Paper Hearts

30

The morning air in Sarasota was crisp and smelled of sea salt. Luke and I walked out of the airport, bags in hand, and I breathed it in with relish, hungry for a taste of life outside of Grayson.

"Oh, my God," I breathed, turning my face up to the sun and smiling as the crashing of waves filled my ears, "Do you hear that?"

He'd just flipped on a pair of cheap sunglasses, a look that I realized that I actually kind of liked, and rolled up his shirtsleeves with a slight shake of his head.

"That's called the ocean, Victoria. It's a body of water-"

"I know what an ocean is, thank you very much." I muttered, shooting him a look that he quickly returned with an easy smile. Now that we were off of the plane, he seemed to be doing much better, talking and laughing and acting as if nothing had happened-and I didn't blame him. After all, it's not often when a fully-grown male wants to be called out for being afraid of heights and freaking out on a public airplane.

So I didn't say anything, and neither did he, and we waited in silence for Mom's ride to arrive.

"Who's picking us up, again?" Luke asked, and I opened my phone to scan my messages. Once I found the one from Mom, I replied,

"Her friend Rhonda," I said flatly, and he shot me a quizzical look.

"Oh, I've never met her," I corrected him quickly, "But if she's friends with my mother, then there has got to be something wrong with her-"

And then, as if on cue, a bright pink Volkswagen Beetle pulled up in front of us, the warm wind whipping my hair around my face. I held a hand up to my eyes, squinting under the shade, and I held back an indignant sigh as I saw the sign that the woman in the driver's seat was holding.

LUKE AND TORI - VIP PASSENGERS

My eyes travelled to the large, glittery smiley-face sticker underneath, and I knew then that this had been my mother's doing.

"Well, would you look at that," Luke murmured, with a slight laugh. He stooped down, waving to the lady-Rhonda, I presumed-and moved forward to pop open the trunk and place our luggage inside. Once he had, he noticed that I hadn't moved, and he flicked his sunglasses up, squinting through the sunlight at me.

"You coming, Victoria?"

"Yeah," I replied, my voice weak, trying to ignore the sadness and rejection I felt at the sight of mom's handwriting, slowly moving to the car and wrenching open the door, sitting down with a large, fake smile.

"Hi," I said, my tone timid, and I forced myself to speak louder. "I'm Tori, Laurie's daughter."

The lady in the front let out a large, audible gasp-and for a second, I thought she'd been pinched or something-but then she turned around with the largest, pearly-white smile that I'd ever seen. Her face was several shades darker than her neck (which was a dead giveaway for spray-tanning) and she wore bright jewelry that made it look even more so.

"Hey, Sugar!" she said, in a thick Southern accent, shaking my hand with long, manicured nails. "I'm Rhonda; nice to meetcha. Laurie's told me all about you, she won't shut up, but you know-weddings are important. I've had three of 'em already; I should know."

I didn't know how to respond to that, so I stayed quiet until Luke entered the car, smiling his charming smile that made Rhonda melt.

"Oh, my," she drawled, smiling sweetly. "You sure you want him to sit up here with me, Tori?"

Her tone was teasing, but the laugh that escaped her lips was forced and loud. Luke shot me a concerned look from over his shoulder, and I tried my best to smile, waving him off. But then he whispered,

"Tori?"

"Oh," I muttered, keeping my voice even though the keys were now in the ignition and therefore causing the speakers to blare a Spice Girls song, "It's...it's nothing."

"How many names do you have, Hemmings?"

I laughed, hoping that was answer enough, and he turned back around in his seat, and we were off.

________

Rhonda talked for the full half-hour that we had until we reached the island. It was almost too easy; she would talk, Luke and I would chime in with a laugh or vague comment, and then she would just keep talking. I hardly had to do a thing, which helped me mentally prepare for the moment that was coming up all too quickly.

I was about to see my mother again, for the first time in years.

I still couldn't erase that fact from my mind.

But, as we crossed the bridge over the stretch of ocean, and I rolled my window, letting my hand feel the warm, beach breeze from outside Rhonda's pink buggy, it was beginning to feel more real than ever before.

We passed the large WELCOME TO ANNA MARIA sign, taking small, cramped roads past colorful beach homes and mailboxes made from cement and seashells, travelling under palm trees and past plastic flamingos stuck in the long, Floridian grass.

"Home sweet home," Rhonda crooned, as we pulled in front of a gigantic, pristine house with open windows and gauzy drapes that fluttered in the breeze. It had an enormous deck, and sprawled all over it were fancy swings and tables, all neat and clean. The driveway led up to an entrance gate, where Rhonda punched in a four-digit code, and the large gates swung open to let us in. She accelerated the rest of the way, coming to a stop at the front, where the four stories looked even more immaculate.

"Holy hell, Hemmings," Luke said, and I didn't say anything, just staring.

"Innit somethin'?" Rhonda sighed dreamily. "Laurie and Daniel have been living here for ages, it's about time they tied the knot. And the inside's even bigger, kiddo. They've got enough stuff to pay off America's debt."

With another loud laugh, she stepped out of the car, motioning us to follow as she mounted the steps and disappeared inside, Luke beginning to follow suit, but then waiting up for me.

I couldn't bring myself to move; I stood outside of the house with my breath caught in my throat, hardly able to process what I was seeing.

"You alright?" Luke asked, stepping back so that we were side-by-side. I shook my head, choking down the tears that rose in my throat and heated my eyes.

"Fine," I coughed, and raised my lips in a smile. "Let's go in."

He nodded, taking my hand, and as we walked up the steps and into the house, I wondered whether or not my mother was just as scared about this moment as I was.