Ski Resort

Lauren thanked the cab driver as she stepped out of the vehicle. She took a deep breath, breathing in the crisp mountain air as she looked around the ski lodge. There was a large building in the center of the grounds, which Lauren assumed was the hotel, as she walked forward; carrying her luggage.

--

The lobby of the hotel was a combination of suburban modern and country rustic. Lauren smiled as she walked up to the service desk and rang the bell. She was soon greeted by the manager; a twenty-six year old, muscular man wearing a black jacket and pantsuit. His name tag read “Franklin”.

“Welcome to Crisp Mountain Ski Resort.” Franklin greeted, “How may I help you?”

You can give me your phone and room number, for starters. Lauren thought. Out loud she said, “Hi. I made a reservation here for two weeks. It’s under the name, Lauren West.”

“Lets see here, Lauren West.” Franklin said, looking through the computer. “Ah, here we go; Lauren West. Room for one on the fourth floor, Room 427.” He took the room key off the wall and handed to Lauren. “Enjoy your stay.”

“Thank you, very much.” Lauren said, taking the key.

“Madison!” Franklin called out to a twenty-two year old brunette woman wearing a bell hop uniform. “Please take Ms. West’s luggage up to Room 427.”

“Yes Sir!” Madison said, her voice sounding chipper. She then bent down to pick up Lauren’s luggage, only to grunt from the sheer weight of it. When she looked up, she saw Lauren was already at the elevator, pressing the button.

Madison walked as fast as she could, the luggage dragging her down. When she got to the elevator, she saw Lauren pressing another button.

“Hey wait! Hold the –“ Madison called out, but the door was already closed. “...elevator.” she finished, lamely. She looked to her left, only to see that the only other elevator had an “Out of Order” sign on it. She let out a sad sigh; stairs it was.

--

Lauren was standing outside her room, impatiently tapping her foot. She looked at her watch; it read ten forty-two a.m. . The bell hop was thirty-seven minutes late. Where was she?

That’s when Lauren heard a grunting noise from her left. Turning to face that way, she saw Madison climbing the last few steps with Lauren’s luggage. Having finally made it to the fourth floor, Madison dropped the four bags on the ground for a second, before beginning to breath heavily in an attempt to catch her breath.

“There you are!” Lauren snapped, “Where have you been?!”

“You…took…the…only…functioning…elevator.” Madison explained, pausing for breath between each word. “Had…to…take…the…stairs.”

“I don’t want to hear your excuses!” Lauren yelled. “And on top of that, you dropped my luggage on the ground!”

“S-sorry.” Madison apologized, having caught her second wind. “It’s just so heavy. I mean, I’ve carried large suitcases no problem up these stairs before; but what have you got in these thing? Boulders?”

“What I have in them is none of your concern.” Lauren said with a glare. “What is your concern is that I don’t get you fired for dropping my belongings!”

Now, Madison was a normally chipper and peppy employee. She would often keep smiling, even in the presence of a rude customer. Her father had always taught her that she should look on the bright side of life; but this Lauren woman was really testing her patience. Still, she calmed herself and grabbed the bags again, grunting in exhaustion, as she followed Lauren to her room; trying her best keep her smile.

Lauren unlocked the room and opened the door. The room was a mixture between a cozy cottage bedroom and a five star hotel room. Lauren smiled.

“Well, the rooms are definitely just what the brochure described.” Lauren said. She then heard a yelp from behind her and turned around to see that Madison was now hopping on one foot; one of the bags on the floor indicating that she had dropped it on her other foot.

“The service, on the other hand, leaves a lot to be desired.” Lauren finished, rolling her eyes.

Just keep smiling, Maddie. Madison thought to herself as she picked up the other bag. She then walked over to the table and placed the bags gently down on it. Remember what Dad always said: Smile and even your worst enemies become your best friends. And remember that that motto has worked so far.

“Enjoy your stay.” Madison said as she walked over to the door, her peppy voice wavering a bit. She then held out her hand to Lauren.

“Oh right. A tip.” Lauren said flatly. She then began digging around in her pockets, saying, “I don’t really think that you deserve one; considering how you brought my stuff up late and then mishandled it. However, it would be rude not to give you something for your troubles. Ah-ha!”

Lauren then pulled something out of her pocket and placed it into the bellhop's hand. Madison looked down at the item: a nickel.

Madison felt both the curves of her smile and her right eye begin to twitch. She climbed up four flights of stairs, carrying four different bags that contained who knows what, got yelled at by this ungrateful woman for simply catching her breath, got called incompetent, and maybe even broke her foot from one of the bags slipping out of her grip; and she had done all that…FOR A NICKEL?!

Madison looked up and had just opened her mouth to say something, when Lauren slammed the door in her face. She stood there for a few seconds, mouth still open, before growling and walking off; muttering angrily to herself. That woman was twenty-five, from what she could guess, and she was acting like she was twenty years younger!

--

Now that I have my things, it’s time to relax. Lauren thought to herself. There was a reason that those bags were heavy, even for her. Those bags contained, not only her regular winter clothes, but several of her enhancements incase something happened to the ones that she was currently wearing; her padded underwear mostly, but also others.

There was also her spanx. While she was not fat by any means, she did have a bit of a belly that stuck out. No matter how many times she exercised, that baby fat wouldn’t leave. She tried practically everything she could think of: push ups, sit ups, jogging, dieting, and even yoga and jazzercise; but she couldn’t shake the pudge.

There was also another secret enhancement that she had; her boots. She specifically order her shoes to give her a much-needed elevation in height. With these boots she stood at a modest 5’11”; but when she was barefoot, she stood at a diminutive 4’4”. These boots also helped give her legs the appearance of being long and slender; in reality they were short and stumpy.

These, combined with her already small frame up top, where the main reason she might have over packed her enhancements. In fact, she often considered her long, red hair to be her most adult feature. If anything were to happen to her hair, or she were ever caught without her enhancements, or any combination of the two…

Lauren shook her head. Now was not the time to think about that! Now was the time for some much-needed rest and relaxation! Let Lauren’s Great Vacation, officially begin! Lauren inwardly cheered.

But where should she go first? Should she head over to the slopes and try her hand at skiing? Or should she test out the sauna?