What the fuck?
“Are you hungry?”
“What?” My eyes shoot to hers, half convinced I’ve voiced my thoughts.
“Tilly made some cookies and brownies and, well, basically everything,” Arianna says, breaking the tense silence that’s been heavy in the van for over two hours. “You can grab some, if you want. Or whatever.”
“I don’t like sweets.”
She snickers. “That explains a lot.” I hear her murmur to herself before turning to me. “If you don’t typically like sweets, you’ll change your mind when you taste my sister’s pastries. Absolutely no one makes them like she does.”
There’s pride in her voice when she talks about her sister. She had the same look on her face back there, and I was almost convinced that she’s actually sweet and not the evil twin who glares men into submission.
“Alright, I’ll try one,” I say, reaching for the basket and taking out a bag with a chocolate chip cookie inside. I decide one won’t hurt, if only to be polite. But the second my teeth sink into the chocolate cookie and the flavors flood my taste buds, Irealize that I’ll not be stopping at just one. It has a chewy center and a crispy edge that balances perfectly with the sweet and salty flavors. This has to be top-grade chocolate because it doesn’t have the overly sweet and waxy aftertaste of the cheap stuff. Before I know it, I’m reaching for another cookie before I finish the first.
“So? What do you think?” Arianna says, briefly turning to glance at me with a rare smile. “Good, right?”
“It’s…fine.”
Arianna rolls her eyes at me before reaching into the bag for a cookie, then turning back to the road. “You don’t have to eat them. More for me, I guess.”
And the van falls back into yet another bout of awkward silence, and for the next hour, we don’t speak unless we have to. We stop for lunch in Pennsylvania at some diner advertising authentic Philly cheesesteak sandwiches. I try to fight down the irritation when Arianna whips out her phone and starts filming without so much as a warning. I question if part of my irritation is because of the bright smile she has for the camera as she shows off the sandwich and the small mom and pop diner—a smile she hasn’t once given me.
“What’s so interesting about a sandwich that you need to share it with the world?” I ask once she’s done filming, biting into mine. Sure, it’s a nice sandwich, but it’s still just a sandwich.
Arianna glares at me, and I’m certain she’s not going to answer until she does. “My channel is all about having experiences and sharing them with people who might not otherwise have the opportunity to,” she says, biting into her sandwich.
She’s quiet for a while as she eats. “I know I’m privileged in ways most people are not. My parents made sure my sister and Iwould never have to work a day in our lives if we didn’t want to. Tilly chose to become a baker, and she makes people smile every time they taste her pastries. And I chose this...traveling and exploring life. So I try to make a positive impact everywhere I go. By tomorrow, this place will be filled with people coming to try this sandwich, and what do you think that does to the business owners?” She looks down at her sandwich, and a ghost of a smile slips through. “Small businesses like this one—they live and die on word of mouth. If I can send a few hundred people their way, that matters. I bet some of my viewers have probably never thought of stopping at a place like this, so this might be the nudge they need. It’s a small thing but...ugh, why am I even telling you this?”
Because she’s never had anyone to talk to about it. It’s clear to me, by how she speaks, that she’s always wanted to share her interests—justify them. And fuck, why wouldn’t she feel the need, with fuckers like me being prejudiced about every person who whips out their phone to record in public?
“It’s an admirable thing you do,” I say, and it’s clear that my words take her by surprise as her eyes shoot to mine. “I mean it.”
“Yeah, well…it’s whatever,” she says, looking away.Clearly flustered by the praise.
“Alright then, finish your food. I’m driving the next leg of the trip.”
“What? But I said—”
“Don’t you need to post the video you just filmed?” I ask, polishing off my sandwich.
“I mean, yeah, but—”
“Then I’ll drive while you do that.”
She makes an exasperated sound, and I can tell she wants to fight me on this before letting it go with a sigh. “Fine,” she says, shoving the rest of the sandwich into her mouth. “The next stop is Cleveland’s Rock N’ Roll Hall of Fame. That’s where we’ll be spending our first night.”
***
The next several hours are spent in silence, not nearly as awkward as the first leg was. Something changed when we stopped for lunch. Nothing so significant but enough that Arianna hasn’t glared at me for hours.
It’s dusk when we finally pull into the campground just outside of Cleveland, the engine humming low as I navigate the gravel road. It’s a good thing Arianna had the foresight to book a spot in advance, or we’d have been stuck with a terrible view or worse, risk no spot at all. And judging from the number of RVs and vans parked, my bet is on the latter.
The park transforms right in front of our eyes as we drive to our spot. The sky is painted in stunning hues of fiery orange and deep red, and the trees silhouette against the colorful canvas. I smell something I haven’t in a long fucking time—earth, damp from the day’s heat, coupled with a hint of woodsmoke drifting from a nearby campfire. The day is cooling down when we step outside, a gentle breeze whispering through the leaves and carrying with it the scent of fresh pine.
The air is filled with the sounds of nature—the chirping of crickets and the distant call of birds. Things I haven’t experienced in years. Ever since I stepped back from fieldwork and focused on investigations, I haven’t had much time to travel. Not even to Central Park. Hell, it’s been years since I’ve seen this many trees. Since I’ve breathed air so clean.
“I’m going to start filming a short video of the van setup,” Arianna says, turning to me. “I…um, do you mind stepping back for this part? I want to take pictures of this view too before the sun completely sets.”
