Ella and Wilson

4

I flew into Miami to give off the allusion that I was spending my well-deserved break there. The paparazzi was at the airport knowing I was going to be flying in. I smiled for the cameras making my presence known as I walked to pick up my car rental. Amelia reserved a brand new Audi Q8 for me even though I told her to get me a more affordable, lowkey car.

I piled my bags in and drove off, beginning my almost 4 hour drive to St. Petersburg. The paparazzi followed me until I got onto the highway and they lost me. I blasted pop music as I sped across the state.

The drive was mostly boring. There wasn't much to look at. Once I got closer to Tampa, things got more exciting. I had never been to Tampa so I found myself staring at the skyline as I zoomed closer. The highway took me to the right of the skyline and to this bridge with a warning sign saying to gas up, bridge 2 miles long. Even though I had filled up halfway through the trip, I still glanced down making sure I had enough.

I zoomed across the bridge staring at the blue water lapping up on both sides of the road. The bridge stretched on forever and faintly against the horizon, I could see the outline of St. Petersburg. I was jittery with excitement about exploring a new place and finally having a long vacation. 

A few minutes after driving across the bridge, I made it to one of the main roads that could take me straight into downtown St. Petersburg. The house Amelia had gotten for me was a two minute drive to the downtown. As I pulled up, I made a mental note to get her a gift and a huge raise. She knew me so well.

The house was incredibly quaint. It was only a two bedroom, one floor house. Huge elephant ear plants were growing in the front yard. The house was a pastel yellow with white shutters. A screened in porch peeked out from the back of the house. The backyard was fenced in with a white privacy fence.

As I exited the car, little black and brown lizards scurried up trees and into the snake plants that lined the driveway. My eyes lit up as I watched them scurry off as I walked up to the front door. I typed in the code into the lock box and grabbed the key to unlock the door.

The house was old, which I didn't mind. Older houses always have so much character. All the rooms were closed off instead of the now super common open concept. I remember Amelia telling me the house was built in the 20's and had a lot of character. The living room had exposed beams and light green walls. There was a stone fireplace with a huge mirror hanging above the mantel. A big, fluffy sofa surrounded the fireplace. A large TV was set up to the left of the fireplace taking up the whole corner of the room. I walked further in and found myself in the formal dining room. A glass, round dining table was in the middle with a vase of sunflowers upon it. A few of the petals had fallen off and were laying limp on the glass.

Next came the kitchen, which was small but functional. There was only one window, which was above the farmhouse sink. A door was next to the stove showed me the expansive backyard and the screened in porch. I itched to grab my book out of my bag and read out there.

I hauled my bags into the master bedroom. It was minimally decorated with a big, king bed. The bathroom was not attached to the room, which didn't bother me but probably would bother other people to have to walk out into the living room to access the bathroom. It looked like it had just been renovated as everything in there looked brand new.

Just as I was about to unpack, I heard a knock at the door. Instinctively, my heart began to pound. Had someone already seen me? Was it the paparazzi?

I slowly walked to the front door and peered through the peephole. Standing on the front stoop was an older lady holding a plate covered in aluminum foil. She had wispy white hair and was dressed in a pink, pastel matching button down shirt and slacks. Her skin was tan, as someone who lives year round in Florida would have. I opened the door with a cautious smile.

"Hello?" I tucked a loose curl behind my ear.

"Hi dear, sorry to bother you. I'm Helena Smith. I own this house and I saw you arrive and thought I would come say hello. I live just across the street." She pointed to the townhouses across the street from the house.

"It's nice to meet you. I'm Ella." I felt safe giving her my name. Typically older people have no idea who I am.

"Gorgeous name for a gorgeous girl. Well, I just wanted to welcome you to St. Pete. I made these cookies, if you're hungry. If you need anything, feel free to come by. And if you need help with any of the appliances, Rick next door is a handyman that knows how to fix everything."

"Wow, thank you so much." I took the plate from her. It was still warm from the oven. She must've just taken them out.

"Of course. Enjoy your stay, dear." She gave a small wave as she began to walk back to her townhouse. She walked slowly and carefully before disappearing into her other home. I shut the door and walked into the kitchen where I uncovered the cookies. They were white chocolate macadamia, which is my favorite. How did she know?

I ate two before sinking down on the couch to watch TV. It was too late in the day to go to the beach but too early to call it a night. I considered going to check out the pier and the downtown but one look out of my window had me hesitating. Dark, ominous clouds were rolling in. I'm sure we were about to get a big storm.

"Should the cookies be my dinner or should I actually eat something?" I asked myself aloud. On cue, my stomach growled saying that cookies were not enough. I pulled out my phone and looked up sushi places.

"Chopstick Express? A drive through sushi place? Interesting." I mused. It was only a 4 minute drive away from the house. I decided to go check it out. It was a quaint, bright yellow building with a red roof. If it didn't have good reviews, I probably would never have thought to get food from there. I ordered and was quickly given my three rolls of sushi. I sped home and quickly threw on Netflix while I set up my sushi. One bite in and I knew that Chopstick Express was about to get a ton of business from me.