Time of My Life (TOML)

Chapter 1

A sigh heaved through her tinted wet orange lips as she sipped through the striped plastic straw in the extremely hot weather this Thursday afternoon in June. The sun was high up, illuminating the clear blue sky, yet we still lay gazing on our backs in Tina's fairly large backyard after she made me fetch her a drink from the nearby smoothie shop in our neighbourhood.

"You are unbelievable!" She exclaimed and propped herself up on her elbows, facing me. "Do you know how many kids would willingly trade their lives with you right now? Countless! Did you you really call me complaining about this? THIS is by no means a problem, I could think of umpteen other situations which would be a problem."

"Tommy, why on earth are you even complaining? That is what's confusing me." She referred to what I told her about this morning.

———————————————————————————————————————————

"Oh good graciousness! Sweetie! Tommy, look what's finally come in the mail!" Dad and I shared a glance at one another as mom came exclaiming excitedly towards the kitchen isle from the living room, wearing her casual jeans and white blouse, blocking view of the on-going match, dad groaned from beside me.

"Oh hush!" She told him, still not able to drop her smile. He rolled his eyes but anyone could notice the way he smiled at her frivolity despite the steaming coffee mug between his brown lips, which were ready to be masked by a newly emerging stubble above them.

"Look" She placed the opened envelope on the surface of the marble beside me, where my plate of warm waffles was sat to cool down.

I raised an eyebrow at her questioningly "This is for me?"

"Yes! Yes, remember what I told you on your birthday, how I planned to give you another gift but it would take a couple of days for it to come in! That's because I had gotten an email a few days before..."

I picked up the envelope as she explained, dad positioned his thin framed reading glasses on the bridge of his nose and fixated on the insides as well which was apparently a sheet of paper with information regarding a return ticket to Honolulu.

"...I won the contest! Can you believe it? I was a bit doubtful about it but I guess not" She cheered.

I looked at her completely baffled "Mom! What were you thinking?"

"What? You don't like it." She looked at me, slightly disappointed at my reaction but not surprised.

"It's not that. It's just I thought you were laying off these online contests, you know they can be deceitful, for all we know this ticket is fraud"

"Does it look like a scam to you? It's all there!" She traced the particulars with her polished fingernails and then looked at me expectingly, placing the nail of her thumb between her front teeth.

"So you're really contemplating sending your only son on a tricky flight to Honolulu for the entire summer, no less?" I stated scanning the paper alarmingly.

She looked away not meeting my eyes with only a slight trace of guilt on her face.

"This is foolish. Why?"

"Well, I thought you might like it. I also thought it would be great for your dad and I to spend some time alone again." She began to blush and looked away again.

I looked back at dad, he was grinning into his coffee and not meeting my eyes either.

"You knew about this?" I cried out in astonishment.

"You don't have to worry about it. We called the airline and everything, it's safe." He simply suggested.

"AND this is for you as well so you won't have to lay around in the hotel room reading that book of yours all day. There are all sorts of fun activities and classes for all years." She spoke firmly and fished in the envelope behind the ticket for a brochure regarding the vacation.