Fact or Fiction Project

Off to Florida
By Catie Skinner
“Cara, get up sweetie. It’s time to go.” My mom whispered from the side of my bed.
“Already?” I grumbled back. “Alright; can you turn on my light as you go out?” I said as I closed my eyes for the brightness that would attack them in a second. When I had adjusted to the light I got up and started to get ready, only then realizing that I had forgotten to pack the stuff that I would need in the car and on the plain to keep me occupied, other than sleeping.
“Ha-ha! I’m dressed before you! Cara’s a slowpoke! Tee-hee!” My little brother, Kyle screamed as he came into my room.
“Shut-up Kyle! I’m actually trying to get changed here!” I said, ready to hit him in the face. “Do you want us to miss the plane because I wasn’t able to get dressed fast enough? I didn’t think so. Now get out."
* * *
“Kyle, can you help with your bags? We need to drop our stuff at the hotel so that we can go eat dinner.” My dad said, getting a little exasperated. “Don’t you want to go to the restaurant? It is on the beach; maybe you and Cara can play in the waves.”
“Dad? I might walk in the wet sand, but I am not going to ‘play’ in the waves, especially with him.” I said, nodding toward my brother.
“What am I? Toxic waste?” my brother said, scoffing at his ‘joke’.
“Yeah, that’s actually a really good category to put you in. Nice one!” I teased, skipping out of the way as he tried to kick me. “Oh, don’t worry, you’re never gonna reach me, los — OW!” I said, hopping on one foot as I held the leg that he had hit.
“Never going to reach you, am I?” He said, walking away from me with one of his bags. “Mom? Can I sit in the back?”
“Sure sweetie. Just don’t kick the back of your sister’s seat.”
“Mo-om! You know that he’s going to do that first thing after he yanks half of the hairs out of my head!” I protested.
“I thought being a teenager might make you too ‘cool’ to whine about your little brother. Guess I was wrong, huh?” My dad grinned as he hoisted the bags one by one into the rental car.
The ride to the hotel passed without anything exciting happening, besides the fact that my brother was to busy listening to his iPod to bother me. As soon as we got out of the car though, he decided to shove me out of the car from behind, making me fall hard on the pavement right in front of a guy that looked my age.
“Sorry!” I said, blushing as I tried to get up quickly. “Kyle! Why the heck did you push me out of the car?! I almost fell right on top of this guy!”
“That’s okay, I mean, at least you didn’t do it without help.” Then to my puzzled expression the guy added, “Meaning you didn’t just fall out of the car because you’re a little klutzy.”
“Oh, right, well…” I said, getting hotter and wishing that he would somehow blame it on the heat. “Bye… I have to help get the bags inside.” As I walked away, I ‘accidentally’ swung the suitcase I was carrying into the back of Kyle’s legs, but lightly enough that he didn’t actually fall, just stumble and drop his bag on his foot; which then made him fall. “Treat people the way you want to be treated.” I laughed as I walked by him.
* * *
“Gigi?! Is that you?!” I shouted excitedly as my grandmother turned around. “Hi!I thought you were coming tomorrow!” I dropped my suitcase and ran over to give her a hug. “Did you decide to come a day early because you missed us too much?” I added smiling.
“Hi Cara! We never planned on coming tomorrow, maybe you misheard me when I told you over the phone.” She said as she gave me a hug and kiss. “Bo will be right down; he’s up putting our stuff in the hotel while I came down to wait for you guys to come. Hello Celia, hi Kyle, how are you?” She asked as my mom and brother joined us. My dad shut the trunk and walked over.
“Hi mom.” He said as he dropped the two suitcases that he was carrying at our feet. “How was yours and Dad’s flight down?”
“There was a bit of turbulence during the middle but otherwise it was pretty good. How was your guys’? The kids behaved?” She said winking in our direction; she was more than used to our arguing.
“As well as they were going to at close quarters. Well, actually they were better than they were when they got out of the car this afternoon,” he said. “Hey Dad!” he added as Bo, our grandfather, walked up behind Gigi.
“Hey son! Kids, how were you behaved for your parents on the way over?” He asked grinning at us. “The usual ‘Cara’, ‘Kyle!’?”
“Mom, Dad, can we go get something to eat?” I interrupted, a little embarrassed at how well our grandparents knew us. “Please?”
“Sure, but don’t be too long, we still have to bring our bags upstairs.” She said still facing Gigi and Bo.