I made a right on Maple Street, and I was on autopilot. I needed caffeine, and the soda I had before I left the house just wasn’t doing a damn thing. An energy drink sounded like a really good idea, even if it caused me to have to stop for a bathroom break much earlier than expected. My main goal was to get past the worst part of Los Angeles before rush hour, and then I had to drive seven and a half hours to get to campus. It would probably take me closer to nine hours to actually get there since I was definitely going to be taking a few breaks along the way.
I was just about to reach for the radio and see if some music could help wake me up when I saw something to the right of my car—it was a person—and they were waving at me. I wasn’t going that fast; when I pulled my foot off the accelerator, I quickly started rolling to a stop. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It was Everette! I moved my foot to the brake pedal, brought my car to an immediate stop, and rolled down my window.
“Hey! What are you doing?” I looked at him in confusion.
“Hoping to see the most beautiful girl in Los Angeles before she left.” He leaned forward and smiled.
“Get in.” I motioned to him. “The neighbors will call the cops if they see some random guy wandering around the neighborhood before the sun comes up.”
“I was afraid of that…” He chuckled as he opened the passenger side door and sat down in the seat.
I didn’t wait to see if he was going to kiss me—it was my turn again. I kept my foot on the brake and leaned across the middle console until my lips found his. He put a hand behind my head and held me there while our lips seared together. It was another soul-crushing kiss—one that made my head spin while my entire body tingled. When his lips finally parted from mine, and he removed his hand from the back of my neck, I just kind of fell back into my seat with a rather silly smile etched on my lips—I wouldn’t have even noticed how silly it looked if I hadn’t caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror.
“My parents really scare you away?” I tilted my head to the side.
“Nah, they’re trying to look out for you in their own way.” He shrugged. “There’s nothing wrong with that, and you’ll show them that you’re doing just fine soon enough.”
“I just met you, and I think you have more confidence in me than the people who have been raising me for nearly nineteen years.” I sighed and shook my head.
“I don’t want to talk about your parents anymore, and neither do you. Let’s talk about us—and where this is going.” Everette reached over and took my hand. “I know this is crazy—I know you’re about to leave for college…”
“I’ll wait if you will.” I bit down on my bottom lip. “It’s only a few months until Thanksgiving.”
It’s not fair for me to ask him, but I think he was about to ask me the same thing…
“I just want to see where this is going,” he exhaled sharply. “This whole thing has completely caught me off guard…”
“I agree.” I nodded, and then a thought hit me—almost like a lightning bolt out of nowhere. “Hey, aren’t you off work for the rest of the week?”
“I am…” He nodded, but his face registered confusion.
“It’s only seven and a half hours to Arizona once we hit the highway—probably more like nine with a few breaks thrown in there.” I squeezed his hand. “I’d love the company…”
“I…” He seemed to be processing what he said. “I could take a bus back—or rent a car.”
“You’re a doctor.” I raised an eyebrow. “You can probably fly first class.”
“My residency doesn’t pay that well.” He laughed and shook his head. “Okay, if that’s an invitation, I accept.”
“Do you need anything from your house?” I tilted my head inquisitively.
“I left my back door unlocked…” He looked down for a moment. “Fuck it; I’m sure it’ll be fine.”
“Are you sure?” I eyed him apprehensively. “We could swing by…”
“Forget it.” He waved off my concern. “I don’t want to give you a chance to rescind your invitation. Just drive.”
I took my foot off the brake and started to press the gas. It was really happening. I was leaving Los Angeles with my gorgeous new neighbor riding shotgun. If we could survive a nine hour drive without getting sick of each other, it might very well be destiny. I was willing to give it a shot. We stopped at a gas station once we were on the outskirts of suburbia. I grabbed an energy drink, and Everette loaded up on coffee. Our lips met as soon as we were back in the car, and we delayed our journey by a few minutes just to get it out of our system—well, maybe that was what we had planned, but all it did was fuel the spark growing inside of me. We drove for a few more hours, talking, listening to music, singing along to songs one of us knew—and I just couldn’t stop smiling.
“Hold on…” I looked down at my phone. “I need to pull off at the next gas station. My best friend Amelia is blowing my phone up. She knows I’m driving…”
“Want me to check it?” Everette turned his head towards me. “That would keep you from having to stop.”
“Um—sure.” I shrugged held my thumb against the screen of my phone to unlock it before I nudged it towards him.
“Whoa, is she really driving to
Georgia?” He stared at my screen.