Contest (chapter 2;part 2)

“Sorry,” I say startled. “Um, yeah. We find the Picasso and take a picture with it and then we meet up with Laura in dead center Central Park. That’s good because it’s only like ten blocks away.” She nods and then starts climbing the concrete steps to one of the most famous art museums in the world. I think about how I’m going to miss her burly accent, and the stern look she gives me when I say one of my jokes, or how I will not be guided through this incredible city by this incredible woman. I’m not in love with her, I’m just a bit girl crazy right now. Last week I was partnered with Lauren, a twenty five year old med student who likes to lead, and by the end of the week I was having the same thoughts, though Camille is defiantly the best looking of all the girls in the completion. I think this is probably happening because my girlfriend broke up with me two weeks ago when I told her I was coming to the contest. I would have continued pondering the cause of my girl-craziness if there had not been a guard at the door asking me to open up my blue Jansport. I wait for the other guard to finish checking Camille, and then we walk in together. She nods as if saying “Let’s do our thing” and she goes to make the ticket line while I go to the information booth.
“Excuse me,” I ask the white haired woman sitting at the counter. She turns to look at me and smiles. “I was wondering if you might know where I could find Picasso’s Girl Reading at a Table and how to get there?”
“Oh sure I do darling. Go right up this hall and then you should find it at the third room you go into.” She points at a corridor to her left and smiles broadly at me.
“That’s great, thank you ma’am,” I say to her and turn towards the ticket line where I see Camille staring at me anxiously. I smile to tell her that we are in the right place, and I can see her sigh with relief.
“Down that hall in the third room,” I say to her matter of factly.
“Good,” she says to me. In no time we get to the booth and she politely asks the lady for two one day tickets. She hands the money and then walks with quick long strides to the hallway I showed her just moments before, me struggling to keep up like always. We walk past the first room silently, and I can see she is taking quick peeks at the paintings around her. The second room goes by, and then we are standing in a room with a lot of Picasso’s.