American Vacanza

a guy we call marv • madison

I was glad my phone alarm wasn't a person, because if it was, I'd murder it on the spot.

Anyone and everyone (except, apparently, my rayPhone) knew that if you wake Madison Ray before ten, you die. So when it woke me up at the crack of dawn - five A.M., to be exact - I almost threw it at the crumbly, disgusting motel wall.

Ten minutes later, I shuffled to the room next door, trying to awaken my boyfriend before waking the sleeping evil stepsister. "Ethan!" I shouted, rapping on the worn wooden door. "Wake up, we gotta go!"

"All right, I'm coming," came the strained voice from inside. But these doors were paper-thin, and it would be a lot louder in there if Ethan was, you know, moving.

"I know you're not," I muttered carefully, "but I'm going to go wake up Siena. If you're not up by then, I'm coming in with a pot of hot coffee- and it's not for drinking."

I then marched over to Siena's room and thrust open the door, impressed by the street smarts and common sense she showed by keeping it unlocked at a shady motel. "Rise and shine, baby stepsister!" I screamed, prompting her to scream and cower underneath her blanket.

"Mad, you gave me a heart attack! And it's, like midnight! Cut me a break," she complained. "I'm tired."

"Well, you're not the one driving. You can sleep the day away, for all I care. But we want to make it through Utah today, so hop to it." I clapped my hands, and she reluctantly rolled out of bed and grabbed her suitcase.

"Let's just go. I'm tired just standing up," she replied. "And that backseat is a torture chamber. There's no WAY I'll be able to sleep."

I took deep breaths, trying to keep myself from blowing up at Siena today. I'd probably have to act mature on this trip and take care of the other two idiots in this car - and since it was a new day, I might as well start on a good note.

We left the room and went outside, where Ethan was waiting for us- so he did get up, after all. It was still dark, and the motel was downright spooky with its surrounding desert landscape and run-down amenities. After checking out with the shady attendant, we found the old, gross Ford and thee our bags in the back.

"Babe, want me to drive today?" Ethan said, his voice still gruff from waking up.

Ethan was t the best driver, so I should have said no. But a nice nap in the front seat sounded like heaven to me.

"Why not?" I asked, tossing him the keys. They flew right past his left ear, causing Siena to bust out laughing. I might have cracked a smile, too, if it wasn't five fucking A.M.

Ethan grabbed the keys off the pavement and pushed them into the ignition, while I buckled into the passenger seat. This car totally smelled like a McDonald's. Eugh.

I leaned my head against the passenger window, which had gotten surprisingly cool overnight, and looked at the barren nothingness that surrounded us. Some might say our surroundings were beautiful, a real spectacle, the glorious creation of God. If I had to describe it, I'd probably use words more along the lines of "brown, flat, and dusty."

Siena, who must have been thinking the same things I was, sighed from the back seat. "This is boring."

"You're telling me," I groaned. "All we can do is sit here."

"You know when parents say, like, 'hey, fin something that starts with every letter outside!' Well, we can't even do that, because there's just dirt."

I might be trying to be optimistic today, but that didn't mean Siena was any funnier.

"Yeah. There's no one even on this road," Ethan said, a devious glare that I knew too well in his eyes, "and everything outside of the road is a wasteland. I could kick this thing up to a hundred miles per hour and be perfectly safe."