“You look green. Did you eat something funny?” Gabi said, frowning.
It wasn’t so much what Barra had eaten. It was more so who had eaten her four months ago in a bathroom stall. And there was that very woman she’d vomited all over while they climbed into a cab together after the wedding. And to make matters even worse, Barra had shot out of the cab like a mortified missile and run away. Literally.
Barra tilted her head up just a smidge. Maybe Allie had walked off to the opposite side of the terminal, and that would be the end of it, no explaining necessary. Gabi knew all about Barra hooking up with someone at Dominique’s wedding, but she hadn’t given more details than that. No name. No description whatsoever. And certainly no talk about stomach contents.
“I’m fi—” Barra started.
But the word was barely out before Allie spotted her. She waved her arm so wildly overhead that Barra was half-convinced it might lift her off the ground. Then she began weaving through the cluster of squirming children and a group of fifty-something women all wearing matching turquoise T-shirts with the wordsOnly Young Onceprinted in fuchsia pink.
“Who’s that?” Gabi asked, leaning toward Barra. “Do you know her? Because she looks like she’s coming straight for us.”
Barra didn’t have time to explain or run away or tell Gabi to stop staring as if she’d just spotted a UFO.
Allie had already reached them.
“I can’t believe this,” Allie said, panting slightly. She had a Louis Vuitton Keepall slung over her shoulder, Golden Goose sneakers on her feet, and she wore a cropped cashmere zip-hoodie in dove grey with Alto track pants. A slim tennis bracelet flashed at her wrist.
Reluctantly, Barra pressed her palms against the cool metal seat and pushed herself upright. She’d pinch herself if she had any doubt that she wasn’t completely awake.
“Hi, Allie,” she said politely, and was grateful Allie hadn’t closed the gap for a hug. Although Barra’s luggage was strewn carelessly on the floor between them, which was probably the reason. She wondered if now was a good time to apologize for the vomit-and-bolt she’d subjected Allie to four months ago. No, she decided. She didn’t want to relive that night. Not one part of it. She was mortified.
“I almost didn’t recognize you with your hoodie,” Allie said, laughing so loud the teal shirt group turned their heads to look at them. “But I wasn’t going to make the same mistake again. I read about that thing once, you know, where people don’t recognize faces. Proso... prosopagnosia, I think it’s called. Honestly, I thought I had it for a second.”
Barra forced a smile. She hoped that by keeping quiet, Allie might get the hint to leave her alone.
“Are you flying to Costa Rica for Season Seven ofOutlast Her?” Allie asked, dropping her voice to a whisper.
Barra suppressed an inward groan. “I am,” she said, looking over her shoulder for the handlers who were meant to be hovering nearby. If they were there, they were doing a terriblejob. “And since I assume you are as well, you should know that we’re not actually allowed to talk.” Her tone was so icy that it even surprised her.
But it was the truth. They technically weren’t allowed to talk. The handbook had made it strikingly clear that there was to be no interaction between contestants before game day. Not that the rule had ever bothered her. During Season Five, Barra had on several occasions tried to communicate with the other contestants. Allie wasn’t doing anything Barra hadn’t done before. She shouldn’t be this bothered. But then again, this whole thing with Dominique, well, she hadn’t been herself in a long time. A really long time.
“Oh,” Allie said, her expression falling.
“It’s in the handbook,” Barra said, not sure why she felt the need to explain.
Allie nodded and smiled thinly. “You’re right,” she said. “I wouldn’t want to get you into any trouble.” Then she turned around and walked away before Barra could apologize for being such a total bitch. Which she had been.
Gabi seemed to think so too because she rounded on Barra the minute Barra plopped back into the seat. “Who was that? And why did it look like you just slapped that poor woman in the face?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“I’m sorry, my friend,” Gabi shot. “You will talk about it, and you will tell me every little detail.” Then her face lit up like a lightbulb. “Is that the woman from Dominique’s wedding, the one you hooked up with but refused to give me any more details?”
Barra didn’t say anything. Though sometimes silence was louder than words.
Gabi gasped. “She’s gorgeous,” she said, sounding flabbergasted. “And did you see her necklace? It’s one of Anita Ko’s signature pieces.”
Barra hadn’t paid attention to her necklace. She’d been too busy trying not to remember how Allie’s lips had felt against hers. Barra found it strangely vital to forget everything about Dominique’s wedding, and that included Allie’s face between her legs.
“Why were you so rude to her?” Gabi asked when Barra didn’t reply. “She seemed perfectly nice. And since when are you rude to anyone? You’re like the nicest person I know.”
Barra felt her chest tighten. She glanced toward the security checkpoint where Allie had just reached the conveyor belt and slid her Louis Vuitton into one of the grey plastic trays. A minute ago, she’d been all smiles, but now she looked like Barra had snuffed her light. “Do you think she’s offended?” she asked, scraping her cheeks with her nails.
“Hell yes.”
“Shit,” Barra muttered, feeling awful. Gabi was right. Barra was usually quite pleasant. But then again,usuallywas the key word. There hadn’t been anything usual about her life for some time now. Not since Dominique had slipped a ring onto someone else’s finger and Barra had lain awake night after night convincing herself that her soulmate was taken by someone else, and she was doomed to loneliness.
“You have to apologize to her,” Gabi said, sipping her coffee.