"Eleanor do you think we'll actually get away with this?" Lea asked as she looked over at the line of enormous boats infront of us, not able to hide her excitement.
"Of course! As long as everything goes to plan" I replied back, nudging her with my elbow. But I couldn't help smiling either.
We were supposed to be in school, stuck in a stuffy classroom with a grey sky, drizzling outside but instead we were here, standing at the cruise terminal. No more waking up in darkness to the sound of my alarm. Finally, we were free.
I pulled out my phone to send one last message to my mom, sticking to the plan. "Going to tutoring over the weekend! Will be home late come back on friday. Love you!" I typed quickly, hoping the lie wouldn't seem too crazy. We went to a boarding school for the week so as long as the weekend was covered, we were good.
Lea peeked over my shoulder and smirked. "Nice. You think she'll fall for it?"
I shrugged, shoving the phone into my pocket. "We'll find out... in five days."
"This is so much better than history," I sighed, breathing in the warm sea air.
Lea laughed and squeezed my hand as we walked toward the check-in counter. "And no adults hahahaha!!!"
We made our way to the boarding gate, where a crew member stood, scanning tickets. As we handed over our printouts, I held my breath, half-expecting something to go wrong. But it went throigh, the inspector gave a polite nod, and just like that, we were through.
"Welcome aboard girls. Enjoy your trip!" she said with a warm smile.
We'd done it! We practically ran through the gate, laughing in disbelief at our luck, our hearts racing with excitement.
"Come on," I said, grinning. "Let's find our room and dump these bags."
Our cabin was small, but I loved it instantly. There were two twin beds, a tiny wooden drawer, and a circular window that framed the blue sky. It was simple, but it felt like our own house.
Lea jumped onto one of the beds and pulled out her phone taking photos of us. "Imagine being in school!" she laughed to me.
She laughed, pulling me back up by the hand. "No wasting time. Come on, let's go see what else this ship has."
We ran out of the cabin, racing each other down the hallway toward the upper deck.
We found a spot near the railing, where we could see out over the water and watch as the ship prepared to leave port. I couldn't help but look down at the dark water below. I looked over at Lea, and she was beaming, her cheeks already pink from the sun.
Just then, a voice crackled over the loudspeaker. "Good afternoon, everyone! This is your captain speaking. We'll be setting sail in just a few minutes!!!"
Slowly, we began to move, pulling away from the dock and into the open water. I glanced back once, watching the land shrink.
Lea raised her hand in a toast, as if she were holding an invisible glass. "Cheers mate!" she whispered, giggling in my ear just loud enough for me to hear.
I raised my hand, too, looking at her. "Cheers mate"
