REM // Van McCann

56. I'm Sure It's Nice

While she ate, I entered the destination into the GPS and let it direct me to the bed and breakfast. According to the GPS, it was going to take us 1 hour and 15 minutes to get there due to traffic. I made my way onto the A55 towards Llandudno. For most of the trip, Clara looked out the window at the new sights. It wasn't anything different but to her, it was interesting because she's never been to Wales before.

The drive there wasn't as bad as I thought. It was smooth sailing in the countryside but once we hit Conway Road, it started to slow down. By the time we arrived at the bed and breakfast, Clara had managed to eat both pasties but I didn't mind. She did manage to feed me a few bites while I was driving so I wasn't starving but I was hungry. Check in was a breeze and we were happy to be rid of our luggage. The first thing I did was lay on the bed sprawled out because I hate driving for long periods of time and felt the need to stretch my legs. The bed was soft and I would've fallen asleep if it wasn't for Clara saying she was hungry.

It was nearing 11 AM, a bit early for lunch but we were hungry and wanted to beat the lunch crowd. We found a restaurant a few blocks towards the water with good reviews and had lunch over there. And then after, we walked several blocks to the beach. There were several holiday goers lying on the beach trying to soak in the few rays of sun. The clouds had finally parted and the sun was shining through, though it was still too cold to go for a dip but that didn't stop an adventurous few.

We walked hand in hand by the water. Clara would sometimes let go to take a photo of the water and sneak in a couple of photos of me while I wasn't looking. Once I caught her, she ran away and I'd chase and grab ahold of her. She squealed when she was caught, trying to break free of my grasp.

"We can take a photo of the both of us," I said, holding her from behind and kissing her cheek.

She turned her head, gave me a quick peck on the lips, and took her phone out. She took several photos. One of us smiling, one of me kissing her cheek, and another one where I licked her face. She didn't like that one. You could see the disgust on her face which I found funny.

We walked along the beach to the pier. One thing I noticed is that Clara loves the water. She's always stopping to take photos every few meters and just staring out into the water. She was much happier by it because I've never seen her this happy in the city before. We'd have a look at all the stands along the way and once we got to the end and looked around, we bought ice cream and stood there eating it and facing the water. The one good thing that came from it not being too warm was that our ice cream didn't melt as quickly.

"What made you decide to go here?" Clara asked, taking a bite out of her cone.

"I actually grew up here and thought you'd like it," I answered.

"You grew up here? Why'd you leave?"

"I left for school. Took the first opportunity I had to get out of here."

"You don't like it here?"

"It's a small town full of retired folk. Most jobs here are catered towards tourism and that's not what I wanna do." I turned around with my back to the railing, facing the land.

"Do ya see all those trees back there?" I asked, pointing straight ahead. Clara nodded her head. "That's where I used to live. We sold the place ages ago."

We stayed on the pier for another hour. I thought we'd have time to visit the Great Orme Mines but it's quite a walk from the pier. Perhaps if I thought to bring the car, we could've gone but finding parking is such a hassle, I can't be arsed. We could always come back another time if she likes it here or we can squeeze it in before we leave for Conwy Castle.

On the way back, Clara bought some postcards from a gift shop. She loves collecting postcards from all the places she's been and hanging them on her bedroom wall. She has a specific theme she's following where the postcards must look like a watercolor painting.

It was nearing dinner and we were getting hungry again but we weren't in a rush to eat. We explored the neighborhoods and walked past restaurants trying to decide where to eat. We passed an Italian restaurant that was quite busy. Clara read the menu and turned to me.

"How does Italian sound?" she asked.

-

My stomach was full, I was buzzed from the wine, and I had a bit of a mishap going back to our bed and breakfast. For some reason, even though it's been years since I've lived here, I headed towards my old childhood home when we were actually in the opposite direction. Clara didn't mind though since this allowed her to explore more neighborhoods. She'd comment on the houses along the way saying she loved the front garden or style of the house.

I wondered if she was thinking about where she'd like to live someday. Did she imagine raising a family in one of these homes? Maybe it was the wine but I thought about us having kids of our own someday. Would we have a boy or a girl? Would our child have her eyes?

We finally reached the bed and breakfast and entered our room. I was relieved because we've been out all day and haven't had time to rest. I was in need of a shower and wanted to lay down and do nothing. I let Clara shower first since it won't take me long and it wasn't until she was showering that I was reminded of our conversation from Monday.

"I was thinking of packing some nice underwear, why yes."

She could be messing with me for all I know but I couldn't help but wonder. I wasn't paying attention when she brought a change of clothes to the bathroom. After fifteen minutes, she turned the water off which meant she was done. I imagined her body slick with water and her stepping out to grab a towel to dry off. Maybe she's putting said underwear on right now. Fuck, I need to check what time Conwy Castle opens and how much tickets cost! Anything to distract me from these thoughts! I sat up in bed and forced myself to do research on the castle and pretended to not notice her coming out of the bathroom.

"I'm done. The bathroom is all yours," she said, making her way to her bag with the clothes she wore earlier folded in her hands. I looked up to see she was in her striped pajamas. Her hair was still damp and she didn't show any signs of anything being out of the ordinary. It's probably all in my head and she forgot.

"Conwy Castle opens at 9:30 AM. What time do you want to head over there?" I asked, digging into my bag for a T shirt, joggers, and underwear. I grabbed my toiletries as well.

"How does 10 AM sound?" Clara asked.

"Yeah, that works."

I made my way to the bathroom to take a shower. I'm usually quick to shower but today, I took a little more time. And after showering, I brushed my teeth and got ready for bed. The bathroom was hot from
the shower so I was relieved to open the door and feel the cool air on my skin. I grabbed my stuff and walked out. I just about dropped my stuff when I saw Clara in bed with the blanket pulled over the bottom half of her body. She was wearing a black lace bra and I couldn't keep my eyes off her.

"Hi," I managed. My brain wasn't working and I didn't realize my jaw was open from awe of her beauty. She was blushing furiously and starting to cover her body with the blanket.

"Maybe this was a mistake..." she trailed off.

"No!" I said a little too quickly, putting my stuff away and then I crawled onto the bed to kiss her on the lips. My lips trailed to her neck and stayed there momentarily. "You're beautiful to me and I don't think I'll ever tire of you."

We've never been to Conwy Castle but I'm sure it's nice.