"What do you mean?" Alani exclaimed.

"Your room has been infested with rats. We can offer you another room," The lady at the front desk said.

"This is all your fault," Alani said, hitting me.

"How is this my fault?"

"You're the one who picked this shitty motel."

"Fair," I shrugged.

"Would you like that other room?" The lady interrupted.

"What about our stuff?" I asked.

"A worker will go and retrieve everything and bring it to your new room if you choose to take it."

"We'll take it," I sighed.

"Okay, follow me," The woman said, ushering us down the hallway.

When we got to a room that was a good distance from our rat-infested old room, the lady unlocked the door for us.

"Right this way," She said.

We followed her into the small, enclosed space. It was just as old and filthy as our old room, only without the rats. When we took a look around the room, Alani and I both paused.

"Is there a problem?" The lady said, reading our faces.

"There's only one bed," Alani said.

"Do you have any rooms with two beds?" I asked.

"This is the only room available. I'm sorry."

"Should we go to a different motel?" I asked Alani.

"That's ridiculous. We'll have to move all our stuff. We can share a bed for one night."

"Okay," I agreed as the woman left.

After getting ready for bed, I came out and found Alani hidden beneath the covers with only her face showing.

"You look like a chicken nugget," I said.

"Thanks, River," She said sarcastically.

"Are you sure you don't want me to sleep on the floor?" I asked.

"Stop being ridiculous."

"Okay," I said before getting under the covers.

"Good night," Alani said, turning off the light and surrounding us in darkness. The only light came from the streetlamps outside the window, which cast a soft glow onto the bed.

Feeling awkward, I flipped, so I was facing Alani. I found that she was flipped, so she was facing me too.

"Hi," She whispered.

"Hey," I whispered back.

"Want to play a game?"

"What kind of game?"

"The get to know each other game."

"I thought you hated that name? And said that it wasn't a game?" I said.

"It's growing on me."

"Okay, let's play, and no boring questions," I said as I shifted closer to her.

"Okay. How many kids do you want to have, if any?" She said.

I paused before saying, "I've never thought about that before."

"Never?"

"Not really."

"I want to have a big family so nobody will ever be lonely," She said.

"But what about privacy?"

"We'll make sure to give each child their own room."

"Who's "we"?"

"My husband and I."

"Do you know who that will be yet?"

"Not sure yet, but I've already planned my dream wedding. It'll be on the beach on a nice sunny day with all of my friends and family. It's going to be perfect."

"Sounds nice. I haven't thought about my future like you have."

"Well, don't you want to be a teacher?"

"Yeah, that's basically all I know."

"That's not necessarily a bad thing. You're just a go-with-the-flow type person."

"So, do you plan on having any pets?" I asked, interested in learning more about Alani's dream future.

"A dog and a cat."

"And do you have names for your children?"

"Something that sounds good with my husband's last name. I haven't decided yet."

"And where do you want to live?"

"I want to live close to Ohio so that I can stay connected to my family."

"Sounds like a nice life."

"Yep."

"Let's plan your life," Alani said.

"I don't think so." I had no desire to worry about the future now. Thinking about it was something I never did because whenever I tried, I got confused and scared.

"Why?"

"Because I have no idea what I want."

"Okay, fine," She said with a yawn. I was getting sleepy too.

"Are you ready for bed?"

"I think so."

"Okay, goodnight."

"Goodnight, River."

*****

I woke up to brown curly hair splayed all over my chest. It took me a second to realize that Alani was attached to my side, with her head resting below my neck. Our legs were tangled together, and her warmth spread across my entire body, causing me to stay where I was. With our legs entwined, and my arm wrapped around her, I shifted.

"Alani," I whispered.

"Hmm?" She hummed after a moment.

"Alani," I said louder.

"What?" She asked before opening her eyes. Realization crept onto her face as she took in our current position, scrambling off me when she comprehended it.

"Sorry," She said.

"It's fine. You were warm," I said as she reddened.

"Are you ready to go? I promised Nadia that I would study with her, and I'm meeting with somebody to work on a project," She said, wanting to brush off the fact that we woke up attached to each other.

"Is it that guy that you were texting?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Just curious," I said.

"Okay, let's go."

After packing up all of our belongings and checking out, we drove off.

"Did you enjoy your first amusement park experience?" I asked.

"Besides the headache near the end, yeah."

"Good. What do you want to do next on the list?"

"Hmm. Let's dye my hair," She said.

"Really?" I asked.

"Yeah. I think I'm ready.

"Okay, let's do that tomorrow. I'll come to your dorm around 4:00. You're in charge of getting the hair dye."

"We still haven't decided on a color."

"My final vote is pink."

"I think I'm gonna go purple."

"Close enough."

"Have you ever colored your hair?" She asked.

"No way." I had never even thought about it before.

"Maybe you should dye your hair purple with me."

"Not a chance, I'll help you do yours, but that's it."

"Fine. But you're buying me food after."

"Deal."

Alani slept the rest of the ride back, and when we got to her dorm, she grabbed her stuff and left after thanking me for our weekend adventure.

When I got back to our house, I found Nelson and Victor playing Call of Duty in our living room. I sat down next to them and grabbed a controller.

"How was the amusement park?" Victor asked.

"Fun," I said. "Really fun."