‘Yep!You guessed it.’
She turned back to stare out of the window.
I was done.It was exhausting trying to make the effort when she wouldn’t even meet me halfway.
What could be her reason for not coming to LA?I could understand it would be triggering if maybe she was an actress and spent years there trying to make it, but it was already clear that she had no interest in that path.
Fuck it.I had better things to think about than her reasons.
I pulled out my cell and saw that Wilma had sent multiple text messages reminding me to post.As if I could forget.
As the driver got closer to Hollywood, my chest tightened.
The roof of the bus slid back and the windows went down, transforming the vehicle into a luxury open-top bus and giving everyone clearer views of their surroundings, making it easier to take photos.
Sammie stepped up to the front of the coach.
‘Welcome to Hollywood!’ she said excitedly.
As we drove down the palm-tree-lined street, I prepared myself for the excitement that I knew was coming.
‘OMG!’ Mandy shouted and pointed.‘It’s the Hollywood sign!’
Halle stuck her head out of the bus to get a closer look and I saw her eyes light up.
‘Can we go and take photos?’ Stuart, Mandy’s match, asked.
‘We’ll be going to multiple cool places this week that will give you opportunities to take photos of the amazing views, so don’t worry,’ Sammie said.
As the bus continued down the boulevard, everyone started snapping away, posing for photos with the sign in view.I should do the same, but like Sammie said, there were better places to do that.
Soon afterwards the bus pulled over and Sammie announced that we were getting off to be shown the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Halle’s face lit up again.
‘I’ve always wanted to see this!’ she said.
‘It’s not that special.’
‘Just because you’ve probably seen it a million times doesn’t mean you have to rain on everyone else’s parade.’
‘Just trying to manage your expectations.’ I held my hands up in surrender.
Halle heaved her bag up off the floor.
‘Sure you don’t want to leave that here?’
‘I can’t leave it!It might get stolen.I’ve got a lot of important stuff in here.’
‘You sure look like you have a lot of stuff… whether or not I’d classify it as important though is another question.’
Halle hoisted her luggage (that was the only appropriate word for it) over her shoulder then winced at the weight.If she wasn’t so damn salty, I’d offer to carry it for her.
Sammie led us down the Hollywood Walk of Fame and guests cooed as they spotted different names engraved onto the stars.
‘Like it?’ I asked.
‘It’s…’ Halle scanned her surroundings, then switched her purse to her other shoulder.‘It’s not what I was expecting.I thought it would be all glitzy and glamorous, but it’s just a normal kind of street with pretty paving stones.’
