With a Lack of Wanderlust

After stepping out onto the damp ground and into the cold air that was Birmingham, England, I knew it was a long shot that I would ever actually want to be there. Where I was from, it was exciting and sunny, with warm beaches, places to shop, and guys with abs. All I’d seen in Birmingham so far was rain, bleak skies, and a lanky boy that reminded me of Justin Bieber.

A silver Volvo pulled up to where we were standing and my father rolled down the window, smiling at my mom and me. My mom stepped into the rain, but I hesitated, having forgotten anything close to an umbrella. I wasn’t even sure if I owned one of those.

Nick opened up the door to the backseat and motioned at me to come in and I groaned, sliding beside him on the leather seat. Once I closed the door behind me, he laughed. It was amazing how much my anger could amuse people.

“Isn’t this so cool?!” My dad said, way more ecstatic than he should’ve been, “The steering wheel is on the other side!!”

“I believe the word here would be ace, dad.” My brother said mockingly, resting his chin on my father’s seat, but didn’t get a response. He slumped back down and glanced at me. “Isn’t it lovely here?” He said in a high-pitched voice, knowing full well how I felt about the place.

“Yeah it’s so awesome!” I laughed.

Dad looked back at me with a grin of approval. “I knew you’d like it once we got here!” he exclaimed, turning down a street with tall, slender houses painted every pastel color imaginable.

It made my stomach churn.

“Dad, where are we going?” I opened the car window and watched all of the buildings pass by, almost resembling a rainbow. Finally we stopped in front of one and parked. For some reason, it amused me that there were absolutely no driveways.

“We are staying at the house we’re thinking about buying. The realtor said we could get a gist of what it’s like living here. Isn’t that great?”

“Wonderful.” I said sarcastically under my breath and pulled the handle on the door. Like clockwork, we all exited the car and got our luggage, carrying it into the place we’d be staying for the next few weeks.

I have to say, it was nice. The moment I stepped in, all I could smell was vanilla. On the outside, it looked tiny. But once you got inside, it looked like it was more than enough space for just us four. It might have been because it was completely empty, but it still felt that way.
Before I could realize it, Nick was bounding up the stairs. Following him, my duffle bag hit each one on the way up and he turned to look at me.

“We have to share a room…” He said cautiously once we made it up. My parents hadn’t told me. Most likely because I hadn’t spoken to them about this trip except for where and when we were going. But I wasn’t going to get mad about it. My brother was my best friend, anyway.

“So, uh, pick one of the two. ‘Cuz I don’t really care.” He pulled out his phone, the ‘ding’ of it turning on sounding way louder than normal.

I continued dragging my bag until I got to the final room at the end of the hall. It was seemingly the smallest, but it had a balcony. A place to catch my breath would have definitely been convenient, considering how often I needed to.

I stepped onto the wood floor and sighed, setting my duffel bag down. Someone could’ve told me there wouldn’t be any beds. Or that we weren’t staying in a hotel for that matter. I pulled out the blanket I’d brought for the flight and looked up. There was a big, rectangular window above, showing the sky. It looked a horrid shade of grey.

Regardless, it had stopped raining and I needed a breath of fresh air. I stood up and padded to the French doors that led to the balcony and opened them both at once, feeling a bit like a princess. The moment I made it out to breathe, though, I heard a somewhat familiar voice.

“Hey! Miss America!”

I turned to my right and saw Liam sitting on the balcony of the yellow house next door, accompanied by a boy with the same Justin Bieber haircut as him. I felt my eyes practically bug out of my head and hurried back into my room, closing the doors behind me.

Nick was now in the room and looking at me oddly, sitting in the middle of my blanket. “I’m sure it was nothing.” He said to me, looking concerned. “But that’s pretty cool, a balcony and all.”

“Yeah,” I let out a breath and shifted my weight onto my left foot. “The boy from the airport is next door, I have no idea what is going on,” I let out a light giggle, “I feel like I’m in a stupid Disney movie. What a coincidence! The only boy I actually had an okay conversation with lives right next door to where I’m staying!”

He laughed, “Well then, talk to him more.”

“No way! It‘s weird.”

“Whatever,” He shook his head with a smile. “Mom wants you, by the way. She has more blankets and pillows for us.”

“Good!! I wouldn’t have been able to survive on just a blanket.” I turned on my heel and nearly passed the room my parents were in.

“You needed me?” I popped my head in, where my mom was laying a thick comforter down on the floor. She looked back at me, surprised.

“Yeah, I was just about to call you,” She smiled, grabbing more sleeping essentials. “Well here’s some blankets and pillows. Don’t want you cold or breaking your noggin!” she messed with my hair and I scowled, turning around and heading back to my own room. Nick could no longer be found until I saw his shadow on the other side of the French doors.

I put the pile I was holding down and grinned, pulling them open once again. “Isn’t it sweet, Ni--” I began, but stopped myself, actually seeing what was really in front of me. “What the hell!” I exclaimed, “How the hell?!”

“Climbed up the side,” Liam chuckled.

I crossed my arms and looked at his house, irritated. What made him so sure that I would come back out? And I was positive it wasn’t “proper” to stand on someone who is practically a stranger’s balcony. Wasn’t that trespassing? I could’ve called the cops on him!

I could’ve yelled that all in his face too, but I didn’t. “Where’s your friend?” was all I could muster out.

“Back inside, America.” He smiled wide, adjusting his hat.

My eyes widened again. I’d forgotten that he had called me that earlier. I’d also forgotten to keep up with my accent. All I could do from there was stay silent. He just laughed.

“Well, America?”

“Was it really that terrible of an impression?” I gave in and let out a giggle. “I tried my best, really. I hope it wasn’t offensive. Though, it probably was, but--”

He held his hand out to stop me from speaking, “You had me going for a while there. But just so you know, not many people ’round here call this,” He gestured down the street, “A ’block’”

I had a sudden moment of realization, for more occasions than one.

“Why did you look so confused, then?” I inquired.

“Well, my mates and I--” he hesitated, looking down at his feet and kicking a rock to the side and off the balcony. “We tend to get bombarded by girls that think we’re hot, you know. And they ask for pictures. We‘re quite well known around here.”

“I don’t believe you.” I rolled my eyes with a smirk, “Unless you all get mistaken for Justin Bieber.”

“No,” Liam laughed lightly, “there’s five of us. The one you saw is Louis. People mix us up sometimes. But Zayn, Niall, and Harry look nothing like Justin Bieber.”

“Well I’d hope so,” I smiled.

Liam and I continued to talk for a while and simultaneously, I tried to process how exactly I was speaking to him without getting choked up.