“I’m always relaxed.”
She tilted her head back and laughed. “I find that very hard to believe.”
Our phones dinged. I pulled mine out of my back pocket, hoping it was my itinerary and boarding pass.
“Finally,” I grumbled, when I saw the new email from the travel agency.
Before I even had a chance to open it, let alone read it, Lila gasped, throwing a hand over her mouth.
“No way!” she exclaimed, so loudly that a few people near the TSA entrance turned their head to look.
“Don’t make a scene,” I hissed. I hated having eyes on me, especially in a large public space.
I opened the email to see what had set off this flurry of enthusiasm. It took me a second to look past all the numbers and times to find the actual destination on the pass. When I did, my jaw went slack.
A round-trip ticket to Santorini, Greece.
“Europe,” I said, eyebrows raised. This was unexpected. While this whole display had seemed overly elaborate from the start, I still hadn’t envisioned us traipsing all the way across the Atlantic Ocean.
“This is absolutely insane,” Lila gushed. “I’ve always wanted to go.” Her soft green eyes glistened.
A patter started up in my chest when I absorbed her genuine delight. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen anyone that excited about something. A tiny tear brimmed at the corner of her eye before trailing down her cheek.
I nearly shot back. “Are youcrying?” I asked, horrified.
“Shut up! I’m happy.” She swatted my chest, her glassy eyes immediately hardening as they trained on me. “Geez, are you going to suck the fun out of everything for the entire travel day?”
“I’m not the one crying.”
Her eyes squeezed shut and she blew out a breath before gripping the handle of her pink carryon-sized suitcase. Sherolled it past me without looking up. This was arguably not off to the best start.
I slid into the line and lingered behind her. Voices buzzed all around us, but her silence was so loud it left a ringing in my ears.
“You know, the words fun and travel day should be an oxymoron.” I couldn’t stop myself.
She turned, brow crinkling. “Are you kidding? What’s more exciting than an airport?” She said the words without a hint of sarcasm. “Everyone here is excited to be going somewhere different, taking a break from their lives. They could be visiting a family member, going on the trip of their dreams, moving somewhere new.” She pointed at a family outside the security line, hauling a cart brimming with luggage. “The possibilities are endless. There’s energy everywhere.”
I snorted. “That’s the most romanticized bullshit I’ve ever heard in my entire life. The airport is stressful.” Aside from the occasional trip home to see my parents, I didn’t travel much, and I preferred to keep it that way.
“It’s thrilling,” she shot back.
“No, it’s not.” I stepped forward so that she was next to me. “Because even people who are excited about the end destination don’t want to deal with the hassle of the airport.”
“Well, I happen to like the airport. Hassle or not, it breaks up the monotony.” Lila rolled her suitcase next to her with a little more aggression as we came to the front of the line.
“I’d take monotony over this, any day,” I insisted. She either didn’t hear me or chose to ignore me. I’d bet on the latter.
The TSA agent waved us forward and Lila walked up.
“Families can come up together,” the agent said in a bored voice. Lila turned her head back to look at me before realization sank in. She frowned.
“We arenottogether,” she said with a little more disgust than I liked.
The TSA agent just shrugged, looked at her ID, and let her continue.
I followed suit, the whole time trying not to look at the sliver of stomach that poked out from under Lila’s sweatshirt as she shifted her backpack off her shoulder and onto the conveyer belt.
Before she could reach down and get her suitcase, I moved into the spot next to her and grabbed the handle. I grunted as I lifted the small but shockingly heavy luggage onto the belt.
