Carpe Aestatem (original)

Chapter 39

Sam

I anxiously fidgeted with my bracelet. Kris, Maja and I were going out to lunch together, as Maja and I had planned to see each other when we got back from Umag. We'll also be going to Tivoli Park because Kris told me it was a beautiful place. And he wanted me to go at least once. So on the bus ride back to Ljubljana from Umag, me, Maja and Kris worked out the details for our little get-together. "How much longer?" I asked, my palms sweating.

"I don't know. All she's texting me right now is pictures of Apple." Kris said, not looking up from his phone.

"Apple?" I asked.

"My family's dog. I wish you could have met her when you were with my family."

I was anxiously pacing back and forth. What if she had forgotten? What if something came up and she had to reschedule this whole thing until after Dublin? "Apparently, what Maja told me is that she's ready, but she's getting some final touches done."

I scrolled on my phone. And then Michelle texted me.

Michelle:
How's that thing with Kris and Maja going?

Sam:
We haven't picked up Maja yet. She's finishing getting ready.

"Okay, we can go now." Kris said. "Let's go."

I was really excited to see Maja and tell her about Umag, but I didn't know if Maks told her about the gig yet. Kris and I left the apartment and headed towards the Guštins. "She told me that Mom was home, and the door is unlocked." Kris said, fumbling his keys.

After he opened the door, Kris and I walked in and were greeted by a cream-colored dog. "Hi my sweet Apple! Who's a good girl? Who's a good girl?"

Apple was slopping kisses onto Kris's face and sniffed my feet. "She seems friendly." I said.

Apple then was kissing my face and I tried to pry her off of me. "Maja?" Kris called. "Maja?"

"Maja?" I called.

"Maja Guštin where are you?" Kris called.

Then Chantal walked in. "Hi Mom." Kris said in Dutch.

"Hi Kris." She replied, also in Dutch.

"Where's Maja?"

"She's upstairs."

"Can you get her? We're ready to go."

Chantal headed back upstairs. "Maja? Kris and Sam are here!"

I heard footsteps coming down. "She's coming." Chantal said.

A few seconds later, Maja came down. "SAM!" She exclaimed, hugging me.

"Hi Maja." I said.

"Also, hi Krisko."

Kris waved. "Where are we going?" I asked.

"We're going to Burger Time, remember?"

"I remember now! Let's go!"

Kris had his GPS up and we were walking there. "Did Maks tell you about Umag yet?" I asked.

"Not yet. He said he has so many photos he has to edit."

"Which Dean and Vita sent him?" Kris asked.

I looked confused. "They're our photographers. Mark is our creative producer. He films the documentaries."

"Oh. Is he going to come to Zagreb with us?"

"No, but Dean and Vita are!"

And Maja had skipped ahead of us. "Maja, slow down!" I called. "Is she always this energetic?"

"She is, usually. I was only ten when she was born, though."

"That's so sad."

"I wish I would have spent more time with her. But I do like seeing her when I'm home."

About fifteen minutes later, we arrived at Burger Time. I had taken a quick glance at the menu, and they thankfully had an option to translate into English on their website. "You'll really like this place." Maja had told me over the phone a few days ago. "And almost everyone speaks English."

We walked in. "Hello, table for three?" The host asked, glancing at me, Maja and Kris.

Kris nodded, and we followed the host to a booth. "We'll have someone come help you shortly. Do any of you need an Italian or English menu?"

"Just one English menu, hvala." Kris said.

And I got the English menu. "Told you they accommodate English-speakers here." Maja said, her head buried in the Slovenian menu.

Lunch was really good. And then we walked to Tivoli. My jaw dropped at its beauty. "Kris, this place is so beautiful!" I squealed. "Nashville doesn't have any parks like this!"

We sat down on a bench. "Are you both excited for Zagreb?" Maja asked.

"Very excited. We've already played for an international club once before, so we're a lot less nervous."

"I can tell. Are you updating the set list?"

"We're going to switch it up after Dublin." I said.

And then my phone buzzed.

Michelle:
How's everything?

Sam:
We're at Tivoli Park rn. It's a beautiful park.

Sam:
[attached image]

Michelle:
😍😍😍

Michelle:
I'm jealous you get the pretty parks and sites while I'm stuck at home 😭 Tell Kris I say hi!

"And Kris, my sister says hi."

"You have a sister?" Maja asked.

"I do. She's three years older than me. Her name is Michelle."

"That's so cool!"

"To be fair, I wish I had a brother. My best friend Jenna has a little brother. You're so lucky to have brothers like Kris and Maks."

"Maja? Mom wants you home in 30 minutes, so I was thinking we could get some of those mini pancakes. It's on our way home." Kris said.

"Mini pancakes?" I asked.

"There's this place called Puffy Lil' Pancakes. There's like little bite-sized pancakes topped with whatever you want. There's like a TON of toppings you can choose from. There's Nutella, Oreos, M&M, some fruit options, it's really good." Maja explained.

"OMG that sounds so good!"

We walked to Puffy Lil' Pancakes. I went with Nutella and Oreos, Kris got fruit and Maja got the exact same thing I did (she told me to get it). When we dropped Maja off, I hugged her tight. "Have fun in Zagreb!" She said.

"We will. I'll send photos."

And then Kris and I headed back to his apartment. "I like Maja."

"I love how you two are getting closer."

"I wish she was my little sister, to be honest."

Kris nodded. "Ready for Zagreb?"

"Totally excited!"

Only a few more days.