Marlee Fields has spent a lifetime dreaming of Walt Disney World. She grew up watching The Little Mermaid and the Lion King, pretending to be a fierce princess as she watched her parents' weary divorce. For a girl that has never left her hometown of...
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The sun set hours ago behind the gates of Hollywood Studios. Now, the street lights of cafes and gift shops illuminated the walkway in a harsh yellow fog.
Marlee and Holden walked down Hollywood Boulevard without a throng of people moving past them, pushing them aside with double strollers and children running between their legs. Their day had consisted of a lot of this. Marlee had probably stepped on three children - on accident of course. She wished parents would just watch their children, or at least invest in one of those backpacks with an attached leash.
Her spirits couldn't be so easily dampered though. The night was tranquil. The moon was vibrant against the darkened sky, it's brilliance a comfort to Marlee. It reminded her of home. No matter how far she was from Texas, the moon was the same everywhere she went.
"Are you hitting another park tomorrow?" Holden said, his words abruptly ending Marlee's contemplation. His voice was small in the near silent space between them.
"I don't know yet. I don't really have a schedule."
She turned her attention to Holden. The collar was up on his denim jacket, shielding his skin from the coolness of the breeze. His hands were shoved into its side pockets. He looked young. The angles of his face were softened as he lowered his neck into the material of the jacket.
"Did you really come here without a plan?" His tone was indistinguishable. Marlee couldn't guess if he was shocked or amused by her reply. Maybe it was both.
"I'm not the most organized person." This was the sad truth. Marlee couldn't keep a planner to save her life. When she bothered to write a to-do list at all, the paper wound up disappearing into the pile of junk mail, essay drafts, and coffee-stained worksheets on her desk. Marlee definitely lacked any organizational skills.
"How long will you be here?" Holden asked, his jade-colored eyes fixated on the exit gate of the park. His pace slowed to a leisurely stride, and Marlee slowed her feet to match his steps.
Marlee wanted to save this conversation for later. Maybe until their last day together. The idea circled her head a few times in her usual before-bed thoughts. She hopped she would be the first to ask. Now, she was feeling nervous. Marlee felt a shift in the air, like his mood had changed and it was as contagious as the black plague.
