Nostalgia Ch. 05

Mason Davis was cooking food on a charcoal grill. Henry Williamson was a bit close, sipping at canned beer and commenting on the food's progress. Kennedy Davis was fanning herself with a brochure and reading a fashion magazine, sitting in a lawn chair beside Jennifer Williamson, who was looking at something on her cell phone.

Vlad and Mihai Dalca, Ana Davis, and Brook Williamson were on a porch, sitting at a round glass table with a black metal frame. Ana and the Dalcas were popping moist peanuts out of softened shells and eating the little treasures. There was a stack of napkins in the middle of the table, since it seemed that boiled peanuts soaked the fingers in a nearly indecent manner.

Boiled peanuts, at least the ones that were in Ana's bowl, were salty, tender, and weird. She didn't know if she liked the flavor or hated it, but she did know that the treat was likely high in protein. It was probably healthier than ice cream.

Brook was chatting away about something social media related and taking a selfie every two minutes. At some points, she would shift her chair close to Mihai, and then Mihai would shift his chair a bit away. Eventually, Mihai ended up too close to his father, and when Brook moved her chair again, he was almost trapped.

When Ana believed she had her fill of the peanuts, she wiped her hands, got out of her seat, and picked up a container full of shells. "I think I'll go inside and watch some TV."

Vlad Dalca's voice called out to her in English. "Are there any board games in the house?"

Ana shrugged, threw her shells out, and put away her bowl. Then she washed her hands, dried them, and searched the cupboards of the TV stand. There were a few board games inside. She took three of them and went back to the porch.

"You guys might want to wash your hands. That peanut juice is kind of icky." Ana put the board games on the glass table and went back inside even though she sort of wanted to play with them.

She heard Mihai say, "Excuse me," and then there was the screeching noises of chairs being dragged against a wooden floor. Ana looked back to see the Dalcas dabbing at their fingers with napkins. Then Mihai knocked on the glass storm door. Ana let the men in so they could wash their hands and return to the porch quickly.

Both men ... looked a bit sad. Did they want her to play with them?

Ana watched TV until Kennedy called on her. The food was ready. Ana went to the porch and grabbed a paper plate from a stack that had been laid out. Then she took a burger from her dad and sat down at the glass table, right next to Brook, who was eating a veggie burger. The snooty looks she was giving Ana were a bit irritating. Plus, she was still taking selfies every once in a while.

Ana heard Mr. Williamson walk up to her. "My wife and I are going shopping later. Do you want to come?"

"No thank you. I think I want to go to that little amusement park with the carousel. It looks adorable."

"I'll go too," Mihai said after a sip of a drink. "I want to see if they have food stalls there."

"Oh," Ana said lightly. "Cool." She was suddenly nervous. If Mihai went to the amusement park, then his father might go too.

Someone's cell phone rang out. The ringtone was a chorus from a 1980s pop song. Mihai was the one to answer his phone. He put his food down and got up from the table very abruptly, nearly knocking Brook out of her seat in the process. "Hello?" His face turned hard and cold. Ana wasn't used to it. It almost had her gasping.

Mihai switched to Romanian. "Yes. Yes, we're fine. Everything's fine." Mihai nodded even though the one he was talking to obviously couldn't see it. "I ate boiled peanuts." His eyes softened a bit. "Oh, you had those before? In China? Were they good? Nice. Anything else?" His brow furrowed. "Wait. Is that Lao? I don't speak Lao very well." A pause. "Yeah, I understand that."

Mihai started walking away from the group of people, stopping near the rented van. He spoke on the phone for a few more minutes. Then he hung up and turned around, looking much happier and calmer.

Ana wanted to ask about the phone call, but it wasn't any of her business.

Hmmm ... why did she even want to know in the first place?

***

The shrieking, happy children were cute. Ana would have watched them, but she was busy being slowly taken in a circle and listening to circus-like music. Her hands were around a thick pole. Her backside was on a false, heavy horse that was painted in garish colors. It was one of the most innocent things in the world to do, and she loved it.

Ahead of her, Mihai was on an equally colorful steed, and he liked to look back at her and stick out his tongue. It was childish ... and she loved it.

She loved a lot of things that were going on.

She waved at her parents, and even Vlad Dalca. Those three were sitting on a bench and watching their offspring have a good time. Grinning, they all waved back. Brook was there too, but she was, once again, taking selfies.

When all that fun was exhausted, everyone took a leisurely walk around. Brook stopped at a stall that held a shooting game. The prizes were typical cheap things, but they were colorful and sweet. "Mihai! Mihaaaaaaaiii!!" Brook waved at Mihai, which prompted him to halt and look back at her. "Didn't you say you liked to shoot things? You think you could win one of these cute toys for me?"

Mihai looked at her face for approximately three seconds. Then he clearly and quickly said, "Yes, I could." And after that, he looked ahead and kept walking, obviously intending to not even try playing the shooting game.

Brook made something of a sour duck face, her lips sticking out like she'd been punched. Then she huffed and caught up to the rest of the group. "Whatever. That game's for rednecks and school shooters anyway."

Ana heard her father mutter something to Kennedy. "She's so pretty. If she was a little sweeter, Mihai might give her the time of day."

Turning a bit to look at Brook's legs, Ana silently agreed. Brook was pretty, basically a sexy little hourglass. But with her attitude, she was bound to attract the more unpleasant sorts of men.

***

On the next day, everyone put on their swimsuits, gathered up all the necessary supplies, and headed to the water. Ana settled down on a collapsible beach chair, on a long towel, and under an umbrella. Then she lazily watched her parents, the Williamsons, Brook, and Mihai all play around in the water with a huge beach ball.

Vlad Dalca was in a similar position to Ana's, actually beside her. He had on knee-length trunks and a button up shirt with short sleeves. His arms, legs, and feet all turned out to be a little hairy, and that was perfectly fine. Ana was glad she had sunglasses on. It was easier to hide her eyes. Every once in a while she'd take a short look at him. He had her thinking of a sexy beast man in a paranormal romance novel.

That black hair ... so curly and untidy, it was kept back with a simple elastic band. His fingernails needed a little bit of a trim, but that was fine. On his feet, his second toes were slightly longer than the big ones.

He smiled at something in the water. Mihai. Mihai had thrown the ball, which had knocked Brook off her feet. It seemed purely accidental, though. Clear dismay made Mihai's jaw drop and his eyes bulge. He rushed to help Brook get her upper half back out of the water. He even patted her back and swiped her sopping wet hair out of her face. The poor girl was coughing and whining.

Ana went to her beach bag and pulled out a book. She leaned back and let her sunscreen soaked legs stretch out. She might as well have been a marble statue, especially under the sunlight. Did Vlad like her pale skin? Was he that kind of fellow? Did he even have a skin tone preference? Maybe he just liked the contrast of her hair around her face?

Stop thinking about that!

Ana flipped a page in her book. It was a historical non-fiction book about Yoshiwara, which was once a sort of red light district in Japan. She loved the ukiyo-e paintings of courtesans, especially the later ones with the higher class oiran. Their overly layered clothing, flashy obi knots tied in the front, and pincushion-like hairstyles were amusing. Ana thought they often looked pregnant with those big and often round knots at their bellies.

"Hey, Ana. You want some cantaloupe?"

She looked up to see Kennedy. It seemed that playtime in the water was over. "That sounds nice. Thanks."

***

Everyone was back at the trailers. Ana was sitting outside, waiting on her parents to change clothes, when she heard a very loud, masculine curse ... and then another ... and then a third one. It sounded like one of the Dalcas. Ana walked off the porch and towards the Dalcas' trailer. Vlad Dalca was chatting with Mr. Williamson outside. He was still in his beach clothing.

"Excuse me," Ana said, walking up to the men and folding her hands together. "I heard something loud. Is everything alright?"

Vlad's eyes winced but he smiled. "That was my son. I don't know what's wrong, but if you want to talk to him before someone reports him to security, then I won't stop you. He didn't respond well to me. He might respond better to you."

"Okay. I'll check on him." Ana nodded to him and entered the unit. It was just as bright and lovely as the building Ana's family was staying in. Another upsetting curse echoed around the building's interior. Ana called out, "Hello?! Mihai?!" One of the bedroom doors was open. She went inside.

Mihai was tearing the pillows and sheets off of a bed. He looked up at her with a worried expression. "Hi. Was I being too loud?" He bent down on one knee, and then he lifted up a corner of the mattress so he could look at the space there.

"I think so. I could hear you over at our trailer."

"I'm sorry. I'm really upset. I can't find my cell phone." At this point, Ana thought she heard the front door opening and closing, then great footsteps. The father had entered the house. Mihai continued with, "Would you help me look, please? I've already checked the car, my suitcases, and my clothes."

She asked him, "Why don't you ask your dad to call your phone?"

Mihai got up and looked through a set of drawers. "Why don't you call me?"

Ana groaned. "I don't have your phone number."

"Then ask my dad to call me while I look."

"Okay, okay. I'll be right back." Ana left the bedroom and walked to the other end of the building, to another bedroom. She heard some very old fashioned violin music.

In that moment, that moment where Ana's hand went to the doorknob instead of turning into a fist to knock on the door, there was a casual feeling. It was brief and inexplicable, but it was there. It was the most likely reason why she didn't knock on the door, the most likely reason why she turned the knob and pushed the door open.

He was there, facing away from her, putting his trunks on top of the neatly made bed, right beside a cellphone that was playing music.

A bare back.

A backside so tight that Ana imagined a walnut's shell being cracked in the cleft.

Her entire body pulsed. Her fingers welded to the doorknob. Her upper eyelids lowered. Her nipples suddenly ached as if someone had been pulling on them.

The tumbling black hair shifted.

His head turned.

Rising eyebrows.

She slammed the door closed and blurted out, "Mihai can't find his phone!" Then she ran off.

Ana sprinted back to her family's unit, through the common areas, and into her room. She hugged herself as she fell onto a bed, and her thighs slammed together.

Shit.

He knew ... he knew she'd seen him. She hadn't really done anything to hide that fact. The next time she looked at his face, at his eyes, she'd have no choice but to confront the knowledge he had.

Would he be angry? Humiliated? Something else?

Ana wished she could stay in the bedroom for the rest of the vacation.

It was soon time for everyone to go to a restaurant that served seafood, burgers, and ice cold sweet tea. Ana didn't want to go. She told her dad she wanted to go for a walk instead. When it seemed that everyone else was driving away, Ana left the trailer with a lowered head and taut nerves.

Her clean toenails seemed so dull to her. Maybe she should start painting them? What color? Red? Black? Green? Why not pink? Hmmm ... maybe not pink.

Ana bumped into someone just as her boring toes reached the sand at the lake.

"Ana?!"

Fuck!

Stepping back, she looked up.

A prickle formed in her throat.

Why was Vlad here?! Why the shit was he here?! Didn't he leave with everyone else?!

God ... he smelled so comforting yet thrilling!

Thunder.

Mountains.

Rain beating against whitewashed stone walls.

Wind moaning into her ear.

Firelight turning her hands into moving silhouettes.

"Ana?! Wait!"

She felt his fingertips graze her arm as she turned around. She gripped the brim of her sunhat and bent it down in a desperate attempt to hide her face.

"Ana? Please!"

She wasn't just nervous. She didn't just have a carrot in the ass. She had a whole god damn bundle up in there. Her legs were wiggly; she was surprised she could even walk, really. Her face was so pink and so hot that she could barely breathe. So much sand was being kicked up. Her knees felt a little of the grit.

"Please! Listen to me! I'm not angry at you!"

Well, he should be, or at least he shouldn't want to see her face.

Her hand was taken even as she gripped her hat.

Taken by him, being held by him.

She couldn't move forward. She could only turn her body around.

Closer.

Closer to the thick torso in a breezy cotton shirt.

Closer to the electrifying cologne and the fierce eyes.

Closer to the unsettling lips that parted oh so gently.

She let go of her hat. That hand rose, the palm and fingers insistent against his chest. It was so firm, but she pushed against him, and she croaked out, "No!"

Her other hand was released.

Ana was able to turn back around. Her hat fell off. She put a hand to her face, almost burning her palm.

"Your hat!"

A few more steps, and then she thought to herself, "He'll have an excuse to approach me later if he has my hat."

The heat leaking out of her skin, her cheeks cooling, Ana took perhaps three breaths, and then she went to him, reaching out, looking down at the sand that was coating her sandals and feet.

He put the sunhat back into her grasp, but he said down to the top of her head, "We don't need to speak of that incident." He used a comfy yet gracious tone.

Ana put her hat back on. "Then don't speak of it." She tried to leave again, but she heard his voice, and it made her stop. She wasn't sure why.

"I hope our vacation hasn't been ruined."

"No ... it's okay. I'm going to that gift shop." She pointed at a building in the distance.

Please don't follow.

She went off in that direction.

She looked back.

Vlad Dalca was ... fondly gazing at her ... but he wasn't following.

Good.

***

The rest of the vacation went on without anything odd or upsetting happening. Sometimes, Ana would be with someone, even the Dalcas, while having a bit of fun. Sometimes she would be alone. Other times, she would stay in the rented unit and watch TV. It was an enjoyable, relaxing time.

When it was time to return home, Ana packed up her belongings with a pouting face and slow movements.

But home was waiting, and when she recalled that, she was happy again.

The calm little town Ana Davis lived in looked much greener than she remembered, but she knew that it wouldn't last. Autumn would come eventually. Browner grass and cooler air would come with it.

One day, Ana happened to run into Mihai, all by himself, at a Walmart store. She was surprised to see him. Honestly. He had enough money to go to all the higher quality stores in the world, and he was in the same building as a morbidly obese person riding an electric cart and wearing sweatpants with suspiciously brown spots in the back. Sadly, that wasn't an exaggeration. Ana had seen such a person a few minutes beforehand.

She was also surprised at how Mihai greeted her. He kissed both her cheeks. It wasn't an offensive gesture, but she hadn't expected it either.

According to Mihai, he legitimately enjoyed people watching. He whispered to her, "I like to guess what people are going to buy and follow them around to see if I was right. There are lots of normal people here, but sometimes I get to see someone who clearly has gone on a raft."

"That's fine, I guess," Ana said, "but there are crazy people everywhere. Why go here?"

Mihai shrugged. His teeth seemed to glint. "This place isn't special. I've been to many others. Cheap little grocery stores, gas station convenience stores, all kinds. Today happened to be Walmart Day."

"Okay, but do you ever buy anything?"

Mihai's eyebrows rose and he looked around as if he was looking for something. "Hmmmm ... do you think the food here's good?"

"I don't think it will kill you."

Mihai plucked can of soup away from its spot on a shelf. "Do you think this soup's good?"

"I think so, but I'm craving garbage."

"Garbage?" Mihai put the can back on the shelf.

"Beef jerky, microwave popcorn, potato chips, frozen pizza, and soda."

Mihai gave her a salute and said in English, "Yes, Ma'am. I'll get a shopping cart."

"So ... you're paying?"

Mihai's arms bent up. His palms faced the ceiling. His shrug was very, very obvious. "I'm rich, and I like you. Don't worry about it."

Junk food shopping with Mihai was a mildly amusing experience. Mihai never looked at any price tags, and sometimes he used his arm to sweep multiple objects into his cart. While he was mostly looking for edible things, he sometimes noticed something else and rushed over to it, making Ana think of a little kid.

"What's this thing?" he'd once said.

"That's a bag of fertilizer," Ana said. "Can't you read it?"

"Oh, what's that thing?"

"That's a jar of cookie butter. It's like peanut butter but cookie flavored."

"What's that over there?"

"A book section?"

"Ooooh ... what's this?"

"That's a copy of the King James version of the Bible."

Mihai gave her a wildly disbelieving look. "But ... there are yellow jelly beans wearing goggles on the cover."

"That's what happens when old people desperately try to relate to young people without doing any research. They might as well have put a grumpy looking pet cat on the cover."

Visibly cringing, Mihai put the book back and muttered, "Fads live and die faster than mayflies, it seems."

Ana giggled a little. "Even if those yellow bastards were as popular as Michael Jackson in his peak, I'd still call that book cover an embarrassment." Out of curiosity, Ana went to the bible, picked it up, and flipped through the pages. There were occasional illustrations. "Oh my fucking god," she softly said in English. "It's a jelly bean Jesus, and he only has one eye."

"Do they have any pictures from the story of Lot and his daughters?"

"I hope not." Ana did as Mihai had done. She put the book away.

This had been such a terrific outing.

Maybe in the past, she hadn't been as social as she should have been. Maybe she had been a stuck up bitch. After all, people were being so nice.

***