Life Without You

Chapter 36 - On to Yellowstone National Park

Even though RV had one shower and one toilet, fortunately, there was a nearby shower and restroom contained in a small, wooden hut which was a few yards away.

However, Hiromi was not too pleased.

She tipped her sunglasses down the bridge of her nose and observed the bare surroundings devoid of convenience.

"Must we?" Hiromi grimaced.

"Of course!" Hiroshi replied enthusiastically. "We'll be having a great time! Cycle through the woods, explore attractions...it's gonna be fun!"

"There better be enough Deet sprays and sunscreen. Ah! I hate my makeup being messed up under this hot weather," Hiromi checked herself through her phone camera and wiped off the dripping sweat from her forehead. She took out her handheld, pink-coloured, Hello-Kitty-shaped electric fan from her pocket and began to fan herself.

"It's camping. So please, for once, ditch your makeup," begged Hiroshi.

"You should've booked a hotel instead," Hiromi complained.

"That defeats the purpose of camping. Now, come and help me do up the tent."

"Nah! I'm gonna sleep in the only bed in the RV. And I'll use its toilet and shower rather than the filthy one nearby which you guys can use," Hiromi pointed. "At least rent a more spacious, premium RV with luxury fittings the next time."

Ariel and Andy exchanged glances, uncomfortable with Hiromi's demanding attitude.

Hiroshi sighed and ignored Hiromi, and continued setting up the tent.

"Let me help you," Ariel offered, for which Hiroshi was grateful.

While they inflated the camper tent and attached it to the RV, Andy attached a GoPro camera to the drone and flew it. His drone skills had improved a lot since his first attempt.

"Cool!" he observed the coniferous forest at high altitude in real-time on his mother's iPad screen through an app and recorded it.

While Hiroshi pitched the tent in place, he said to Ariel, "Let me do the heavy work. You can go cook dinner for all of us."

"Sure," Ariel went into the kitchen in the RV and prepared the ingredients they had bought from the grocery store along their journey.

Hiromi caught eye of a Fujita Teriyaki sauce next to the chopping board that Ariel was chopping on.

"We're not eating together with that, right?" she pointed at the sauce.

"Well, yes unless if you don't want to," Ariel replied.

"Getting sick to my stomach tasting the same sauces all the time! Please don't add it to mine."

"No problem. Would lemon and thyme be ok?"

"Yes, that's fine with me. As long as it's not a Fujita sauce."

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Disguised in his fake beard, a cap and non-prescription glasses, Leon arrived at the small eco-village compound that was situated at The Grant Village Campground amidst the pine forest. Within the compound, there was a community garden with a variety of fruits and vegetables that was only accessible to guests and a 24-hour concierge in the main lodge right next to the garden.

Each tiny house cabin on wheels was made of wood with solar panels on its roof. Inside, the wood-panelled walls were painted white, while the beams and window frames of the house were unpainted, revealing its raw wood colour. The house was rustic, clean and cosy with a pleasant wood smell. The sofa on one end occupied the entire width of the house. There was a foldable table that served as both a dining table and a desk, a small kitchen area with a fridge filled with non-alcoholic drinks (Vinny requested the lodge to remove any alcoholic drink in its fridge prior to Leon's visit), a composting toilet and a shower that was connected to a huge water tank. The wide windows let in a lot of natural light, while the soft bed was situated on the low-height second floor which was accessible via a ladder. Right above the bed was a circular window where guests could enjoy stargazing while lying on the bed.

It was even more relaxing than his city penthouse, and freeing because Leon got to go on holiday solo without any bodyguard by his side for the first time in years.

Although Vinny had given him an itinerary, Leon had no plans of following it. He preferred an unstructured holiday.

He took a snapshot of the map that was framed on the wall and observed the path that would lead to Yellowstone Lake. That would make a good start. Carrying his haversack on his back, Leon got on the mountain bicycle that he rented from the cabin hut and followed the bike trail to the lake.