Lovely

1. How boring!

I always spent summer with my mother, always. But before that specific summer it felt easy. I liked it. That was because we would travel to her parent's beach house and stay there, just the two of us. It was rejuvenating to spend those special times with my mother in a place that I had grown to love. But previous to that summer, she had moved. My mother now lived in a totally different country. An unfamiliar place, in an unfamiliar house, surrounded by unfamiliar people. Thanks to the location of my mother's big house, her best friend's family would also be staying that summer. A family of people I'd known as a baby, but didn't remember at all. Each summer was allocated to bonding my mother and I closer, not this. The dynamics of that summer did not sound appealing to me. I knew my mother would be occupied by her best friend and their family, and I knew that I would have to survive on my own, and I also knew nothing about her house or her town or the whole country. My mother tried to convince me it would be a fun time, but all I could think was: How boring!

And I stuck with my prediction all the way until the wheels of my plane kissed the rough gravel of the runway. Stepping off of the metal beast, I took note of the air. It smelt different here. The air smelt of rosemary and falling asleep in the grass and stealing kisses at midnight. It lifted my mood a touch, the atmosphere seeped into my skin and made me slightly dizzy. I regrettably began to question my prediction.

The large smile spread across my mother's face was extremely easy to pick out of the sea of people crowding the airport. As soon as her eyes found me, she was hurrying toward me. Being wrapped in her arms returned me to a safe, peaceful place. The woman hugging me meant very much, had always meant very much and will always mean very much to me. That one hug picked up my mood the rest of the way. I was back to feeling normal, but I knew things would be different when I wake up tomorrow morning in another world.

"How was the trip, darling?" my mother asked excitedly, her eyes hardly staying on the road. I giggled at her reaction to my arrival and patted her arm lovingly. "It was fine, mum. I just..... this summer..... it isn't going to be like normal, is it?" A sigh erupted from the seat beside me. "No, it isn't. But that doesn't mean it won't be just as fun!", she added quickly, "come on, you're in a new country, we're heading towards a new town. This is an opportunity to meet new people and see new places and do new things! You have to admit that it won't be boring."

I didn't think I had ever heard her use the word "new" so many times at once. Any other person would have been charmed by her motivational speech, but I saw through her. I heard what she was really saying. We won't be spending much quality time together, I'd be surprised if we even see each other that often, but there's many things to do here so you'll get over it.

My head rested against my window. "And Delilah has a son who is just older than you. So maybe......"

I understood what she was saying then as well.

The countryside passed me by. I took a few moments to admire it before closing my eyes, declaring it not as beautiful as the golden beach of the house I should have been going to right then. I think I was just being stubborn. My eyes didn't get to rest for very long as soon the car began to shake. A stoney driveway that was too long for it's own good led the car to the villa we needed to get to. My first thoughts were about how much better the beach house was, but a few positive thoughts about how beautiful and big the villa was leaked over the edges. The closer the car got, the more my positive thoughts spilled everywhere. Sure, it wasn't the beach house. But it was big, surrounded by rich green trees that bare fruit, and within walking distance of the sea one way and a lake the other. Here was a situation that offered numerous moments of laughter, friendship, relaxation, joy. Warmth. Golden. Touch.

I lifted my suitcase out of the boot and dramatically dragged it behind me, pushing away any good feelings I felt.