Hey, Anifriends! It’s been a while since I had written anything longer than a poem, so I decided to start writing a short story instead. When I say short story though, I mean probably the equivalent of 30 to 50 pages total. This is the first part of the story and I was wanting to get some feedback before I continued on. Let me know what you think, what can be improved, etc. All constructive criticism is welcome. Thank you in advance, and enjoy.

Mom: Hi, Honey. I hope you’re doing well. When you told me you were going on a luxury cruise with your new boyfriend I was a little bit worried, but he seemed like a very nice guy when we met, so have fun and let me know how it goes.

Hey, mom. Don’t worry, I’ll be all good. Drake will take good care of me. Love ya!

 Amarie scrolled through her texts with her mom while she and her boyfriend Drake waited for their cruise to take off. She was both nervous and excited about the three-week journey that lay ahead of her. “You okay?” Amarie swallowed her fear and then turned to respond to Drake: “Yeah, I’m fine.” Today was the day that she would finally get to leave her hometown and see more of what the world has to offer.

 The two had been planning the summer trip since their one year anniversary on January 21st. A Marie had casually suggested it while the two were laying on the couch watching TV. “Hey, you know what would be really fun?” “What?” “A cruise around the world.” Drake was initially turned off to the idea, thinking that it would cost too much and it would be more effort than it was worth. But, after seeing how much Amarie was into the idea, he eventually decided to give in.

Drake got up the next day with Amarie and together the two planned their cruise. They both decided that traveling along the coast of Europe would be the most fun, and chose a cruise that would take them from Hudson Bay in New York, to the coast of Italy up until the U.K. and back. Amarie’s eyes widened as Drake went to buy the tickets, and as soon as a message came up saying an proof of purchase had been sent to Drake’s, she got up danced around the room, shouting and laughing excitedly. Drake could only watch as the love of his life lit up like a Christmas tree. He sat in the chair at his desk, admiring her. “What?” she asked, looking at his dopey smile. “Oh, nothing.”

  After the two had finished getting their stuff into their rooms, they decided to go looking for food, although it was not hard to find. The cruise ship had six levels, each with their own unique restaurants and attractions. Amarie and Drake had decided to visit a buffet on the top floor. They sat down at their table and soon a waiter was there to greet them. He took their orders for drinks, and then he was off. “You okay?” Drake gazed down at the table with a somewhat distant look, as if he was only half-awake. “Yeah, sorry, I didn’t get enough sleep last night.” Amarie felt like teasing him a lit bit. “I told you not to stay up watching YouTube Videos.” Eventually, they lined up at a couple of different sections of the buffet, each getting a similar but slightly different selection of food. “Pretty good, huh?” Amarie laughed as Drake attempted to talk with his mouth full of chicken. “Yeah, it is pretty good.” The two joked throughout most their meal, eventually devolving into grunt noises and slamming the table when they couldn’t breathe, which also attracted eyes from others in the restaurant. They eventually realized that they were being loud and stopped, after a couple of coughs from a nearby table.

 Amarie and Drake headed back to their room after dinner, and after a quick shower each, crawled into bed, looked at each other and giggled. “This is going to be a lot of fun.” “I think so too.”

Thanks for reading and bye for now, Friendos! Also, if you did like this short story and would like to see more, consider supporting me on Patreon. You don’t have to, but a dollar a month would help out a lot.