“Mom, don’t make a scene.” Anna lowered her voice and glanced at the people waiting at the front desk. “Mark wakes up at six, and Sofia talks in her sleep. You wake up early anyway. David and I can finally get some sleep. It’s only been a week. What difference does it make?”
What did I care? At that moment, I didn’t know what to answer him, standing in the cool hotel lobby, surrounded by strangers in flip-flops and beach bags.
After the long flight and hour-long bus ride, my legs ached from the exertion and my head throbbed with exhaustion. Mark held my arm, and Sofia tugged at my skirt, eager to get to the water slide she could see through the glass doors.
I took the card, gathered the kids, and went to find building A.
In February, everything seemed completely different. Anna sat with me in the kitchen, sipping tea and showing me photos on her phone: a turquoise pool, white loungers, palm trees, and tables groaning under the weight of food.
