Fix You // Matt Healy

10

Dear Journal,

The hotel in LA is amazing! It's practically three times the size of my apartment back home in England. Hell, I could live in this hotel's bathroom and still have plenty of space to keep my things. Matt's enjoying every minute of the trip, too. We've only been in LA for two days, we've got two more days to go before we head to Dallas. Matt brought a really cool instant camera with him, he's been taking so many photos lately. I'm glad to see he's getting better. There have been times when I thought I had lost him, but he's doing everything possible to make me proud. Someday, I want to bring my children on a trip like this. I want them to be able to see the beauty in new things. I hope the man I bring them here with is still Matty. He's been bugging me ever since I started writing, whining about some sort of trip we need to go on "ASAP"... He's picked up on American slang already I guess...

-Elliot

"Can we go now?" Matty questions as I close my notebook and place it back into my suitcase.

"Okay, baby, just let me change," I peck him lightly on the cheek as I make a trip to the washroom.

"Wear a bikini, El!" he hollers to me as I close the door.

Sighing, I strip out of my PJs and slip on my black bikini I've been dying to wear since I bought it. Thinking about the day I bought it reminds me of Hadley. We haven't spoken much since the day in class that I told her about my trip with Aidan. Someone told me she went back to her mom's house for a semester to relax and take her mind off of all the stressful things that come with being an adult. I feel kind of bad knowing she's upset right now, but there's nothing I can do from across the world. I decide to send her a text later tonight.

A light pink sundress is laying on the top of my suitcase so I decide to wear it. It will look nice with the bikini peeking through the top.

"Ready," I tell Matt after I brush my hair and throw on a bit of makeup.

"You look great," he says, eyes raking up and down my body. I can feel my cheeks getting hot as I force him out of the hotel room.

---

The trip Matt was excited about turned out to be a tour that took us to all the 'hotspots' of LA. We got to see a bunch of clubs, coffee shops and hangout areas that major celebrities went. After the tour, he wanted to take me swimming in the ocean.

"This is perfect," I tell him as we sit in the sand, watching the sunset.

"I'm really glad we're doing this together, Ellie," he says, brushing a strand of hair out of my face like all the cliche movies.

"Me too,"

That's how we sit until it's basically pitch black. Hand in hand, people-watching, counting waves and cuddling together when the wind got chilly.

Our next day in Los Angeles is similar to the same.

---

The airports in California are even more luxurious than the ones in England. The small Starbucks in England is now a huge Starbucks. The no name bookstore? Well it's now a Barnes & Noble.

"This way please," the buff security guard instructs us, ushering us into our designated room to wait until our flight is called. There's a family of four with us and a young man that looks only a few years older than us. It's hard to believe these are the only people interested in a vacation like this.

Our wait isn't as long as the wait in England was. The same security guard comes back to give us a thirty minute warning. Shortly after he leaves, a blonde girl comes rushing in with a bunch of bags, looking clearly out of breath.