Beep! Beep! Beep!
Ugh. Why do mornings hate me? I rolled over and smacked my alarm clock lightly to stop the ear-piercing sound that was blasting into my ears. Sitting up straight and stretching my back and arms, I looked over to see what time it was.
7:30
I had just over an hour before I had to be fully dressed and ready to go. My parents were planning on leaving at 8:45 to catch their flight at 10. I was their designated chauffer.
Why? you might ask. Because my parents weren't willing to pay the fifty-dollar parking fee to leave their car at the airport. So instead, I got to miss several hours of precious sleep. And not only that day. Nope. A week from then upon their return, I was designated to pick them up at the airport at 5:30! Yes, in the morning. Why anyone would schedule a flight at that hour is a mystery to me.
I rolled off my bed and dragged my stiff body into the shower. The warm water helped to wake me up and loosen my tense muscles. I was able to finish dressing and getting ready without any further lagging. At 8:30 I was ready to go.
I skipped down the stairs feeling proud that I was ahead of schedule instead of behind like usual. Turning the corner, I entered my kitchen and met my mother who just happened to be at the table eating toast and drinking coffee.
"Good morning" I chirped, opening the refrigerator and pulling out a bowl of fresh fruit. I had always been a bit of a health-freak, much unlike my parents.
"Morning sweetie" she smiled back at me "will you be ready to go in 10 minutes?"
"Yep. all set" I said through bites of the delicious fruit. Once I finished, I quickly headed back upstairs to gather my things and brush my teeth.
After brushing my teeth, I ran down the stairs and towards the back door for my final task before being ready to leave. I rounded the corner of my house and came to the large metal kennel set up for my 3 year old collie, Sophie. She was so wild and crazy we all ended up calling her 'Silly". I grabbed her leash and opened the kennel.
"Hi Silly!" I cooed as she excitedly licked my hand. Her tail was wagging a million miles an hour as I led her around in the direction of the car. We were dropping her off at a friends house for the week.
"Are we ready to go?" My dad asked while dragging his and my mom's luggage out the front door. We nodded our heads and proceeded behind my dad towards the car, he stayed to lock the door securely behind us.
+++
The drive to the airport took almost an hour so we walked into the airport in somewhat of a rush. The friend we had left Sophie with was in a very chatty mood this morning and it was hard to get away from her.
We entered the huge glass front doors and scurried over to one of the long check-in lines. I looked around the busy airport with interest as my parents did all the grown-up stuff that had to do with paying and checking in and all that good stuff. Yeah.
The airport was quite congested for this time of day. People scurried all around eager to get checked in and find their flights. Men, women, children. everywhere.
Once they were checked in and ready to go through security, it was time for us to go our separate ways. I Gave them each a massive hug and said all that mushy, good-bye stuff you say when you won't see someone for a while. Then finished with promises to be good and call them and all that. Giving them one last good bye hug each, we separated and I headed back towards the doors I came in through.
Apparently, I was supposed to be at Aunt Noel's by 11:00. Wow. My parents barely gave me any time to get there. It is almost 10:00 and with the hour drive I should be able to just make it. I rushed through the parking lot to find my car.
+++
"Addison Darling! Come in come in!" The small old lady caught me in an embrace as I stepped through the screen door of her small house. She has always been rather petite. Only coming up to my shoulders. She has neatly rolled hair that was once sandy blonde, but is now mostly white. For as long as I can remember she has always worn an apron over her clothes and a smile on her face. I have always thought she was rather pretty for such an old thing.
"Hi Aunt Noel" I replied cheerfully, setting my bags down on the carpet. Her old calico cat, Simon, decided to make an appearance at that moment. To greet me? No not at all. The fat lazy thing always greeted people at the door to make sure they are not attempting to smuggle any goodies into the house without giving him a taste. He slowly sauntered over to me and hopped up onto my suit case, meowing impatiently. "and hi Simon!" I cooed to the old cat, scratching the top of his head. He gave me a bored look and hopped off my bag. Seeing I had no food, he trotted out of the room to continue his oh-so important job of doing absolutely nothing. What a useful creature.
"How have you been?" I asked, turning back to my human company.
"what was that dear?" she said rather loudly. Aunt Noel was rather deaf. Poor woman. She had a hearing aid but she often forgot to turn it on. I pointed to her ear and she immediately exclaimed "Oh silly me! I seem to have forgotten all about my condition. Let me fix that right up" She began adjusting the thing in her ear. She liked to refer to her deafness as a 'condition'.
I chuckled lightly as she finally seemed to get it working "Now, what were you saying dear?"
"I said how have you been?"
"Oh I've been wonderful dear. And you?"
"I've been great"
"That's good to hear! Now, Lets get you into your room. I've spent all morning baking cookies for us to share while we catch up. My, its been so long. You must tell me all about this boyfriend of yours I've been hearing about" She rambled like a gossipy teenage girl.
I grinned at her comical state. My mother must have mentioned Will to her when they spoke. She led me up the stairs of her small home to the guest bedroom which was at the end of the hall. I set my bags on the bed and followed her back down to the kitchen.
She bustled around. Grabbing 2 small plates and 2 glasses that she poured milk into. She handed me one of the plates with 3 peanut butter cookies and one of the glasses of milk. I followed her over to the kitchen table and pulled out my chair. It made a loud screech as it moved across the floor.
"So how have you been Auntie?" I asked
"Oh I've been very well dear. My asparagus plants have started coming in but Its a bit cold for tomatoes"
Yuck! I hated asparagus. With a passion. And I am not a very picky person. But one of the few foods that absolutely makes me gag is the horribly green vegetable with sprouts at the top. She always grew them in the garden and even though my mother thought it was incredibly impolite, I would always refuse to touch the things. Auntie didn't seem to mind too much.
Aunt Noel loved to garden. She spent almost all of her free time outside. Pulling weeds and tending her precious plants. Simon would always sit on the porch or in-between the rows of plants. flicking his tail lazily as he watched her.
I listened patiently for a few more minutes while she talked about her life and then she suddenly turned the conversation to me.
"So Addi dear, tell me about this boyfriend of yours. What's his name? Is he cute? How did you meet? How long have you been dating?" My cheeks flushed at the bombardment of questions. She rested her chin on her boney fists and eyed me with sparks or interest pervading her eyes.
"Will" I answer, deciding to start with the basics "Well to start. Yes, he is cute. We met at school through mutual friends. We have been dating a year and Its going absolutely wonderful" I tried my best not to sound like an inane, bubbling teenage girl gushing about her bf. Which, I suppose I was. But I couldn't help smiling at the thought of him.
+++
More than an hour later, after we had both had our fill of cookies, milk and conversation, I decided to unpack while Aunt Noel said she had to run to the drug store to pick up some lemons and medicine for Simon. Can you get lemons at the drug store? Apparently she thought so.
My room had been the same for as long as I could think. Since I was a toddler, I had always stayed in this room. It had powder blue walls, a twin bed with cream sheets and blankets, a small wooden desk with a frilly lamp, and a window with a view of her back yard.
It felt like home to me here. I had basically grown up in this house and I knew it like the back of my hand.
After quickly unpacking and placing my clothes in the closet, I plopped down on the bed and pulled out my phone, scrolling through my contacts to find Will's number.
"Hello" he picked up on the second ring.
"Hi babe!" Yeah we were at that stage.
"Addi hey!" He said, his tone perking up "what's up?"
"nothing I just promised I'd call you today" I was laying on my stomach, my legs kicking back and forth behind me, smiling like an idiot.
"Oh ok. Do you wanna do something?" He asked.
"Ugh, I can't. I'm at Aunt Noels all week while my parents are in England" I didn't think Aunt Noel would mind too much, but I still felt bad just leaving her here.
"Ah I'm sorry"
"It's fine" I assured him.
"Do you want me to come give you some company?" He suggested lightly.
I perked up instantly at this idea "sure! I am sure Auntie would absolutely love to meet you! I was just telling her about you"
"Ok great. See you in a few"
"Ok!" I said cheerfully.