The Fast Lane

Chapter 13

The next day, we took off for the Keys.  It took us about 7 and a half hours to get there.  Unfortunately, I had a tendency to get ill in other people’s cars.  It didn’t matter who it was; my mom, my sister, my friends… It all made me dizzy and nauseous.  About 5 hours into the drive, we had to stop so I could puke and rest for a minute.  When we got back on the road, Harry was driving as slow as ever.  He kept being cautious even after I explained that the carsickness was nothing new, and it wasn’t his driving. 

We finally got to the Key West and went to the hotel room that Harry usually rented to drop our luggage off.  The room was large and very blue, with a giant TV and a kitchen as well as a king-sized bed.  I stood looking at the bed with my eyebrows raised and my mouth slightly agape when Harry walked up behind me, pinched my butt, and kissed me on the forehead.  “You like it?”  He laughed.

 My favorite part of the whole thing was the large balcony that overlooked the beach.  I had room to walk out probably thirty feet before I hit the balcony rail, and there were a few padded couches and a small table placed all around the space. 

We walked down the spiral stairs from the balcony onto the beach.  For the rest of the afternoon, we laid out and splashed around in the water.   Harry would get a little rowdy with me and then suddenly stop and ask me if I was feeling okay.  There was that caring instinct again.

After we watched the sun set from our balcony, we showered together and picked out each other’s clothes for dinner.  Harry surprised me with a light blue spaghetti strapped dress that had a yellow belt at the waist and some gold colored earrings with a matching necklace.  The necklace had small golden roses all over them, like the earrings, which were just two single, large, golden roses.

 I gave him one of the shirts that I just bought, which conveniently happened to match my new outfit.  It was a dark blue and yellow plaid, button-down shirt.  Harry put some white shorts on with them, and kept insisting that he loved the shirt but I could tell he hated it. 

“Please, let me return it!”

 “No! I love it.  It’s just not something I would usually wear…”

“Please Harry don’t lie to me!”

He ripped the tags off.   I closed my eyes and looked down.  I shook my head and opened my eyes to see Harry standing two inches from my face.  He kissed me on the nose.  “I love it.”

We walked down to the little shops and restaurants and along the little piers.  We finally decided on Barney’s Barnacles for dinner.  Majority of the restaurants were the same – all seafood and salads.  I giggled to myself as I watched Harry lick his lips over and over as he read the menu.  He ordered some big fancy fish, grilled “to perfection,” and then covered in some sort of glistening sauce with a side of “perfectly seasoned” rice and vegetables.  I shook my head as his critiqued every bite.  

I picked up one of my chicken fingers.

“NOW THIS-“ I said, holding it up in of him, “This is perfection.  Spectacularly crunchy but not overly crunchy.  AND the juicy chicken…. Mmmm.  Well done.”  I bit dramatically into it and closed my eyes, looking as though I had just bitten into paradise.

Harry took another bite of his fish and looked at me, chewing.  “Don’t mock me.”  He shook his head.   “I cannot believe you don’t like seafood.” 

 “It’s just something I’ve never liked.  I can’t explain it,” I replied, shrugging. 

 After dinner, we walked around a little more and then went back to the hotel.   We laid down on a large circular couch on the balcony and listened to the waves crash onto the shore.  Harry wrapped me in his arms and stroked my hair as he hummed a little song.  I don’t remember falling asleep, but I remember waking up as Harry carried me to the bed, put me under the covers, and kissed me on the forehead.  “Good night, my love.”