Naomi’s Family Trip

The room was a darkened space of complete and utter silence, save for the occasional vehicle honking or murmurs from the bystanders down below the upstairs bedroom. Its occupants were fast asleep, each in their separate dreams and slumber. Yet it was not nighttime. That was only the effect of the bedroom window being completely covered by the drawn curtains, but they would soon be split apart and allow in the morning sunlight in all its bright illumination.

Naomi laid in her bed, her hair a wild mess of wayward strands. Her brother, Hugo, was also fast asleep, dreaming vivid dreams of the approaching awaited moment. The brightly glowing numbers on the alarm clock opposite of Hugo turned from 6:59 am to 7:00, immediately followed by a repetitive beeping. “Five more minutes,” Naomi complained, turning on her side.

Hugo’s eyes popped open, widening in realization. He swiftly sat straight up in his bed, looking at his calendar in expectation. “Naomi! Wake up! Do you know what day it is?” Hugo whispered sharply to his sleeping sister, a smile widening on his face. “I already told you: Five more minutes, and then I’ll get up. Now go back to sleep,” Naomi replied, covering her ears with the sides of her pillow.

Hugo kicked off the blankets and drew the curtains to the side. Brilliant bright morning sunlight flooded the room. Naomi tumbled off the bed, wrapped tightly in her wrinkled blankets. “What did you do that for? My eyes are on fire right now!” she said, struggling to free an arm to rub her stinging eyes.

Hugo helped his sister free herself from the blankets and grabbed her by the arm, pointing at the calendar in excitement. “Look at the calendar! Don’t you remember? Today’s the day we go to Disney World! We were talking about it last night! Get out of bed! We have to wake up our parents!”

Naomi finally threw off the last traces of grogginess and blinked in comprehension. “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go!” Hugo said, letting go of his sister’s arm and taking three steps at a time down the staircase, nearly tripping over several times while doing so.

While Hugo was rushing to his parent’s bedroom, Naomi went over to the bedroom window to look outside. “Today’s the perfect day. The weather isn’t bad at all!” she said to herself, before remembering that her hair was in a less than ideal condition for a family trip to Orlando, Florida. I should probably brush my hair before we get in the van, Naomi thought to herself, heading into the bathroom to better prepare for the big trip.

Hugo finally reached his parents’ bedroom, which was more clean and neat than his own. The bedroom was in a spotless condition and had all the satisfactory things any adult would want for their living quarters. The windows had no dust in any way whatsoever. The bed was made perfectly, with no wrinkled or rumpled sheets or blankets, and had no stains. Naomi had always liked this room better than her brother’s half of their shared living space.

Hugo crept up beside his sleeping parents and tapped his father gently on the shoulder. After a few more taps on the shoulder, his father opened one eye sleepily. “What is it, Hugo? It’s too early. Go back to sleep,” he said, gazing cloudily up at Hugo. Hugo shook his head vigorously. “I can’t go back to sleep. You promised. Didn’t you tell me and Naomi we were going to Disney World today? Besides, it’s…” Hugo trailed off, looking at his parents’ alarm clock. He looked back at his father, who had fallen asleep while Hugo had looked at the alarm clock.

Hugo impatiently tapped his father on the shoulder a few more times. “It’s 7:15 in the morning! You have to get up! Please? Pretty please?” Hugo insisted, tugging on his father’s shirt. With a sigh, his dad reluctantly rose from the pristine mattress, rubbing his eyes groggily. “Okay, I’m up. Diane? Honey, wake up. Today’s the big day. Hugo wouldn’t let me miss out on the most important day in the world,” he said, playfully ruffling Hugo’s already tangled hair.

Back upstairs, Naomi was humming cheerfully to herself as she brushed and braided her long smooth auburn hair. As she was tending to her hair, Naomi’s smartphone vibrated on the bathroom marble countertop, making her stop what she was doing and pick it up.

When Naomi had entered the password to her smartphone, a notification had popped up and had a friend’s name titled on it. With a smile, Naomi accepted the call. “Hi, Jessica. So you heard?” Naomi said once Jessica had picked up. Pause. “That’s amazing! So you’re coming with my family?” Another pause. “Cool. Can’t wait to see you there! Bye,” Naomi finished, ending the conversation. Hugo came bursting into the bathroom, startling his sister.

“Hugo! You almost gave me a heart attack!” Naomi said, almost tossing her smartphone up into the air. “Sorry for scaring you. Mom told me to let you know we’re about to leave in a few minutes,” Hugo said quickly, beaming in excitement. With a chuckle of delight, Hugo left Naomi alone. Shaking her head in admiration, Naomi returned to her previous task of brushing and braiding her vivid auburn hair.

After her hair had been brushed and untangled, Naomi left the bathroom and began packing her belongings in a portable suitcase, and went out to the balcony overlooking the now bustling street down below. A smooth gust of wind breathed across Naomi’s neatly braided hair and it fluttered out like a majestic sail or curtain, and Naomi smiled, spreading her arms to the side and enjoyed the gentle breeze.

“Naomi!” a voice said, cutting through her thoughts and bringing her back to the present moment. Hugo had appeared at Naomi’s side and was now holding her hand. “Are you ready? We have to be at the airport in five minutes! Mom and Dad have already packed everything into the car! See you in a few,” her brother said before heading downstairs.

Naomi left the balcony and went about packing necessary items and materials to be better prepared for the annual family reunion. “What else am I missing? I feel like I’ve forgotten something…” Naomi said, anxiously trying to think of anything else she might need before heading to the airport. The thought came to her. “Lotion! That’s what I need!” she said, snapping her finger in triumph. After packing the last item, Naomi zipped up her suitcase and quickly checked herself in the bathroom mirror for any other needed tasks before heading downstairs to meet up with the others.

“What took you so long? It’s almost time to go to the airport! We’ve only got a few minutes before the plane takes off!” Hugo chided her before streaking out the front door. Naomi blushed, quietly following her excited brother into the van. “Buckled up?” their dad asked, looking at Naomi and Hugo in the mirror. Naomi nodded and Hugo eagerly held two thumbs up in front of him, smiling eagerly.

Diane looked at her smartwatch in slight nervousness. “We’d better hurry if we don’t want to miss our plane, André,” she said, tapping her watch twice. He nodded and turned the key, started up the car engine, and pulled out of the driveway, heading towards the airport, which would soon take them to America, their final destination!

“I’ve only heard stories of what Disney World is like in the US! I wonder what it will be like once we get there…” Naomi said to her brother trailing off thoughtfully. Hugo tapped his sister in the arm, regaining her attention. “You’ve only been to the one here in Russia, right? What’s the first thing you want to see when we do reach America? What do you think it’ll be like?” he said, looking hopefully and expectantly at his older sister.

Naomi thought about this for a moment then she answered. “There’s one thing I have seen from the American version of Disney World and that’s Disney Castle! Not that I don’t like seeing the one here in Russia,” Naomi said, sighing happily at the thought. The siblings looked at their respective windows, both lost in thought of the destination awaiting them in the United States, the land of the free!

Their father turned on the radio, tuning in to Radio Orfey, his favorite classical music station, which frequently had the most enjoyable classical music that could be found. Diane hummed the classical tune under her breath, closing her eyes and swaying to the gentle music in time with the rhythm.