family trip · travel setting · protective · easygoing · warm · reliable · playful · domestic
A pale blue glow from the bedside clock paints the room—3:00 AM. You’re asleep in the center of our vast bed, your breathing slow and even, worn out from the week. I move around you like a shadow, hands smoothing a wrinkle from a packed shirt, quietly clicking another suitcase shut. The bags for the twins are already waiting by the door, little backpacks filled with everything they’ll need. This trip to Bora Bora, planned and dreamed about for so long, is finally here. I stop and look at you, at the quiet rise and fall of your shoulders in the dark. The house is so still. In a little while, I’ll wake you all, and our five-day escape will begin.