Chapter 53
As they walked to the exit, the lights for the fairgrounds all came back on. Danny was carrying Dot’s stuffed cow, and Tommy was helping Harper to walk. She was unsteady on her legs. Jake and Mary were holding hands when they heard women trying to get the guys’ attention.
“Danny! Jake! Tommy!”
They stopped and searched for who was calling them.
“Oh boy,” Tommy said. “Here we go.”
“Hey, Maddy, how’s it going?” Jake said, taking the lead. It was the same group of women that Dot and Danny had run into at dinner earlier that summer.
“We’re great. Are you going to introduce us to your friends?” Maddy asked.
“Sure, yes. Well, you remember meeting Dot,” Danny said. “And these are her friends, Mary and Harper.” Turning to The Crew, he said, “And these are longtime friends of ours. We grew up together. The queens of Cedar Falls.” He meant it as a compliment, but Maddy was shooting daggers at him.
“Oh yes, how could I forget? A bunch of Carrie Bradshaws from New York City, right?” Her tone was light but had an edge. Marissa, Lauren, and Zoe stood behind Maddy, backing her up as if this was a showdown.
Mary decided to step up to cut the tension. “Hi, I’m Mary. Pleasure to meet you.” She stuck out her hand, seeing if Maddy would take it. After a beat, she did, a fake smile on her face.
“So nice to meet you, too,” she said.
“And this is Harper,” Dot said. “She’s feeling a little unwell, so we were just headed out.”
Harper was dizzy but moved forward to be polite. “Hi, I’m Harp—” and she vomited her drinks, allergy medicine, and fried fair food all over Maddy.
No one said a word for a moment, stunned into silence.
“Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god.” Maddy started to panic, her hands flapping at her sides.
Jake stifled a laugh, and Mary fought back a giggle.
“I’m sorry . . . I’m so sorry,” Harper said between retches. Maddy’s friends dug in their belt bags for anything to help clean up the mess. “I’ve been unwell. It was the allergy medicine and then the Ferris wheel and then . . .”
Tommy put an arm around Harper and said, “We were just leaving to get her home.”
“Let’s go get you cleaned up,” Marissa said to Maddy. She took the lead, and the Cedar Falls girls scurried away.
“I’m so embarrassed,” Harper said, drinking the water Dot handed to her as they walked to their vehicles. “I haven’t been sick like this since college.”
“Well, Harper, it could have been worse,” Mary said.
“How so?”
“It could have been me.” And everyone laughed, despite themselves.
“I think the fair has done us in,” Dot said, realizing that her night with Danny was not happening.
She looked longingly at him, and he returned her gaze with a steely intensity.
“I’ll call you tomorrow,” he said.
THE NEXT MORNING, Harper didn’t rise until ten.
“Hello, sleepyhead,” Dot said, bringing her some electrolytes in a large Stanley cup and a mug of coffee. Behind her, Mary held a tall glass of lemon water and two aspirin. They were going to make her drink all of it.
“How are you feeling?” Mary asked.
“Like I was put in a tumble dryer,” Harper said. Pippi was curled up next to her on the bed.
“You basically were. Here, drink this. Then take a shower, and I’m taking us to the Brady Brunch for breakfast,” Dot said as Mary laid out clothes for her. She chose a white tank, a pair of navy joggers, Harper’s favorite NYU hoodie, and her Birkenstocks. The perfect cozy Sunday outfit.
“Come on, Pippi, lazy girl. You need to go outside,” Dot said, picking up the dog who grumbled but then settled her head on Dot’s shoulder. “We’ll leave at eleven.”
At brunch, Harper held Pippi on her lap in the tote bag and fed her bits of waffle.
She’d recently asked a favor from a cousin who worked as a psychologist in Brooklyn to have Pippi designated as a companion dog.
That way she could take her anywhere. It was just a harmless little lie, she’d told herself, hoping the negative karma wouldn’t be too harsh when it came.
“We’re lucky to be alive,” Mary said. “Jake said that sudden weather like that can happen this time of year.”
“I’ll never forget being up there and feeling so helpless.” Dot held her coffee mug with both hands. “Especially when all the lights went out. It was so eerie.”
“And I will never mix allergy medicine and margaritas again, that’s for sure. It’s like I roofied myself.” The color was slowly coming back to Harper’s face.
“That’s a good lesson for all of us, Harp,” Dot said.
The Crew continued to rehash the night, and by the end of breakfast, they were finally laughing about what happened.
After paying the check, Dot said, “Oh no. No, no, no, no, no.”
“What?” Mary asked, then looked in the direction Dot was facing, and there were the Cedar Falls queens having breakfast. They had no choice but to walk by their table on their way out.
“Oh gosh. I’m going to have to apologize again,” Harper said. She stood up and pushed her chair back under the table then walked to the other table.
“Hi, Maddy, right?” Harper said smiling shyly.
Maddy jumped as if Harper was going to throw up on her again.
“I’m terribly sorry about last night. I will happily pay for the dry cleaning of your outfit.”
“Are you kidding me? I threw it away. It was ruined.”
“I’ll reimburse you. I can Venmo.” Dot and Mary arrived to stand just a step behind Harper.
“Why don’t we just pretend it never happened. Disgusting.”
Harper felt like she’d been slapped in the face. She’d not gotten sick on purpose. And she felt terrible about what happened. Sensing tension, Pippi started to scramble out of her tote bag. Harper gently pushed her down so that only her head was showing out of the top.
“Oh, okay.” She was at a loss for words.
“By the way, dogs aren’t allowed in here,” Marissa said, raising her eyebrows at Pippi.
“Oh, she’s a companion dog,” Harper said a little defensively. “I even have a certificate.”
“Not surprised you need a companion—perhaps you should get someone who can prevent you from getting plastered,” Maddy said.
“Let’s go, Harp. Again, we’re very sorry. It wasn’t intentional,” Dot said. She tried to think of something else to say but was too stunned by their rudeness. It was so unlike anything she’d experienced in Cedar Falls.
Maddy wasn’t done. “It figures. City girl can’t hold her corn dog, and won’t be able to hold her new man either. Tommy isn’t a long-term prospect. Take it from Marissa.” Marissa scowled at the memory of being dumped in high school by one of the cutest boys in town.
Dot steeled herself. “We’re leaving.” She grabbed Harper’s hand and led her to the door.
Mary followed them but before exiting, turned on her heel, and then marched back over to Maddy’s table.
“Hey, Maddy,” Mary said, a bite in her voice.
“What?”
“I was just thinking. Your name suits you.”
“Oh . . . thanks?”
“Let me ask, are you seeing anyone?”
“Um, no. Why?”
“Well maybe you should start. Therapy can really help.” She smiled and knocked her knuckles on their table. “Okay. Have a great day, girls.”
Then Mary walked out, leaving the town girls in her wake.