.

"What do you mean I'm disqualified?!" Joe shouted.

"It was barely made. It wasn't released in the 80's. You picked the category, you should know." Michael shrugged.

"But it's set in the 80's!"

"The category was '80's movies' not 'movies from 2017 about the 80's'. There's a difference Joe." Pia chimed in.

Joe ignored them, and sat himself on the couch grumpily. He crossed his arms around his chest and huffed.

"So, who wins then?" Mariana asked.

"It was a close call," Michael shuffled through the little slips of paper, "but our newbie over here won." Michael grinned at Carl.

"Of course I won, Stand By Me is like the best 80's movie ever." Carl smirked proudly. He held his head a little higher.

"The best 80's movie is The Outsiders but go off." Mariana shrugged, crossing her arms. She turned her head to look in the opposite direction.

"Y'all act like The Breakfast Club doesn't exist." Pia snorted. The blonde dumped the rest of the m&ms in her mouth.

"But are any of them as iconic as E.T. like seriously, that movies a classic." Michael added with a scoff.

"You guys take this really seriously." Luke mumbled, rolling his eyes. He didn't see what the big deal was, they're just movies from a time they didn't even exist.

"Oh fuck off Luke." Joe threw popcorn at the Aussie, clearly enjoying the cinematic discussion.

***

"Mariana."

"Mariana."

"Mariana."

Carl called her name three times, but the girl still wouldn't wake up. Who could blame her? They fell asleep at around two and Carl had decided to wake her up at seven—in the morning.

"What Carl?" She groaned as she turned her head the opposite direction. Her hair had loosened from her ponytail and covered her face.

"Wake up. We're going to Disneyland today." He poked at her side, earning a squirm. Instantly her head perked up.

"Well why didn't you wake me up sooner?" Mariana pulled out her designated Disney clothes, which were coordinated by Minnie ear colors. She hurriedly slipped on her garments.

"I've tried for like the last half hour. I remember you wanted to get there early."

"Awe, how sweet." She chuckled, zipping up her maroon wind breaker. Mariana picked up her rose covered Minnie ears.

"I also invited Joe and Pia. They said they were free today."

"Are you gonna hang out with your new boyfriend the whole time?" Mariana joked, double checking her bag for their tickets.

"Maybe. But let's go, gotta meet them there." He picked up the key card and car rental keys.

Carl drove, humming to the Disney tunes that Mariana blasted. He smiled at the way she acted; like a young child. Mariana looked out the window.

No matter how long she stayed in Los Angeles, it was like it was brand new. She was left in awe and her breathe was taken away.

The parking lot was surprisingly empty. Mariana recognized the pink g wagon that belonged to Pia. Carl parked beside it. Immediately he went up to Joe.

"Wow five seconds in and you're already stealing my boyfriend Joe?" Mariana joked, leaning against their rental car.

"What can I say? I'm a chick magnet and a dick magnet." He started walking to the entrance with everyone trailing behind.

Mariana and Pia linked arms, skipping towards the entrance. The sky was still a tinted hue of gray. Carl took a large breath, taking in the smell of 'nostalgia' as Joe had explained.

In the lines were tired children and parents who looked as if they were here just for themselves. Joe pulled out a small stack of papers out of Pia's backpack. He flipped through the pages, skimming each one.

"What's that?" Carl asked, pointing in a circular motion. Joe's face lit up as he shuffled through the backpack once more. He pulled out an identical stack and handed it to Carl.

"Disneyland itinerary. After a summer of coming here together we've compiled a schedule to make the most of out the time we have. Since it is your first time here."

Pia chimed in, "Mariana told us, and we wanted it to be special. Don't want your first time here to be just waiting in line behind some crying kids and sweaty middle aged men."

Suddenly a man turned, staring Pia up and down. "What? You know it's true." Joe defended, causing the man to go back to minding his own business.

"It's time guys." Mariana smiled, seeing them start to scan tickets and let people in. She prepared herself, magic mornings were like battlefields. Joe zipped up Pia's bag, passing her a ticket.

"Hope you do cardio Gallagher, fantasyland is pretty far from the entrance." Joe smiled, following his shorter companion to the turnstiles.

"We're skipping the whole entrance?"

"Unless you want to go through the Lincoln museum or shop with the old ladies. Fantasyland gets packed quick during the day. Packed rides come first."

The quartet scanned their tickets and proceeded to speed walk. They weaved through the strollers and toddlers, trying to beat the soccer mom's to Peter Pan's Flight.

Soon enough they could hear the soft tunes of fantasyland, the carousel spinning with nobody on it. Mariana grabbed Carl's hand and ran straight through the empty line.

They sat down with a rush, Carl and Mariana in the front and Pia and Joe in the back. The startled ride operator made sure they were secured in, even though the ride was only raised a measly few feet.

Mariana's eyes twinkled in delight. She was more excited to see Carl's reaction than the ride itself. It took him awhile to get his eyes to adjust to the dimness. He couldn't help but smile at the depictions of the movie he loved as a child.

It brought a sense of joy to him. Back to those days where he would sit with his siblings around the tv and play Disney vhs tapes for hours on end. Although he didn't have a lot of great childhood memories, it brought back the ones that were.