**Disclaimer : This is a work of fiction. Any resemblance of characters to actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. The Author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited.**
Day 1. 5:00 PM (EDT)
Olga and Richard board their newly acquired house and drive towards the capital city of Canada, along the Ottawa River. There, they've got some paperwork to do and a lot of equipment to buy. The city is only 2 hours away. A highway runs between the plains and forests of Quebec. First come the fields, stretching as far as the eye can see. Then the trees show up. Everywhere. Endless. They have only just started their journey across America, though Richard and Olga are already stunned by the immensity of the land. They have seen many forests and fields in France. Nonetheless, a strange feeling of infinity strikes them here. As they dive into the oceanlike forest, full throttle on the highway, they savor the first miles of freedom.
From their hectic afternoon, and probably jet lag too, fatigue falls upon the couple very quickly. Olga is already dozing on the passenger seat. Richard glances at her.
-- I'm very drowsy too. We'd better stop for the day, he says.
Halfway between Ottawa and Montreal, Richard turns off the highway onto smaller roads and heads for the river. There is not much here to see and not many people to meet. A few scattered houses line the road that leads to the river. Some farms too. Finally, they find a small gas station: two pumps are flanked there, next to a small house whose first floor has been transformed into a store. Advertising posters cover a sky-blue wooden wall. Pennants decorate the entrance. A "dΓ©panneur", that's what they call it here. Richard parks the camper on the parking lot.
-- Don't move, I'm going to buy something to make us sandwiches, he says, turning the engine off. Do you want anything?
Olga half-opens her eyes, leaning against the window.
-- Mayonnaise?
-- That... you know I'm gonna get you some. Nothing else?
She weakly nods as to say no. Richard leans over her and places a kiss on her cheek. She has already closed her eyes. Still, she smiles back at him. He jumps on the ground and shuts the door behind him.
Richard comes back a few minutes later with a plastic bag in his hand. He opens the side door of the camper and store the purchases in the fridge and in the cupboards: a pack of sandwich bread, a jar of pickles, slices of ham, cheddar cheese and a big tube of mayonnaise. Also, chocolate for tomorrow morning. When he reaches for his seat, Richard realizes that Olga has fallen asleep. He sits quietly and hits the road again, in search of a good spot to crash. A few moments later, he finds a place to spend the night along the shore. The sun is only starting to set but their biological clock rings midnight. Slowly, Richard wakes his girlfriend.
-- Hey... I found us a nice place. Do you want to go straight to bed or have a snack first?
-- Snack first, she mumbles.
-- OK. I'll make the sandwiches.
Richard grabs the groceries out of the fridge, then sits down on the bench. He puts two slices of bread on the table. He drops a tiny bit of mayonnaise on the first; literally plasters the second one with it. Olga joins him, settling on the other side of the table. She rubs her eyes then watches him prepare the food, captivated. A slice of ham. A slice of cheddar cheese. Pickles. Mayonnaise again on the one sandwich that is already full of it. Finally, he closes with another piece of bread. Olga grabs the mayonnaise-filled sandwich and takes a big bite.
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