Chapter 46
Chapter Forty-Six
T he next two weeks flew by and each day, Lauren grew more aware that her time on Nantucket was coming to an end. As she waited in line to get on the Hy-Line Fast Ferry to go spend her two nights off with her parents on the Cape, she began to feel slightly anxious about going back to California. She’d be busy when she got there as they still had several months’ worth of work with post-production edits. They’d also be doing additional cast filming, but individually, as they provided their insights on various scenes and events. The cast wouldn’t know how the season would unfold until they saw the final cuts, too. Lauren and Eloise and the other editors had weeks of film to go through and decide what would stay and what would be cut.
She’d grown close to Eloise and Hudson and a few of the castmates, Katy and Anna in particular. She was still rooting for Katy and Billy and was glad that Katy had heeded her advice to take things slow. She knew that Anna and Jason had grown close as friends. She saw a hint of a possible romantic connection, but so far nothing had developed. Suzanne and Noah were going strong, though they were also taking things slow. Suzanne sometimes spent the night in Noah’s room, but they mostly watched TV and kissed a lot. They were surprised, actually, because Suzanne struck them all as being more aggressive and eager to have a fling.
Sami was the one that had surprised them the most. She’d initially come across as such a cool girl, very reserved and confident. And she’d fallen fast after her first one-night stand with Zach. He’d told her before they hooked up that he wasn’t looking for a relationship and she’d assured him that she wasn’t either. They’d hung out quite a bit over the past few weeks, but it was often late-night meetups and always last minute, nothing planned ahead. Lauren hadn’t seen him around for a few days and Sami seemed quieter than usual, so she wondered if he’d ended things or worse, ghosted her. She’d mentioned to Anna at breakfast yesterday that Zach hadn’t responded to her last text.
Lauren was going to miss Hudson the most. She’d see Eloise and all the cast in LA when they came in for their follow-up filming. But Hudson’s work was done. And unless the show got picked up for a new season, she didn’t know when she’d see him again. He’d made it clear that he had no intention of going to the West Coast anytime soon. And she doubted that had changed. She couldn’t help but wonder if they might have had a chance if he was still in LA. She knew she would enjoy living there much more if Hudson were around.
The ride to Hyannis was smooth and relaxing. Lauren chose a seat inside by a window. She as watched the waves on the ocean and Nantucket Harbor grew smaller and smaller as they got further out to see. She read a magazine for a while and got a cup of tea and a donut. Before she knew it, they reached Hyannis and as she walked off the boat, she saw her mother waving. She was looking forward to a few days of relaxing at her childhood home, sleeping in her old bed, and visiting with her parents. Her mother had plans for them to head over to Baxter’s Fish and Chips for lunch. It was right on the harbor and they both loved to sit outside and watch the boat traffic go by. Her mother had also mentioned something about taking a drive to Chatham to check out a shoe store she’d fallen in love with. Lauren smiled and waved as she walked off the boat.