Excerpt: Three Weddings

My house was comfortable. It wasn’t decorated with fancy decorations and super expensive couches. No. That’s just not me. I went for Ikea, practical, affordable, and just enough. Black, white, and tan. My living room had a giant tan couch with my computer, a television and cable box, along with a bookcase overstuffed with travel books. The “artwork” was a map I had made up that covered the wall that my couch was on. It had thumb tacks and strings mapping out “The trip.” The kitchen was plain with environmentally friendly appliances and the dining room had just enough chairs around the wood table that I found at the local thrift store. I tried to find a table that reminded me of something one would find in an English tavern or something that King Arthur would eat at. Any knick knacks were things that people purchased for me. The Chat Noir painting hanging in the dining room was a Christmas gift from my little sister Caroline a couple years back. The candlesticks on the table that were Eifel towers were from Roxy the year before. I could look at my kitchen and pin point who gave me what and when. I guess I was easy to purchase gifts for. I sat down in front of my computer and logged into Travelbug. I had to see what people were saying about the Ferris wheel in London and the new edition of “Paris for Travelers.” I immediately typed in the website’s name and then waited. A ping and a little extra window opened up showing that I had a private message. A warm smile came over my face with anticipation of the private message. I knew who it was from; I knew what it was about. I just didn’t want to count my chickens.
To: WANative
From: MarvelMan
Subject: RE: the trip….
Message:
Paris is still definitely in, Paris would never be out, but why not at least consider parts of South America? Or think about the Black Forest. Those would be adventures. At least think about those places.
-MM.
I laughed as I typed my reply.
To: MarvelMan
From: WANative
Subject: Re: the trip
Message:
I’ve already conceded to Japan for your sake (your claims of the history.). I could contend that every place on Earth has history. Although seeing every place on Earth would take far too long. But this is the fantasy trip so we can pretend we have all the time in the world. Okay pick one: South America or Black Forest. I will say though that Black Forest is in Germany/ France so it could just be a detour, and I could be nice and throw in all of South America.
-WN
PS Excuse bad puns or anything too wacky. Broke my nose today and refused pain killers.
I hit send and hoped to get a response before I had to brave my family. I got up and put two more push pins in my map and looked at it. There were at least forty push pins marking different cities I’d like to go to, most in Europe. I didn’t know in what order the next two stops would be, so I left them without string. I loved my map. It was thirteen feet across by ten feet high which translated to one hundred and thirty square feet of places to visit. It felt like possibilities and hope. It made me feel like home and my grandma, who had seen many of these cities when she was a nurse in the military. She would’ve taken pride in this map. I yawned and felt my nose for a second. Gabby meowed and I looked at the time. I locked my front door and went to my bedroom. My bedroom had more books in it than my whole house combined. All travel books, of course, and I had read half of them.
My bedroom’s décor was considered probably “I work too hard too care chic.” A quilt that Jenn had made me one year for Christmas with different travel themed fabrics and she had spelled out different cities in the quilting, lay on my bed. A few framed pictures from friends travels that they decided I needed to have, and then of course on my nightstand table framed is Grandma’s passport from her twenties. I need to see it to sleep. Some night nurses use a drug. I, on the other hand, have my grandmother’s passport. I’m a freak. I know. I set my alarm clock and put on my lights out mask. I could feel Gabby curl up at my feet. My face hurt and I tried to focus on other things as I slept.
The alarm woke me up and Gabby looked at me with her wide gold eyes. She meowed briefly and I pet her head. She gave me an appreciative look as she went to her litter box. I did the same human thing, and tried to remember that I needed to get dressed. I pulled on my jeans that I think are fairly clean and walked to the closet to pull on a tank top with a fitted blue plaid cowboy shirt that screamed “I’m strong and tough and like my boobs.” I pulled on my comfortable wool socks along with my comfortable, but practical Doc Martens that I’ve had for far too long. I looked in my bathroom mirror. My nose and eyes stood out to me. There was nothing I could do about them. No amount of makeup would cover the bruises, no amount of whatever would hide the bandages that covered my nose. I should cancel tonight, but I wouldn’t let the teenager get the benefit of the doubt. No. Instead I pulled my hair up in a high ponytail and brushed my teeth. I grabbed my purse and my car keys, but first I needed to see if MM had responded.
I clicked through to Travelbug. The private message chimed and a little pop up window showed he had. I clicked on the message.
To: WANative
From: MarvelMan
Subject: Re: the trip
Message:
Okay so side trip to Black Forest, maybe between Berlin and all of France (btw do you speak French? Are we going to be dumb Americans?) And then a couple of days traveling through the rainforests. Maybe between New Mexico and Antarctica?
-MM
PS Ouch. What happened? Do you need virtual ice packs?
I laughed so hard my face hurt. I started to click away at the keyboard.
To: MarvelMan
From: WANative
Subject: Re: the trip
Message:
I don’t speak French, but in the fantasy trip we learn all the languages through osmosis. Right? We’ll believe that’s the right thing. Good place to put South America. Wouldn’t mind seeing the Andes. There’s a lot of history in those mountains.
-WN
PS Don’t make me laugh. My whole face hurts when I laugh. I just need virtual bruise be gone. I just thought you needed to know that on this fantasy trip I maybe bruised.