The water in Majorca

Chapter 3

 It took Charity a moment to remember where she was when she awoke from a much needed afternoon nap. The Spanish sun was still high in the sky but you would never have known it thanks to the high quality black out curtains in the hotel room.

As she blinked open her sleepy eyes, she came around to find Moses quietly snoring and dribbling into his pillow beside her, whilst the sound of muffled chattering over pop music came from the other bedroom. Noah and Sarah hadn't needed a rest after what Charity had called an 'exhausting game of volleyball', and had spent some time on the balcony before hanging out in their own space.
It was just after half past five when she glanced at the clock, and as if right on queue, her stomach grumbled at the thought of the dinner buffet. The dining room opened at six o'clock and that particular night was host to Fajita night.
Charity pulled herself away from the comfort of the mattress, sitting upright and leaving a damp outline from her hair upon the pillow. The muscles in her arms felt tired and bruised from the game, but a smile found its way to her face even through the discomfort of her stretch.
She found that the holiday had gotten off to a great start. The kids had not stopped laughing and smiling all day and she had been right at the centre of the reason for it. And of course she had Vanessa to thank for that. Which was exactly what she planned on doing the next time she saw her. She wondered if she should maybe ask her if she fancied a drink later on, but at a real bar where she could pay for their beverages to show how grateful she was for her antics at the pool. Even though she had since had time to think about how she was sure Vanessa had knocked her over and swayed the match in favour of the kids, on purpose.

"Can I come in?" Charity asked as she rapped lightly upon the door to Noah and Sarah's room.
A faint 'Yeah' sounded from inside, and she let herself in to find Sarah sat cross legged on the tiles, straightening her hair in the mirror, and Noah sprawled out across his bed, watching silly videos on YouTube.
"Have you showered already?" She asked as she noticed the teens looked and smelled better than they had when they'd returned to their room.
"Yeah, we were quiet about it, unlike your snoring," Noah jibed.
"I don't snore," Charity insisted, furrowing her brows at the idea.
"Yeah? Tell that to the video I took of you" He replied.
"You better not have" She began, but Noah's poker face was terrible and his smirk gave the game away. "Well, I'll quickly jump in the shower now. Moses is still sleeping but if he wakes just ply him with his ipad until I'm done. Then we'll head down for some tea" She babbled, before walking away to scrub herself down with something fruity scented.
The pressure from the shower head wasn't the best, but Charity welcomed the warm water that flowed from it. The bathroom filled with steam in no time and she felt she could stay there forever. The tiny bottle of shower gel that she'd packed, and which was never going to last the week, was rhubarb and raspberry scented, and both looked and smelled good enough to eat.
As she scrubbed at her chlorine tight skin, the gel washed away the day's build up and she stepped out of the shower clean and fresh.
The baby's breath of a hairdryer took ages to actually dry her hair but thankfully the ends dried on their own as she applied some makeup at the bathroom mirror. The sink unit was covered in products that Sarah had brought along from home, with everything ranging from hair masks and heat spray, to moisturiser and foot scrub.
As a family, they'd decided to check out the local pubs down the street after eating and so Charity opted to wear a simple black dress and sandals. It was still twenty five degrees according to the weather app on her phone.
Noah tucked a crisp white shirt into jean shorts, both of which he had ironed himself and done a fair job of. Sarah on the other hand had dolled up Barbie style in a bright pink mini skirt and pale pink crop top and white wedge heels.
"Are you going to be able to walk in those?" Charity asked her as she teetered on her tippy toes, taking selfies captioned with 'outfit of the day'.
"Course, I've been wearing Mum's heels since I was like, twelve" came her sarky reply.
"Alright," Charity mumbled, leaving her to it so that she could sort Moses out.
Moses was wide awake now and had been slicing fruit or something on his ipad. She managed to get him to scrub himself clean in the tub, and brushed the tangles out of his hair in record time, and all without working up a sweat or getting herself wet in the process.
"Right, you. Go get some pants on" She shouted to the naked little boy who was running around laughing at his own reflection.

By seven o'clock they were ready and waiting for the lift out in the hallway. The sound of someone else's flip flops slapped upon the marble steps as they made their way down from the fifth floor, passing by in favour of the stairs. Charity took an annoyed look at the woman and her partner just as they disappeared down the next flight of steps, the slapping echoing throughout the whole stairwell.
"Maybe we should just walk down too?" Noah suggested.
The lift had taken quite some time to arrive at their level, and once it had it was too full for them all to cram inside it anyway, so they were forced to wait a little longer.
"I'm not walking down in these" Sarah moaned, drawing everyone's attention to her feet crammed into the six inch heels.
"I thought you said you'd be alright in those?" Charity huffed, already sensing that they weren't going to get far tonight if her granddaughter was already complaining.
Finally, the lift pinged and the doors opened to reveal a single elderly man inside.
"Quick, get in before someone else does" Charity cried as they heard voices echoing down the hallway, heading their way.

"It smells mint in here" Noah dribbled, taking a huge whiff of the dining room.
"It literally just smells like a chicken shop," Sarah replied.
"I know, it's great," Noah beamed.
Charity shook her head at her son's terrible sense of cuisine before pointing out a table that was being relayed with fresh cloth and cutlery across the room.
"Go and nab that table" She instructed them as she took Moses' hand and led him through the sea of hungry guests.
Once again, Charity plated up a simple chicken and fries for Moses, and some wraps and skewers for herself, plus a scoopful of what she hoped was mild salsa.
They ate in mostly silence, too busy stuffing their faces to make conversation, not that they would have been able to hear one another as everyone around them attempted to make their own selves heard over the hustle and bustle of the room.
There was no sign of Vanessa and Tracy and little Johnny in the dining room, so Charity wasn't able to flaunt her selfless side over extending an invite to cocktails at a beach bar. Thankfully though, the kids were happy to explore the nightlife outside of the hotel for an hour or two before the free disco at the poolside started.

The warm sea breeze hugged Charity's shoulders as they slowly walked down the street, taking in the sight of the setting sun that had tinged the sky in orange and pink. Sarah took a quick snap of it and posted to her story.
"Hashtag, living my best life" Charity announced, peeking over her shoulder at the fairly good photo.
"Shut up" Sarah replied with a breath of laughter.
"Hashtag, no filter" Charity added.
"Oh my God, you're so uncool" Sarah groaned, hiding her face behind her hand as a passerby laughed at her embarrassment.
"Where are we going?" Noah asked after they had been walking for ten minutes, passing a handful of pubs along the way.
"Anywhere, take a pick" Charity shrugged, not really minding where they ended up, as long as they served her a nice cold white wine in an actual glass.
"That one looks nice," Sarah pointed out.
The bar she had taken a fancy to, had outdoor seating and overlooked the sea. It must have not long opened as someone was popping menus on the empty tables.
"Works for me" Charity accepted, and they all made their way over and found a place to sit.
"Hola," The friendly young barman greeted them, handing each of them an assortment of colourful Lei's. He proudly slipped a pink one over Sarah's shoulders.
"Bella" He exclaimed as Sarah took in the sight of the pretty flowers.
"And one for Mamma" He quipped as he draped Charity in green flowers, "To match your eyes" He flirted playfully.
"Gracias" Charity breathed, rolling her eyes at Noah who was tired of his mother being flirted with every time they stepped foot into a public space.
"What can I get you, Senorita, providing you have an ID with you?" The barman winked.
Charity was flattered and let out a genuine laugh.
"Three cokes and a white wine please," She ordered, fluttering her lashes.
"Coming right up for you" The barman grinned, rustling Moses' hair before dashing off to the bar.
"You know he doesn't actually fancy you, mind? He just said that cause we're the only ones in here" Noah pointed out, gesturing to the empty bar.
"Oh, chill out Noah. It's only a bit of fun. Besides, he'd have no chance with a woman like me. I'd eat him alive" She boasted, pulling the itchy Lei over her head and instead plonking it onto Moses.
Noah shrugged and disappeared to the toilet, whereas Sarah had her head stuck in her phone, taking another picture with her pretty flowers.
"Shall we have a selfie?" She asked Charity.
"Go on then, before I get drunk and less photogenic" She said dryly.
"Here we go. Can I get you a straw for that?" The barman asked as he set down the tray of drinks.
"No, thanks" Charity answered, seemingly being the only one paying attention to their server as Sarah flicked through filters for their photo.
"Ok, well you just come and find me if you change your mind and I'll give you something to suck on" he teased, making his thick black eyebrows dance across his forehead.
Charity's face drained in colour at recognition of the barmans innuendo. But he had disappeared before she could find any words to reply with.
"Did you hear that?" She asked Sarah.
"Hear what?" Sarah mumbled as she reached for her cola without taking her eyes from her phone.
"Nothing, absolutely nothing. Drink up, we're not staying here long" She insisted, gulping down a mouthful of wine.
Noah returned from the toilet happier than he had entered it, and it was all down to finding the wifi password on his way past the bar. He shared the password with Sarah, and begrudgingly typed it out on Moses' ipad so that he could watch Spongebob Squarepants with his headphones on.
Charity didn't order a second drink once her glass was empty, and instead decided to march the kids back to the hotel. She only left a few cent tip on their bill and scarpered before the barman could sexually harass her in front of her children again.

There's an unwritten rule in family hotels that nine o'clock is kids disco hour. The dance floor across from the pool was swarming with little ones all jumping up and down or running around in circles to the likes of Little Mix and Ed Sheeran, which Moses was more than happy to join in on. Red, green and blue lights flickered and flashed as the disco was truly underway. And as if right on queue with the beat of the song, Charity and Moses both spotted a familiar cheeky face running over to them.
"Johnny" Moses screeched as he ran and met his new best friend across the dance floor. Charity watched as they began to jump up and down and roll around on the ground, before letting her eye wander in search of Vanessa. But just like the morning, she found Tracy first.
"Hiya" Her loud bubbly voice called out over the music. She was wearing an even shorter skirt than Sarah, though hers was denim, with a blue strappy halter top that made her boobs look huge.
"You alright?" Charity nodded, glancing over Tracy's shoulder but Vanessa still hadn't appeared.
Without having to be asked this time, Tracy pulled up a chair and took a seat beside Sarah.
"Where's your sister? Not hiding after that monumental fall in the pool earlier is she?" Charity joked, but then found herself momentarily worrying about whether Vanessa had actually hurt herself and hadn't let on.
Tracy laughed. "No, she's fine. She left her phone in the room so she nipped back up for it"
"Ah, right" Charity sat up and glanced in the direction of the door to watch for Vanessa arriving.
"What are you drinking?" Tracy asked, taking a sniff of Charity's plastic beaker.
"Ooh, Mojito" She sassed as she took in the spearmint scent. "Too classy for me, that"
"A mojito?" Charity questioned.
"Yeah, It'll be Woo Woo's till I'm delulu, for me" Tracy laughed.
Noah and Sarah gave each other some sort of secret glance and began whispering at this, but Charity left them to it because suddenly Vanessa was halfway across the dance floor.

Charity whipped her head away from Tracy so quickly that she almost hurt herself, but she couldn't help it, Vanessa was gorgeous. She was wearing a navy jumpsuit with a very deep cut neckline. Her familiar ponytail had been taken out and her hair was waved and hanging loose at her shoulders. Charity struggled to keep her eyes where they were supposed to be.
"Oh, there you are," Vanessa mouthed as she spotted Tracy and Charity after she quickly scanned the nearby tables. There wasn't a chair available and there was a slight silence between them as they each looked to see if one of the other tables was harbouring an empty seat.
"Noah, get up" Charity snapped, pushing his shoulder forward to get him onto his feet faster.
"No, he's alright, I'll stand," Vanessa shrugged.
"You bloody won't, besides Noah and Sarah were just leaving, weren't you?" Charity replied as Noah finally gave up his seat. Sarah looked confused until Charity pulled ten euros from her purse and handed it to her.
"Well, go on then. Or am I under the impression that you no longer want any adult-free time?" Charity quipped. The teenagers scrambled with the money and headed to the bar where their next stop was almost definitely going to be the pool table inside.
Vanessa took to Noah's empty seat and placed her hands in her lap.
Charity glanced down at Vanessa's hands. They were small and pale, her wrists had a smattering of light freckles. Her fingernails were clipped short and were without varnish, unlike Tracy's who's were long with acrylic and french tips.
"Suppose I should get some drinks in. Charity, another Mojito, or do you fancy something with a bit more personality?" Tracy asked as she clocked the quarterly filled cup of mostly melted ice in Charity's possession.
"Sure, thanks" Charity shrugged.
As Tracy tottered off, Charity fought not to let an awkward silence fall between her and Vanessa now that they were alone.
"It's nice to be the one being served for once" She mentioned.
"As opposed to?"
"Being the one doing all the serving"
"Oh, you're a barmaid?" Vanessa asked, turning inwards, her body facing Charity.
"Landlady. I own my own pub, well half of it anyway"
"Wow, that's not what I expected" Vanessa gasped.
"No? What did you think I did?". She was intrigued.
Vanessa blew out her cheeks, "I don't know, maybe some sort of office job. I could imagine you behind a desk, bossing people around"
"Oh, so you think I'm bossy?" Charity raised an eyebrow.
"No, that's not what I meant", Vanessa panicked until she caught a smirk forming on Charity's lips. Shaking her head, she lightly slapped Charity's arm.
"What do you do?" Charity asked, although she was sure she already knew from intuition.
"No, no. You have to guess" Vanessa teased.
"Easy. You're a school teacher"
"Nope," Vanessa replied
"No? Well, you should consider it. You seem like you'd be great with kids"
"Hmm," Vanessa pretended to consider it before chuckling. "I'm a vet" She finally said.
"You're not," Charity gasped.
"I am," Vanessa tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.
"Wow, gorgeous and a brainiac" Charity complimented her.
Vanessa smiled shyly. "I don't know about that!"
"Hey, I know gorgeous when I see it, and you most definitely are" Charity winked.
They locked eyes and Charity took the time to really look at Vanessa.
When they had first met at the crack of dawn, Charity had thought Vanessa had a kind face and a mischievous smile, but she also thought she was probably a bit on the boring side at home. One of those mothers who was always at the school gate on time, making healthy dinners and who's idea of a good time was visiting homeware department stores. But after spending a couple of hours in her company, playing pool volleyball of all things, her opinion had changed. Especially now as they sat under the night sky on a warm night, alone in a crowd. There was definitely a wilder side to the little blonde than she was letting on. And Charity wanted nothing more than to exploit that and see it for herself.

Before further conversation could be struck up, Tracy came teetering over with their drinks.
"Blimey, what are they?" Vanessa asked as she took one of the three bright pink cocktails.
"These are called Bay Breeze, it's-" Tracy started, but Charity interrupted.
"Pineapple, cranberry and vodka" She announced.
Vanessa 'oohed' and then pulled a face as the strong alcoholic beverage slipped down her throat.
"Someone knows their cocktails," Tracy retorted, impressed.
"She's a landlady," Vanessa pointed out.
"You work in a pub?" Tracy gasped excitedly.
"Work in it, own it, sometimes love it, sometimes hate it" Charity confessed.
"Hate it? What's there to hate about that? You can have a free drink whenever you want"
"Doesn't work like that, we'd go dry in no time if it did. Plus, getting up at six o'clock to meet the drayman, tired and hungover, is even less enjoyable than it sounds" Charity explained.
"Is that where you get your guns? From pulling pints?" Tracy asked, squeezing Charity's bicep.
Charity almost choked on a sip of her cocktail.
"Eh, you. Anyone would think you were trying to flirt with me" Charity winked, hoping to get a knowing tell from Vanessa's reaction, but Vanessa just sat back and tucked another lock of hair behind her ear.
"Oh, if I was gay I totally would. But I'm cursed to be straight. How about you? Would you ever go with a lady?" Tracy asked, crossing her legs and resting her head on her fist, all ears.
Vanessa's eyes almost popped out of her head.