"And the winners are… Adelaide Harte, Leilani Laurier, and Thea Hayden!" The woman onstage exclaimed. I leapt up from my seat, and my friends followed, both of them beaming. Going up to the stage, we received free tickets for the Palm Cruise, which was to embark two days after this. We dashed out of the theatre to where our parents were waiting, and I shrieked,
"We got it!" Instantly Mom scooped me into a hug, laughing, and Jake grinned amiably. Thea was beaming in her parents' embrace, and Leilani was talking excitedly. We all went out to the parking lot, and Mom was eagerly making plans for me.
"We have to start packing as soon as we get home, and I need to write down a list of rules…" A memory of Hayley sitting on top of my coffin and telling me that I broke the rules suddenly surfaced in my mind, and my vision went blurry. The warm May sun suddenly seemed too bright, and I sank to my knees, heaving, as black clouds swam across my vision. I blinked heavily, and faint voices echoed in my ears. Someone helped me sip something cold, and my vision slowly came back into focus. Jake was holding a water bottle, and he had his best Florence Nightingale expression on. I coughed, and Mom helped me to my feet. Thea and Leilani both valiantly held my arms, and they helped me limp to the car. Once inside, Mom turned on the aircon full blast, and Jake handed me the water bottle. The cold air and water helped me steady, and once Mom had checked that I was all right, she slowly backed out of the parking lot and started driving home, dropping Thea and Leilani off at their houses. At home, she fetched me a glass of pineapple juice and flitted around, packing while giving me cookies and milk. She packed almost all of my things, except for my clothes, and she sent me upstairs to pack, along with a plate of cinnamon cookies. I packed slowly and leisurely, munching on the cookies, and was nearly finished by the time Mom called me to dinner. The macaroni and cheese was delicious, but my excitement held back my appetite. It was a week until we were going to go.
On the day, I was up audaciously early, caught up in last-minute preparations. At last, giddy with excitement, I began to dress: a navy pleated skirt, a boat-necked white blouse, and white non-skid sneakers. After brushing my hair to a shine and pulling it back with a spreading white bow, I carried my luggages down the stairs and sat down for breakfast. Because of the occasion and Mom's Swedish ancestry, she'd written Ha en bra resa! In chocolate on the pancakes. I was only able to eat a few bites of breakfast before I jumped up from the table, dashing to answer the door. Outside stood my friends, with mountains of luggage behind them and a cab chugging at the curb. Mom waved me off with last-minute reminders and cautions, and the cab raced off to the dock.
"Whoa." We all stood in front of the towering, gleaming ship. Our baggage had already been carried to our compartments, and we were just admiring the vessel. At last, Leilani gestured to the gangway.
"Shall we go up, then?" Advancing slightly shakily onto the craft, which was bobbing up and down in the waters, we looked around the main deck. A few other passengers milled about. When we tired of admiring the deck, Thea pulled a passenger-and-room list out of her pocket. We had a suite, big enough for five people. There were three separate bedrooms, each with an adjoining bathroom, and a living room, a small library filled with books, a kitchen, and a small dining alcove. Our luggage was already delivered, and we busied ourselves with unpacking. We were all speedy in unpacking, and still feeling slightly shaky from all the excitement, we advanced up to the deck to watch the push-off. The harbour water lapped at the sides of the ship as they lifted anchor, and with a deafening horn-blow, the ship started to move away from the shore. A cheer went up from the sailors and the passengers as we started to gain speed.