3. Sarah
Chapter three
Sarah
One Month Later
"I'm here, I'm here," I yell to the man holding a sign with my name on it, and a scowl on his face to accompany it. Goobledygook, he's probably annoyed because my plane was delayed by two hours, but it's not like I could help it. Running toward the man, I remind myself; this is not something I can change— one of the many mantras that my therapist gave me to help me cope with my stress and situations I don’t have control over . Plane delays happen, if I could change it I would. I also didn't want the plane to be delayed either.
"Ms. Norman?" he asks in a sharp tone as I stop right in front of him. I bend over, needing to catch my breath I rest my hands on my knees.
"Yes, that's me," I huff out.
"Hmm, I thought…never mind. Let me grab your suitcases. You're going to the Infinity Voyager, correct?" he asks as he takes the handle of my bag from my hand and starts walking toward the trunk of the car.
That's weird. Why would he start to say something, then stop? Then I remember that I'm wearing a sweat suit, and my hair is thrown up in a haphazard bun. Maybe he thought I would be more put together. Or that I would be dressed as if I'm going to work, which seems ridiculous, when I'm on vacation. Though it's not the first time somebody doubted I was as successful as I am by my appearance.
"I am. Thank you for all your help. It's already been a long trip," I make sure I give him a soft smile, leaving my suitcases for him to grab.
Straightening my shoulders, I climb into the backseat of the town car. Once settled, I lay my head back against the headrest. Closing my eyes, I hear the driver get in the car and we drive away. I try to take in my surroundings using my five senses, another strategy that my therapist has given me to stay in the moment. Unfortunately for me I'm an enormous ball of stress and have been forever, and even though I love my job it doesn't help me keep the stress away.
My doctor gave me a wakeup call about six months ago after a health scare I had with heart palpations.
Keeping my eyes closed, I blow a breath out of my nose. Dwelling on my stress and health will not help me. I squeeze my fingers into the seat. Something I can feel . Moving to the next step, I take a deep breath through my nose, and the driver's cologne hits my nostrils, making them twitch. Something I can smell. My tongue sneaks out and I lick my lips, the cherry-flavored gloss I have on bursts across my tongue. Something I can taste. Straining my ears, I hear the swoosh of the air conditioning coming through the vents of the car. Something I can hear.
The car comes to a sudden stop, forcing my body to jolt forward. My eyes pop open and the beautiful ocean fills my view. Something I can see. My body fully relaxes, and I can feel the stress leaving my body. Just knowing that I'm so close to my retreat fills me with joy.
I've spent the last month getting everything situated so that I won't have to worry about anything while I'm on the ship. A grin spreads across my face when I think about sleeping in, laying out in the sun, and all you can eat buffets. Some might say that as a curvy girl I shouldn't worry about buffets, but I couldn't care less. This girl loves to eat, especially when it's good eating. And I might've let others control that for me when I was younger, but not now. From the reviews, the food is supposed to be out of this world, and I'm crossing my fingers that they're true.
Opening the door to the car, I step out and breathe in the salty air. Being this close to the port, I can see the cruise ship is huge. The brochure mentioned it was a luxury liner filled with so many cool places, but I wasn't sure how true that was going to be. Thankfully, so far, it's beyond my expectations.
I'm not sure I'll ever want to leave this place. The driver pulls my luggage out from the trunk, placing it down in front of me. Pulling out cash from the outside pocket of my purse, I hand the man his tip. "Thank you for all your help."
I grab my suitcase and walk toward the line to board the ship when I hear the driver yell, "Have a glorious trip!"
Glancing over my shoulder, I give him a wave of acknowledgement. I guess things got better for him once he realized his tip was worth the wait.
Since my flight was delayed, it seems I've missed the rush of the crowd. The lines are now down to a few people allowing me to get to the front of the line easily.
"Your name and passport, please," the crewmember asks me.
Unzipping my bag, I grab out my passport and hand it to the lady. "Name is Sarah Norman."
She looks down at the tablet in her hands and checks my passport, then she looks up at me with her customer service smile, handing me back my passport. "Welcome to the Infinity Voyager, Ms. Norman. I have you checked in. You'll just need to move to the next checkpoint in line and they'll give you your room key. Have a great trip."
"Thank you," I reply as I return her smile, taking my passport back from her.
I'm able to get to the checkpoint following her directions, where the next crewmember hands me a card. "Here is the key to your room number 414. It's our standard room with a balcony view. Ronald will take your luggage, while you attend the safety meeting on deck."
The butterflies flutter in my belly as I think about how amazing this vacation is going to be. "Thank you," I say as I hand my luggage over to Ronald.
On deck, I grab a drink for myself and soak in the sun, smiling. I can't help but admit to myself and only myself that Hazel was right. This is exactly what I needed: a good dose of Vitamin D. Taking a sip of my drink, I chuckle to myself when the dirty thought pops in my mind. Maybe I'll be able to get a different type of Vitamin D too, while I'm on this ship.