Chapter 2: Arrival and the Hot Tub
Samantha
Saturday, May 11, 2019; 11:06pm
Dear James,
Greetings from the beautiful beaches of the Mayan Riviera - we made it! As per your request, this is my first entry into my digital diary to keep you updated on our exciting adventures. For each entry, I will set the scene with the basics of our trip, and then I'll proceed with a description of any (cough cough) extracurricular activities you're permitting me to engage in. Not to say there were any to report on this first day - or were there?
To begin, it was a
long
day of travel. After you dropped Jenny and me off at the airport, we cleared customs, made it to our terminal, grabbed some cups of coffee at Starbucks, and waited for our plane. Ho hum, nothing too exciting so far. We boarded our plane for an on-time departure, settled in to a fairly full flight to Cancun, and away we went.
Jenny is a total riot. After we took our seats on the plane, me in the window seat and Jenny in the middle, Jenny plopped her bulky, fur-lined jacket right into the aisle seat next to her. "What?" she said, "Planes are fucking cold!" I'd wondered why she was carrying that thing around in the airport. The jacket won't do her much good here in Mexico, but it sure kept other people from taking the seat! Anyway, the privacy turned out to be really convenient. I'd briefed Jenny on the details of our - situation - before we left, but she was definitely still curious.
"So show the rules to me again," Jenny requested once our plane was in the sky.
"Okay." I pulled up the Notepad app on my phone and let her reread the rules.
"I can't believe James is letting you do all that." She grinned in amused disbelief. "You finally get to experience life as a single girl!"
"I guess you're right," I said. "So - anything I should know about the single life these days?"
"Hmm. Well, we're going to an adults-only resort, and you won't be walking around with a guy, so everyone there is going to assume you're single, and every guy there is going to want to sleep with you."
Her frankness caught me off guard, and I laughed. "That easy, huh?"
"That easy," she said. "I know you and James go everywhere together, but now that he won't be around, you're in for an awakening. You'll be fighting off fellas left and right."
"Don't be absurd," I replied. "I'm sure it won't be like that. I don't know if an opportunity will arise, and even if it does, I have no idea how I'll respond if someone tries to flirt with me. I'll probably be scared to death!"
"Trust me," Jenny said, pulling a sleep mask over her face. "We'll find out pretty quick."
I took her sleep mask as a sign that she was out of tips for moment. I, for one, was too nervous and excited to sleep. I pulled out my in-flight magazine and started working on the crossword puzzle - which I completed, by the way! - and anxiously awaited the next step in our journey.
***
Everything in our travel itinerary went off without a hitch. The rental car agency had our vehicle, and Jenny's knowledge of Spanish ensured we got everything we asked for. From there, we got our car (the blue convertible Volkswagen Beetle you'd ordered us) and began the hour-long drive to our beachside resort. I must say, driving in Mexico is utterly
terrifying
. As I drove down the one-lane highway, setting the cruise control exactly at the speed limit as per usual, I realized the other drivers were horrible tailgaters.
What the frick?
There wasn't a passing lane, so I wasn't sure what I should do. I really wished you were here to do the driving, James, and with sadness in my heart, I realized it was the first of many times I'd be wishing you were here with me.
At one point, a truck crossed the center line and pulled up next to me, blaring its horn as it roared by. I watched as another car pulled over to the shoulder to allow the truck to pass. Lesson learned - shoulders in Mexico are for letting drivers pass.
Driving went more smoothly after I learned that little trick. We were soon at our resort, valet took our vehicle, and we received our room keys at the check-in desk. They also gave us pink wristbands to identify us as guests of the resort, as of course the amenities are all-inclusive. I noticed a few people at the end of the check-in desk receiving a green pair of wristbands instead.
"What are the green wristbands for?" I asked the desk clerk.
"Those wristbands are for VIP," she said. "They're for guests who purchase our deluxe suites; it ensures them premier service, additional dining options, and access to the VIP area in our nightclub."
"Fancy," I remarked, dreaming of the day when you and I can have the VIP experience.