They had to wait half an hour for the car in the airport parking lot, surrounded by palm trees. Elena was a bit disappointed about the delay, but since she had never seen a palm tree up close before, she took photos of them in the meantime. At least she’d have something to post on social media right away. She could hardly wait to hop into the convertible and feel the wind blowing through her hair.
Carlos Tenerife stepped out of the car with a cigarette hanging from his mouth. He glanced over the awkwardly standing family. A faint smile crossed his face. Elena forced herself to act confidently and introduced herself to the car owner. Albert stayed in the background, suddenly very interested in the palm trees too.
“I need a hundred euros deposit in case of any damage,” Carlos said before handing over the keys.
“That wasn’t mentioned before,” Elena tried to resist in a timid voice.
“It’s standard practice with any rental company. What do you think I’ll do if you wreck the car?”
The family remained silent. They had never been in a rental car before.
“Exactly,” Carlos muttered.
“I’m suffocating from the cigarette smell. Why don’t we put the top down?” grumbled the sixteen-year-old son.
“Be patient. Once we get off the highway, we’ll stop and lower it,” his mother scolded him.
“This car is pretty dirty,” the seventeen-year-old daughter remarked.
“Take out some wet wipes and clean it up a bit,” her mother snapped irritably, reaching back toward her daughter, signaling that she needed a wipe too. The handle on her side was sticky as well.
The top wouldn’t open.
“Why don’t we call the guy?” asked the son, confused.
“We’re not calling him,” the father snapped. “You want him to think we’re so incompetent we can’t even open a car roof?”
“Well, we’ve never been in a car like this before…”
“He doesn’t need to know that. I don’t want him to think we’re some clueless poor people.”
Cockroaches scattered as the door opened. The daughter screamed.
“Stop shrieking,” her mother scolded.
“Don’t you see how huge these bugs are?”
“Yes, I see them. We’ll just swat them.”
“Mom, call the owner and ask him to do something about it.”
“I’m not going to complain about everything. Look, there’s a can of bug spray right here. I’ll take care of it. Besides, look at that beautiful view of the palm-lined courtyard.”
“The ad said it had an ocean view…”
“Stop being such a smart aleck, son,” Elena said angrily, losing her patience.
Armando Tenerife was on the phone when the family arrived. He motioned to them that he needed five minutes. Elena nodded patiently. She had never been on a sailboat before.
“I don’t think you can actually pet whales in the open sea…” the son began.
“If you don’t shut your mouth right now, I swear we’ll leave you behind! You can sit in the car and wait!”
“I think my brother’s right…”
“Do you want to stay too?”
Armando finally arrived, swinging a pack of toast bread in one hand and a bag with a few canned drinks in the other. Another family of five had also arrived. The boy turned to Armando.
“How can you pet a whale in the open sea?”
“You can’t. Let’s go.”
The captain was already waiting for them on the boat. As they set sail, Armando began making sandwiches with his bare hands. He placed a slice of cheap ham and cheese between two pieces of bread while cheerfully explaining that they wouldn’t see any whales and that he hoped they’d at least spot some dolphins.
By that point, Elena didn’t care anymore. She just needed something to photograph and post online.