Life as a Holiday

She said "Travel"

The noisy alarm from my phone decided to finally woke me up from a sweet dream. I opened my eyes and I could barely could see anything. It was pitch dark. The smell of vanilla was heavy in the room. It was from the candle that I forgot to extinguish, silly me. I started to search for the switch in order to turn on the lights. After blearily fumbling around for a while, I finally managed to find it. I got up from the cozy bed and jumped right into the shower.

After more than half of hour I finally stopped the water and went to my closet to change. My outfit for the day was... acceptable. I decided to wear a pair of dark blue jeans with a white short top which uncovered a part of my abdomen. I was not ashamed of my body since I was quite fit. Then I put my long blonde hair in a messy bun and added some mascara to my long lashes. Thank God mascara exists, because it managed to give some extra dimension to my sleepy hazel-brown eyes. I was ready for a night with my friends.

As if on cue, the bell rang and I went to open the door. I was immediately greeted by two fond, familiar faces. Diane - beautiful as always, with her round face and short, brown, shiny hair - was smiling radiantly. The masculine body next to her seemed to compliment her somehow. It was Kosav, her boyfriend, a tall guy with blonde hair and green eyes- handsome enough, many have suggested, to be a model.

"Come on in!" I said, smiling at them.

I invited them into my large living room. Since the daylight was slowly disappearing into the horizon, leaving behind a peachy-pink sky, my automatic lights turned on to brighten the room. The view of the London was amazing. I stepped on the white, round rug. I could feel its fluffiness, its luxurious texture. Then, I took the Martinis from Diane's hands and put it on the glass coffee table.

"Okay, girl. You have to tell me right away what happened today", Diane said while taking a seat on the white couch.

"Yeah, what's popping? I heard you requested the special Martinis so, that means is a big deal", added Kosav, seeming almost intrigued.

"Do you remember my boss?" I asked.

From their expressions, I could tell that both Diane and Kosav has been expecting something like this. To be honest, I could see why; every time I complained about something it was always related to this aspect of my life. All this because my boss thinks that I was a robot, purpose built to do everything for everyone in that company. She had never once listened to me or taken account of my needs. I was basically a slave.

"Let me guess... extra work to do", said Diane rolling her eyes.

"I still don't get it. If you hate that much the conditions, why are you still there?" added Kosav.

"Well, surprise! I don't work there anymore!" I almost yelled.

After that a moment of silence covered the entire room. I was pretty sure that they were shocked. I mean, even I was still surprised that after one year of working in there I had finally gave up. It had just been simply inhuman to accept every single thing that my boss had been telling me. In the end, Diane almost screamed: "Congratulations girl! Right now the only drama you should care about is your love life. But then, you don't really have a love life! It might be time to start one?"

"I'm pretty sure I'm better-off alone", I said opening the Martini.

"Come on, Aisha. Sooner or later you will need a man", added Diane's boyfriend.

"Yeah, yeah, maybe later on", I replied, while I was getting up from the couch in order to fetch some glasses from the kitchen.

"Then what are you going to do with all your free time?", asked Diane.

"Don't know. Maybe I'll start looking for a new job soon", I said while pouring some Martini into the glasses.

"Oh, no, no, no. You should definitely take a break. I am not even sure why are you stressing so much. You have in account more than 1 million of pounds and even more, some big running malls", replied Kosav almost laughing.

"That's not my money. My grandfather left that to me as an inheritance after he died. And honestly, it sometimes feels like a burden. That kind of money comes with lots of... responsibilities", I said, a bit off.

"Oh, let's forget about that and have a drink now!" exclaimed Diane.

After that, a loud "Cheers!" resounded through the room, distracting us from the previous conversation. The Martini was sweet and pleasing, exactly the way I remembered. It had been a long time since I'd touched anything alcoholic. Then, I started playing some music and dancing with my glass in my right hand. I imagine that I must have looked like a chicken, flailing about like that. What can I say? I've always been awful when it comes to dancing.

We enjoyed the night drinking and singing different songs. It was really nice to know I had friends around to cheer me up, to simply spend quality time with me. As we danced, I thought to myself- and not for the first time - that I literally loved them. At some point our amazing night was disturbed by a phone call. Diane answered it quickly. I could read the joy on her face. She seemed exceptionally pleased, perhaps more so than I'd ever seen her before, and I was determined to know why. At some point I heard the person on the other end of the call. She was talking about a trip...

"Yes, that would be magnifique!" said Diane.

"So how many of you would you like to go?" asked the person.

"Three of us, that would be excellent", my friend replied.

For a second my mind froze and I had to reflect. "Why did she say three people?" I asked myself. Then I realized and tried to stop her. I didn't want to go on a trip. Not at all. Why was she doing this to me? I tried to say "I don't want to go! Stop it!", but as the first word came from my mouth, Kosav covered it with his hand and whispered to Diane "Now she can't object. Hurry and give all details!".

I tried desperately to get Kosav to let go of me. I really struggled but he was too strong and just at the moment the call finished. He uncovered my mouth. The atmosphere was so tense that it was hard to breathe. Everyone was waiting for my reaction, which didn't take long to manifest.

"Why on Earth would you think I would need a holiday right now?" I almost yelled at them.

"Dear, the best way to learn about yourself, to discover how mature you are, is to travel. Traveling will let you know if you're ready to deal with unexpected situations. Maybe after this you'll know more about life! More about yourself! And maybe, how to make the right decisions", said Diane.

And for the first time she was right. Maybe I needed this experience in order to give some perspective to this messy life of mine. I really should give this opportunity a chance. Who knows? Maybe I will learn more than I could ever possibly expect? Going is the only way to find out.

"So, travel?" she added, full of hope.

"Travel!" I replied.

"Travel!" said Kosav smiling.

So, this is how our first journey started and one thing I knew for sure, I was ready to deal with this insane, mysterious world. I can wonder about what adventures await me out there.