“Great.”
Fernando approaches the car and clicks the button on the key fob, glaring at the trunk. “We’ll have to fit what we can and ship anything we don’t need ahead.” His attention travels to his luggage. “If you give me a couple minutes to repack, I can squeeze most of my stuff into my duffle bag. I’ll have a courier send my rolling luggage to my parents’ place.”
“Nuh-uh. We’re not shipping stuff if I can help it.” I pick up the largest of the bags and shove it into the back. “All we have to do is play around a bit. There has to be some way we can fit everything.”
“Ava, it’s wishful thinking.” He crosses his arms. “It won’t work.”
“Maybe, but I’m not willing to admit defeat until I’ve given it a try.” I pick up another bag and shove it in tightly standing up. Unfortunately, it tumbles out of the trunk and to the ground. The bags are too wide for the space.
Time for plan B. Let’s try this sideways.
It takes about ten different configurations and some maneuvering of items from one bag to another, but Fernando and I successfully squeeze everything in.
Slamming the trunk shut, I lean against it, and shout, “Victory! I told you I’d make it work!”
“I’ll never doubt you again.” He bows to me. “I’m not worthy to be in the presence of greatness.”
“Oh stop. It’s just a big game of Tetris. Nothing fancy.”
We open the doors and slide into the car. Just as I start to relax, I look over and see Fernando and start laughing. It’s like something out of aSaturday Night Liveskit. His legs are so long, they’re crammed close to his chest and touching the steering wheel. His arms spill over the invisible border between the two seats.
He rests his head on the steering wheel, his own body shaking with laughter. “There’s more room in the trunk than in the front.”
“Best moment of the day.” I have a few tears streaming down my face as I hold my stomach to relax the sore muscles. “Don’t move. Before you adjust anything, I need a couple pictures.” I take out my phone and point it at him.
“I hope these won’t end up on Photogram.”
“Nope,” I say, reviewing what I have. “They’re just for me. Okay, all good.”
Fernando pops the car door open, extends one leg out, and pushes the seat as far back as it’ll go. It moves about six or seven inches, but the luggage blocks him from going any farther.
“How does it feel now? Any better?”
He slides back into the driver’s seat. It’s still a tight fit, but at least he no longer looks like a clown in a tiny car. “It’s manageable. Let’s just say I’m glad this is only for the day.” He starts the engine and passes me his phone with the map app and an empty destination tab. “You’re in charge of this.”
“What should I put in here?”
“That’s up to you.” He glances at me. “How far do you want to go? What are you in the mood to see?”
“I don’t know,” I answer honestly. “I was thinking we could aim for Seville? It was going to be one of the cities I visited from Madrid.” The muscles in his face twitch. It’s a similar expression to the one he wore when I asked how far Barcelona was from Lisbon. “From Madrid, Seville was about two hours and forty minutes away by train. But I’m guessing it’s a little farther than that.”
He nods, his lips curving up. “Seville is four or five hours from here.”
“Oh.” My face falls. It’s a good thing I’m not a contestant onThe Amazing Race.At this rate I’d be eliminated in the first episode.
“We can drive there, but I’d rather not make the full trip tonight. I’m getting tired. Are you okay if we stop halfway and get an early start for Seville in the morning?”
“Totally.” I bob my head up and down. “Especially since you’re driving. I should offer, but I’m not confident driving outside the States.”
“I’m happy to do it. I enjoy driving.” He strokes his chin. “Off the top of my head, I think the city of Tavira is about two hours from here. That’s where we should spend the night.”
“Sounds good to me.” He backs the car up while I pull up directions. It brings up a route in red. “The traffic doesn’t look bad. Your phone says it’ll take us two-and-a-half hours.”
“That, I can handle,” Fernando says.
I hit the Start button on the map and let the cool female voice fill the silence. We follow some signs out of the airport area and onto a highway that resembles the ones back home.
“So, um, there’s something I’ve been wondering about all afternoon,” I say.
