She nods happily. “And you pay for the commercial free version of all the streaming services.”
A surprised laugh breaks out of me. “I’d like to think I pay you enough to have commercial free services as well.”
“One,” she says, holding up a finger. “But not all.”
My skeptical huff brings another giggle out of her. Slowly, I nod since I don’t have anything else to do anyway.
“Okay, I’ll allow it this one time.” Kacy claps happily like I just promised her a year of paid vacation. “But order the food now; I’m hungry.”
With a playful eyeroll, she moves her attention back to my phone. “Is there anything you don’t want? Wings?”
“I’m not in the mood for that much hands-on activity.”
“Burrito, quesadilla, or street tacos?”
“All of the above and nachos.”
Kacy points at me like I’m brilliant. She never minds spending my money.
“All beef?”
“Yes. Add a limonada.”
“I’ll make some margaritas.”
Confused, I tilt my head as I watch her walk towards my kitchen.
“I have margarita ingredients?”
“Yes,” she confirms with a nod that makes her curls bounce. “I made sure of it.”
I shake my head although I’m amused. “Carry on.”
I disappear into my room and take a quick shower then change into some lounge pants and a t-shirt. The blender is still whirling by the time I reappear so I pick up the remote.
“What’s the name of the show?” I yell so she can hear me.
Kacy stops the blender to give me her attention.
“What?”
“What’s the name of the show?” I repeat as I pull up my search feature.
“Love ‘em or Leave ‘em.”
I scoff but remain quiet as I search for the show. I find it in my app, noticing that the icon for it is just the name of the show in teal and yellow letters. The sandy background gives an illusion that the words are written on the beach. Hearts, both whole and broken, are glittered throughout the sand.
Kacy approaches with a big glass filled with her concoction. I accept it from her with a grateful smile although I don’t drink much. My botanical alcohol substitute line was my way of giving people an alternative since real alcohol can worsen other’s mental health.
My thoughts must have made me zone out because Kacy swipes the remote from me while grumbling about my lack of attention. The next few minutes become my crash course into the show with Kacy pausing the recap every few seconds to give me a profile on each cast member. While I’m sure I will remember some, I doubt I’ll remember everything since there are seven couples.
“So everyone is in their twenties?”
She nods, “pretty much. Can you imagine doing something like this when you were eligible?”
I shake my head. My twenties were full of lust, anxiety, and insecurities. I’ve always been in shape but I don’t see the appeal of walking around with no shirt on all day. I understand that it’s an island setting but people do wear clothes other than swimwear on islands.
“Nah, I’d probably be a lovable villain since I was romantically indecisive. I would have been all about my partner until someone else popped up.”
