Lost

Boredom

Carly sat at her desk, browsing the web for something interesting to do nearby. She had been stuck in her apartment for weeks studying. Carly's sister, April, would hang out with her all the time, but after April dropped out of school last year, she moved back to Chicago to be with the rest of the family. Now, Carly was stuck at her house, all alone, with nothing to do besides read or study.

Carly had thought about thousands of things to do, but none of them seemed fit for just one person. Mini-golf would be kind of depressing by yourself, that is, unless you joined another family. She could go to the arcade, but with her being in her twenties, she thought parents would be a little weirded-out. Then, she thought about going to the movies. What's wrong with going to the movies by yourself? There is nothing wrong with it at all, but Carly was too socially awkward to go alone. She was just stuck.

As she was searching, she got a text from her mom saying:

Hey sweetheart! I saw that you have a break from school during Thanksgiving, you should come visit!

Carly answered back:

I don't know if I'll be available. But I'll let you guys know when I find out if I can.

Carly hated having Thanksgiving with her family. Her dad cooked the driest turkey, her mom always burned the biscuits, and her brother-in-law would always buy taco dip from the crappy convenience store across from his house and pose it as if he made it. Then, her uncles would make cheesy dad-jokes while her aunts criticized Carly and her siblings and how their parents didn't raise them right. Then her grandma would quietly rock in the rocking chair in the corner of the living room and complain how it's too cold and too bright. It was a nightmare.

Though Carly did not want to go, she really wanted to see her family again and to just not be bored in her apartment over the holidays. So, she texted her mom that she was planning on going and began to book the trip.