She teases, and I raise an eyebrow at her question. I choose to ignore it. There is no need to give her more power over me than she already has.
I get on the bike, then turn to her. I don’t needto say anything for her to join me. She climbs on the bike, and I wait for her to tell me where to take her.
“Do you know the church that is close to where the race was the last time we met?”
She asks, and I nod as I turn the key in the engine. Without another word, I start driving. The sound of my bike fills the silence between us.
The streets are quiet as I weave through the familiar roads.
"So, do you find yourself at that police station often?" I attempt to break the silence with a joke at the stoplight, but she just shrugs, eyes fixed ahead.
I can feel her laugh before she yells back, “Yeah, I like to get arrested once a week to keep things interesting.”Smart and funny.
With each turn, I can’t shake the feeling that this moment is part of something bigger, a thread in a story not yet fully woven. The bike continues to purr beneath us as we approach the church.
As we pull up, I slow down just enough to hear her voice.
"Thanks for the ride."
She climbs off my bike the moment I stop, not giving me time to process the countless thoughts and feelings rushing through my mind.
“No problem, pinkie.” I manage to say.
“See you around, Ash.”
She tells me while she places the helmet I gave her earlier onto my lap. She places a soft kiss on my cheek with a smile before she turns her back to me.
I hesitate, deciding against asking for more of her time. She is clearly withthat guy from the race, and even though I would love to steal his girl like I did with his car, I don’t think she deserves it. She is a pink-haired princess and deserves to be treated like one.
I watch her as she walks toward the church; then she switches to the road that leads behind it. I wait until her form disappears from my sight. I put my helmet on and head back to the road, the familiar way to my shared house with Aaron.The beautiful girl is still etched in my mind.
Chapter 2
Nova
By the time I reach my apartment building across from the church, the sound of Ash’s motorcycle is no longer present. A good thing, since I seem to be weirdly into him, to the point of letting him drive me home. I've always had this rule that I never actually let a guy drive me home unless we're on our fourth or fifth date. I guess now we can add to this rulespending a day in jail with someoneas a qualification.
I take my key out of my pocket as I climb the stairs to my apartment, and when I reach my door, I unlock it, only to find that someone is alreadyin my apartment.
The stranger is sitting on the couch facing the TV and is watching something on it. He has a beer in his hand, and as I get closer, I realize who that stranger is.My ex-boyfriend.
“What the hell are you doing here?”
I ask, trying my best to keep my anger at bay.
He immediately stands and approaches me as if nothing has happened. This bastard is acting like I didn’t catch him cheating a few days ago.
“Baby, I missed you so much.”
He coos into my neck as he picks me up and starts kissing his way to forgiveness.
“Get off me!”
I yell and push him onto the floor.
“What the hell, Nova?” His voice is full of feigned shock.
“Baby, you are not still mad about what that girl said, right? I told you it’s a lie; I would never cheat on you.”
