Move Along

Chapter 1

"Chloe, the camp for you and Amber is holding karaoke tonight in the Kids' Lounge. You should go," my dad encouraged. It was the second night on the cruise, and I scanned the event schedule.

"I'll pass. Besides, tomorrow night is adult karaoke. I'll go there," I told my family confidently. We sat on the plastic white pool chairs under the hot Bahaman sun rays. The light was blinding, and I had forgotten my sunglasses in our room perfect for one person, not five. "I have my key card. I'll go and get my sunglasses. Be back in ten minutes," I told them. My younger brother Tim was preoccupied in his hockey magazine; my dad was doing some work on his iPad, and my mom was flipping through her People magazine.

"Alright," Mom looked up, the sun shining off of her sunglasses towards me, "but Amber has to go with you," she said. I heard Amber groan, mostly because she had to walk around a cruise ship with her dorky younger sister, but she was also on her second day without her cell phone. That was huge for her.

"Okay, come on Amber. I want to be back in time for the trivia at two," I yelled, half way off of the Lido Deck heading towards the buffet. She walked behind me with her flip-flops smacking the wooden deck floor. I slowed down to meet her. Our flip-flops soon became in sync.

*

Reaching our cabin, I slipped my card into the small machine on our door. The light blinked green, and we walked through our narrow hallway. The cleaning ladies must have come, because our unpacked clothes on the beds were moved to the tiny closet, and the blankets were tucked neatly under the mattresses of the beds. I quickly grabbed my pink sunglasses and ran out the door, where Amber was anxiously waiting to continue getting a tan. "Why'd you take so long?" Amber asked. I sighed. She was so impatient for someone who should have been relaxing. On cruises, the last thing I worry about is time; unless trivia is coming up.

"I didn't take - never mind. Let's get back to the Lido Deck. Movie Trivia starts in five minutes," I told her.

"Who cares? I am sure cute guys are hanging out in the buffet. I'm going there," Amber shoots back. I really wasn't in the mood for her boy drama, mostly because she would never see them again. I met someone who was from India the first night, while we're from New Jersey.

"Whatever. I'll be at the Lido Deck with our family, for our family vacation," I snapped. I had a great point though, and I knew it.

*

"Where's Amber?" Mom immediately asked when I reached them.

"She said something about going to the buffet to meet cute boys," I told her, knowing that Amber was bound to get in trouble. As the older sister, she was supposed to stay with me.

"She's gonna get it!" Tim yelled, looking up from his hockey magazine. Mom shot him a look, but I knew she wouldn't be a loud to go to Circle C tonight.

Circle C is a club for kids and teenagers. Amber and I were both in that club, while Tim was in Camp Carnival.

"Tim, why don't you go and swim? Chloe, Dad, and I are going to attend Movie Trivia," Mom said nicely. Tim happily agreed and cannon balled into the crowded pool. Water splashed on everybody, including two teenage girls in the pool, who weren't planning on getting their hair wet. It was hard not to laugh. My little brother was crazy, but sometimes it was a good thing.

"Who is ready for some Movie Trivia?!" the worker boomed over the loud speaker. We heard tons of shouts and one obnoxious whistle, and he knew that we were in.

After trivia, we went to the buffet to find Amber. She was sitting at a table with three boys who I figured were brothers. They were munching on ice-cream cones that they had made. She was sitting there laughing at anything they said.

"Amber," Dad's voice boomed, "we have to go and get ready for dinner," he finished. I looked over at Tim, who was shocked that she didn't get in trouble. She sighed, pushed in her chair, and waved to them. I could tell that the boys were all brothers, and only one was young enough to be her age. He was the one that liked her.

Back at our cabin, we all showered, and Amber did my hair. She French-Braided my bangs and straightened my dirty blonde hair. My black and white dress flowed down to the bottom of my knees. She did the same thing to her hair, and wore a dress with white on the top, and black on the skirt part.

"Dinner is at 6:00," I told them. I was eager to go back to the elegant dining room. It was beautiful, with shining chandeliers at every round table. As Mom finished her make-up, and Tim combed his hair, I eased them all out the door. We wobbled down the narrow halls, since the oceans were still very rocky. My sister didn't enjoy the rocking, especially when Tim kept pushing her over. Mom kept giving him "the look", but he didn't care.

We got to the elevator that Tim called "the transporter" and quickly got in with another family. They looked like a million bucks; and I thought we looked fancy. Considering we are used to the hockey clothes and soccer gear, a dress, make-up, and a suit was a big deal for us. The other family had on 6 inch heels, sequined dresses (matching; but of course not totally matching. The mom had a gray dress, the daughter my age had a hot pink dress, and the girl Amber's age had on a turquoise dress), and diamonds from head to toe. The mom's lips wore a straight line and bright red lipstick.

"Come girls. Our dinner is waiting at the 'Reserved Table," Ms. Golde said firmly. When she said 'Reserved Table', I saw her look at Mom just to make sure that she was jealous. At the time, I didn't know that I would become rich, but if I knew, I would make sure to take a double take at myself in the mirror; just to make sure that I wasn't like Miss Fancy Pants.