Page 59 of Vitamin Sea
“It’s thanks in no small part to you, La,” she said gratefully. “Seriously. And I’m so happy you could come on this assignment.”
“Hold on!” Lala said, struck with sudden inspiration. She unlocked her phone and then trained it on Chloe. “Smile, Chlo! For The Gram.”
Chloe, sunglasses on her face, smiled wide and held her bikini top up high again as Lala clicked away.
“The girls are never going to believe this,” Lala said. She turned the camera to selfie mode and snapped a topless pic of the two of them together. “Say ‘no tan lines!’”
“No tan lines!” Chloe beamed.
???
Their flight left late that evening and as they waited for their car to the airport, Chloe felt a sense of melancholy. Being able to get away with her best friend, almost drowning, meeting an amazing man, and experiencing a naturist resort for the first time—it had been an unbelievable week and had given her a new lease on life. So why did she feel so sad?
The week had been transformational. That was exactly what she had hoped for but hadn’t really believe would happen. Still, it was undeniable she was leaving Costa Rica as a different person than she had been when she arrived.
Maybe that was the reason for the melancholy, she thought. She was in mourning. For the old Chloe.
On the plane ride back in the nearly pitch-black cabin, Lala snored beside her. Soft rock emanated from her AirPods as she reminisced about the week. She was so grateful about the way things had turned out, both with her work assignment and with regards to her relationship with Liam. Somehow, despite months of feeling hopeless and burdened by the knowledge thatthe future she had envisioned for herself was gone, she felt lighter.
Which seemed very odd.
But maybe it was a part of reaching acceptance. She had zero control over how things had panned out with her ex. The only thing she had control of was herself.
She was still living in Liam’s condo as per the terms of their agreement, which Karam had negotiated on his behalf. Liam had agreed to let her stay there until she was able to secure something long-term and, truthfully, she hadn’t been looking. Her ex hadn’t made an issue of it, which she assumed was due to a guilty conscience, but Chloe finally felt like she was ready for a change. Whether that meant evicting her current tenant and moving back into her old condo, continuing to rent out her place while renting a different condo, or selling her condo altogether, she didn’t know. But one thing shedidknow was that it was time for her to move out and move on.
Past
Chapter 17: Cleaning out the Closet
"Open up, bitch!”
Chloe was startled by the expletive that accompanied the aggressive knocking on her door.
Of course, she would recognize the voice anywhere. And it didn’t tell her that she was the sudden target of a home invasion. The voice told her she was the sudden target of Lala.
Which was somehow even scarier.
“Coming!” Chloe yelled, unsure if her friend would be able to hear her.
She frowned as she looked at the space around her. Her condo, well, Liam’s condo—he was still living with Sophia and hadn’t been in any rush to evict his former-girlfriend-now-turned-tenant—wasn’t giving shabby-chic so much as it was giving shabby. Cups sat on the table, the counter, the side tables. Fast-food wrappers and empty ice cream cartons littered the space. A layer of dust was visible to the naked eye on every wooden surface, and the bird-of-paradise plant she had so diligently taken care of since bringing it home two years agowas looking as sad as she felt. A glance at the living room couch revealed a perfect outline of her body, which was surrounded by crumbs she hadn’t bothered to clean for—oh, well—weeks.
She had been wallowing in filth for four months and it was just hitting her now what a state of disgrace her home was in. How she had managed to avoid attracting cockroach and mouse roommates was nothing short of miraculous.
She turned the lock on the door with a ‘click’ and heard more voices—Opal and Alejandra. The door swung open, and she was greeted, as expected, by the trio.
“Surprise!” yelled Opal.
Lala gave her a sideways look.
“Really, Opal?” she said in judgement. “It’s not a party.”
Opal looked momentarily offended.
“It’s not a party, Lala,” Opal retorted. “But itisa celebration—of new beginnings, and of Chloe,” she finished off smugly.
Lala considered that for a moment.
“Hi, guys,” Chloe said with as much enthusiasm as she could muster. It had been one month since Lala had staged her ice cream and yoga intervention, and Chloe had been on a slow and steady upward climb. Despite that, it was still difficult sometimes for her to put on a happy face. She noticed that her friends’ arms were full of bags and bottles. Additionally, on Alejandra’s part, she carried a bouquet of brightly coloured lilies, peonies, and posies.
