Aim to Please (wlw)

ch. 18 • winter wonderland

Imagine having the perfect holiday vacation dangled in front of you, only to have it ripped away by a pair of vindictive women. Two weeks of walking the historic streets, with ample opportunity outside of work to dawdle and gawk.

Instead, Laurie and I were sending Jayce, Ellie, and Aja off in our stead. We just pulled away from La Guardia in our rental SUV after wishing them safe travels and exciting times.

I was feeling particularly sour. Bitter. Angry. Bratty.

A sleepy silence blanketed the SUV. Daybreak had not even occurred, but our journey was already 2 hours in. Once we dropped off our little fashion trio, Laurie immediately headed north and hopped on the 87.

"Mackenzie," Laurie sighed, running a hand through her speckled hair. "You are making me turn gray with your angst, my darling."

"I wanted to go to Milan," I whined pathetically. "Not only am I missing out on seeing Milan in the winter, I'm also missing out on a 2 week vacation with my girlfriend."

My eye throbbed and I groaned, leaning my head against the window. The pain was substantially less than what originally plagued me, but still intense at times. The pressure bandage was doing a phenomenal job at keeping everything in place, but the everyday use was getting tiring.

"Please, mon cheri. Sleep. It will be quite a while before we arrive."

I yawned quietly and snuggled into the seat, situating my throw blankets across my shoulders. "Where are we going?"

"A surprise," Laurie replied softly.

"I promise I'm not actually too upset," I mumbled sleepily. "I love you."

"I love you too, my beautiful darling."

•

At some point, I fell asleep. Then I wafted through various levels of consciousness— nearing slumber, nearing awake, but never fully on either side. This dance continued for an endless stretch of time. Mostly, my ears picked up various pop or R&B songs, with Laurie singing along. Her voice allowed me to drift closer and closer to sleep each time.

"A meeting? For what, exactly?" Laurie's enraged exclamation startled me back into full consciousness.

Never mind.

The angrier she got, the more her French accent came out to play. It was hard to take her seriously when she sounded so irresistible. I tuned in but kept my eye closed and breathing even.

"For a plea? For some sort of bargaining? And what does Mackenzie receive from this...this...conversation? Dégage!"

Lawyer?

"Ah— Ah, non— Tu écoutes!" Her fist came down on the steering wheel. "Un moment, s'il vous plaît."

The please was drenched with sarcasm. I cracked my eye open, just barely enough to see through my lashes. Laurie settled her phone on her thigh and dug around the center console. She produced a pack of cigarettes and a lighter, slipping one of the white cylinders between her glossed lips.

Her knees cradled the steering wheel, keeping the car on a straight path as she lit the cigarette and returned to her phone call. Once the pack and lighter were settled back down into the center console, her hand languidly draped on the bottom portion of the steering wheel, her fingers split against the divot. Between her driving stance and her messy bun, the tenseness of her jawline and the smoke wisping out of her nostrils—

God damn, I'm lucky.

"Je m'en fous!" Laurie groaned frustratedly. "I do not give a singular shit about either of them. But fine— do what you will think is best. The next 3 days are for us. Do not call again."