Volleyball

Chapter Nineteen

I saw Valerie walked out of the bathroom when I was half awake with my eyes half open. "Valerie?" I whispered very softly, my voice barely came out but she either heard me or saw me and approached to my bed. She asked, "You okay, Ben?" as running her hand through my hair and I answered, "What time is it?" And she replied, "Six." I groaned in my bed, "God, I am still sleepy." I squeezed the pillow onto my face and closed my eyes again.

  I could only sleep again for like 5 minutes before Kim bounced my bed, jumped on it, and sat on my stomach. I groaned in a joking tone. "Kim.." I said, still closing my eyes. "Get off me, please."

  "Wake up," she said, pulling the covers from my body. I pulled them back and I heard Valerie said, "Kim, get off your brother. He's tired after driving. Give him a minute."

  "Horse," she reminded us and then rolled over laying next to me. I cuddled her like a pillow. "Ben!" she yelled. "Ben! Wake up!"

  I mumbled. "Mm, no, Kimmy."

  "Get off me," she said.

  "No."

  I heard Valerie giggled. "Ben, wake up!" said Kim again and I yawned, sitting up. "Okay, okay. I'm up," I said and Kim cheered. I yawned again as I stretched my arms.

  The TV was on but it was just a news program. For everyone, it is boring but for me, it is important.

  "What about breakfast?" I asked to Valerie with a puppy look.

  "They'll be here any minute," she answered.

  I scanned her from head to toe. "I see you've already showered," I said as I rubbed my eyes with the back of my hand. She was wearing a pair of black skinny jeans and a big hoodie with 'I Heart NY' on it.

  "Of course. I'm up earlier than you. Kim, too," she said.

  "But I'm still sleeeepyyyy,"

  "We have to be back in the hotel by four," I said after we got off the car I had parked the car in the parking lot of the Androscoggin Riverlands.

  "What's the rush, Mr. Miller?" asked Valerie as looping her arm through mine and she held Kim's hand.

  "The news said there will be a storm. A bad one," I said. We walked towards the office where we paid for the activities here. I opened the glass door for both of them. "So we'd better stay inside, if you don't want any bad things." 

  "What a shame. We've come so far and I chose the wrong time."

  "Hey, no one knew."

  I came to the information center and said that we wanted to ride a horse and the man in a uniform explained we could do many activities here, just go out from the backdoor and we can ride a horse there and many more. So we went out through the backdoor and there was a huge vast big green field and you can find everything there. A lake was about 700 meters away and you could play canoeing there. Once we found a horse, we rented two and got on. I lifted Kim up to get on the horse and I could get on by myself behind Kim. Valerie rode alone but she said she was a pretty good horse rider.

  "You know how to ride a horse, Ben?" asked Kim.

  "Of course, I do. I learnt it two years ago in the summer camp."

  "Wow," she said. "I want to go to a summer camp."

  "You will."

  Our horses climbed up the uphill road and there was a time where we got down, took pictures, and enjoyed everything around us. Kim wanted to take a picture of me and Valerie, so we did. I put my arm around her and we smiled to the camera. Then Valerie exclaimed, "Once again!" and looked at me and said, "Kiss me."