that was…DeeAnn. Her mother must have gotten the message that Ramona doesn’t want to talk, because she’s been silent ever since.
Realistically, Ramona knows that’s part of a typical relationship: introducing someone to your parents. Her past boyfriends usually already knew her parents, and she can’t exactly imagine her and Nick sitting down at the fucking Olive Garden with DeeAnn and Beck.
A relationship. That’s…that’s not really what this is, is it?
She’s only his student for a few more weeks, and suddenly that feels like a looming deadline.
She used to be so focused on the future—next song, next album, next tour.
But now that she’s just managed to carve out a new life for herself, she’s not sure what a relationship with Nick looks like long-term. If that’s what either of them wants.
Because the fact remains that she’s never been the forever girl.
The sheen wears off for everyone—even for her parents.
And even if she were girlfriend material, she knows how shaken Nick was by those photos of them at the basketball game, and the Us Weekly reporter.
Ramona wanted to track her down and tell her to fuck off, a protective instinct surging up inside her.
“We’re keeping it pretty casual,” Ramona says, though that word doesn’t feel right, either.
“Still, this seems healthy. I’m happy for you.” The two of them hike in silence for a while, until Betty pauses and says, “Okay, I can’t keep it in any longer. I might have done something a little out-there.”
“Do you need me to help you hide a body?”
“No, but good to know you’d be down for it.
I sort of bought this van,” she continues, digging her phone out of her leggings pocket to swipe through some pictures.
“This gorgeous old VW camper, sunshine yellow. I just saw her and fell hard. I was thinking about how you prefer getting out and hiking and don’t like being stuck inside a room.
And you’re not the only one. The gym can feel claustrophobic, even to me.
So…I thought I could fill the van with equipment and create kind of a mobile gym.
That way I could go to people’s houses, too, and you and I can keep hiking, or I can come over for strength training—whatever you want. ”
“But you hate commuting,” Ramona says, though it’s hard to miss the enthusiasm in Betty’s voice.
“I might love this van more than I hate traffic.” She shakes her head with a laugh. “I needed something new, I guess. A way to change up my life.”
And Ramona can certainly understand that. “Then I can’t wait to see it. And I really hope you’ll let me weigh in on the decor.”
The rest of the hike, Ramona can’t shake the feeling that the peace she has is only temporary. If there’s anything she knows about solid ground, having lived in LA her whole life, it’s not to trust it.
No matter how safe she feels, an earthquake could always be waiting right underneath the surface.