We arrived before breakfast, hands buried in our pockets against the cold.
The restaurant sat exactly where we’d expected—warm light spilling through its glass front. Inside, thick soufflé pancakes drifted past on wooden trays, wobbling as servers carried them between tables.
Dani stopped.
“This is it.”
She pulled on the door.
It didn’t move.
A sign beside the entrance explained why.
Reservations must be made in person before sunrise on the day of dining.
We stood there longer than we should have while the rain collected on our jackets.
We’d passed other restaurants to get here.
Now they were behind us.
~
The rest of the day didn’t go much better.
Across town, the zoo was closed.
We walked the long way back to the hotel.
It started to rain.
Kids needed carrying.
Dani staggered to our room, swore twice, and fell asleep.
Around five, I slipped across to 7-Eleven for dinner.
I couldn’t believe the choices.
Far from the gas-station convenience stores I expected, refrigerators held rows of neatly prepared meals.
I chose noodles for the kids—thick noodles in a salty broth.
For myself, rice topped with sliced beef, sprouted barley, and a soft-boiled egg.
On the way out, I grabbed a fruit sorbet to share.
Back in the room, Avery was too tired to eat.
He rested his forehead on the table and began to whimper, so I carried him back to the fold-out bed.
Dani had told me she didn’t want anything either.
Now, the bedroom lights were out.
I whispered goodnight, and closed the door.
That left me and Corbin—tired, wide-eyed, and calm.
We sat around the table of our little hotel room, eating our dinner while listening to Avery’s soft snores in the background.
He ate every noodle.
When he finished, he looked up at me from his bowl—broth dripping off his chin.
“Thank you for dinner. Next time, let’s try a different dinner, and then we can try a different dessert.”
Then he crawled into bed next to his brother and fell asleep before I’d finished tossing out the wrappers.