Brandon the Penny Pincher

"Well...what?" Brandon chuckled. He wondered why she was being bashful all of a sudden. Sandy just fiddled with her fingers. "Well...they liked my performance during the training, and they gave me the opportunity to send some local books to Egypt for their study on foreign literature. They'd expect me to depart for the trip in three days, and I'm free to bring a friend. This could look really really good on my resume if I applied for a job as an anchorwoman, Brandon, and you're always nagging me to take my life 'seriously'..."

"But you said no, right? Right?" Brandon said, trying not to jump to conclusions.
"...I said yes."

He stood there in silence, trying to find words to say. As if his face didn't say enough.

He begun to freak out and mumble a little to himself. Shortly after that, he started yelling."W-what...you said yes?? YOU SAID YES?? TO EGYPT?? Do you KNOW how much money that will cost?? Oh my Plumbbob, it'll take me years to pay off that debt! I'd have to get a dozen more promotions? Did you even think this through?!" Admittedly, Sandy didn't think it through before saying "yes". She did after the fact, however, which is why she was so afraid to tell Brandon. She just knew that he'd react like that. She tried to think up a quick escape.

"Don't worry babe, they said they'd cover most if not all expenses. Plus, we can make some money out of it too! And oh my Plumbbob, it's Egypt! It's so amazing, with the adventure and mystery..."
"You've been watching too many Indiana Jones movies" Brandon said with a slight smile. He just can't stay mad at her, no matter how hard he tries. "I always thought that our first vacation together would be somewhere romantic, you know, like France." he continued. Hesitantly, he began to accept the idea of going to Egypt for his girlfriend's job. Maybe he could somehow take his computer with him so he can work from home and get an advance on his work performance.

Since neither one of them knew how to cook without burning something, Brandon made some salad for the two of them. It wasn't their favorite, but it was satisfying enough without being fattening (like Sandy's favorite "meal", ice cream). Now genuinely concerned, Sandy put her fork down and asked if he was mad at her for making such a rash decision. "Sandy, I'm not mad" he began with a slightly amused smile on his face. "I'm just worried, that's all." Her eyebrows knitted together questioningly. "Worried? About what?" More silence.

Finally, he sighed. "I'm worried that you're not taking your job seriously, us seriously. You change your mind every other day and you make decisions without thinking about the consequences first. I used to just place the blame on your childish nature, but this goes beyond childishness. I honestly think you're being really selfish. I'm happy that you took my advice to take your job more seriously, but, what about us? Do you even care about me or my thoughts anymore?"

"Excuse me." Brandon said in a huff. He walked away from the kitchen and straight to bed, leaving Sandy to ponder what just happened. Brandon isn't the emotional type, so maybe something really is wrong with their relationship.

Life for the next two days wasn't much of anything to talk about; they ate, slept, bathed, and basically avoided talking to each other as much as possible. Sandy broke the computer and didn't even tell Brandon; she just let him figure it out on his own. Which he did, since he repaired it himself without uttering a word to her. Maybe this getaway to Egypt, although horribly timed, was just what they needed.

They arrived at the Saskan Airport Terminal on Friday with apprehension and excitement.

"Are you sure you want to go with me? You can just stay here, if you want." she spoke quietly. He exhaled deeply, and replied "Yeah, I'm sure. I want to be there to support you. And, you know, the tomb exploring seems fun." he said sheepishly. "Well, alright then..."

Together, hand in hand, they walked into the airport terminal. Hopefully this trip will prove to be beneficial in more ways than one.