8 My Favorite Mistake

We walked back to the condo and went up to my family’s floor. I held a smile all the way and commented about how my family wasn’t judgmental, stereotypical or prone to gossip but in my head I was screaming that something. Something bad. Something that would involve the cold stares of my parents and the scoffing of my sisters in Skye’s face.
And if not in her face, then in my face, after she had been forced to leave the room in tears.
“Are you sure this is a good idea?” She asked as I stepped up to unlock the door.
“Not at all.”
“But we’re going to do it anyway, aren’t we?” Skye asked as she brushed her hair from her face.
“Yep,” I replied as I unlocked the door, grabbed the handle and motioned to her for her hand. She took mine with a quick smile and I opened the door.
“Who’s that?” Serena asked as she looked out from the kitchen.
“It’s us,” I replied as we walked inside. I closed the door and looked to the living room. My parents were either still asleep-at seven-thirty in the morning or had gone out.
“Who’s us?” Ally asked—as she appeared behind her Serena.
“This is Skye.”
“From the beach?” Serena asked,
“That’s me,’ Skye replied with a small wave. “Hello.”
“Have you been gone all this time?”
“Where’s Mom and Dad?”
“They took Sia and went to that buffet breakfast up the road. They were going to ask you to go, but, since you’re ‘Mr. doesn’t take his cell phone’, you get to eat cold cereal.”
“Already had breakfast.”
“Everyone else gets something special, except us,” Serena bickered to Ally.
Ally just shrugged.
“Well, we were thinking about going shopping this afternoon. Maybe you two would like to come with us?”
“Where?” Serena asked with some interest. I had said the magic word: shopping.
“Sand Roc Cay.”
“Isn’t that kind of expensive?”
“No idea,” I replied. “You two in?”
“We’ll get ready. Like, five minutes.”
“I’ll believe when I see it,” I called out as Serena and Ally ran down the hall.
Skye walked to the living room area.
“It’s very nice. How much is it a night?”
“Four hundred or so.”
“Ouch,” she replied and then bit her lip. “Sorry, I shouldn’t’ have said that.”
“No, no it’s fine. I mean, if we hadn’t rented this then I would have had no reason to go down to the beach and meet you. Right?”
“Trying to put a romantic spin on everything?”
“Is it working?”
“Yes,” she replied as I walked towards her.

There was a lot I wanted to do at that moment—one was to just hug her and the others, well, I tried not to think about things I really knew nothing about.
I only took her right hand and smiled.
“We’re probably going to have to walk.”
“Sounds good to me.”
“We’re walking!” I yelled down the hall.
“What?” Serena yelled.
“It’s less than a mile.”
“You mean I have to wear actual shoes?”
“Looks like it.”
“Seriously?”
“It’s like a mile down the road.You run track.”
“I’m also on vacation!”
“She’s in track?” Skye asked as she stepped closed to me.
“State runner. Ally too. On the relays.”
“So, are we going to run or walk there?”
“I will skip all the way there if you will.”

The walk was longer then a mile and we had to take frequent rests. It wasn’t too hot and a light breeze helped us along the way. We had left a note for my parents and Sia that we had gone walking. I didn’t feel bad about not waiting for Sia, as she would have refused to walk, forcing me to request taking the car and the entire family.

We arrived at the multi-level shopping center and marina. It had the look of Spanish design mixed with an attempt at a “Beverly Hills-ish” accent. A mix of shops stacked in various ways and accessed through varying staircases. The metal fountain of a large swordfish was either an eyesore or a cool-looking piece of art.

We walked past various stores before entering into one because Serena saw something in the window and made a bee-line inside. It was one of those boutiques that had assortments of jewelry and clothes that looked like they may be fifty dollars until one flipped the tags and saw it did say fifty…plus a few more zeroes.
Skye walked with the girls as I looked at the jewelry case. It would be way too early to buy anything like what I wanted to give her. If anything said “run, run away” it would be any form of ring. Earrings may have been okay, and perhaps a bracelet: one made of silver and not encrusted with small jewels that it looked like Monet had painted a barnacle.
I looked back to the girls in the other room as they looked at the dresses and blouses that were in the far corner. I could feel my debit card burning a hole in my pocket along the words of my parents telling me that I had spent too much for the wrong reason. I ran back to the counter, bought the item that piqued my interest and asked the sales clerk to keep the bag behind the counter for me.
I then went back into the other room.
Ally stood next to a rack.
“Where’s Serena?”
“Dressing room.”
“Oh.”
“Her too,” Ally replied with a slight smile.
“Okay. Find anything?”
Ally shook her head. “Not really. It’s all nice. Very nice, but, not me. You know?”
“Souvenir t-shirt?”
“Actually, yeah, I was looking into getting one.”
“We’ll check out the souvenir shops. There’s like thirteen on this road alone.”
Serena stepped out of one of the dressing rooms and lifted the dress she tired on. “Mom and Dad would freak if they saw me in this.”
“Which means you’re going to get it, right?”
“Are you kidding? Dad would rip it to spreads. I mean, it barely covers anything.”
“A bit too much information,” I replied.
“I’ll look for something else. Come on, Ally, you get to be my conscience.”
Serena dragged Ally out of the room.
I walked to the other side of the room and stood in silence.
A few seconds later, the lock on the other door clicked and the door opened. I kept a bit of a distance. I mean, it could have been anyone walking out and I could have been right in front of their face.
I’m sure the police would have understood.
“Spencer?”
I looked to the door to see Skye step out.
She was in a multi-colored sundress, one with a slight fade to the rainbow design. She took a step forward but then back. She had her glasses in her hands.
“How does it look?”
“It’s beautiful.”
“Is it?”
“You’re beautiful.
“Stop it,” she replied as she placed her glasses back on.
“I’m serious.”
“You haven’t seen me on my bad days.”
“What’s a bad day for you?” I asked as I looked across the room to see if I could find the clerk who helped me earlier.
“Extensive crying and depression and a broken fake nail or two.”
“And no milk for your cereal?”
“No cereal.”
“I know just the something that will go with this.”