Page 70 of Alice Chen's Reality Check

“Aw, babe,” Chase says, rubbing her shoulders. “You can rough it for a couple days, right? It’s like camping, but we’re indoors.”

Selena glares daggers at him. “I had to deal with enough of that shit when I was a kid. My dad didn’t pay the power bill half the time, and me and my sisters were always freezing our asses off in the dark. I’m not doing that again.”

“It’s okay, you don’t have to,” Daniel says calmly. “There’s a backup generator.”

“Really? How do you know?” Selena asks.

“Saw it earlier,” Daniel says. “I went outside to help the crew get the film equipment put away. Looks like it’s a big one—should be enough to get us through the storm. The lights should be back up soon.”

Sure enough, the lights blink on within minutes.

“Thank you, universe,” Selena cheers, and does a silly little jig around the room. I almost miss the cozy glow of the candles, but I’mrelieved that we don’t have to ride out this storm without power. And even if Selena’s my competition, I wouldn’t wish the darkness on her.

—

Later in the day, the storm starts to slow. Through the window, I can see that instead of lashing winds and sheets of rain, there’s just a gentle fall of raindrops. Though the clouds are still a stormy gray, there are small pockets of blue sky where sunbeams stream down, like an idyllic and dynamic computer background.

“I think we’ve reached the eye of the storm,” I observe to Daniel when he comes back to our suite. “Why are you wet?”

“I set something up for us.” He shakes like a dog, sending droplets of water flying. He heads to the bathroom to towel off and change his bandages.

“Oh?” I was lying on the bed, musing about where I’d gone wrong in life, but at this, I prop myself up on my elbows to get a better look at Daniel. “And what exactly do you have planned?”

“ACBA,” he says.

“Huh?”

“Our accelerated chemistry building activity,” he says grandly. “Also known as a date. I’m taking you out, Slayer.”

My heart rate speeds up at that, traitorous thing. “And how are we supposed to go on a date during a storm? Didn’t the producers ask us to stay inside?”

“We’ll sneak out,” Daniel says, grinning. “Come on, this is the perfect chance. Aren’t you tired of being cooped up in here?”

I have to admit, I am getting pretty bored. With nothing to do, I’ve resorted to reorganizing everything in my luggage and folding all our bedsheets into neat squares.

“All right,” I say finally, and take his outstretched hand.

We put on our shoes, and he peeks outside the door, checking that the coast is clear. A small thrill shoots through me when he turns back to me, a mischievous smile on his face, and pulls me through the door-waywith him.

“Come on,” he whispers, and soon we’re running through darkened corridors, my heart pounding as we slip past Seth and Anton talking in the kitchen, and creeping by the wing with the Video Village. I’m not sure where we’re going, but we seem to be taking a winding route toward the back of the villa.

“Are we going outside?” I ask. Too late, I realize I’ve forgotten to whisper. Daniel’s eyes widen comically as we dart around a corner, and he presses me into the wall. We hide in the shadows, waiting for two PAs to pass us.

When they’re gone, he says, “One, I won’t ruin the surprise, and two, Slayer, what part of ‘sneaking out’ makes you think you can talk at normal volume? You out of practice or what?”

Being out of practice implies I was ever in practice. Which I most definitely wasn’t.

While Cindy was learning the finer points of sneaking around to hang out with our friends in the 7-Eleven parking lot at night, I always begged off. Cindy didn’t need me there to have fun, and to be honest, I preferred spending the late hours with my mom. We’d watch the latest K-dramas, singing the theme songs together and drooling over the lead guys. I never felt the draw of escaping my family. Especially when we only had each other.

I shrug sheepishly and mime zipping my mouth. He squeezes my hand, keeping me close until we finally reach the back door.

The rain soaks us the minute we step outside, but it’s warm and I hardly mind. Daniel leads us confidently toward the jungle behind the villa and points out a curated path cut through the trees. Following it, we soon reach a tropical cabana. The roof is thatched with braided palm fronds, and bougainvillea vines lush with color cascade around the pillars. Despite our sketchy electrical situation, fairy lights twinkle up in the eaves, and at the center of it all is a picnic table.

“How did you find this place?” I marvel.

“I’ve been keeping an eye out for the right spot,” he says. “And thenI added a little magic.”

When I spot the spread that’s been laid out, my jaw drops.

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