Breaking news: I found out college shopping is a thing. Desiree in the makeup trailer told me you will need extra-long sheets or something?
And a mini-fridge.
Let’s figure that out.
We wrapped the season of mother-effing Highly Classified! Yahoo. Going up the coast with Serena for a couple days. Then back.
Please confirm not dead.
And when coming home?
I need to finish Something Rotten. Am stuck on Polonius level. Haaaalp meeeeeee.
Matilda! Hello?
Now I am SERIOUSLY WORRIED. Please text back. I even actually called you like it’s 1962, but it went to voicemail.
The last one reads:On my way. Sorry if that’s weird.
It’s from last night.
I text Saar back now:I didn’t mean to worry you. My father died.
The phone rings immediately.
67
“Oh my god,Matilda,” says Saar in his nasal, gangstery voice. “I am so sorry. I had no idea. Are you okay?”
“Not really.”
“This is the tiniest freaking airport,” he says. “I’m literally walking off the plane, like across a parking lot. Is it called a tarmac? That thing. I’ve never walked on a tarmac before.”
“Where are you?”
“I’m off the tarmac and I’m in—it’s a garden, actually. An airport garden. I need to find the rental car area.”
“Where?”
“The Vineyard. I told you I was coming.”
“You’re here?”
“You got me worried,” he says. “Did you not see all my anxietytexts?”
“Only just now.”
“So I thought, she’s dead! Matilda is fully dead. Or she’s joined a cult or she decided to hitchhike and unspeakable things happened. You can use my Uber account. You know that, right? Don’t hitchhike. Did I give you my Uber account?”
“No.”
“Well, you should have it. Because when you’re at college, you need a safe way to get home from like a bad frat party or whatever.”
“Thank you. I will use that for all my bad frat party needs.”
“It’s nothing. But listen, I probably overreacted by coming here, I get that. But on the other hand, I couldn’t just assume you were all right. People go missing and bad stuff happens all the time. You know? Like those girls who were in the sway of that creep at Sarah Lawrence College! And that hospital chaplain who got kidnapped by her mental health patient.”
“Saar.”
