Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jean, Dr.Blaire, and Annabel watching me with unreadable expressions on their faces. A media circus with me at the center of it. I have to explain to them that I’m not using this town to boost my self-image before they get the wrong idea, so I excuse myself and head over to them.
“I’m so sorry about this. It wasn’t my intention to create a scene. I only wanted to spread the word about the fair to bring more customers to us.” I look apologetically at Jean, Dr.Blaire, and Annabel.
“Honey, are you kidding? This is fantastic!” Jean claps her hands together.
That’s when I look at the parking lot. It’s full.
“People came?” I say, shocked.
Dr.Blaire nods enthusiastically. “We haven’t seen this much interest since Daniel became the mayor of a town that shared its name with his wife”—she points to herself—“but even that was nothing compared to this.”
“So you don’t mind the media?” I peer up at them nervously.
“Mind?” Annabel says. “Why would we mind something that is doing so much good for our town?” She motions around us. We still have five minutes before the fair officially opens, and there are already people lining up at the stalls. “The sales from today’s event alone will be more than the beautification fund has ever had, and if it continues, we’ll be able to make all of the improvements,” Annabel goes on. “Because of you, Blaire will finally get the attention it needs.”
I want to continue our conversation, but the crowd keeps building, making it impossible. With a reassuring glance from each of the women, we part ways to divide and conquer. As I help Mom sell her kimchi, I feel the guilt wash away and turn into something else. Something warm and cozy, like one of Hal’s creations. Without the attention from my family, I tried to fill the void by getting it elsewhere. From the media. From my fans. And from my association with this person or that. But no matter how much I tried to fill the void, I still felt empty. Doing something good for this town feels good, but what feels better is knowing I have relationships that aren’t tethered to my popularity.
Mom hands me a phone, startling me. “It’s for you,” she says. In the busyness of the day, I forgot we could use our phones today and left mine at home.
“Who is it?” I ask.
“I don’t know.” She shrugs.
I take the phone from her. “Hello?”
“Elena, hon.” A familiar voice at the other end takes me by surprise.
“Kiki?” I startle. I didn’t expect to hear from her. “How’d you get this number?”
“I didn’t get to be the best at what I do without having any connections. There isn’t a number I can’t find,” she says. “I’m getting calls for you left and right. Let’s start with the big ones first and see what you can manage. When are you back in town?” She stops herself. “What am I saying? We’ll send you a car—we’ll send a plane if we have to.”
“Wow. All this for me?” I’ve never heard Kiki this excited. Not even when I got the highly coveted invite to the Met Gala.
“I know. I’m so proud of you. Not only did you take my advice to eat, pray, love your way through this crisis, but you also put the town of the forgotten back on the map. The people love you for your selfless efforts. I couldn’t have planned it better myself.”
But that’s the thing. I didn’t plan it. And like she said, she could have gotten in touch with me sooner if she’d wanted to. What happens when I lose my relevance again? Is she—and everyone else I surrounded myself with before—going to forget my number? I don’t know if I can handle that type of fickleness.
“Kiki, I appreciate it, but I’m going to have to get back to you.”
“When? We can’t keep these people waiting. We have to strike while the iron’s hot. Or else the public might forget about you again.”
“Not if I forget them first.”
News Update
Updated now
In response to the investigation and bankruptcy filing, It’s Ok!’s CEO Dale Ok has stepped down from his position, handing control over to a board of directors consisting of a mix of existing and newly hired executives. Their first task as a board was to reassign the former CEO. The title of internal director was proposed to Ok, where he would have a large role providing valuable input in the day-to-day running of the company he built from the ground up. However grateful he was for the opportunity to stay connected with It’s Ok!, Ok has ultimately decided to turn the position down. While he has expressed interest in retaining his shares, he does not intend to stay in the fashion business and is looking to move on to greener pastures.
Chapter 35
One year later
The Blaire Fair continued to generate foot traffic every month, and the profits from it made it possible to make significant improvements all around town. The grass is regularly cut in front of the town hall, the main road is now paved, and a sign welcoming people to Blaire has been erected. In fact, the success of the Blaire Fair helped fix many things around town, including Gavin and Callie’s relationship. After seeing my continued efforts with the fair long after the media had moved on from it, Callie realized my dedication to the event, like my apology, was sincere. Gavin and Callie have made up and are taking things slow. She plans to attend Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo in the fall, pursuing a double major in agricultural science and engineering. Gavin now attends a culinary school in Santa Barbara and commutes from Blaire, which allows him to work part-time at the cafe on the weekends and help out on the farm, growing the things he feels inspired by in the garden Dad dedicated to him. And Brennan is back in NOVA, but we’re all on a group chat that keeps us connected. He told us before his own parents when he got his acceptance to Caltech, and he can’t wait to be back in Californiain the fall to get “the band back together again”—his words.
Mom’s kimchi also got a lot of attention after the fair, and not just in Blaire. With interest from all sorts of investors, Dad tried to get involved and encouraged her to expand her business globally. But Mom has decided to keep the business small and local, and Dad has respected her wishes. Now they work together on the farm in Blaire and live a quiet but happy life. I’ve been living with them this past year, but I am also off to greener pastures.
While I continued to work with the town on improving the Blaire Fair, I finished my senior year online. By the time I got my diploma, I knew I had a knack for business, even more than I did before, which helped me to see that I had so much more to learn. Long story short, I ended up applying to colleges. More surprising still is that I got accepted to my top choice.
