The Basics: Do you like sandy beaches? Gorgeous sunsets? Old fortresses? If so, you’re going to love Corfu!
Do you love ouzo shots? Drunken backpackers? Having a plate broken over your head? If so, you’re going to love Corfu.
We all take the nine-hour overnight train south. Leela and Kat get off in Termoli.
“This is us!” Leela says, giving me a big kiss. “Have an amazing time and I’ll see you in Rome.”
“Thank you,” I say.
“I love you.”
“I love you, too!”
“Me, too!” Kat says. “Group hug!”
We all wrap our arms around one another.
“Send me pictures,” I tell them.
“No,” Leela says. “I’m not going to bug you at all. And I think you were right about the phone thing. We should both turn them off. Disconnect to connect, right?”
“It sounds so cheesy,” I say.
“But it’s true.”
“Okay,” I say, nodding. “I’ll see you next week. And Kat, I will see you in September. Be good.” I give her a knowing look.
“I miss you already,” she says, making a sad face.
Leela and Kat step off the train, waving.
And now it’s just me.
I get off the train at Brindisi at eight a.m. My boat isn’t until ten. Jackson is going to meet me at the dock in Corfu.
Once I figured out how to make it happen, I’d responded to his ‘wish you were here’ text with:
Yeah? OK then. See you tomorrow.
Jackson: !!!!!!! Don’t tease me. Are you being serious? Please say you are.
Me: Not teasing. If you want me.
Jackson: I WANT YOU.
I smile to myself, buy a coffee to go, a bottle of water, and a chocolate muffin, and take a taxi to the docks.
It’s starting to get hot. I tie my hair back and take a long sip of water.
I find some Wi-Fi and email my mom and sister.
Hi! I’m going to Corfu for a few days with some friends. Will be trying to stay offline as much as possible, but if you need me I’m at the Agapi Hotel. Love you! See you next week!
I message Kat and Leela my details, too.
I see a group of American girls and walk up to them. “Hi,” I say. “Mind if I join you? I’m traveling by myself.”
“Of course,” one says. “Where are you going?”
“Corfu,” I say.
“Us, too,” the girl says. “Then we’re flying to London. We’re doing a semester abroad in Paris. Got any travel trips?”
“I have a ton,” I say.
And with a whistle, we’re on our way.
Seven hours later, I see him when I get off.
Jackson, Jackson, Jackson.
He’s wearing his sunglasses and his hands are in his pockets. He runs toward me when he spots me.
He lifts my bag off my back and kisses me hard.
“It’s you,” he says, smiling.
“It’s me,” I tell him, smiling too.
He carries my bag on his back and takes my hand.
We take a taxi across the island to the western area of Agios Georgios. Jackson had been staying at a hostel called the Pink Palace, where they give you ouzo shots and break plates over your head, so he thought this other two-star hotel was quieter and more romantic. We hold hands at check-in, and fall onto the bed as soon as we’re shown our room. The entire room is white. The walls, the furniture, the bathroom tiles, the bed. It’s plain, but clean and modern.
It’s also right on the water, which has a dreamlike white sandy beach.
We sit and talk in the blazing sun. We swim and laugh in the blue-green ocean. We hike over cliffs and find deserted beaches. We watch the sunset melt pink and purple across the sky. We spend a lot of time in our room. A lot of time.
He still snores. But I stay awake and listen and know I will miss the sound when he’s gone.
We don’t talk about the future.
We enjoy the island and each other.
We go into town and walk by the stands, and we try on cheap hats and shirts and dresses. I buy myself a pale blue sundress, my sister a snow globe, and my mom a silver bracelet.
I don’t check my phone at all.
Tip: Toilets in Greece will often have signs asking you to put all paper waste in the garbage bin instead of flushing it down the toilet.
If you’re sharing a room with a guy for the first time, you will probably ignore said sign. We won’t judge you. We may have ignored it too.
“So . . . ” Jackson says. It’s August 1, our last night. We’re sitting at our regular table sharing a plate of gemista. Tomorrow morning, we leave. I fly to Rome, where I meet Leela. He flies to Athens, where he connects to Toronto, and then to Vancouver.
Luckily, I found a flight to Rome for only seventy-nine euros. I am now completely out of money.
“This is it,” I say. “Our last night. For real this time.” My throat tightens.
“What should we do?” he asks.
“Oh, I know what you want to do,” I say, letting my foot find his under the table.
“No,” he says, suddenly serious. “About us.”
“Oh,” I say. “Us.”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t know,” I say. “You live in Vancouver. I live in Maryland. We don’t go to the same school. And I’ve never had a long-distance relationship. I’m actually pretty crappy at keeping in touch.”
He nods. “I’ve never even had a relationship.”
“My longest was two months.”
“This is my longest.” He motions between us. “It would be tough.”
“I don’t want to worry about you hooking up with some Ava.”
“How do you know I hooked up with Ava?”
“You did?”
“Way before Matt did.”
I shake my head. “I don’t want to worry every time I see a picture of you with some Kardashian girl.”
He blushes. “You saw that boat picture, huh?”
I make a face. “I did.”
“Nothing happened.”
I wave my hand. “I just don’t want to worry about it. I don’t want to worry about you.”
“I don’t want you worrying about me. I have enough people worrying about me. And you have enough people to take care of.”
“We would never see each other,” I say. “I’ve spent all my extra money on this trip. And even if I raided my dad’s airline points, I can’t leave my mom every few weekends to see you.” Or maybe now I can. But just because I can, do I want to? I have enough trouble keeping up with my family and friends and commuting to and from school. I hadn’t had time to read a novel just for fun all school year.
Even if my mom no longer needs my help, do I want to tie myself down again?
“I’m broke too,” he says. “I had to take a bunch of loans for school. I used all my extra cash from working at Sadie’s to pay for this trip when I was supposed to be paying off the bank.”
“What’s Sadie’s?”
“A convenience store on campus.”
“I didn’t know you had a job.”
“There’s a lot we don’t know about each other still. Although now you also know that I make terrible financial decisions.”
“Maybe,” I say. “But I’m glad you came.”
“What a summer,” he says. He sighs.
“So what does this mean?” I ask, my throat closing up.
“That we should just enjoy the moment?” he asks. He reaches for my hand across the table.
I nod. I’m going to miss him.
But, oh, what a summer.
My flight from Corfu to Rome leaves at eight fifteen a.m.
His flight from Corfu to Athens leaves at nine a.m.
We go to the airport together. It’s small and quiet. We hold hands.
We check our bags. I’ll have to pick mine up in Rome. We go through security.
I’m gate thirteen. He’s gate nineteen.
By the time we get to my gate, they’re already boarding.
“So,” he says.
“So.”
“I’ll miss you,” I tell him. My eyes prick with tears. Crap.
He pulls me into a hug.
I sob.
“This is stupid,” he says. His voice is shaking. “We can still talk, can’t we? And text? And see each other? I want to see you again.”
My heart thumps. “How?”
“I don’t know,” he says. “We can’t just end this. Do you want this? I want this. If you want this we can make it work somehow, can’t we?”
I pull back. Tears are spilling down my cheeks. “But what about . . . everything . . .”
He puts both hands on my cheeks and looks me right in the eyes.
I look right back into his.
“You won’t have to worry about me,” he says.
My heart aches. I just don’t know.
I kiss him again. And keep kissing him until everyone else is on the plane, and it’s my turn to board.
My heart is pounding all the way to Rome.
I get my luggage and then check in again for my flight home.
I have two hours to kill until I meet Leela.
I find a seat at a café, and connect to the Wi-Fi.
A message from my sister pops up.
Addison: We can’t wait to see you. Picking you up from the airport! Mom says she’s going to drive at least some of the way!!!! Fingers crossed . . .
I stare at the message. My mother is going to try to pick me up at the airport? Seriously?
I put my phone down. I sink into my seat. The truth is, I’m not sure I believe she’ll really get better. She might get better. But she might not. Am I strong enough now to handle it either way?
I think so. I hope so.
I take a deep breath and let the hope expand inside of me. Then I pick the phone back up and respond:
Fingers crossed!
Because who knows? Anything is possible.
Next I spot a few messages from Leela.
Leela: See you soon. I’m in a shuttle on my way to the airport. Hope you made it okay. I can’t wait to hear everything . . . Love you.
Leela: Also, um, Kat went back to the villa two days ago. Yes. THE villa. She told me she was going to tell you . . . I told her she should go. No regrets, right? And OMG you’re going to be so proud of me. I stayed in Rome by MYSELF. And last night I kissed a HOT ITALIAN BARTENDER NAMED LORENZO. HE HAD A SCOOTER. GO CHECK MY INSTAGRAM.
Oh wow. We are so not getting any sleep on this flight either. Too much to catch up on.
The next text is from Kat, sent two days ago.
Kat: Did Leela tell you? I’m an idiot. I know. But . . . I have to do it. Will you still love me?
Of course I will.
Then, finally, there’s a text from Jackson.
I miss you already.
All around me, people come and go, hurrying through the terminal.
I miss him too. And maybe it’s wishful thinking, but I go onto Google Maps and take a screenshot of the distance between Maryland and Vancouver. Forty-two hours by car, sixty-seven by train, eight by plane, and two hundred and sixty-five by bicycle. I send it back to him with a note.
See you soon.
Tip: Make sure to wrap all of your souvenirs carefully in bubble wrap!
Otherwise your snow globe of the Leaning Tower of Pisa will probably break, dousing your jam-stained jeans and all of your knickers in water, glass shards, and sparkles.
The end. La fin.
Meanwhile, back at Blue Springs Summer Camp . . .
Coming soon . . .
JUST A BOY AND A GIRL IN A LITTLE CANOE.