A Pretty Lousy Vacation

A Chapter by Ceara

Mikky's moving trip is canceled by a landslide, forcing her to stay at a hotel until the path clears.

Feeling her head bumping along the window, McAinsley realized she had a problem. And it wasn't her name.

It was her stomach, which had started feeling like something had taken a giant wooden spoon and stirred it up at the speed of sound. She tried to shift in her seat so she could try to lean against something, or lay down, but it was hard to be comfortable when there was luggage jabbing into her ribs. The taxi was crammed full of her junk; she didn't even have room to put her feet. She was forced to curl up, knees snug against her in the fetal position, legs and toes completely asleep.

With a groan, she tried to push things aside, shoving a box of clothes aside only to have her alarm clock slide out of its box and smack her in the face. While holding her forehead and checking for any blood and nursing the possible concussion, she decided that it was safer not to move anything else. Hearing the muted curses she was throwing towards her ungrateful clock, the driver piped up, tilting his head so he could seen the teenager better in the mirror.

"Are you okay back there?" He asked, eyes locked dutifully on the road. If he had looked back, he would have seen a sour face and a sulking girl, but she responded cheerfully enough to fool him.

"I'm alright, sir. Just a little..." She tossed her treasonous clock into her purse, and rolled her eyes at all the stuff around her. "Cramped."

The older man smiled in what was probably a friendly expression, but it went wasted, as McAinsley could neither see his face, nor cared about polite trivialities. "You'll be free soon enough, Miss." He assured her. "It's only an hour or so away from your destination...and we'll probably make a rest stop in about 30 minutes."

Joy. The girl thought, slouching back into her seat.

She still felt sick. She tried to stare out the window to distract herself from the uncomfortable swaying feeling, and dug her battered music player out of her pocket and stuck the earbuds in her ears, hoping music might help. The scenery was beautiful; lush trees climbing to the sky, dappled streaks of sunlight passing through the leaves, with a massive ceiling of blue hanging over everything.

Everything felt too big, too far away. She already missed the towering skyscrapers, and the sight of a bright blue sky and white clouds was something completely alien to her. The sight of mountaintops was even stranger. She didn't think even the tallest forest would replace the closeness of her former home, and everything was much too quiet. And her new home was going to be even more open--nothing said "new life" like moving to the country, right?

Three songs passed, and her stomach wasn't feeling any better. In fact, she was starting to feeling even worse. There was a growing throbbing between her eyes, and a sour taste in the back of her throat. The girl lurched forward, her ears ringing dully. "Stop. The. Car." She rasped, fingers digging into the seat in front of her.

The vehicle screeched to a halt, and McAinsley fumbled for her seatbeat, frantically pushing things off her and with sweaty hands, yanked open the door. The world spun around her as she ran behind a bush, and introduced her breakfast burrito to the ground. She wiped her mouth shakily, staring blearily forward as the driver's footsteps crunched up behind her slowly.

"Are you...alright, miss?" He asked hesitantly. He didn't seem to want to get too close to her, since he took several steps back, but she really couldn't blame him. Breakfast had been so much more appetizing on the plate she'd got it on. Everything still felt like it was shaking, though. She could feel her body trembling all the way to the soles of her feet.

Wait. She frowned, slowly lifting her hands off the ground. It wasn't her shaking....the driver suddenly wobbled on his feet, and fell with a crunch onto the gravel.

"What...what on earth?" He looked around wildly, while the girl's hands flew up to her aching head. Everything in her head suddenly felt like her skull was too small, like her brain was trying to push its way out of it. Her ears popped, and the driver swore loudly in a language McAinsley didn't catch. His hand grabbed her arm tightly, and yanked her back, slamming the both of them into the vehicle's door.

There wasn't time to question why or yell at him for unwanted touching--the earth suddenly slid away in a massive avalanche of dirt and green, like a flood of soil. The two watched in silence as the massive roar of the landslide echoed through the mountain pass.