Thing of Chance

It was not always this way you know.  Easthaven, North Carolina used to be just that: a haven. A place where families would be excited to take their children and their children would be counting down the days to go.  A quaint little town with beautiful beaches, family owned restaurants, and bed and breakfasts that were always active with people. It was the kind of town that had the perfect balance of things to do while also being an oasis away from the everyday hustle and bustle. Now, it is more like a ghost town.

Brighton Bed and Breakfast has been in my family for the last three generations.  My grandmother and grandfather started it when they realized their best memories were in Easthaven and wanted to offer a chance for other families to make their own memories.  My father married his high school sweetheart and neither had the desire to leave town. My whole life and family history is thanks to Easthaven so I figured I would continue the family tradition.  Brighton Bed and Breakfast was always a popular place for families and couples to stay so I never second guessed my decision to take over the family business. That all has changed in the last five or so years.

It seems that family vacations have shifted from spending time together sitting on the beach and making wholesome memories to the need of filling the entire day with plans to keep the children interested.  Small towns like my own are now often overlooked when planning a family vacation as they are viewed to be boring with nothing to offer. We still will occasionally get an older couple looking to get away together or the one night stay of someone driving through town (or just last week we had a man stay only because he got lost and had no other choice).  It seems like this will be our last year open, even though that pains me to say.

My wife and I were never able to have children and I have never felt the need to get remarried after her passing.  I would love to stay in Easthaven, but with no family and pennies of an income, it is time I retire and move on. Our summer season was slow and now that we are nearing the holiday season, slow is quite an understatement. I cannot bring myself to pack up just yet and will ride out the new year since it is so close anyway.  I feel like I owe our little family establishment at least that. 

Feeling the mid November chill, I build a fire and settle in for what I know will be a quiet night in.  We have no more reservations for the year and I highly doubt we will have any walk ins unless someone loses their way to their festivities. When there is a knock at the door, I assume I am losing my mind until I hear a second, confirming knock.  I get ready to give directions out of town and grab a map from the front desk to help the lost traveler. 

I open the door and to my shock, I see the man’s face light up.  He looks flustered and relieved that someone has come to the door.  “I know this might be a long shot, but do you have room for ten?” Startled, I take a moment to make sure I am not mistaken. “You need a place to stay for ten people?” The bed and breakfast can hold 20 so there is not a lack of room or food (I always keep the place optimistically stocked). “Of course, but I have to ask. What brings you to Easthaven? We have not had this many guests at once in a few years.” 

“Well sir, we are nearby scouting spots to possibly film a new movie.  It is set in a small town and James has grandparents who rave about Easthaven so we thought we would come to check it out.”  I am still dumbfounded, but quickly offer the group a place to stay for the night. I always loved having guests with interesting backstories as it made for an interesting dinner conversation.

The last guest to come in the door strikes me immediately as being familiar.  As he shakes his hand and introduces himself, I speak up “I am sorry if I am being rude, but I feel like I have met you before. Did you ever come to Easthaven with your grandparents?”  The man looks a little taken aback, but not offended. “Well sir, no, but I am James Whittle. You may have seen me in a movie or two recently.” I do not get out much and the movie theater in town went out of business a couple of years ago, so I apologize for not recognizing him and state that I am excited to hear stories from the business. 

Seeing as these are the last guests our little B&B will ever see, I pull out all the stops.  The wine I have been saving for a special occasion has been drank, the fire is kept burning until late into the night, and my guests and I have gotten to know each other quite well.  On Saturday morning, when the afternoon was unseasonably warm, I even took them on a small tour of the area showing them the best spots on the beach and telling them old family stories of our time there. By the end of the their three day stay, they leave feeling much less like strangers and more like family.

As I start to clean and pack, I think about how nice it was to have a final going away party of sorts.  As I go to collect more wood from the shed, I am surprised to hear the phone ring. I hurry over thinking it must be a wrong number.  “Hello, is this Brighton Bed and Breakfast?” I assume it is another bill I must be late on and begrudgingly answer yes. I am shocked to say that I am quite wrong in my assumption. To my surprise, reservations like these kept the phone lines constantly ringing for the next few hours.  I did not even have time to question where this sudden interest was coming from between filling up the books for the next year. 

I later found out that James was not just in a couple of movies, but was the most popular actor of the last couple of years. He was so pleased with his stay that he made a post on his social media giving a raving review.  This quickly snowballed into numerous articles being written about a quaint little bed and breakfast in an overlooked town.  

Before I knew it, I had to hire help and our family business was once again booming.  People did not mind that Easthaven was a quiet town, but once again appreciated being able to disconnect and get away from everyday life.  We even bought a few abandoned properties around town and restored them to their original glory. I went from wondering how I was going to pay off my last few bills before closing up shop to wondering when the phone would stop ringing off the hook. 

Never again would I ever question if fate was real.  After all, all it might take to completely change your life is a thing of chance.  I am happy to say, Brighton Bed and Breakfast is open for the season.