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.