20 Days To Fall In Love

#6 - Disneyland

Chapter 6 - Disneyland
published: Sunday, 3 May 2020

"...aren't you the guy who - tried to - hurt me with the word 'goodbye'?" Dua Lipa's voice pierced through the air as they streamed down the road.

Unable to help the wild grin forming, Matthew glanced over at Elizabeth, whose beaming smile matched his, her hair rippling in the wind. The sun had risen during the drive, and now illuminated the sky in streaks of pink and purple.

Matthew made a mental reminder to thank Ethan for the tip to borrow one of his family's convertibles for their date. If anything could impress a girl, it was hurtling through Boston in a convertible.

His friends had all had terrible dating advice. Frederick had suggested dinner at a restaurant, which Matthew had promptly vetoed - he was about to propose to this girl, he couldn't exactly win her over with the most generic date ever. Freya was even worse. She didn't approve at all of Matthew's "serious date", and told him that his apartment was fine.

The top was down on his father's limited edition Porsche, one of their less outstanding vehicles. Matthew figured that Elizabeth might not appreciate the blindingly yellow Ferrari.

"Where are we going?" Elizabeth's voice was mostly lost in the wind, but fragments of her words sufficiently conveyed her meaning.

Matthew laughed. "It's a surprise!"

Her head tilted so she was looking out the window. "We're in the middle of nowhere, Matt!"

And so they were.

"There's nothing near us!" Elizabeth had to shout to be heard over the howling breeze. "If you made me wake up at 6am for no reason, I'm going to be very mad!"

Matthew lifted a hand off of the steering wheel to point to the green sign looking overhead.

As they zipped past, Elizabeth whirled on him with a gasp. "You didn't!"

The sign read "Norwood Memorial Airport, 500m".

"One date!" Matthew reminded her. "I had to make it count!"

"No, no, this is insane!" Elizabeth spluttered disbelievingly. "I-I didn't pack a bag!"

"It's just for a day!" Matthew insisted. "Trust me!" The car careened down the driveway into the hospital, the gate opening to let them through as soon as the security guard recognised the license plate number.

As he released the gas and pressed on the brakes, Matthew brought them to a screeching halt in front of the main entrance.

Nimbly hopping out of the car and tossing the keys to the waiting valet, Matthew yanked the door open on Elizabeth's side.

"You're crazy," she said breathlessly, hair frizzy from the ride. Her eyes danced with something wild.

"I won the bet," Matthew corrected. "You're with me till midnight, Johnson."

Elizabeth threw her head back with a laugh, though she obliged and exited the car, clutching her sling bag close to her.

"I've never been to a private airport before," she said in wonderment, following him blindly as Matthew made his way through the check-in counter.

"We usually fly with the company's private planes," Matthew explained handing her a boarding pass - a souvenir for today. "But we'll be using my family's jet today."

"I-I don't have my passport on me," Elizabeth stammered.

Matthew waved a hand dismissively, pulling their passports out of his bag. "I got it from Maya." At her incredulous expression, he shrugged. "Relax. I've got it all figured out."