Page 2 of Love Hollow at Last
“You should be telling me to stay.If the local press doesn’t show up to cover the story, did it even happen?”
“I really think you have a conflict of interest here.”
She lowered her voice.“Of course I do!I’m a huge Noah Kato fan.The man, the music, the magic.Speak of the devil!”
She looked over her shoulder, and Aya whipped her head around.
Oblivious to Twyla’s and Emi’s reactions, she stared at the man.Shouldn’t the person who’s supposed to operate the bulldozer be arriving first?Why is Noah striding toward us, looking both more casual and more handsome than he ever has in his music videos, smiling ever so slightly?
“L-Ladies,” he said.“Good morning.”
2
Noah
Strangers often thought Noah stuttered because he was nervous.But other people who stuttered knew it was the other way around.Because Noah stuttered, it made him nervous.Sometimes, it made himverynervous.
But as he gazed at the bulldozer, stuttering receded into the background.He had many other reasons for him to feel nervous.
He recognized the three women instantly.Aya was crouched by the bulldozer, tightly attached to a little bar next to one of the wheels with a strange pair of leopard-print handcuffs.It was still chilly, but her whole face had gone red.Noah felt constantly self-conscious about his physique, since it was pored over and criticized on gossip sites, and he couldn’t help noticing that the years had been exceedingly good to Aya.She looked embarrassed but indisputably hot.
Emi, sipping coffee with one hand on the bulldozer, was grinning.She’d had a tough time in high school, but Noah had heard all the gossip about her medical school accomplishments and her time as chief resident.He wasn’t surprised that she radiated confidence.
The other woman was either Twyla or Martha.Back in the day, Noah had always been able to tell them apart, but it had been a long time since he’d seen either of them.
He often stuttered on names, anyway, so he found something else to say.Best to start with a vowel.He needed to sound authoritative, and getting tripped up over a consonant wouldn’t accomplish that.
“I hope you’re planning to leave by the time the work gets started,” he said.“We’re on a very tight timeline here, so we have to move things along.”
“There won’t be a festival,” said Aya, staring up at him.
Emi suppressed a laugh.The other woman whipped out a notepad and began writing.Noah realized she must be Twyla, not Martha.He vaguely remembered hearing that Twyla had left a job at some major newspaper in order to come home and write forThe Love Hollow Post.Noah never read his hometown newspaper, as all the articles about arrests and minor tragedies were just as depressing as the national news.But if Twyla had gotten up early in the morning to try to get a story on the little confrontation, she must really love her job.
He had to shut it down.
“The festival will be starting really s-soon,” he said, coughing a little bit to try to disguise his stutter.“We’ve gotten all the permits that are required.Our crews have been hard at work.”
Aya glared.“Permits are one thing.You didn’t even think of asking for permission from the Zion Creek Memorial Museum.”
Her tone was biting as she used the full name of the place, and Noah looked away.Technically, Aya was wrong.Noah had thought of it, and Grace Kim, his PR manager, had recommended that they take that step.She had been very forceful, in fact.So Noah had told her it was fine.He said he knew everyone on the board of the museum as well as the director and had gotten their blessing.
Only parts of that were true.And if Grace came out to the site in the next few minutes, she would know for sure that they had a potential public-relations disaster on their hands.It would be terrible for not only the festival but also for Noah.Grace usually kept a cool head, so when she got angry, it was terrifying.
“Look,” he said, holding up his hands.“I’m sure we can work something out.”
“Yes,” said Emi.“Thank God.Can we go convince Mama and Baba Chang to open early?I’m starving.”
Twyla smiled, still taking notes.“They won’t do it for you, Emi,” she said.“You left us, remember?They’ll do it for me.”
Noah’s stomach rumbled.He was flooded with memories of the Changs making baozi and savory pancakes for him on weekends.Noah hadn’t even been a member of Emi and Aya’s little club, though he hung around Aya enough to have some sort of honorary status.The Changs’ restaurant was the first place outside his home where his skill with chopsticks was looked on with pride, not mockery.
Though Noah ate Chinese food all the time in LA, somehow, it wasn’t the same.He had to use the private dining rooms to avoid being recognized, which tended to mean he was stuck with only the most expensive restaurants.Otherwise, he had to get takeout.It wasn’t like eating at Chang’s, with its faded calendars and spotless lazy Susans.
Aya was the holdout.She looked beautiful, sitting in the dirt next to the bulldozer, her long hair braided back.She was wearing jeans and a college hoodie.He admired her choice of the UC Santa Cruz Banana Slugs, one of the zaniest mascots.She had at least two advanced degrees, including a doctorate, but she probably wouldn’t wear any sweatshirts from those institutions.It wasn’t like Aya to brag.She had probably always been too smart for him, and she was definitely too gorgeous for him too.
Noah forced himself to stop staring.“So, let’s meet later, okay?At my office.We can work this all out,” he said, addressing the group.
“No,” said Aya firmly.
