Elizabeth Lerman’s “Railay: Part One”
Sam sat at a small table next to the check in while Lena approached the woman behind the desk. She nodded down at her notebook, bookings scribbled on each line, and rummaged in a drawer for a moment before pulling out a large keychain and handing it to Lena.
“Number seven,” the woman told her, and pointed up a small path lined with cabins, each with a large hammock on their deck. Lena thanked her and took the key before motioning to the small refrigerator stocked with Chang beer. She held up two fingers and left 200 baht on the counter before grabbing the beers and placing one in front of Sam. Lena took a seat across from her friend and the women clinked their bottles together and toasted to the cool relief. Sam squealed in delight as a small French bulldog sauntered over to greet them and sniffed, skeptically, at their bags.
“Should we see the room?” Sam asked, draining the last few sips of her beer. Lena nodded, chugging hers as well, before gathering the bags together. The girls walked down the stone path, avoiding roosters and small chickens along the way.
“They’ll be a good alarm,” Lena said, nodding to the roosters. She knew they should try and get some sleep now in order to get ahead of their jet lag but there was too much energy buzzing through them. They had been traveling for a long thirty hours and during the journey they had wanted nothing more than to be here, a bed in sight and rest in reach but now, seeing it all, Lena knew they would not be sleeping until night demanded it.
“What number?” Sam asked, scanning the cabins.
“Seven,” Lena said, pointing to the right, “this one.” With its wicker walls and metal roof Lena could already hear the predicted rain pouring down.
“It’s gonna be loud when it rains,” She told Sam.
“If it rains,” Sam corrected.
“It will rain.” Lena insisted. It was the season for it. It seemed impossible now, in this sun soaked heat, but Lena was certain of it. She knew clouds would come and could already sense the steady downpour that would drench the jungle around them.
- Elizabeth Lerman
