Page 35 of Glory Troll

Ollie: Okay, I’ll see you later, I guess?

Bo: Tell me this isn’t a joke, Ollie.

Ollie: I’ve never been more serious in my life

I shared my location with him so he could track me, then I stood before my wardrobe and stared at it.

What do I bring?

“Hey, Ollie. What can I do for you?” My brother seemed happy to hear my voice.

“I’m going to Germany for a few days and don’t know what to pack. You’re the travelling expert. Help me, please?”

“To Germany?” I heard Noah sit up and a little grumpy voice complaining about it. He was with Lew, of course. “What are you doing in Germany, brother dear?”

I took a deep breath. “I’m visiting my boyfriend.”

Noah whooped. Even though the word didn’t quite cut to the point of what Bo was to me, I couldn’t help but grin at my reflection in the mirror.

My boyfriend.Today was a day of firsts. I had never called him that before.

“Okay, Ollie. You’ll have to explain that to me later, about how you ended up with a German boyfriend,” he put great emphasis on the word, “but let’s focus on what you should bring. I only ever went to the Oktoberfest and the Nuremberg Christmas market…” His voice trailed off. “I’ll text you my list for a week and you can adjust it for however long you’ll be staying.”

“Your list?”

“I have packing lists on my blog. For a week, a month,” my brother explained.

“Oh, okay.” I’d completely forgotten about Noah’s blog.

You suck at being his big brother.

“Thank you, Noah.” I meant it and perhaps he knew because I could have sworn he choked a little when he bade me goodbye.

A few minutes later, I had a downloadable packing list in my messages. I wasn’t a design person, but it looked great. I could even check things off as I added them to my bag.

Ollie: Awesome. Thank you again!

Ollie: That was so helpful, you rock

Noah: anytime!

He added a little heart to the message, and I felt, for the first time, truly close to him. We were so different from each other it was sometimes difficult to get on common ground with him, but maybe there was still hope.

The last thing I added to my bag was a book; one Bo had bought for me in Port Cillean.

For a moment I stopped in the doorway, looking back at my overflowing shelves, each book a token of his love.

Then I locked the door behind me and hurried to my car.

I had never enjoyed flying, another thing Noah and I didn’t have in common. He would have lived on a plane if he could.

Yet today everything went smoothly. I got to the airport and through security with more than an hour to go, and sat by my gate waiting for boarding to begin.

The flight itself was on time, and I had the entire row of seats to myself.

Only when we arrived at Nuremberg airport did I get antsy at the absolute snails on my flight. My fingers impatiently drumming on my leather bag, I hunched in my row, desperate for them to move. I couldn’t get off the plane fast enough.

Since I didn’t have to declare anything or a suitcase to pick up, I went straight to the exit.

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