Denise joined us. “What’s Kelly doing in there?” she asked.
Before we answered, Kelly reemerged as if she’d come back upstairs, sang a few more lines into her invisible mic, and made love gestures to Rockas— with no reciprocation. As she sang her last,
do you believe in life after love,
my face began to ache from all the laughing. She pretended to be heartbroken, thanked the DJ for looking for her song, and rejoined us in the disco.
“You’re a nut,” Polly said to Kelly. Jennifer wiped a tear from her eye. I massaged my jaw to relax the overused muscles. “Either you’re high on the show or drunkety-drunk!”
“I love y’all,” Kelly said.
I remembered Denise’s warning at the beginning of the trip. Kelly was drunkety-drunk.
“Yes, you do,” Denise said as she stepped up to assume guardianship. “I’m exhausted,” Jennifer said. I nodded agreement. “What time is it?”
Polly looked at her watch. “Almost one o’clock.” We hadn’t realized how long we’d been playing after the show. “I’ve gotta go to bed.”
Denise guided Kelly out of the disco door as we made our way back to our rooms.
The pool deck, dining room, and paths were deserted.
“Night, y’all,” Kelly said, weaving up the path with Denise guarding her.
“See you in the morning,” Polly called.
We passed by the darkened porches and walked in silence.
“Feel like you’re in another world?” I asked. “This week’s been surreal, and I haven’t clicked my ruby slippers.”
“You’ve got one more day in Oz,” Polly replied. “And I think the Wizard’s gonna send us home on a jet.”
“I loved the adventure and getting to know everyone,” I said. “But there’s no place like home . . . and Steve’s there alone on our anniversary.”
“And happy you’re here dancing,” she added.
“Morning, ladies,” I said, putting food and drink on the table beside Lara. “Anyone accidently show up at the disco this morning?”
Everyone laughed.
“Here, add some orange juice and have a Mimosa . . . on me!” Lara slid one of her champagne flutes to me. I looked over her and saw Rich heading toward us from the lobby.
“Warning, here comes Cranky,” I said, without moving my lips. I watched him approaching our table with a casual gait, and we gave him a wave.
“Ladies, I just wanted to catch you before we get buried with new arrivals,” Rich said. “Thanks for the show last night. The guests have been so excited at the new addition.”
We smiled and left him in the spotlight.
“We appreciated the lobster after the show,” Jennifer said, and we all nodded. “I hope it all went well last night.”
He looked at the floor. “I’ll admit I was amazed at how many guests stayed for the show.”
I gave myself a check for noticing that fact all week. I also made a note to self:
Listen to your inner voice.
“Anyway, good job,” Rich said. “Have a great trip home, and we hope to see you again.” We watched as he headed toward the pool deck and disappeared near the restaurants.
“A little more humble,” Lara said, sipping her Mimosa. “At least he had something positive to say.”
“Not to change the subject, but what time do we leave in the morning?” Jennifer asked.
“In the lobby by 9:45 a.m.,” Denise replied. “Some of us’re leaving on different flights.”
“Guess I’d better plan some packing time today,” Kelly said. “At least my costumes. I don’t need them anymore.”
“I’m gonna get a T-shirt,” Denise said, standing. “Anyone wanna go?” I raised my hand. I’d intended to grab a shirt in the event my tummy shrank with all the exercise.
“I’m gonna pack then head to the beach for one more day on the sand,” Jennifer responded. Lara agreed.
As if on cue, we disbanded.
Thirty minutes later, I headed back to my room to deposit my new black T-shirt—with HEDO II spelled in rhinestones on it—on top of my costume bag. I grabbed my swimsuit and beach bag and ran out of the room to float one more time. As I shot down the golf cart path toward the beach, I passed the Prude bar and paused for a last Bloody Mary.
In the distance, the girls had settled in chairs or were floating near the bay. I grabbed a chair near the sea-grape shade. I’d nowhere to be and all day to be there, but my fair skin needed shade.
“Come on, Kat,” Jennifer said, stuffing something in her beach bag. “Let’s get out there and catch up.”
“Let me sunscreen-up,” I responded. Lara fussed with some towels and pushed the henna cooler under her chair. I counted six bobbing heads and blue floats.
“Ha! Look at Kat’s sunscreen method,” Lara said. “Slather, slurp a Bloody Mary, and repeat.” I stuck out my tongue. Sybil waved at me to hurry. I gave a loud, rude slurp with my straw directed at Lara. Without hesitation, she returned a deep unladylike belch.
“Geez,” Jennifer said. “Does your new love interest know your bodily functions are on the plus size?” Lara laughed and grabbed her blue float. We tiptoed into the water.
I heard Ruth discussing her cane dance. “The audience was very receptive,” she said. “That’s not always the case.”
“The gypsies were sassy and we rocked,” Kelly said.
Denise raised her eyebrow and flicked water at me.
“Simmer down,” I said. “I felt comfortable with the dance last night, but it went by so fast.”
“I couldn’t believe how slippery the floor was,” Lara added.
“Weren’t you wearing your fake ass?” Jennifer asked. “You would’ve bounced right back on your feet.”
“Ladies, we did it!” Sybil exclaimed. “I met with the general manager this morning, and he went on and on about the feedback from last night’s show. Hedo guests kept stopping me when I tried to eat breakfast, begging us to have one more class.” We collectively breathed in. “I told them how flattered we were but that we wanted our last day off.”
“Whew,” Kelly said. “I’d planned to drink all day.”
Denise laughed and pretended to lift her cup.
“Let’s go ’round and tell each other what we’re taking back home,” Sybil said. “Let’s start with Ruth.”
My mind started spinning, as if I were about to do a solo.
“Okay,” Ruth answered. “When Sybil invited me to join the trip, I’d only met a few of you because I don’t live in Charleston anymore. Palmetto started with three of us. And look what it’s grown into.” She paused, looking at Sybil. They shared something silently and Ruth looked back around the circle. “I knew I’d have a blast with Sybil, but y’all have been amazing and fun. I can’t believe how many wonderful people I’ve met, how sweet the students were. I’m excited to be able to go home and brag that we performed in Jamaica.”
We broke into a round of zaghareets.
“Hedo wouldn’t have been the same without you in your slut dress or challenging Sybil to jump off Rick’s Cliffs,” Denise said.
“Don’t forget your Hedo ticket,” Kelly added. Sybil reached over to hug Ruth.
“And I saw cool birds,” Ruth said. “And I could’ve bought ganja.” She giggled.
“Melody?” Sybil asked.
“As much as I’ve loved being here, I’m excited about getting home,” Melody started. “I feel like a rock star, but I learned something about myself the first few days when we weren’t being taken seriously.” She paused, dropping her eyes as if searching the water for words. “Since then, I’ve vowed to embrace every journey. I pride myself on being an optimist and a team player. Unfortunately, when I look back to earlier this week, I was a fatalist who withdrew from resolving the problem.”
“You’ve been a huge help,” I protested. “We understood that you’d left your family and taken vacation time to come. You were back to your old self by Tuesday.” Several voices gave my comment an “Amen,” attempting to keep Melody from being so hard on herself.
“Wish I’d passed the test a little better,” Melody said, her face serious. “All that aside . . . I’m proud of doing my solo and teaching those amazing women—and our token male student. What’re the odds I’d put belly dancing in Jamaica at Hedonism II on my bucket list . . . and take home the T-shirt?”
“The trip was enriched by your presence and contributions,” Sybil said. “I was very proud of you, following through with a solo.”
“And a room solo too,” laughed Denise. “Next time, you get Kelly knocking on the door without a room key.”
“Shut your piehole,” Kelly shot back.
“Jennifer?” Sybil asked, turning to my girl crush.
Jennifer rolled her eyes to the back of her head and exhaled. “Amo la Giamaica ma il mio stallone italiano era caldo,” she rattled off in Italian. I got something about a hot Italian stallion.
“English, please,” Lara ordered.
“Jamaica’s been amazing and I love everyone, but Massi was a total package of hotness,” Jennifer swooned. We all splashed her.
“Cool down,” Lara said, giving her another splash. “Other than Massi? You made lovely memories with your fabulous, prettier sister?” We all chuckled, and I loved hearing Jennifer’s earthy chortle.
“I made amazing memories with all of my sisters,” Jennifer said, looking at each of us individually. “And it was a pleasure to get to know our two new members. You were such good sports the entire week.” Zaghareets flew at us in the bay. “Like Melody, I felt like a rock star all week long. Kat, I couldn’t have negotiated the show without you. You should go to law school.”
How many times have I heard that?
I asked myself. I shook my head. No, thanks.
Jennifer continued, “I think that not only did we impart the mission statement to amazing students, but I renewed my love of dance. And I feel like, in spite of my divorce, I’ll be able to find myself again.”
Not even Lara cracked a joke at her vulnerable confession.
“I appreciate all the work you’ve put into planning classes and promoting us,” Sybil said. “And you did meet one hot man! You’ve still got it!”
Jennifer acted as if she were fanning herself.
“Lara?” Sybil prompted.
“I’m not one to make sappy comments,” Lara said, “but I’m so glad I got half of the trip. It’s a memory few can put on their list of experiences, let alone a memory covered in glam and glitter.” I smiled at the fleeting memory of our glamorous skirts tangling at the Grand Lido. “It was an honor to be with y’all.”
“Our troupe wouldn’t be the same without the Forte sisters,” Sybil said. “I’m sorry I missed your naked diving debut. Denise, how about you?”
“I’ve done my time keeping track of Kelly,” Denise said in an exaggerated voice.
“You love me and you know it,” Kelly said.
Denise nudged her shoulder. “Seriously, I came here expecting everything to be mapped out. Instead we were bounced from location to location and forced into self-promoting and building a rapport with guests and staff. I think the bottom line is . . . we were ourselves. It was genuine and respectful, and no one hogged the spotlight.” I listened to the easy slap of the waves as we took in her words. I smiled at her, sending love with my eyes. “And the shows were fun too!” She flipped us back to light banter.
“I’m next,” Kelly said, flinging herself into the confession pool. “First of all, I love all of you . . . without beer or vodka. This trip’s been beyond my expectations. I never expected Hedo, flashers, swingers, nudists, or spanking my way through Jamaica.” We chuckled. “I’ll admit I was disappointed the first day or so when Rich didn’t take us seriously. But by sticking to our guns and guests—I danced in Jamaica! Woo-hoo!” We laughed at her simplicity. “On a serious note . . . I like our two new members. Y’all are a lot of fun. And Kat, if I need an attorney when my ass picture hits the Internet, you’re hired.”
I grinned and shook my head.
“As everyone knows, Kelly’s working on her doctorate,” Sybil said. “Pretty soon we’ll be able to say that Palmetto Oasis has a doctor in the troupe!”
Another round of zaghareets was aimed at Kelly.
“Polly? As one of our newer members, what did you take from this experience?”
“I love to dance,” Polly said. “I didn’t care about making impressions or being in the spotlight. I just wanted to dance. I was amazed at all the contributions we each made to the culmination of our goal.”
We nodded agreement.
“But one of my most memorable moments was Kat at the airport, finding out what ‘a Hedonism’ was!” She cracked up laughing, with most of the troupe looking from me to her for clarification.
“I was clueless that this was a clothing-optional, pleasure-seeking resort,” I said. They looked as if they were missing a piece of the puzzle. “I spent most of my life in a Bible-thumping environment. Talk about culture shock,” I reminded them.
A collective “Ahhh” was offered as a reply.
“Polly, you dance with such attitude and strength,” Sybil added. “The troupe did itself a service by extending an invitation to you to join us. Kat?”
I thought I’d be ready for this. I flashed through all the comments so far, trying to avoid the same observations and bring out my own thoughts. “I don’t wanna be a Debbie Downer with all the challenges that performing brings to me, but I wanna believe that by being part of a team, I learned to ignore my discomfort zones and push to advance a bigger cause. I know I don’t have the history that’s here in the water, but I hope you understand how big my heart is and how much I wanna be an asset to Palmetto Oasis.”
I gulped and looked at eight pairs of eyes. “I won’t lie and say the idea of performing wasn’t overwhelming, but I knew I had to go through with it because I knew how much the rest of you wanted to dance.” Zaghareets flooded my floating space.
“And you got us the show and the lobster tails,” Denise reminded me.
“In spite of my newbie-ness, I hope that sometime in the future I’ll embrace doing a solo like Melody,” I said, “or exude the warmth of Jennifer, the resilience of Lara, or the sensibility of Polly, and that I’ll develop a deep friendship like Kelly and Denise or Sybil and Ruth have. The bottom line is that I’ve wanted to dance since I was tiny, and someone or something always seemed to stop me. Through the joy, strength, and encouragement of my new sisters, I found Ameera looking at me from the mirror and felt her on stage.”
I fought back tears and took a breath. I felt Polly’s hand pat my back. “But I have to thank Steve for gently nudging me to join the troupe in Jamaica. He sacrificed our anniversary to give me the gift of unveiling Ameera.”