Vanilla

The beginning of a summer doing nothing, I told myself, pushing the door of my mom’s apartment. My french oral was done, signing the end of the school year.

The first thing I saw behind the door was a police officer. As soon as his eyes crossed mine, he turned to my mother, a few steps behind him.

“Cinq minutes,” (“Five minutes,”) his jaded voice warned.

“Ariane !” My mother came to me, smiling so hard that I knew it wasn’t genuine.

She glared at the policeman.

“Let’s speak English, we’ll get more privacy,” she said, glancing at him again.

I had always loved the language ; she had transmitted her love for it to me. I watched shows, read and had some classes in English ; but for once, it wasn’t reassuring.

I struggled to swallow.

“What’s happening ?”

She looked down, thinking, and took a deep breath indicating a decision.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, she looked at me with compassionate eyes, both of her hands on my shoulders. “I wanted to keep you safe. You know that the company isn’t doing well lately, right ? Well, that’s just a consequence.”

She sat on the couch, massaging her temples, and turned to me again.

“I… made a mistake. That’s why I’m currently involved in an investigation. The guy isn’t here for a visit.”

I gritted my teeth so hard. I couldn’t cry, I had to stay calm ; this was an important situation. I needed to get through it and remember what was told.

I looked at her, waiting for her to continue her big speech.

“You remember Holly ? I’ve talked to you about her before. You remember her, right ?”

I nodded.

“She agreed to welcome you while I figure it out,” she said, with a I-hope-it’s not-too-painful-for-you face.

I froze. Of course it was painful. But did she care ?

I remembered Holly very well. I remembered that Holly lived far, far away. She was dumping my ass in an unknown place, alone.

“But you’ve always wanted to go to the USA, right ?”

She didn’t stop. No apologies, no guilt.

I tried not to be upset, but I felt the knot in my stomach getting tighter as I imagined how I’d have to rebuild everything from scratch on another continent.

“Ariane,” she snapped her fingers in front of my eyes.

“What did you do ? What are you accused of ?”

She looked down.

“I… I can’t tell you. You’ll have news, okay ?”

“By whom ? Your lawyer ?”

She bit her lip. That’s really it, then.

The policeman warned us that time was over. My mother glanced at him, worried, before turning back to me, trying to stay calm.

“I know I’m not the best mother, but I’ll try as much as I can to get us out of there, okay ?” She spoke fast as she grabbed an envelope on the table. “I booked the bus ticket you need to get to the airport and your plane ticket, in a few hours ; there are the necessary papers in there too, like your ID. I packed your suitcase, and even your travel bag.”

The police officer advanced towards her.

“I’m so sorry Ariane, I wish I had time to– I love you,” she hurried, the officer pressuring her. “We’ll call, okay ? Definitely. It’s going to be alright. Don’t worry.”

Don’t worry. She dared.

I could see that the policeman made her more anxious than the situation she was leaving me in. She gave me a small kiss on the forehead before following the officer.

After panicking and getting lost twice, I finally found my way to my plane.

I felt some kind of relief as I sat down. I knew where I was going. Nothing big was going to happen for the next few hours. Only one stop ; I couldn’t miss it. A few hours of “peace”, during which I could maybe finally process what had happened. Or occupy my mind and avoid it.

I discovered that Holly had my phone number when I received a text, as soon as I got off plane mode.

“Hey, it’s Holly (and Mary-Lynn) ! We’re waiting for you next to the Arrivals screens. Don’t worry and text us if you need.”

I found them after five minutes of wandering around and apologizing to people I hit with my suitcase.

The first one I saw was a pretty lady, probably in her sixties, in a black turtleneck and slim high-waisted blue jeans, with a ponytail of white hair and a smile that reminded me of my Grandma. The other was a blonde lady, in her fifties, wearing a white blouse tucked in a black pencil skirt. She first looked like a business woman, focused and serious, but her cheerful and welcoming face showed me wrong.

The blonde lady hugged me, and I could feel her enthusiasm. She started to speak, quickly ; it was probably caused by stress. Weirdly, knowing that she was also nervous reassured me.

“Hi !” She smiled. “I’m Holly. I’m so happy to meet you ! You’re truly gorgeous. You’ve got your mother’s eyes. If I remember well, of course,” she started to babble. “This is Mary-Lynn, our…“ She paused, hesitating, before suddenly looking up and smiling. “Well, she’s supposed to be the cook, but she’s part of the family now. I keep talking and talking, but you probably want to head home, don’t you ? It’s probably a tough day for you. We have a pretty long car ride, so I guess we’ll talk then. And I didn’t let you talk, I’m sorry…”

It felt like receiving cold water on the face. A bit nice, a bit surprising but mostly overwhelming.

“Well,” I swallowed as I thought about what to answer. “I’m Ariane, I’m 16… And I don’t have a thrilling life, so that’s approximately it,” I awkwardly smiled.

“And what do you like to do in your free time ? What kind of person are you ?”

I nervously laughed. What are those questions ?

“Well, I cook, I play volleyball, I watch series, I used to read a lot…”

“Oh, you’ll get along with us, then,” she said, and I was relieved that she caught the opportunity to talk. “Most of us are playing volleyball.”

“That’s nice,” I sincerely smiled.

“You’re safe with us. And stable. Your mother is… spontaneous. I don’t think she likes stability or routine. But here, things are settled and we’re not planning on moving out soon. The house is pretty big, I’ll ask Nate to make you a plan. It’s a bed and breakfast with some hotel features, so it’s a routine, although not always a calm one. We plan, we manage, we cook, we help where help is needed. You can guess,” she waved her hand in the air. “It’s a big terrain, though, so you’re probably going to find something you like. We have a path to the beach, for example, which you’re probably going to like. The high school is great, too, Nate and James can probably talk to you about it.”

“You have children ?” I asked, surprised.

“I thought your mother would have told you,” she frowned, before thinking. She grabbed her wallet and took a picture out, which looked like the ones you take in big family gatherings, with your cousins, uncles and whatnot. She pointed at a little girl. “The last one is Maddie, she’s five. I’ll try to find something to tell you about her,” she awkwardly chuckled. “She’s good at reading, very enthusiastic, and probably going to love you. Then you have Clarke, he’s eight and is mostly a little nerd. He’s a bit distant at first, but he’ll warm up if you give him something sweet. I got you covered,” she showed me a chocolate bar in her purse. “Haley is twelve, she’s sewing wonderful clothes and loves fashion. Florence is thirteen, she draws and paints with a lot of talent. What can I say, I have talented kids,” she laughed. “I used to work in fashion, so I guess that Haley got it from me. Most of my kids have a creative spirit anyway.”

“Well, that’s a big –and talented– family. I can’t wait to–”

“Oh, I’m not done,” she interrupted me. “Here are Drew and Thomas, twins and fourteen and really… playful when you know them. Ah ! James. He is your age, pretty quiet at first, so don’t be surprised. Then you’ve got Nate. Don’t call him Nathan, he unfortunately doesn’t like being called by the name I took months to pick,” she sighed. “He’s seventeen, cooks pretty well. And unfortunately in Canada at the moment, you have Tripp. He’s twenty-one, studying to become a doctor, very hard-working, and… away,” she sighed again.

“That’s… an even bigger family,” I awkwardly smiled. “My mom didn’t give me a lot of information,” I explained, trying to justify my questions. “Are you a single mother ?”

“Well, no. I had Tripp with medical help with my ex-wife, but otherwise they’re all mine and Edward’s. We’re really proud of them,” she said, her eyes glowing and her mouth unconsciously smiling.

“Are you married or… ?”

“We’re engaged. We didn’t really have time. He was an engineer, but stopped when we started the bed and breakfast. He likes being a tour guide, and customers love him. I should have known it when I met him ; he has always loved history and cultural stuff. You’ll often see him with clients, he’s really proud of the B&B.”

“Oh, I guess we’re there earlier than I expected,” she said, after noticing a road sign. She had talked a lot about what was waiting for me, trying to reassure me. “Our house was renovated two years ago– Oh, that’s the route to our home,” she interrupted herself, as Mary-Lynn drove the car under an arch as wide as the little road we were taking, leaving the main one.

I saw a wooden “Jones B&B” sign a few meters after the arch, announcing the destination. My eyes grew wider as we moved. Fields with many colorful flowers, a lake, a little forest, a huge garden passed before my eyes. I knew I hadn’t seen everything, which was even more astounding. We drove through a few kilometers in the middle of green grass fields, maybe orchards, according to the number of trees. I noticed some little houses in the middle of fruit or blooming trees. Some in the branches of trees, others on the ground. Most of the little houses were white, with wooden white walls and roofs that seemed transparent –which I was going to investigate and clear, because it really seemed impossible. I also noticed what looked like tree-climbing platforms and ropes, and I think I could even see some people with harnesses in it.

We arrived at a big modern house. It was around four or five floors, with many windows on the gray stone walls. It looked like the perfect hotel in ads. In front of it, white tables and chairs, what looked like a bar under a canvas roof, and some beach umbrellas were arranged. It truly looked like a perfect place to relax.

It was the middle of the afternoon there ; the sun shone on the heavenly decor.

Mary-Lynn took the roundabout a few dozen meters before the house, and we took the little road going past the house to a parking lot, shadowed by the building. The other road had a “Beach” sign. A freaking “Beach” sign.