It had turned into the worst day of their lives.

Alexis perched on the top of her suitcase, her lips pressed into a line. In one hand she clutched a rolled up Cosmo that she'd picked up from the gas station they'd stopped at on the way. In the other, her phone. When she'd woken up that morning, she hadn't expected to have everything she owned aside from one small suitcase ripped from her before she even got a chance to order lunch.

She wondered if Klair had noticed she hadn't shown up to brunch, or if Albany had realized that she hadn't sounded herself when she'd phoned earlier. If they had, they hadn't said anything. Her phone was determinedly quiet, and though she'd briefly wondered if the signal wasn't very good out here, David's phone seemed to be getting notifications fine. Hopeless. Everything seemed so hopeless.

David looked up from his phone from his seat in the booth as Alexis let out a deep sigh. He picked up the surprisingly sticky menu and scanned through it.

She watched her dad converse with the dishevelled man in the white vest who was apparently the mayor. Her lips pursed as she wondered how he was going to get them out of here - because she had no doubt that he was going to be able to. He had to. Though she could see her dad emphatically gesturing, she had no idea what was being said through the window. All she knew was: it didn't look good.

Before they could get too depressed, a bubbly brunette waitress bounced over to their table. She didn't bat an eyelid at the suitcase nor Alexis who looked close to tears. Instead she kept on smiling and looked to David.

"Hey!" she said, with more enthusiasm necessary for the glum faces she stood in front of. "Can I getcha anything?" She turned to Alexis and smiled. "How about a seat?"

Alexis offered up a wry smile. "Um, yes and no. I'll take a spinach smoothie with chia seeds, but not the seat. This dress is a Prada and those seats look like they haven't been cleaned since 89."

David stared at her for a moment and then looked to the waitress, who kept on smiling but looked more than a little bemused.

"Alrighty," she said with another but slightly less certain smile. "I'm Twyla and I'll be your waitress for today. How about you?" She turned to David, pen tapping on her notebook.

He set down the menu, sliding it away from himself and rubbing his fingers together to try and get rid of the stickiness. He looked up hopefully. "I don't suppose you do an egg white omelette with a side of avocado toast?"

"You'd be correct," Twyla said with an apologetic smile. "I can do scrambled egg on toast, though. How's that?"

David paused for a moment and then nodded. "And a black coffee," he said. "Thanks."

Alexis stared at him.

"What? I'm starving."

"Nothing," Alexis said, looking away. She shifted on the suitcase and looked around uncomfortably. "This is worse than the time I walked into that homeless shelter in New Jersey."

David rolled his eyes.

"What? In my defense, I'd just come back from Paris Fashion Week. I was very jet-lagged, and hobo-chic was very in that year. Lots of layers."

When Twyla was far enough away, David turned to his sister. "For God's sake, Alexis, just sit down. These pants aren't exactly Zara pleather," he said. "I'm still sitting down."

Alexis huffed but threw the Cosmo down and sat on it in the booth. She leaned her elbows on the table but recoiled when her skin stuck to the grime. "Ugh. I can't live here. It's uber depressing. You know, I had a plan. This was supposed to be the year I have a relationship that lasted at least two years."

David looked up from scrolling on his phone. "That's oddly specific, even coming from you."

"Like you don't have a plan?" she scoffed. "Cause you're not getting out of here any faster than I am."

"My plan was more like going to the Bahamas for Christmas," David said, his forehead wrinkling. "I don't think well adjusted people plan on time frames for relationships they're not even in yet."

"Well, Stavros and I haven't broken up officially," Alexis said, but even she didn't sound convinced. "Besides, I said at least three years, David, not only." She glared at him.

"Okay well sorry I didn't understand your stupid plan," he said with a scoff. "Don't look so worried. Dad won't let us stay here. He'll have a plan. He always does."

"Yeah. I hope so." Alexis looked up toward the sky. "You don't think we'll have to get like, jobs, do you?"

"I already have a job," David said. "You know that."

Alexis rolled her eyes. "Hanging paintings isn't a job, David, it's barely a hobby."

"I don't 'hang paintings'," David said, his voice rising half an octave. "I -"

"Here's your smoothie," Twyla interrupted, setting down a tall glass in front of Alexis, "I went ahead and gave you a wide straw - I think there's something up with the blender, it's a little chunky."

Alexis pressed her lips together, looking warily at the smoothie. "Oh, yum."

"And here's your coffee," she said, placing a chipped mug in front of David. "Sugar's on the table. I'll bring your food over as soon as it's ready."

"No rush," David said, eyeing up Alexis's smoothie. He looked up at Twyla. "Really, no rush."

As Twyla walked away once again, he leaned back in the booth. He warmed his hands on the coffee cup.

"You could always date the guy in the scrubs," David said. He smirked. "He seemed pretty into you."

When they'd first walked into the cafe, a cute blonde guy had walked up to Alexis and tried to make small talk. Alexis had brushed him off, more focused on trying to lipread. So far she thought she'd caught the words 'shitty' and 'what?!" It didn't inspire much confidence.

"Um, no," she said. "He was pretty cute but who knows who he's been giving mouth-to-mouth to. Plus, I dated a doctor once. He was always too busy to do anything fun."

"He's a vet, actually," a woman from the booth behind said. She turned round in her seat and eyed Alexis. "Very smart, very kind. He's also my son. I saw him talking to you on his way out. He seemed pretty smitten."

"That's worse," Alexis shot back. "Giving CPR to gerbils then kissing me? No thank you."

The older woman laughed. "He's not doing CPR on gerbils. He actually just broke up with his girlfriend. He's a little down in the dumps about it. You know, Ted's such a good kid."

Alexis exchanged a glance with David, who looked as bewildered as she felt. "Well, thanks for sharing, but I -"

"You're just his type."

"Told you," David said. "He was checking you out."

Alexis shrugged. "Well, I can't really blame him, can I? I've been going to Pilates like, religiously. My instructor says I have the potential to go all the way."

David raised his eyebrows. "Which is where?"

Alexis ignored him. "Anyway," she said to the woman, "We're kind of busy, so…"

"Wait," she said. "I have a proposition for you."

"I can't believe you said yes."

Alexis threw her suitcase down onto the bed, dust flying up as she stalked away. "And I can't believe we're staying here," she said, wrinkling her nose. She ground a piece of dirt into the carpet with her shoe, trying to figure out what it was. Either a dead bug, or coffee grounds. She wasn't sure which.

"At least I'm making the best of it," she said with a shrug. Ted's number was hastily scribbled on a napkin and tucked into the pocket of her dress, and she patted it, twirling around the room as if it were The Ritz.

David threw himself down onto the other bed. "Yeah, by being like, a prostitute. And for what, Alexis, a new pair of shoes?"

"David!" Alexis said. "Sex work is having a moment right now, and I literally have one pair of shoes in my suitcase, so I don't know why you sound so judgey, but that's not even-"

"Did I just hear the words 'sex work' and Alexis's name in the same sentence?" Johnny asked as he carried both his and Moira's suitcases over the threshold. "Things will never be that bad, Alexis."

Moira followed close behind him, clutching only her wigs. She stumbled into the shabby hotel room, looking round in horror.

"Oh, let her enjoy her body whilst she's still young," Moira said, holding her hand to her face. "After all, she's not twenty two anymore. The years in which she can beguile any passing young man with her looks alone are fleeting, and well, if she's to spend the rest of them here…"

"I'm not objecting to her enjoying it, I'm objecting to anyone else doing the same. Anyway, we won't be here for long," Johnny insisted. "Certainly not long enough for resorting to that. If she needs a job, she can get one at the cafe. Twyla seemed nice, right? And all you need for waitressing is a smile, and yours is beautiful, Alexis."

"Well the orthodontist charged enough for it…" David interjected from his spot lying on the bed.

Moira looked stricken at the suggestion. "Oh, things aren't that bad, are they, John? Alexis isn't cut out for working. Throwing her out to the proverbial wolves of the working world would be indefensible. She takes after you in that regard."

Johnny frowned at his wife, but before he got the chance to reply, Moira turned to her children.

"No. Once your father gets everything straightened out, we'll be fine. It's not like we can stay here." She looked around, her hand curling around her wigs a little tighter. "Can't you just hear my girls screaming at the indignity of it all? It's much too humid in here, John, they'll frizz!"

"I know, darling," Johnny sighed, heaving the suitcases across the room and setting them down. He sat down on the bed heavily, the afternoon's events weighing down on him. His shoulder hunched, he continued."We'll be here a week, tops. A month at most."

"A month?" David echoed. He looked around, cringing at the peeling wallpaper and stained carpets. "I cannot stay here a month…"

"I'm definitely keeping the job in that case," Alexis piped up. "It's just a few dates, and his mom is paying me more than I'd make at a waitressing job in a week. It's acting. If mom can do it, how hard can it be?"

Moira glared at her. "I'll have you know-"

"Plus, he's a vet, how bad can he be?

"A vet?" Moira perked up. "That certainly is appealing, do you think he's trained in combat? I don't think the locks on these doors are up to scratch and I can't bear the thought of someone coming in and harming my girls...and the children, of course," she added, as Johnny sighed.

"A veterinarian," Alexis said. "And he's kinda dorky, so no, I don't think he's trained in combat."

"So probably more trained for wombats," David snickered.

"Shut up, David," Alexis complained. "You're just jealous a rich mom hasn't approached you to date their cute son."

"That's definitely it," he said, rolling his eyes. "It's not that I think you're just fucking crazy."

"David, Alexis," Johnny said, holding his hands up. "We need to stick together right now. Who knows how long we'll be here? But if we have each other, we can make it through. And you never know, this might be the start of something wonderful. Right, Moira?"

Moira stared at him for a moment. "Right," she said with a forced brightness that she usually saved for when she presented award shows. "I know it feels like the start of an apocalyptic movie, children, with us being the only sane survivors, but your father is correct: this might be the start of something wonderful. If we all agree to collectively forget the meaning of wonderful."