Page 33 of Alice & Meg, Girls Trip

We sat there for a while longer, just being together. The buzz of the busy pool hummed around us.

Eventually, the noise of the pool brought us back to the present, and Karmen broke the silence with a sigh. “Here comes Reva, Paige, and Nikki. Let’s get packed up.”

The suggestion was met with murmurs of agreement, and we all started gathering our things.

“Let’s go,” I said.

Alice

“You’re kidding me.”

Karmen shook her head, her expression a mixture of disbelief and frustration. “We were all so shocked.”

“Who calls someone trash just because they have tattoos?” Nikki asked, her voice laced with anger. “Are we living in the 1940s or something?”

“If you ask me, it’s rarer to see someone without tattoos than with them,” Wendy said, tugging her sweatshirt over her head. “We’re all trash if that lady thinks tattoos are trashy.”

“I say we take a little walk around the campground and see if we can find Miss Bitch to have a little talk,” I suggested, the fire in my belly rising as I thought of how hurt Lennox must be.

“Meg wanted to do that, but Lennox stopped her,” Wendy sighed. “I’m sure she just wants to forget the whole thing.”

A knock sounded on the camper door, interrupting our conversation. Wendy opened it, and there stood Meg, looking like she was about to lose her shit. Her usual calm demeanor was replaced with a stormy expression, and I knew whatever had happened must be bad.

“What’s wrong?” Wendy asked, concern dripping from her voice as we all gathered behind her to listen to Meg.

“We just had a visit from the owner of the campground,” Meg started, her voice tight with barely restrained anger. “It seems that the bitch from the pool went to the office and complained about Lennox.”

“No,” I gasped, my hand flying to my mouth.

Meg nodded, her jaw clenched. “Yup. Said she didn’t feel safe with her being around her kid.”

My eyes bugged out at her words.

“Are they kicking us out?” Wendy asked.

Meg shook her head. “No. I think he more came by to let us know that she had it out for Lennox. He said we might want to try to keep to ourselves the rest of the time we are here.”

“What in the fuckity fuck?” Karmen demanded, her arms crossing over her chest in defiance. “Lennox was just being nice to her kid, and she runs to the fucking campground po-po to rat on us?” She shook her head, her frustration evident. “I say we find her campsite, and pay her a little visit.”

“As much as I would love to,” Meg said, her voice softening, “Lennox is not okay with that. This pregnancy has got her emotions all out of whack, and this bitch isn’t helping matters at all. She’s on the phone with Jonas right now. I’m afraid she’s going to end up leaving.”

“No,” Nikki cried, her face paling. “We can’t let that bitch ruin our girls’ trip.”

I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself. I could feel the anger coursing through me, but I knew that if Lennox was already upset, we had to handle this carefully. “We need to talk to her, make sure she knows we’ve got her back. We can’t let this woman make her feel like she has to leave.”

Wendy nodded. “Lennox has been through enough without this bullshit. She doesn’t need to be stressed out right now.”

“Where is she?” I asked Meg.

“She’s still in the RV, talking to Jonas,” Meg replied. “She was crying when I left her.”

My heart ached for Lennox. “I’m going to go check on her,” I decided, stepping toward the door. “Maybe I can help calm her down.”

“We’ll come with you,” Karmen said, her voice gentle now. “We’re all in this together.”

We made our way out of Mini Weenie and across the campsite to Meg’s RV. The sun was setting, casting a warm, golden glow over the campground, but the beauty of the evening was lost on us as we marched toward Lennox.

Meg opened the door, and we filed in, the air inside thick with tension. Lennox was sitting on the bed, phone in hand, tears streaking down her cheeks as she spoke softly into the phone. When she saw us, she quickly ended the call, wiping her eyes.

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