Malina Beach: A Paradise Island Series

by K. A. Burgdorf

  “Where are you going?” I call.

  “Uncle Jim and I are going out for some drinks tonight!” she calls. “And right now, I’m going shopping for something to wear.” I hear the front door slam shut.

  My puppy comes running into the kitchen, sliding on the linoleum. Since we don’t have a puppy food bowl yet, I make a small pile of food for him on a regular kitchen plate.

  He eats half of it while I’m filling up a bowl of water for him, which he spills the second I set it down. I sigh and mop up the water, filling the bowl again and setting it further away from him and his food.

  Soon, Ben arrives to tell me Emily is ready to go. Emily is really starting to feel the symptoms of her cancer and the side effects of her chemo treatments, but she is dragging herself out today so that we can spend time together. Which I think is incredibly sweet of her.

  “Hey,” Ben says, greeting the pup and me. “How is he doing?” he asks, pecking my lips.

  “He’s doing really good. He’s spilling his water, but otherwise, he’s great. I love him.”

  “Good,” Ben says. “I got him a leash and a collar this morning. So we can take him with us today.”

  “Awesome!” I say. “Thank you.”

  “You’re very welcome. But in two days, he’s all mine.”

  “Let me get dressed and we’ll go,” I say, running upstairs. McKenna is in class today until 2PM. So after I get dressed in comfortable, yet presentable clothes I lock the front door on my way out, but leave the key in the fake stone by our door that reads, ‘Beach’. Ben is in his car with Emily and the pup, which I have yet to name.

  Emily is in the backseat. The pup sits on her lap, licking her and making her laugh.

  “Hey, Em!” I say. She grins at me.

  “Hi, how are you?”

  “I’m good,” I say. “How have you been?” I haven’t seen her in a week or so.

  “I’ve been okay, considering the circumstances.” She says.

  “I’ve missed you,” I say and turn to Ben as he pulls away from our street. “Do you have any idea where I can get a job? Or of any places that are hiring?” I ask him.

  He hands me the newspaper off of the dashboard of the car. “There are four places hiring in the paper today,” he says. I grin and glance at them. The list reads, two waitress gigs, a cook and Hula girl at a local resort.

  “Hula girl?” I say. “That’s what I think it is, right?” I ask. Ben grins and nods.

  “Yes. Do you want to go check that out?” he asks. I pause.

  “I think that would be a great job for you, Malina. You just greet people and hand out those flower things… what are they called, Ben?”

  “I’m not sure,” he murmurs. “A Lei?”

  “Yes!” she says. “A Lei. You get to hand out those and you get to wear a cute little outfit. I see them all the time.” I hesitate. “You think I should?” I say.

  “It’s whatever you want,” Ben says.

  “Do it, Malina!” Emily says.

  “Okay, I’ll apply,” I tell them. “But first, lets go see about the waitressing jobs.”

  “What’s the address?” Ben wonders, glancing at the newspaper as we come into town. “That’s two minutes away, you could run there and back every day,” he says.

  “Where’s the resort?” I wonder, pointing to the address. Ben makes a face.

  “That’s a little further, but I could drive you.”

  “I guess it’s time to get my driver’s license, huh?”

  “I don’t mind driving you, baby.”

  “No, that will be great!” Emily exclaims. “I don’t have mine. We could learn and get ours together.”

  “Yeah, that is a good idea!” I say, turning to grin at her. “We can start studying together.”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  Ben laughs at us. “You two are so much alike.”

  I smile at Emily. “Is that a bad thing?” we ask together and laugh at each other.

  Ben shakes his head. “Not at all.”

  The waitressing job that’s the closest is the one we stop by first. It’s a quaint little diner off the side of a mall. It pays $7.30 an hour, and I could run there in ten minutes. I ask for an application and make my way back out to Ben and Emily, who are now singing along to something I’ve never heard on the radio.

  We drive to the next one, which is the same distance away from me, just on the other side of town, near the water. That place is a little larger, and the main thing they sell is fish. I would no doubt come home smelling like Flounder and Catfish. But they pay nine dollars an hour. I don’t want to be a cook, so we start off towards the resort. It takes us twenty minutes to drive there, but it would take me forty-five minutes to an hour to run or bike. Soon, we are all singing to the radio, and having a blast while doing it. As we drive, I enjoy the wind on my face from the open car window. I enjoy the sunshine on my arms as I stick them out into the warm afternoon air. Everything about this place, the beautiful Paradise Island, is growing on me drastically. I’m in love with the island. I’m in love with the people. I’m in love with the water. I couldn’t leave if I tried.

  When we arrive at the resort, I notice it’s on it’s own little island, and we have to take a ferry across a small stretch of water. I’m okay with that, being that we don’t even have to leave Ben’s car. I hold the pup in my lap as we wait to be taken across. I stroke his fur for his comfort, and for mine.

  “Do you not like being out on the water?” Ben wonders quietly. Emily sits in the back, silent, watching the sky.

  I shake my head. “Not really,” I tell him. “But I’m okay.”

  “Good.”

  “What do you think we should name him?” I ask Ben. He pauses to think.

  “Ben Junior?” he suggests with a grin. I giggle.

  “I mean it,” I say. “He needs his own name,” I murmur, staring into the puppy's eyes. He breathes heavily, his tongue sticking out and to the side. I grin at his silly face before rolling down my window again to get him some fresh air. He stands and looks out the window. Something has caught his attention. A bird flies overhead, low and hovering.

  He begins to bark at it, so Emily takes him into the backseat again, where he can’t see it.

  “How about Spot?”

  “People use that name all the time.”

  “How about ‘Here, Boy’?”

  I roll my eyes, but smile at him. “No.”

  “How about ‘The Cuteness’?” Emily giggles.

  “Or Roofus?”

  “Or Handsome?” I suggest. They pause.

  “I like Handsome,” Ben says.

  “He is a strapping puppy,” Emily says. I grin.

  “Okay, Handsome it is.” I pet his little head.

  The resort is tall, easily fourteen floors high. It sits, perched on an island and is surrounded by the gorgeous blue water with palm trees and luxurious green grass sand. It looks like a paradise from here. But I don’t know how good of a Hula girl I can be… although it would be a great acting experience. How hard could it be? It might even be fun.

  When we finally reach the island the resort is on, we park the car, and this time, we all go inside. We learn immediately that the resort is a Disney resort, which is just as exciting. It’s such a large place that at first, we have no idea where to go or who to ask. So we decide to ask the check in desk about potential job opportunities, and show the girl behind the desk the ad in the paper. She tells me, sadly, that that job was taken early this morning, but there are other job opportunities for women at the Disney resort.

  “Like what?” I wonder.

  “Well,” she says, tucking a piece of her red hair behind her ear. “We do need a Snow White?” she suggests. I pause. We all pause.

  “You mean... dress up as Snow White and greet people?” I wonder.

  “Yes!” she says. “We had to let our other Snow White go last week and she is in high demand here. We would just need you to fill out this application,” sh
e says while opening a drawer that I can’t see and pulling out a smooth, clean application. She slides it across the desk to me, along with a coral blue pen. I glance at it. They want to know acting experience?

  “If you’re interested in something other than a Disney Character greeter, we are also looking for someone for housekeeping.” she says. “It pays very well, but, I will be honest… the Disney Character job is the best way to go. You get benefits and much higher pay.”

  “How much higher?” I ask her.

  “Eighteen dollars an hour,” she says, grinning at my surprised expression.

  “What would I have to do exactly?” I ask.

  “Well,” she says, opening another drawer. She pulls out an 8X10 image of Snow White. “This is the last girl who was Snow White. You would wear this costume, have your face painted a fair white, since you’re tan, and you would walk around on the grounds and meet kids and take pictures with children, or whoever wants their picture taken with you. You might also have to sing Happy Birthday to some of the guests, if your character is requested.”

  I think about that for a moment. That’s all I have to do for that much money an hour? I’d be stupid not to take this job… but it’s so far away. It would cost Ben so much money in gas and time. He would have to be here every morning and then every evening. It would take me months to be able to take the test for my driver’s license and I still wouldn't have a car.

  “Thank you very much,” I say, turning to look at Emily and Ben. They are both grinning, and side-by-side they look almost like twins.

  We all elect to have a seat across the room in the lobby while I fill out the application. Name, Date of Birth, Phone Number, Address, Acting experience, ETC.

  It takes me only a few minutes. Ben and Emily sit tight, with Handsome on his leash. I hope they don’t mind that Handsome is in here. He’s a good puppy, and he won’t cause any trouble.

  When I’m done with the application, I hand it over to the woman, and tell her I’d like to have a look around. She tells us we can go anywhere on the resort campus, as long as we don’t bother any of the guests, or break anything, or cause a commotion.

  She also tells us that outside of the building, on the beach, they have concession stands with food and drinks, accessible to anyone with a few bucks to spare.

  We decide to have lunch here, going outside and around the building, to the front with the beach. All you can see is water and sand, and it’s heavenly. We all have hot dogs, except me; I have a veggie dog. Ben has three and Emily and I have just one, since Emily’s appetite isn’t what it usually is. We have some drinks and watch Handsome play on the shoreline.

  The food is delicious. The scenery is bright and sunny.

  I know I told my mom that I wouldn’t apply for any jobs before I talked to her and made sure it was okay with her, but this job is just too good to pass up. I’m sure she will understand.

  We hang out here for the rest of the day until the sun finally starts to set. We must have spent forty dollars here on food and drinks between the three of us and Handsome, who ate more hot dogs than he should have.

  We watch the sun setting and then catch the last ferry of the evening. I drift in and out of sleep on the way home. The radio is on low, playing 70’s Groove music.

  The next day, I show my mom the applications and tell her all about the job opportunities. I save the Disney Resort for last, expressing to her how much I want this job and how much it pays. She remains quiet until I’m finished, and with much arguing about gas to get there, and hours, she agrees to let me take it if it is offered to me, as long I will quit when school starts.

  I thank her over and over before calling Emily and Ben to tell them the good news.

  Two days later, on a Monday, I get a call that I got the job. I was more than ecstatic. I start tomorrow.

  “I have to be there early tomorrow morning, so someone can do my makeup,” I tell Ben.

  “Your makeup?” Ben asks.

  “Yes, my makeup,” I say. “They have to paint my face a lighter color of white, because I’m tan. Hawaii made me tan.”

  He grins. “I like it. It’s sexy.”

  “I like it, too,” I smile. We sit in his bedroom, watching a movie on his laptop in the middle of his bed. I say ‘middle’, but his twin-sized bed is cramped. Which is a good thing, because it gives us even more of an excuse to be close.

  “Are you excited about this job?” he wonders, closer to my ear. I nod.

  “I am… but I’m also nervous. I’ve never had a job before. What if I really screw it up? Like… say I meet this little girl and she’s really excited to meet ‘Snow White’ and I’m too nervous and jittery? I’ll ruin her ‘Disney Experience’.”

  “Oh,” he scoffs. “You will not,” he says.

  “You don’t know that.”

  “Let’s practice,” he says, sitting up and facing me. “Be Snow White,” he says, waiting patiently for me to do something. I freeze, unclear of what he means. He raises his eyebrows.

  “Well?” he urges. “You’re an actress, aren’t you? Be Snow White, Malina.”

  I squint at him. “It’s not that easy, Ben. I don’t know what to say,” I tell him. “I don’t have a script, or any clue as to what Snow White even says. I haven’t seen the cartoon since I was really little.”

  “You have to prepare, Angel. Or at least learn your character,” he says, and pulls his computer onto his lap. “Let’s do some research,” he says.

  He pulls snippets of the Snow White cartoon on Youtube, and we watch together while I learn how whimsical and careful she is with her soft, sweet voice and her short black hair. I try out my voice on Ben, to which he laughs, and says that’s right on the money.

  “You’ll make a perfect Snow White,” he says. “See, and you were worried.”

  “Thanks,” I say to him as he hugs me to his chest. “That made me feel better,” I murmur. “I can’t wait for tomorrow.”

  The next morning, my mom makes me a large salad with my most loved fruit and veggies and leaves it in the fridge with a note for me. She wishes me luck on my first day, tells me I’ll make a gorgeous Snow White, and to have fun with it. “It’s just a job,” she says. “Not a life sentence. Jobs will come and go. Have fun with this.”

  I eat my salad, tired and yawning from being woken up my exasperating alarm clock far too early. It’s 7:00 in the morning. I’m due to be at work at 8:00, but I start work at 9:00. Ben should be here any minute to have breakfast with me. I finish my salad, and move onto a vegan cookie while Ben makes his way into the house, through the living room and into the kitchen.

  Handsome is most likely at his house, keeping Emily company while Ben is away today. I feel bad that Ben has to leave Emily while their parents are at work. It makes me want to call in and tell them I can’t make it. Find another Disney Princess, but I know Ben wouldn’t have that for a minute. He’s too selfless to tell me to not go to work. That makes him one of the greatest people I know.

  “Hello, Gorgeous,” he greets me. I grin at him.

  “Hi. Good morning.”

  “Are you ready?” he wonders, opening my fridge.

  “Not yet. There’s juice and mango in there,” I tell him. “And sausage,” I sigh, “If you want to fry that up for yourself.”

  “No,” he says. “I’ll have the mango,” he murmurs. “It’s good for my skin,” he laughs, mimicking me and grabbing the container from the shelf. He comes to sit next to me. We eat in silence and I lean against his arm, content.

  We soon take off, heading for the beautiful resort on the small island. It suddenly hits me we will have to take this darn ferry every day.

  The drive seems longer today, mostly because I’m exhausted. I hardly got any sleep. I feel as if my brain is fried.

  We arrive a few moments early, so we decide to take a small walk together, clearing my head and letting Ben see the island again.

  “We should come and stay here together,” Ben suggests. “Ma
ybe before school starts?”

  “Here?” I say in surprise. “And do what?”

  “Enjoy the resort, spend some time together, get some sun, and swim.” he says, naming off things we do on a regular basis. I intertwine our fingers and walk a little closer to him, loving our view of the ocean. How do I break it to him that… we’re already in a vacation spot? If we want to enjoy a place in a vacation fashion… we have to go somewhere else off of the island.

  “Ben, that sounds great,” I say. “But we swim all the time. And we have lunch together almost every day. We walk on the beach and we spend so, so much time together… it’s crazy,” I tell him. His brow furrows.

  “What are you saying?”

  Oh, no. He’s got the wrong idea.

  “I’m saying that if we are going to go somewhere alone together… how about we fly back to the continental US?” I suggest enthusiastically. “We live in Hawaii, full of sand and sunshine and tan people… let’s go somewhere really different?”

  He thinks for a moment. “That’s not a bad idea,” he mumbles, and then smiles.

  “Do you have a place in mind?”

  I purse my lips and shrug. “We could pick a place together?” I say. “Tonight, we can pick a place at random.”

  “Sounds great.” He says. “Now we just have to decide when we will go on this adventure… and if Emily will feel better by then… and if your mother trusts me enough to let me put you on a plane and fly you around the world.”

  I frown and check my watch. “We’ll figure it out,” I say. “I have to get going.”

  “Okay,” he says. We make our way back to the front of the large, wide resort. “I’m going to check out this part of Hawaii. I’ve never really been around this neighborhood before. I may find something to do that I like.”

  “Oh, okay.” I stand on my toes to kiss him. “I’ll see you at five. Have fun.”

  “You, too. Good luck,” he says. We go our separate ways, each of us having a last backward glance before we go out of view of each other. I make my way into the building and into the lobby, where the same woman sits behind the desk, now wearing a lovely green top with a low-V neckline. Her hair is up in a 1950’s style that makes me want to ask who her stylist is.