A Journey to Remember

Hey guys. Another chapter down! Thanks for reading. I have about 10 chapters written and I am stuck… ugh. Anyways, I hope you like it so far! Read on bros

CH4

"Welcome to Mexico City." Luke said looking around.

Julia's eyes flitted anywhere they could. She had a big smile on her face. Lights lit the crowded streets, the sweet and delicious smell of foods filled the air, and a familiar language hit the back of her mind. Luke went over to the driver and handed him some coin then went to get their belongings. Julia walked to the back and grabbed her bags and the blanket that was still inside.

"Well I was planning to stay here for a couple of days. We could visit some places here or maybe explore for a while." Luke said walking down a street.

"hmmm. Let's do some exploring. Sounds fun. Where are we going to stay?"

"That is completely up to you. We could stay at a hotel again or we could go camp under the stars."

"Well since it is so dang hot here, we could probably just camp out over there." She said pointing toward an opening between two big buildings.

There was visible vegetation between the buildings that was marked by two torches and an arch. Luke looked in the direction to where she was pointing and gave her a little smile.

"Alright. We are going to need more than just one blanket though. Unless you are willing to share it."

Julia held up the blanket and noticed that it was quite small for two people.

"Looks like we need another blanket. And another shirt for you." She said laughing.

She pointed at his shirt sleeve. The sleeve looked stiff because of the dried juice all over it. Luke held it up and inspected it then nodded.

"well I guess we need to do some shopping. Tell you what, I will get us the stuff we need for tonight and you will go look for a new shirt for me."

"Okay. Where shall we meet afterwards?"

Luke looked around. "Over there where you spotted the opening."

Julia nodded and Luke walked off. Julia turned around and started walking down a long street where tent like structures were set up. When she walked further down the street some kids ran by playing with a ball. The ball rolled over to her feet and the kids stopped in their tracks to see what she was going to do. She flicked the ball up with her foot and kicked it high up in the air back to the kids. They looked at her with big smiles and then continued to play. To her left there was a lady with some clothes hanging up on some strings. There was a nice navy colored shirt that had white string that laced the chest together. Another woman came up to the other lady and started speaking a very familiar language. She bought some pants and walked off. Julia walked up to the shirt and inspected it. The woman smiled at her and told her it was twenty five pesos. Julia paused for a moment realizing that it was not in English but in Spanish. Thinking from the back of her head she coughed up the words to reply to her in Spanish.

"(Thank you. I will take it.)" Julia replied.

"(Thank you)" She said with a smile.

The woman got up to take down the shirt. Julia handed her twenty five of her money and gave it to the woman. She looked at it and put her other hand in her pocket to give her change.

"(No no, you keep it.)" Julia said.

The woman smiled and handed her the shirt. Julia walked down the road to where she and Luke arrived. She stopped and peered to the opening where she and Luke were supposed to meet.

"Well you made that woman's day back there." Luke said walking up beside her.

"Why do you say that?"

"Your money is more valuable than pesos here. You gave her about 325 pesos."

"wow"

"These people need it though."

Julia looked around and noticed that almost everyone was not wearing the newest clothes or had the best home.

"Well I'm glad it was for a good purpose then" She replied

Luke smiled and nodded then put his hand on her back to guide her toward the opening of the wilderness. They walked between the buildings and under the arches. Luke paused for a moment to get out a lantern. He lit it and then walked up to two torches and lit them. Then he carried on, walking straight down the path with Julia following behind. A few more torches were up ahead and Luke lit both then turned around to face Julia.

"There are a few places that we can camp the night out at. One is right over there and the others are out a bit farther."

"Well, let's go to the one you think is best." She replied

"Alright." He said happily

Luke smiled and then walked down the path a little further. There were lights that were glowing in the distance. They walked closer until Julia could hear talking and laughing. They entered the two torches and stopped to take a look around. A man with a scruffy beard looked up from what he was doing and shouted. He had red hair and was fairly muscular.

"LUKE!"

Luke looked around to see who had yelled and then smiled once he spotted the person. The man got up an approached Luke with open arms.

"What the hell are you doing here man? It's been a while!" The man said giving Luke a hug and a pat on the back.

"Oh the same as usual. Finding new places to explore." He replied with a big smile on his face

They both laughed for a little and then the man turned his attention to Julia.

"Who is this young lady?"

"Oh! This is Julia. I ran into her when I was heading down here. She wanted to travel the world and since I'm already doing so, I brought her with me."

Julia smiled and did a tiny curtsy. The man did a small bow and they both exchanged smiles.

"Julia, this is one of my friends that I have had for quite a while. This is Levi."

"Nice to meet you." Julia said with a smile.

"Hey why don't you guys camp with us? We have some space around the fire." Levi said motioning behind him.

"That would be great" Luke replied.

They walked back to where Levi was camping out at. Julia set her stuff down and took a look around. The area that they were at was like a cleared out space big enough for about seven fires. Around the fires were groups of people talking, laughing, playing music and games, and just enjoying themselves. Luke sat down next to Julia and put his stuff behind him. Once they all got settled and comfy, one of Levi's friends pulled out a guitar and started playing. The man played a nice upbeat song that made everyone seem brighter. When he finished, another man grabbed the guitar and started playing a nice slow tune. Julia laid back on her backpack like a pillow and looked up at the dark sky. The stars were twinkling and the moon seemed to be as big as the sun. Luke started to sing to the melody. His voice was velvety and beautiful. After he sang a line of words, the others came in one by one putting in harmonies. After the song was over Julia sat up.

"What language was that?" Julia asked.

Luke was about to speak but got cut off by Levi.

"It's in Gaelic."

"Enough with folk songs, play something I can dance to!" Another man said on the other side of the fire.

Levi took his guitar back and started strumming an upbeat song. Soon other people from the other groups started playing along. Soon everyone was dancing, singing, and playing a fun tune. A young boy about eleven or twelve trotted over to Julia and put his hand out as if he was asking her to dance. She smiled and grabbed the boy's hand. They walked to where everyone was dancing and started dancing. They boy was a good dancer. He spun Julia around and kept their feet on beat. The boy seemed to be having a blast. When the son finished everyone clapped and cheered. Julia gave the boy a hug and said thank you, then walked back to the fire.

"Since when were you a dancer?" Luke asked

"My mother taught me a few things when I was younger."

Julia yawned and caused a chain reaction of yawning.

"Well that was one of the best nights here so far." Levi admitted as he put away the guitar. "I'm getting some shut eye. See you guys in the morning."

All of the men said their goodnights, put out the fire, and snuggled up in their blankets. Julia got her blanket, covered herself, and laid her head on her bag. She stared at the stars for a while and slowly fell asleep.

"It sure is beautiful out here." Luke sighed to himself.

"Yeah it is." Julia replied.

Moments later Julia fell asleep. She slept through the whole night and woke up to the exotic birds singing and the smell of food. It was cold and foggy when she opened her eyes. She could smell eggs and other familiar smells from home. When she sat up, Levi and Luke were walking back to the camp with some bags in their hands. Julia stood up and fixed her hair. She combed through it with her fingers then started braiding it. When she finished Luke and Levi finally reached their circle and sat down. Julia went over to her bag and pulled out the shirt that she found for Luke.

"I hope this fits you." She said handing it to Luke.

He smiled and in return gave her breakfast. Everyone sat down to eat and discussed what they wanted to do for the day.

"I think we should visit the huge temples where the natives are. We seem to get along pretty well." Levi said.

"Alright." Luke replied.

He stood up and pulled his shirt off over his head. "It's crazy how hot it is already."

"That's why I'm just going in an undershirt." Levi stated.

"That's a good idea." Julia said.

She got up and took off her long sleeve shirt and rolled her pants. Luke dug in his bag for a tank top and put it on.

"Off we go." Levi said as he started off down a trail.

The rest of the group followed close behind.

So what do you guys think so far? How do they know Luke? Another chapter coming soon! Don't worry. Oh and they are in the rainforest. Just in case you guys don't know what Mexico city would have looked like way back then.