Undiscovered [DreamNotFound]

Barrier

January 28, 2020

I'm in the process of making breakfast for myself when I get a phone call from my mum. It's kind of a surprise to me because I haven't seen her or talked to her after I moved out.

'Hello?' she says.

'Hi, mum. It's been a while, hasn't it?' Though I'd been fearing my mum's reaction to the Dream issue, talking to her again makes me happy.

'Oh, sweetheart, yes it has. Why didn't you ever call me?'

'Uh,' I try to think of a response. 'Why didn't you ever call me?'

'Well, I'm calling you now,' I can picture her smile, which makes me smile, too. 'I have wonderful news, Georgie. Your father got promoted and we want to celebrate it, so we're taking Stella for a holiday to Japan. Do you want to come, too?'

Stella is my little sister who has one mission: to annoy me. Much like Dream. 'I'll come if you leave Stella at home.'

'Now, honey, she's your little sister.' Typical of my mum to not get a joke. 'We've already booked the tickets, so if you don't come then your ticket's wasted.'

'Why'd you call to ask me then?' I chuckle. 'Of course I'm coming, who wouldn't accept an offer for a trip to Japan?'

'Wonderful! We're leaving on the thirty-first and will be staying there for a week, so pack your bags and come as soon as you can, okay?'

'Yes, mum. Say congratulations to dad from me.'

A holiday to Japan. AN ACTUAL HOLIDAY TO JAPAN. Mere words cannot express my excitement. I don't understand why she invited me, though. Once we move out we're cut off like male wolves in a pack. But who cares about that when we're going to JAPAN?

I'm so excited that I actually finish my packing in an hour. Which is pointless, since there are still two days left. I don't think I'll be able to sleep until I'm on the plane. I won't be able to sleep on the plane, too. I've never been on a plane before. And who would sleep on a flight, anyway?

I wait eagerly for the thirty-first to arrive. I make a video or two with Dream, but I'm restless all throughout the video which leads to Dream getting frustrated with me. But who cares? I'M GOING TO JAPAN!

My excitement is so childlike that I almost fit in the category with Skeppy and Bad. When the day finally arrives, I reach the house I grew up in to find my mum sitting outside, waiting for me. I fly into her arms. You'd have thought that an adult would behave with more restraint, but it's been a while since I saw her, okay?

I see my dad (who welcomes me with his usual fist-bump) and my little sister (who welcomes me by stealing and hiding my phone, leading me in for a hunt. I swear she's a kleptomaniac).

The airport process is long and boring. I find myself moving restlessly from place to place until our flight is announced. Then there's a queue. I don't know how the other new travellers are keeping themselves composed.

We board a bus and finally disembark near the magnificent beauty we call an airplane. I've never seen one this close. I can reach out and touch it if I get close enough. We hurry up a set of stairs to reach our seats and there's another long thirty minutes of waiting until we lift off.

The speed at which the airplane moves on the runway is exhilarating. I can't really see out of the window when we lift off because my sister is peering out of it and covering the view with her head. I shove her out of the way and we end up fighting for the window, with my mother trying to pry me from her and all the other people in front and behind me giving annoyed sighs. I resume my adult behaviour and sacrifice the window for my sister.