The train slowed as they neared the university town of Montpellier. The window framed a patchwork of graffiti art, stocky condos, and concrete overhangs, before Ade glimpsed the city’s historic glory. The balconies grew taller and more ornate, and with age came beauty. Excitement fluttered in her stomach, combining with the acidic worry she’d been cultivating since they’d flown out of San Francisco on Wednesday.
“You okay there, Ady-baby?”
She cringed at her sister’s use of their family nickname. “This place looks kind of cool. What do you think?”
Stephanie beamed. “I think it’ll be the making of you.” The announcement of their arrival pierced Ade’s ears, and she cowered into the seat.
Steph rose to collect their bags. “You have your cell? Passport?Check around you.”
“Okay, Dad.” Ade huffed. She’d catalogued everything she’d brought and knew its exact position.
“I’m just being careful, honey. You don’t want to be lost in a strange place without your documents. I have no idea what the French police would make of that.”
Ade patted her pockets. “I’m good. Let’s go.” Stepping onto the platform, the evening heat hit her cheeks, and her shirt clung to her back beneath her oversized bag. “It’s hotter than home.”
“You’ll get used to it.” Steph led the way with the confidence of a seasoned traveler and checked them into a nearby hotel.
In their air-conditioned room, Ade peeled off a layer of clothes and collapsed on one of the beds, her heavy limbs exhausted from the day’s efforts. She scanned the room for essentials. The door and window locked.Adequate.The air-conditioning unit was a little loud for her liking, but she’d manage.
“I’ve turned on the shower. How about you jump in first, and I’ll get us a cold drink from the bar?” Steph scooped up Ade’s discarded clothes from the floor. “Please take a shower. Otherwise, you’ll get into something, and it’ll be midnight by the time we eat.”
Ade grunted. She could do without Steph bossing her around but chose to comply rather than stand her ground. In the small bathroom, she wiped down the surface and laid out her products. It was nothing like what she was used to at home, and she breathed through the discomfort, while her skin crawled.
Under the lukewarm jet, she closed her eyes. The journey had taken its toll on her, but the pent-up adrenaline of starting a new life quivered just beneath the surface. She was tired, for sure, but there was no way she’d sleep with the nervous excitement flowing through her veins right now.
Back in Monterey, she’d stuck a pin in life. With the mounting pressures from her supervisors to be more of a “people person,” she’d accepted the rotation into the pastoral care team just to shut them up for a while. She secretly hoped that taking care ofthe animals would take up more of her time than mentoring the amateur biologists she’d accompanied to Europe.
She closed off the shower and wrapped herself in a towel before opening the door just enough to let the steam out of the tiny room.
Steph held two champagne flutes in her hand. “Do you want to hit a couple of bars tonight?”
Ade groaned. Steph clearly wanted to start her gap year already. Whether Ade liked it or not, she’d be dragged along for the ride. What she really wanted was to tuck herself under the white cotton sheets of the hotel bed, scroll through her cell for a couple of hours, and get some rest.
Ade might’ve vomited over the realtor’s shoes if Stephanie hadn’t opened the window to take in the view. Thank God for fresh air and personal space. Her stomach lurched with all the force of a pirate-ship ride at the carnival. It would be awful to spoil the crimson leather of those fancy shoes. They looked French, but how would she know? Ade had no clue what was typical in this strange new country.
“I like your shoes.” She realized by the scrunch of the woman’s eyebrows that she’d spoken the words out loud. The interminable monologue that played on a loop inside her mind every minute of the day sometimes escaped for air.
“They’re gorgeous, aren’t they? Let’s go check out the kitchen.” Steph pulled a face behind the realtor’s back and led the way to the so-called kitchen, which turned out to be nothing more than a sink and a stovetop in the minuscule living area.
Back in Monterey, Ade and Stephanie lived in the annex of their parents’ plus-sized condo. They weren’t mega-rich by any means. But they were comfortable, and their California proportions dwarfed this tiny old-town apartment. Ade stared at the gapinghole in the ceiling. It matched one around the pipes coming out of the wooden floors. Black voids out of which anything could appear. Maybe she could keep a pet rat.
“You okay?” Stephanie bumped her elbow. “Tell me what you’re thinking.”
Ade recalled her dad’s final words of advice at the airport a few days prior:“Think before you speak and try not to offend anyone.”He’d cupped her cheeks and forced her to look at him. Then he’d kissed the tip of her nose and enveloped her in an uncharacteristic bear hug. Steph had dawdled in the tearful embrace of Pops, while they both swiped at their damp cheeks and promised to call when they could.
“This is better than everything we’ve seen today,” Ade said, which was neither a lie nor offensive…she hoped.
Steph cracked a smile and moved out of the realtor’s earshot. “With a bit of a polishing, I think this’ll do fine. That last place was a total dive.”
“I can’t afford anything better.” The paycheck bump she was promised by the faculty would be eaten up in no time at this rate.
“Unless you sub-let, I guess,” Steph said.
“No way.” The idea of sharing a space with strangers was off the cards. Ade had only managed to co-habit with one person since conception. “I can’t have people in my space. It’s bad enough at work.”
“I know, honey. I was just kidding.” Stephanie laughed. “Dad and Pops will send you some cash if you need it.”
“No, I don’t think so.” Ade swallowed the taste of white wine that persisted on her tastebuds. Last night’s dinner had turned into drinks and despite Ade’s protests, Steph had made some new friends, and they’d finished up at a club. The only reason she stuck around was because going back to the hotel was impossible on her own: she hadn’t had the chance to map the route yet.
