I was spending my birthday in Florida, a well deserved gift after finals, frying myself on a sunny beach. No siblings, no schoolwork, no worries. It was so cold in Wisconsin, I had taken the sun for granted. I never want to leave, I thought. The warmth of the sand and rays blanketed me. I was light on the sunscreen, too. Wanted that killer beach babe tan before returning to the gloomy spring of Wisconsin.

That was my mistake

The sun can trick you. Make you feel so good, treat you so well, but the second you leave, seek 

shade, it’ll take a turn for the worse. You realize how hot you feel, the tightness of your skin, and the fact that you have not achieved the bronzed glow, rather an angry red. The longer I stayed in the sun, the more I felt like someone had poured a vat of hot sauce on me.

As I peeled myself off the beach towel I had borrowed from our hotel, my legs wobbled and my head swam. I reached for the water bottle in my bag, then realized I had left it in our room that morning. I squinted through the rays as they continued to bully every surface of my body, searching for my mom along the water line. She had told me she was going for a walk.

After some half hearted scanning of the beach, I decided to pack my things up and walk back to our hotel. I texted my mom: I’m going inside. My only goal was to get into our room and take a nap. As I trudged back to our hotel, I thought about my mistake. It was only the second day of break. No doubt I was doomed to sport a tomato sheen for the rest of our time in Florida. I made my way through the hotel lobby and up the elevator without spotting a soul. I bet they're all out there getting their tan on, I sulked.

Woosh!

A blanket of cold air enveloped me when I finally made it back to our room. I let my bag and towel fall to the ground, and I ran to my bed. The comforter was cool to the touch, and soothed my arms and legs as I wrapped myself in it like a burrito. I made it! And I never want to leave, I thought.