Where To
She rolled over to an empty bed. He woke up earlier than her which never happens. The first thought that crossed her mind: “oh no I’m late”. She wasn’t. He was just early. Why? There wasn’t a meeting. At least not one he had mentioned, which felt unlikely considering they could hardly keep birthday presents hidden from each other much less any other detail. What time was it anyway? The clock ticked to 445 as her phone started to buzz. The dreaded alarm. No snooze this time, already wide awake trying to orient on what the hell was going on. Out of bed, lights on, find the gym clothes strategically set out the night before. Make the bed. Or at least try, considering the circle of green eyed floof who had found the warm spot she previously occupied. Thank goodness it’s Friday she groaned, confused as to why the loveliest whiff of freshly brewed coffee filled the air.
Tugging up the covers and calling it good enough, she made her way to the master bath. Motion triggered lights flickered on revealing a shadowed sticky note on the mirror. “Ugh I really need glasses”.
More lights. Nose inches from the yellow square, she dissected:
‘Passport, warm, be ready by 10’.
What. Remembering the oddity of not being the first awake, she all but ran into a spotless kitchen. “This wasn’t clean last night”. There he was, pouring her coffee with a sneaky grin. “Go to the gym so you can get back and pack”.
WHERE ARE WE GOING! For how long? Why were there fresh flowers on the table if they were about to leave the country? Did work know? Did it even matter?
Butterflies rushed her middle. She stopped asking questions and started flying with them, surrendering to the surprise. This was going to be the fastest Peloton run to date. Although, the joke was on her - 45 minutes is still 45 minutes no matter how fast she ran. Even the cold tub couldnt sober the excitement that swelled within.
It was a particularly gloomy Friday which made the prospect of going somewhere ‘warm’ and with a ‘passport’ even more grand, as if that was even possible at this point. Speeding home, nothing new, rounding the corner, sprinting up the stairs, it was time to cull through the closet. Wait, a shower would probably be a good idea first. This morning she had some company to share the piping hot water with.
Clue by clue, he gave her only the absolute necessary bits of detail to help her pack. 8:30 disappeared into 9:30. She wasn’t going to be late, not today.
Plop, as she bounced down on top of the carry-on to zip up. A typical activity, as she always seemed to over pack and hardly trusted checked luggage to arrive at her same destination. Hand in hand they bopped out the door to a desperately needed mystery vacay.
