A variation on a classic...
"It's not going to fit." Randy grunted as he pushed the mattress into the already overloaded minivan.
"It'll be fine, just move that box to the left a little more and it'll side right in." Mitch replied as he pulled the full-sized mattress from the front. "Dad got full sheets of plywood into this thing all the time with plenty of room to spare."
With a bit of effort, the brothers were able to wedge the mattress into the aging Chrysler Town & Country alongside the box spring leaving almost no space as the bed nearly brushed the ceiling. Mitch and Randy were packing for the ride up to college. Randy was beginning his first semester at the small, private university and was required to live in a dorm, all freshmen were. His older brother Mitch, however, was moving into an apartment off campus. This required quite a bit more furniture and with their father's proclamation that he "wasn't making two fucking trips, four hours across two states, to move all your bullshit." The minivan was packed with everything that they would need for the semester.
"That should about do it." Mitch dusted off his hands and crawled out of the front passenger door as Randy closed the hatch in back.
"Wrong. You forgot about dad's luggage. He hasn't brought his bag out yet. And my backpack... and yours for that matter." Randy looked through the windows at the crowded interior of the vehicle. They'd left the passenger seat open and one of the seats in the back open to ride in, and the driver's seat, of course. The other seats had been neatly folded down, some disappearing into the floor of the minivan to make room for all the boxes, bags and furniture need to relocate two young men to college.
"Crap. What are we going to do now?" Mitch whined.
"Ask dad, he's pretty good at packing a van. Remember all those camping trips up to the mountains. He could fit the whole house in here if he had to." Randy smacked the top of the minivan like a used car salesman.
As if summoned, Greg Porter appeared in the driveway rolling his suitcase and carrying his favorite pillow. Greg never traveled anywhere without his pillow. It took an instant for him to assess the situation. "Well, I don't know how you guys managed to fuck this up, but it looks like we're gonna be one seat short." He quickly hoisted his bag into the passenger seat. "You guys will have to double up in the back since there's more leg room there than in the front." He seemed unfazed at the situation.
"No way am I sitting on my brother's lap for four hours. I'm not a child." Randy fussed.
"Yes, you are, listen to you whining." Mitch teased. "Besides, I sure as shit ain't gonna be sitting in your lap. You'd die."
Randy was smaller than his older brother, favoring his mother's side of the family. Maybe five feet, eight inches and one hundred and fifty pounds, Randy was the logical choice for the lap seat as Mitch stood about six inches taller and more than fifty pounds heavier. Mitch was broad and athletic while Randy was slight. Appearances can be deceiving, though as Randy was the one who would be going to college on an athletic scholarship for, of all things, fencing, something he'd taken up in middle school when it was apparent that more traditional sports were not going to work out, and, as luck would have it, got to be very good at it. Mitch played sports in high school but was never a standout. He continued to play at the athletic center and on club teams to stay in shape.
"Go get the rest of your bags and let's get on the road. I'd like to get unloaded at Mitch's place before we have to deal with the chaos of dorm move-in." Gary was all business on road trips.
"Fine." the boys said in unison. They quickly returned with backpacks and a small cooler of drinks for the road. The boy's mother followed them out. "I wish I could go with you, but I have that conference in Orlando starting tomorrow." she said. Hugs, goodbyes, well-wishes, and admonishments poured over the boys as they climbed into their awkward seating arrangement and their mother pushed the button for the automatic door closer. Gary backed down the driveway and sighed at the long road ahead.
Mitch and Randy managed to arrange themselves into a reasonable amount of comfort. Mitch was able to stretch his legs somewhat as Randy sat on his upper thighs.
"Good thing you don't weigh anything." Mitch said. "Hand me that pillow. It's at the top of my laundry basket. I'm going to try to sleep a little." Randy complied and grabbed the pillow for his brother. There was just enough room for Mitch to recline the seat a few degrees and wedge the pillow between the seat back and the mattress.
"Were you saying something to me?" their dad called out over the radio and road noise. "I can't see or hear shit from that side of the car."
"No, dad. Just getting comfortable." Randy replied.
"Alright, holler if you need anything. We'll stop in a couple of hours for a break." Gary returned to his driving.
