Once Upon a Summertime (2 page)

As she cleaned the dark green plastic laminate countertop, she remembered how she used to bring a small bouquet of flowers with her every Monday. She'd pick them up at the Safeway store the night before and arrange them in a vase at Grandma's, and in the morning, feeling optimistic about the upcoming week, she'd place her perky blooms on the corner of the reception desk. She realized she probably appreciated the flowers more than anyone else. But after a few months,
and after both the vase and flowers went missing one time too many, she gave up that habit.

With her regular chores done and the reception area tidier than usual, Anna was bored. Drumming her fingers, she stared at the clock. Because checkout time was 11:00, she didn't expect to be very busy until a quarter till when a few guests would trickle down to check out. It would pick up around 11:00, and sometimes there would even be a short line by 11:30. It amused Anna how guests seemed intent to stretch their stays at the Value Lodge to the very last minute, as if they couldn't bear to part with such luxurious accommodations.

Eventually the guests began checking out. She didn't feel too surprised when the dad from room 212 complained about the disruptive noise from the rowdies last night. She had expected this. Smiling, she pointed to his receipt—the one she'd already reprinted and adjusted earlier.

“I'm so sorry for your inconvenience, Mr. Ramsay,” she said with a look of sincere concern. “As you can see, I've discounted your bill by twenty percent and included a discount coupon for your next visit with us. I hope that will help.” She pointed to his kids, who were waiting with his wife. “Count your blessings that your children aren't teenagers yet.” She smiled. “I'm sure they'd never be like that anyway.” She slid the papers to him, and just as she expected, he simply nodded and thanked her.
Preemptive
, she thought as she told them all to have a great day. Now if she could only be preemptive when it came to her own life. Was there no action to take, nothing she could do, no way to change this dead-end route her life had taken?

Anna always took her lunch break at
1:
0
0
because it was the last lull before check-in time at 3:00. Not that it would be particularly busy today since it was only Thursday. But since she'd promised to meet Marley, she promptly left at 1:00 and headed straight for Lou's Café. Despite her earlier embarrassment, she was looking forward to catching up with her old friend. They had known each other since eighth grade, and although they'd never been best friends, they had always been good friends. Anna hadn't actually talked to Marley since their five-year high school reunion several years ago, but as far as Anna knew, Marley was still living out her childhood dream by teaching foreign languages in an Indianapolis middle school.

“I reserved us a table,” Marley said as she led Anna through the noisy café. “Right back there.”

Soon they were seated in a corner booth that looked out the window onto Main Street. “Just like old times,” Anna said as she set her purse on the seat next to her. “It's so great to see you, Marley.”

“I know.” Marley pushed a strand of short blonde hair behind an ear. “I was so shocked to see you in town. I'd envisioned you managing some posh hotel in Dubai or Martinique . . . not the Value Lodge. I'm surprised my mom didn't mention it to me.”

Anna shrugged. “No offense, but I don't really come in here much.”

Marley laughed. “What? You're not still into cheeseburgers and fries?”

“Not so much.” Anna picked up the laminated menu. “But tell me about you, Marley. How do you like teaching? Is it everything you hoped it would be?” Anna had come prepared with a short list of questions for Marley, hoping to divert the conversation from herself and onto her loquacious friend for as long as possible. The last thing Anna wanted to do right now was to talk about her own dismal career.

“I'm not teaching anymore.” Marley's eyes twinkled. “Those middle-school monsters drove me absolutely bonkers.”

“Seriously? You quit teaching?”

“That's right.” She nodded. “And you'll never guess what I've been doing the past couple years.” She waited as if she expected Anna to figure this out.

Anna tried to think of a clever response, but for as long as she'd known her, Marley had always wanted to be a schoolteacher. “I give up.”

“I'm a flight attendant.”

“No way.” Anna shook her head in disbelief. The image of her slightly intellectual friend serving ill-tempered travelers soft drinks and peanuts was just too weird. This was the sort of job that someone like Marley would've made fun of back in their high school days. “Are you serious?”

“Absolutely.” Marley nodded. “I know, I know. I'll admit that I used to think of flight attendants as glorified waitresses in the sky.” She waved her hand to where Kellie Jo was balancing a large tray of food on one arm while unloading it with the other. “Not so different than working here. But it turns out I was wrong.”

Anna was trying to absorb this. It almost sounded as if Marley's career track wasn't going much better than Anna's. “Well, I suppose being a flight attendant is just another part of the hospitality industry—only at a higher elevation.” She imagined Marley wheeling a beverage cart down a tight aisle as she catered to disgruntled passengers. Maybe it really wasn't so different from Anna's job.

“Because of my fluency in languages, I passed up domestic and went straight into international. I'm getting to see the world, Anna. Going to all the exotic places I'd dreamed of seeing. It's been totally amazing.”

“Really?” Anna felt blindsided. “You honestly
enjoy
the work?”

“I love it.” Marley started to list all the countries she'd visited recently—and it was impressive. “International flights are far more civilized and cultivated than domestic. According to the other flight attendants, it's a whole different clientele.” She laughed. “And, hey, it's not a bad place to meet eligible men.”

“Interesting.”

“Oh, I probably won't do this forever. Although there are attendants who work clear into their fifties and beyond. But right now I'm having such a great time, I have no intention of quitting anytime soon.”

“Wow.” Anna didn't know what to say. Part of her was
shocked and another part was seriously envious. Imagine being paid to travel the globe! “It sounds really exciting, Marley. Very cool.”

“The icing on the cake is that I'm based in New York City,” Marley continued with enthusiasm. “It's a wonderful place to live. I share an apartment in Greenwich Village with three other flight attendants. I'll admit it's pretty cozy when we're all home at the same time, but thankfully that rarely happens. And our apartment is so close to everything. I mean, you've got Manhattan, SoHo, great shopping, world-class restaurants, and the subway will take you anywhere you want. Well, anyway, I don't want to go on and on. But I certainly can't complain.” She beamed. “It's like I'm living my dreams.”

“I'm so happy for you, Marley.” But if she was that happy, why did she feel on the verge of tears?

Fortunately, as Kellie Jo came to take their orders, Anna got a brief reprieve to gather her emotions, but as soon as Kellie Jo left their table, Marley turned her full attention on Anna. “Okay, now tell me, what's going on with you, Anna? I mean, it's so weird, I can hardly wrap my head around it—
you
working at the Value Lodge.” She shook her head. “Last time I saw you, you were dreaming about managing a five-star hotel in some exotic locale.”

“Yes . . . Well, dreams can change.”

“But you're such a smart, classy girl—I always felt certain you would go far.” She made a sympathetic smile. “I assume this is just temporary, right? I mean, what are your plans after the Value Lodge?”

Anna bit her lip. “To be honest . . . I'm not really sure.”

“But you always had such big plans. Bigger than mine. I just wanted to teach foreign languages. But you were going
to travel and work overseas.” Marley frowned. “What happened?”

“Well, my grandpa died right before I finished my bachelor's degree,” Anna began slowly. “Grandma was so lonely. And you know how she took me in when I was a kid, back when things fell apart with my parents. Anyway, Grandma sold her little house over on Vermont Street in order to help me with my master's program, and I really felt like I needed that extra degree to land a good job in hotel management. So when she suggested I come back here to live and work for a while, well, it was hard to turn her down.”

“You felt like you owed her?”

“Sort of. I was concerned about her being alone too. I could tell she was depressed. And really, I'm all she has.”

“That's understandable.” Marley nodded sympathetically. “Very generous on your part, Anna.” She reached over and patted Anna's hand. “But you've always been kind and thoughtful like that. Setting aside your dreams to help your grandmother, well, I get that. She's a sweet lady. How's she doing now?”

“She's doing great. She's actually made a lot of friends at her apartment complex. There are lots of retired singles living there. She plays bridge and bunco, and takes tai chi classes, belongs to a book club as well as a theater group. She's really made a great adjustment.” Anna laughed. “To be honest, my grandmother's social life is way busier than mine.”

“So why are you still there?” Marley looked puzzled. “And still at the Value Lodge?”

Anna explained about needing managerial experience, and about how she'd been able to pay back her student loans. “It seemed to make sense at the time. I figured I'd give it a year
. . . and then it turned into a second year.” She sighed. “Sharon and Rich Morgan own the motel, and they'd been friends with my grandparents for years, and I sort of thought I was going to have a more active role. They gave me the impression they were going to make some big improvements, and that was kind of exciting.” Anna frowned. “But it hasn't really panned out.”

“Back to my question.” Marley leaned forward. “Why are you still there?”

Anna pressed her lips tightly together, slowly shaking her head. “I honestly don't know.” As Kellie Jo set their drinks down on the table, Anna let out a long, sad sigh. Seriously, why
was
she still here?

“Look, Anna, I really don't like telling people what to do—well, unless it's a stubborn middle-school student who needs a swift kick in the behind.” Marley took a sip of her soda. “But you seem stuck to me.”

Anna just nodded. “I know.”

“Have you talked about this with your grandmother? Told her how you feel?”

“She thinks I'm lucky to have a job. She hears all these stories about twentysomethings who've finished college but just can't seem to launch their careers. She's worried that's going to be me.”

“But you're not like that, Anna. You've got initiative,” Marley assured her. “You want to go places. You have drive.”

“Do I?” Anna really wasn't so sure anymore. She watched as Kellie Jo arrived with their orders, smiling and making pleasant small talk as she efficiently arranged their food on the table. It seemed like Kellie Jo had more initiative and drive than Anna. The truth was that in the last year, Anna had begun to feel as if she were settling. Like she just didn't
care anymore. As much as that bothered her, she didn't really know what to do about it.

“You used to be such a dreamer. You wanted more,” Marley said quietly after Kellie Jo had left. “I can't believe you've changed that much.”

“Do you think working at the Value Lodge has impaired my reasoning skills?” Anna asked meekly. “Like there's something in the air there, or the water? Something that's messing with my brain, killing my ambition?”

Marley laughed. “Well, I suppose that's possible—in a sci-fi flick. But I don't think that's your problem.”

“You don't think I've been brainwashed?” Anna gave Marley a wry smile as she squeezed lemon into her iced tea. She knew she was being silly, but sometimes it felt like all the Value Lodge employees had undergone a group lobotomy—making them unmotivated and complacent with their substandard work ethic.

“Well, I suppose you could feel that way. Still, it's not too late to escape. You could make a change. I mean, if I could quit teaching middle school, you ought to be able to walk away from the Value Lodge.”

Suddenly Anna felt uneasy. She vividly remembered how helpless she'd felt when her father had abandoned her and her mom—and how her mom had fallen completely apart. As a result of her parents' issues and ineptness, Anna had been personally acquainted with poverty. She knew what it was like to be hungry or to spend a night in a car because no one had paid the rent. If not for her grandma's intervention, she might not have survived her childhood. Was she really willing to give up a dependable job that was slowly filling her savings account?

“You look like a deer caught in the headlights.” Marley chuckled. “How hard would it be to quit your dead-end job?”

“But what would I do? Where would I go?”

“Oh, Anna, there must be dozens of great hotel jobs out there.”

Anna could hear her grandmother's voice in her ear saying, “A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.” She slowly shook her head. “I don't know. I've heard the jobless rate is on its way up again.”

“Have you done any online searches?”

“No . . . I wouldn't even know where to begin.”

Marley stopped with her turkey sandwich halfway to her mouth. “I have an idea, Anna. Why don't you become a flight attendant? I can introduce you to my—”

“No thank you.” Anna firmly shook her head. “I've only flown twice, and both times it was awful. I'm really uncomfortable in planes. I mean, it's a nice job for you, and I do believe in hospitality, but trust me, I would make a lousy flight attendant.”

“Too bad.” Marley frowned.

“I'm sorry to be such a buzzkill,” Anna said. “I wanted us to enjoy our lunch and catching up, and here I am bringing us both down.”

“You're not bringing us down, Anna. I just want you to see that the Value Lodge is not the end of the line. You can't give up on your dreams.” Marley set down her sandwich and pulled out her smartphone. “Hey, I've got an idea.”

Anna focused her attention on her beef and barley soup while Marley checked into whatever it was she was so interested in. Hopefully she understood that Anna had meant it—she could not possibly be a flight attendant. She'd rather
put on one of those silly uniforms and start working right here in Lou's Café.

“There,” Marley said as she set her phone on the table. “I just texted my brother.”

“Max?”

“Yeah. He lives in New York too.”

“How nice for you.”

“It is. Anyway, Max and his wife—”

“Max is married?”

“Yeah. Just last winter. I actually brought them together.” She smiled with pride. “Max was already working in New York. A great job in an accounting firm. I had met this girl I knew would be perfect for him. Her name's Elsie and she's a doll.”

“A flight attendant too?”

“No. Elsie has this great little shop in SoHo.”

“Really? What kind of shop?” Anna had no idea where Marley was going with this, but she was relieved to have the spotlight off of her—and off of her sad little life.

“It's called Elsie Dolce. It's like a bakery, a chocolatier, a patisserie—all wrapped up in one little shop. Sweets and cakes and chocolates, oh my.”

“Sounds nice.”

“Yeah, you barely walk in the door and you are assaulted by all the calories just floating through the air. Decadently delicious.”

“Yum. Suddenly I'm craving dessert.”