Daydream Believer

xxxii. car rides and saying goodbye

xxxii. car rides and saying goodbye

Daddy was packing up the tent. It was the end of our last day camping. I didn't want it to end, but I was tired and kind of missed sleeping in a house instead of a tent. Most of all, I missed all of my other stuffed animals that I couldn't bring with me. Mommy always said they didn't matter because they weren't real, but to me, they did matter. I picked up my boring black backpack (something else I would have to hand down to Noah) and I took Bronto out of it. Bronto didn't deserve to be in the backpack. The backpack was for my toothbrush and water bottle and extra clothes and all of my other boring stuff.

Daddy picked up our tent and all of our sleeping bags. "Are we ready to go?" Daddy asked.

I nodded. "Bye campground," I whispered.

Campground - a place used for camping, especially one equipped with cooking grills, water, and bathrooms.

It was so much more than that though. It was a place where I could feel free, despite sleeping in a tent with my family. The birds sang and the trees danced in the wind. There were pretty waterfalls and clear lakes. It was magical, and that was why I liked it more than Disney World.

After putting my backpack in the trunk, I climbed into the car with Bronto and buckled my seatbelt. Noah sat next to me.

"McKenna?" he said.

"What?" I said.

"Want to play a game?" Noah asked.

"No," I said. I stared out the window. Maybe he would ignore me if I did that.

"Please?" he asked.

"No," I said.

"Let's play I Spy. I spy with my little eye...something blue!"

"The sky," I said.

"You're right!" Noah shouted.

"I don't want to play," I said.

"But it's your turn," Noah said.

"Okay," I said. I tried to thing of something Noah would never find. "I spy with my little eye...something red and loud."

"A fire truck?"

"Nope," I said.

Noah sat there, thinking. I knew that he would never guess his own mouth. Hopefully this would close it for a while. I could hear Mommy and Daddy arguing in the front seat.

"Neil, we've been going in circles for almost twenty minutes! Can't you read a map?" Mommy shouted.

"We don't have a map," Daddy said. "The GPS must be off."

"Did you break it?!?"

"No. It's not my fault."

"Yes it is! Do I have to do everything myself?!?"

"Sorry Janice," Daddy said.

"Do you even realize how much of a pain you are sometimes? Do you?"

"I'm not trying to be a pain. I didn't even really do anything."

"YES YOU DID! YOU BROKE THE GPS, DIDN'T YOU?"

"You know Janice, I was the one who planned this entire trip. I also paid for it."

"DON'T PLAY THAT CARD WITH ME NEIL!!"

I didn't get that one. They weren't playing cards. "You could be a little more grateful," Daddy said.

"I have nothing to be grateful for!" Mommy shouted. "I NEVER WANTED THIS VACATION IN THE FIRST PLACE!"

"Fine then," Daddy said. "Next time we go on vacation AS A FAMILY, you don't have to come."

Mommy changed the radio station, sighed, and kept driving. She was still breathing heavily though. I took out a book and started reading. There was no need to keep listening.