“Thank you,” Rob replied. “I’m sure I will.”
They reached the Sky Deck and Rob followed Marya to his cabin door. The screen mounted next to the door welcomed him as he opened the door.
“May I show you where everything is, sir?” Marya asked.
“Thanks,” Rob replied, “but I’m sure you have many more passengers to tend to. I’ll be okay.”
“Very good, sir. If you need anything, just press ‘3’ on your phone for the suite concierge. And again, welcome aboard.”
Marya left and Rob shut the door. He dropped his mini-backpack on the sofa and left his wheeled carry-on near the door. He wanted to look around before he did anything.Oh my goodness. Two bedrooms, two bathrooms, living room, dining room and a huge wraparound balcony! It may have been overkill for just the two of us, but Alan would have loved this!
Rob stopped, feeling a bit stunned. While that thought made him a little sad, he quickly realized it was more bittersweet than sad. Hewasfeeling better about all of this, after all. And he smiled as it dawned on him that Ben had a lot to do with that.
At that moment, his phone rang. He pulled it out of his pocket and saw Ben’s name on the screen.
“Hi there,” he said. “How’s your suite?”
“Hi yourself,” Ben answered. “The suite is amazing, but I’m sure not as grand as yours.”
Rob laughed, “Well maybe I can arrange a tour for you later!”
“Ha! I’m counting on it, Rob. So, what are you going to do now? I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m pretty excited to be on board and I want to look around.”
“Tell you what,” Rob suggested, “There’s a bar on Deck 8 called the Trident Lounge. It’s in the middle of the ship, in the area called Seaside Cove. Meet me there in about ten minutes and we can have a drink, then take a little tour.”
“Perfect. See you then.” Ben rang off.
* * *
Ben didn’t want to wait ten minutes. Pacing the living room of his suite with nervous energy, he felt antsy. As he told Rob, hewasexcited to be on board and he wanted to walk around the ship. But it was more than that, he realized. He wanted to see Rob.
Putting his phone in his front pocket, he walked out the door and headed to the bank of elevators down the hall.
When he got off on Deck 8, he looked at the ship’s map prominently displayed on the wall and tried to get his bearings. Locating the Trident Lounge, he set off to find it. He walked through a doorway marked Seaside Cove and stopped. His mouth hung open as he looked around in awe.
If he didn’t know better, he’d think he was at some resort on land with tropical plants and walkways and balconies on either side looking over the area. Looking up, he realized there was no covering overhead, just the sky several decks up.
Shaking his head, he began walking, passing a sitting area, a few restaurants, and even a waterfall. He saw a sign for the Trident Lounge and realized it had indoor and outdoor seating with a wraparound bar. He headed to the bar and took a seat on the outdoor side.
A bartender, Lukas from Croatia according to his nametag, approached him. In a deep and lightly accented voice he asked, “May I get you a drink, sir?”
“Thank you, but I’m waiting for someone. I’ll order when he gets here. Wow, this ship is amazing.”
“Your first time, sir?” Lukas asked.
“Yes. I haven’t been on a cruise for several years and it was nothing like this. Sitting here, looking around at all of this, it doesn’t even feel like a ship,” Ben replied.
“Yes, it’s pretty fantastic.” Another passenger walked up to the bar, and Lukas went to take his order.
Ben continued to look around, marveling at all he was seeing. As he gazed toward the walkway he’d taken from the elevators, he spotted Rob and grinned excitedly.
Rob smiled back and headed over. When he got close enough, Ben stood up and hugged him. “This is spectacular,” he exclaimed. “It doesn’t seem like we’re on a ship.”
“I know,” Rob agreed. “It’s pretty amazing.”
As soon as Rob was seated, Lukas appeared to ask if they wanted drinks.
Rob quickly scanned the bottles behind the bar. “Yes, Ketel One Citroen is my favorite; I’d like that on the rocks, please. With a twist.”
