“Kids! Hurry up! We can’t miss our flight!” Tony Romero called to his family from the front door.

“Okay, dad! I’m almost done packing!” Juan replied from the other room.

Debby answered, “Me too! Just let me finish…”

Tony’s wife, Clarissa, was checking that all the lights would be left off and the doors locked. Tony himself was helping the taxi driver wedge all of the luggage into the cab trunk. Clarissa rushed into Juan’s room, where he was fighting to close his suitcase, but the zipper wouldn’t get past all the books he had in there.

“Honey, you couldn’t possibly need that many books. You’ll have plenty to do on the Great Romero Family Hunting Trip!”

“But Mom, I need to catch up on the latest book in the series!” He pointedly held up a thick volume.

“Then just take that one!”

“But Mom-“

“No. No buts. You can only take what fits in the suitcase.”

“Ugh.” Juan groaned and took out some books so that the only ones left were a collection of Edgar Allan Poe’s poems, and Stephen King’s The Shining and It, as well as the new book he had wanted to read, then he zipped up his suitcase.

“Alright, then. Meet your father outside so he can pack your suitcase in the cab.”

After solving her son’s problem, Clarissa left to check on her daughter, Debby.

“What’s taking you so…oh.” She trailed off when she saw that all of her daughter’s makeup tools were scattered across the countertop. Debby looked to be curling her eyelashes with some sort of evil-looking pair of scissors that had neon green handles.

“Sugar, what are you doing?” asked a concerned Clarissa.

“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m trying to put on some makeup. No duh.”

“Oh, but sweetie, we’re literally going into the middle of the wilderness."

“Yeah. That’s exactly why I’m going to need an extra layer.”

“Okay, just hurry up then, Debby.”

At the airport, Tony was giddy as ever. “This is going to be so much fun! Are you kids excited?”

Juan seemed eager enough. “Yeah, it seems like it’s going to be pretty cool. I can’t wait to get out there with you, Dad.”

“What about you, Debby? Are you excited too?” Tony asked his daughter.

She gave him a look and answered, “Do I look excited to you?” Then she continued tapping rapidly on her cell phone, the small screen illuminating her cosmetics-coated face.

“Oh, come on, honey, please tell me you’re actually looking forward to this a little bit.”

“Yippee, I can’t wait to get leaves in my hair and watch you shoot bears.”

“Okay!” Tony pretended not to notice the sarcasm dripping from her voice.

The public address system crackled to life overhead. “Flight 823, now boarding.”

“That’s us!” Tony exclaimed. “Come on; let’s get this show on the road.”