Waking Up In Paradise

Sade

I rolled over in the bed that I swore was made from clouds, and I looked into the sleeping face of Julia. She and I had agreed to take the room with the two queen beds, giving Khloe the master bedroom in the suite.

I didn’t feel like we had settled at all. The beds were comfortable and inviting. It kind of felt like a sleepover with my best gal pal. Julia and I had been friends since we were in third grade. Friends from a distance—a very long distance sometimes, with my family bouncing all over the world.

She’d gone to a different school, but we had kept in touch. We had managed to make plenty of time to hang out on the weekends, and the three of us had all become the best of friends. They were my family. They were my real support system, and I didn’t think I could have ever made it through the grueling years without them pushing me and encouraging me to keep moving forward.

“I don’t want to get out of bed,” Julia moaned.

“Me either, but I think that would completely ruin the purpose of coming here. We’re supposed to be on the beach.”

“Do you think Khloe is up yet?” she asked.

“If you’re quiet, you won’t wake her, and we can lay in bed a while longer,” I whispered. “If she gets up and sees that beach or that sun, she’s going to want to go for a run, and I can guarantee you she’s going to want to drag us with her. I’m not running, not even if a bear is chasing me.”

She giggled, her voice a little croaky after the late night and alcohol. “You’d run if a bear was chasing you.”

“Nope. Why bother? I’m not going to outrun a bear. I’ll just lay down and take it. No reason to get my adrenaline pumping. I’ve heard that makes meat taste bad. Did you know that?” 

“What?” Julia asked. “You don’t want to taste bad for the bear?”

“Well, not entirely, but—” I stopped talking, realizing I was going off on one of my tangents.

“Get up, bitches!” Khloe’s voice boomed through the closed door. “It’s a beautiful day outside!”

“Too late,” Julia moaned. “The beast is awake.”

“I’m ordering room service,” I said, throwing off the blanket. “I need coffee and something sweet.”

“Good. Order me a bagel and bacon,” she mumbled, rolling over and pulling the blanket over her head.

I padded out of the room in my bare feet, appreciating the plush carpet under my toes. We’d walked for hours last night, and I hadn’t worn the most sensible shoes. My feet were killing me. I was looking forward to bare feet and sandals for the rest of our vacation.

“Where’s that room-service menu?” I asked Khloe, who was staring out the window.

“Bar.” She gestured at it without looking at me.

“You’re craving a run,” I commented, knowing her well.

“I am,” she said longingly. “I want to go running on that beach. Do you want to go for a quick run? It’s a great way to get the day off to a good start.”

“You’re crazy. There is nothing great about running. We’re on vacation. Nobody wants to run.” I found the menu, scanned it, and picked up the phone to order breakfast for all of us. I tried to order a combination of healthy stuff and plenty of bacon for Julia.  

After making the call, I moved to stretch out on the couch, enjoying a leisurely morning with absolutely nothing to do. I didn’t have to go to work. I didn’t have to study. I didn’t even have to do the damn laundry or make myself food. It was strange to have nothing to do.

Khloe took a seat, flipping through her phone while I checked email. Breakfast was delivered. Julia finally crawled out of bed, and the three of us sat on our private deck and munched on the delicious offerings.

“What’s the plan for today, girls?” I asked, hoping excessive walking wasn’t on the agenda.

“Beach? Pool?” Julia offered, looking from me to Khloe while munching on a piece of crispy bacon.

“Pool, definitely the pool,” Khloe answered, getting back up to look outside. “Look at that water.”

“The pool sounds like a great plan to me,” I chimed in.

“Any hot guys down there?” Julia asked.

“Not as hot as Sade’s sexy pants,” Khloe teased.

“Stop,” I said. “You know he was good looking. And he isn’t mine. I could only be so lucky.”

“He was, but you went completely off the rails.” Julia laughed. “I’m going to see if I can find a bib for you. I don’t want you drooling all over yourself again.”

Khloe did an impression of me, her mouth opening and closing, her hand clapped over her chest. Julia made a big show of wiping her mouth before both of them burst into laughter.

I shook my head, not taking their jesting seriously. “I froze. I couldn’t help it. He was so—I don’t know—gorgeous, beautiful, handsome. There aren’t enough adjectives to describe him. You guys know I always freeze up. It was nothing new. I have no game. I suck at flirting.” I made a pouty face. “I’m going to be a spinster and have thirty cats.”   

“Yes, you do suck at flirting, but I think if you just relaxed a bit, you’d do okay,” Julia said. “You get inside your head too much. You think too much about what to say and how to look. You just have to be naturally you. One of these days, a man is going to come in and sweep you off your feet.”