AllFreeNovel
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“I needed to leave the house…” I hear the ellipses but she clams up.
“The only reason was cabin fever?”
“That and because you asked. I haven’t seen much of Columbus since I moved. Whenever I visit here for holidays, I stick close to family.”
“You didn’t keep any friends from Columbus.”
She shakes her head. “I didn’t have many girlfriends who lasted past high school, and by the time I was in college I spent all my time with my weird roommate and…”
I know the rest before she says it.
“And you.”
I nod. We were each other’s worlds back then.
“When I went to California, everyone kind of dropped off. I became more and more well-known because of the show and then I heard from some old friends. It was obvious they wanted something from me. My attention mostly. A few of them wanted cash.”
“Seriously?” I can’t imagine a single scenario that would involve me contacting an old buddy of mine who’d made it big and asking for money.
“It’s exhausting trying to ferret out who’s talking to you because they genuinely like you and who wants something from you. It’s easier to keep everyone at a distance if you’re not sure you can trust them. Being famous is weird. People treat you like this…ethereal being. A real-life genie in a bottle.”
“I wouldn’t know. I’ve never been revered.”
“Now who’s being lame?”
“You heard that phone call today. Mostly people say thanks and pay me or say thanks and don’t pay me.” I polish off my beer in record time and Bev nods when I hold up the empty as a request for a refill. “Besides, I don’t think that’s real.”
“What’s not real?”
“The fame. It’s an illusion. They might want something from you, but they can’t take what you don’t give them.”
“I don’t have to give what they ask for, but trust me, the things they ask for have a way of taking a part of me.”
“What things?”
“Money. Autographs. Photos.” She shrugs. “I’ve been offered sex. I’ve been asked to prom. I’ve received invitations to weddings and retirement parties and one bar mitzvah.”
“Sex?” And I thought people asking for money was unbelievable.
“People I don’t even know. More offers than you want to hear about. Guys are creepy.”
“No shit.” I’m creeped out hearing about it.
“Fame is very real. What makes it real is the way everyone else behaves. I can pretend it doesn’t matter and that I’m the same old Allie from Columbus, Ohio, but the fact remains that some people have no boundaries. They approach me like we’re old friends—like they know me because of the character I play on the show. Or worse. They believe I am the character I play on the show. I’ve been called Samantha more than Nina.”
“That’s fucked up,” I admit. It’s hard to believe that people can’t separate characters from the person playing them.
“Tell me about it. I keep my guard up. Find another famous person to date who understands how insane our world is. Sometimes it’s a good pairing and we have some laughs and camaraderie, and other times…”
“He takes Millie’s side, publicly dumps you, and recommends you attend rehab,” I finish for her. “By the way, what was that about? Why aren’t you in rehab? Are you on the lam?”
“He wasn’t a good boyfriend,” is her nonanswer before she turns the tables on me. “What’s dating been like for you?”
She wasn’t kidding. She’s skilled at keeping her guard up.
“Fine, I guess.” I scrub the back of my neck as Bev delivers a beer and promises our food will be out in a minute.
“Did you have any long-term girlfriends after we split? Any close calls with marriage?”
