Page 12 of Alice & Meg: Summer Vacation
Whatever the rest of the week brought, I knew it would be unforgettable.But this?This moment, this love, this man?
This was everything.
Wednesday
Alice
The morning sun was already heating up the sidewalk as Wrecker and I strolled hand in hand toward the lobby.My purple flip-flops made a soft slap-slap sound with each step, and my white cutoff shorts rode a little higher than they probably should’ve.My black T-shirt with the Highland cow in sunglasses lounging in an inner tube read “Moo-d for Summer.”
It was a vibe.A bold, weird vibe.And I was living for it.
Wrecker, on the other hand, looked like he was heading into a bar fight and not a breakfast buffet.Jeans, white T-shirt, his heavy motorcycle boots, and of course, his cut.
“Aren’t you going to be hot?”I asked, eyeing the thick leather.
He huffed.“No.”
I squeezed his hand.“I know this is what you wear back home, but you tend to leave the cut off when it’s stinking hot.I’m going to have to spritz you with water.”
He opened the door to the lobby and muttered, “Yeah, not going to fucking happen, babe.”
I brushed past him with a wink.“We’ll see about that.”
As soon as we stepped inside, Wrecker grumbled again.“It’s still shocking, all the goddamn pink in this place.”
We passed the reception desk, and I had to admit, even after being here for a night, the Flamingo Inn’s commitment to the theme was borderline aggressive.Every shade of pink known to mankind covered some surface.The lobby gave way to the breakfast room, where the buffet stretched along the left wall, and tables filled the rest of the space.
There were heaping trays of scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage links, pancakes, French toast sticks, a DIY waffle maker with whipped cream and fruit toppings, hash browns, fried potatoes, hard-boiled eggs, a cereal bar, pastries, muffins, bagels, a vat of yogurt, granola, and, weirdly, a pan of baked beans and toasted bread slices.
I tilted my head at that.
The rest of the room was just as pink as the lobby.Pale pink walls, flamingo statues perched in the corners, and canvas prints of palm trees and flamingos wearing sunglasses.The tables were a delicate blush pink, while the chairs looked like someone had taken neon highlighters to plastic.
“They could stand to pick one shade of pink,” I said as we got in line.
“Agreed,” Wrecker muttered and rubbed the back of his neck.
“But hey,” I shrugged, “you gotta respect the commitment.”
We loaded our plates with a little bit of most everything.Wrecker went for bacon, eggs, hash browns, and a small mountain of sausage.I took a little bit of everything, including the weird baked beans and toast setup.
“Seriously?”Wrecker asked as he watched me shovel a spoonful of beans onto the toast.
“Don’t judge.It looks...interesting.”
He raised an eyebrow.“That’s a word for it.”
We made our way to the tables where the rest of the crew had claimed three pushed together in the corner by the window.
Meg waved me over.She had her hair in a messy bun and was working on her second waffle.
I slid into the seat next to her while Wrecker took the one across from me.
Meg glanced at my plate and gasped.“Oh, you took it.”
I blinked at her.“Took what?”
She pointed dramatically at my plate.“The beans on toast.We all saw it.Nobody was brave enough.”
