feels different from Yankee country, in a way that I liked. Everything seemed so proper and friendly, and I loved the accents.
Ashley and I spent much of the car ride to the hotel, which wasnât far, trying to imitate Texan accents. Ashley would say something like âYee-Haaah,â and Iâd shout, âRide âem, cowboy!â We probably sounded ridiculous.
We arrived at the Harvey Hotel around midafternoon. Our team filled the marble lobby in front of the counter. Other teams were also registering at the hotel, but I didnât recognize any of the girls. As our coaches and parents checked in, Ashley and I went to the gift shop, where we found a postcard picturing a man opening a trench coat in front of a busload of tourists. Written at the top were the words âEverythingâs big in Texas.â We laughed, and Ashley even bought one. You certainly didnât find postcards like that in Connecticut.
Mark wasnât supposed to arrive until around seven oâclock that evening. But as I walked through the hotel I wondered if any of the people in the lobby could be him. I had seen a picture of him, but I didnât think I would be able to recognize him in the crowd.
Ashley and I shared a room with two double beds. It was an average hotel room, except for the Bibles. There were four sitting in the nightstand. There were so many that at first I thought they were phone books. Then I thought that people in Texas must have an awful lot to pray about.
That night we were meeting downstairs for a quick meal before bed. I sat at a table with Ashley and Elizabeth. My mother, the coaches, and the rest of the parents sat away from us. I was so nervous I could hardly eat my pasta. When the waitress saw this, she teased me. âAre you sure you canât finish, Missy?â she said as she placed her hand on her hip. âYou know your little body is going to need some more fuel than that.â That was impossible, but Ashley and Elizabeth both ordered ice cream. I was so anxious I couldnât even look at it.
After the waitress walked away I checked my watch and noticed that it was already a little after seven. It made me nervous knowing that at any time Mark could walk through, and my mother was sitting nearby. But I kept pretending nothing special was about to happen. It was simply a casual dinner, teammates loading up on pasta on the night before a meet.
As soon as the check was paid we went up to our rooms. I tried not to think about Markâs arrival. I tried to act normal so that the others wouldnât get suspicious. I began to think about whether I could really pull it off. Could a man fly halfway across the country and meet me in a strange hotel without anyone knowing? I quickly banished my doubts and focused instead on how I would do it.
In the hotel room I shared with Ashley I waited and waited without a word from Mark. I tried to watch TV to pass the time. I think it was a news show like Dateline , but Iâm not sure now. I heard voices coming from the set and saw that there was some sort of picture, but that was all. I was lost in imagining Markâs voice, his words, and his face as the door to one of the hotelâs rooms swung open.
By 8:45, which felt like 9:45 to me, I was convinced that he had changed his mind and was not coming. I was disappointed. I had thought about his arrival constantly for over twenty-four hours.
I was so sure that he wasnât coming that I decided to put on my pajamas and go to bed. Ashley wanted to go to sleep too, so we both got ready. While she went to the bathroom I changed into a white camisole, a white Gap T-shirt, and then my flannel polar bear pajamas. They were my favorite pajamas, a Christmas gift from my grandparents when I was in the fifth grade. Because I had worn them so much the flannel was rubbed smooth from wear, so smooth you couldnât even tell it was once flannel. There was a hole under one armpit and a hole in
Ashley and I spent much of the car ride to the hotel, which wasnât far, trying to imitate Texan accents. Ashley would say something like âYee-Haaah,â and Iâd shout, âRide âem, cowboy!â We probably sounded ridiculous.
We arrived at the Harvey Hotel around midafternoon. Our team filled the marble lobby in front of the counter. Other teams were also registering at the hotel, but I didnât recognize any of the girls. As our coaches and parents checked in, Ashley and I went to the gift shop, where we found a postcard picturing a man opening a trench coat in front of a busload of tourists. Written at the top were the words âEverythingâs big in Texas.â We laughed, and Ashley even bought one. You certainly didnât find postcards like that in Connecticut.
Mark wasnât supposed to arrive until around seven oâclock that evening. But as I walked through the hotel I wondered if any of the people in the lobby could be him. I had seen a picture of him, but I didnât think I would be able to recognize him in the crowd.
Ashley and I shared a room with two double beds. It was an average hotel room, except for the Bibles. There were four sitting in the nightstand. There were so many that at first I thought they were phone books. Then I thought that people in Texas must have an awful lot to pray about.
That night we were meeting downstairs for a quick meal before bed. I sat at a table with Ashley and Elizabeth. My mother, the coaches, and the rest of the parents sat away from us. I was so nervous I could hardly eat my pasta. When the waitress saw this, she teased me. âAre you sure you canât finish, Missy?â she said as she placed her hand on her hip. âYou know your little body is going to need some more fuel than that.â That was impossible, but Ashley and Elizabeth both ordered ice cream. I was so anxious I couldnât even look at it.
After the waitress walked away I checked my watch and noticed that it was already a little after seven. It made me nervous knowing that at any time Mark could walk through, and my mother was sitting nearby. But I kept pretending nothing special was about to happen. It was simply a casual dinner, teammates loading up on pasta on the night before a meet.
As soon as the check was paid we went up to our rooms. I tried not to think about Markâs arrival. I tried to act normal so that the others wouldnât get suspicious. I began to think about whether I could really pull it off. Could a man fly halfway across the country and meet me in a strange hotel without anyone knowing? I quickly banished my doubts and focused instead on how I would do it.
In the hotel room I shared with Ashley I waited and waited without a word from Mark. I tried to watch TV to pass the time. I think it was a news show like Dateline , but Iâm not sure now. I heard voices coming from the set and saw that there was some sort of picture, but that was all. I was lost in imagining Markâs voice, his words, and his face as the door to one of the hotelâs rooms swung open.
By 8:45, which felt like 9:45 to me, I was convinced that he had changed his mind and was not coming. I was disappointed. I had thought about his arrival constantly for over twenty-four hours.
I was so sure that he wasnât coming that I decided to put on my pajamas and go to bed. Ashley wanted to go to sleep too, so we both got ready. While she went to the bathroom I changed into a white camisole, a white Gap T-shirt, and then my flannel polar bear pajamas. They were my favorite pajamas, a Christmas gift from my grandparents when I was in the fifth grade. Because I had worn them so much the flannel was rubbed smooth from wear, so smooth you couldnât even tell it was once flannel. There was a hole under one armpit and a hole in
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