I rolled my eyes and patted his cheek for him to start talking.
“It’s a surprise,” he said. He brought his arm up to check his watch. “Annnd, I think we should get goin’ now.”
“We? Now?” I asked him to clarify. “I’msupposed to be staying right here getting a full-night’s sleep in order to be well-rested for our roadtrip in the morning, Mr. Johns. Not all of us are used to the road life.”
The other reason I was hesitating was because I didn’t want my parents to find out about him sneaking up here. It was the very last time he’d have to do it… and we had a clean record as of now. I didn’t want to piss them off right before I left.
“You’ll be a roadie with me before ya know it,” he patted my head. “So, yes,wehave to go. You have to come see.” He rolled on top of me, practically squishing me, and planted a kiss on my lips before jumping off the bed the same way he’d done hundreds of times last year. When I didn’t move, he said, “Let’s go, Smol!”
“We better not get caught,” I said cautiously.
“Nah. Love the new silky get-up by the way,” he said, wagging his eyebrows and motioning to my new pj’s on the ground. “Besides,” he pulled his shirt on, “what will happen if we do get caught? You’re all mine starting tomorrow.” He flashed his flirty grin at me.
“Yeah, yours and Wynn State’s,” I clarified. I think he was forgetting I was only allowed to move all the way to Michigan to go to college, not to follow him, as my dad clarified to me about a million times this summer.
“Eh, details, Smol,” he winked, then led the way to my window.
____
He had parked down the street so he wouldn’t tip my parents off that he didn’t fully leave the house, and I followed him as he ran in the dark through the bushes feeling like the luckiest girl alive and completely high on life. It felt like we were stealing time, and no one could stop us. Everyone else was sleeping, but we were having our own little adventure.
He gallantly opened the shotgun door of his brand new, fantsy-pants, black jeep wrangler and I hopped in. It was much easier than climbing into Griff’s old truck and it still had the new car smell.
“So, what do you think?” he asked, strumming the wheel.
“I like it,” I said in a high-pitched voice.
“Griff’s lumpy seats were somehow more comfortable, weren’t they?” he asked with a grin.
I bit my lip as I nodded, which made us both laugh.
“Can you believe we miss that old piece of shit?”
I shook my head at him. It really was a wonder. Griff had to jump it in the parking lot of the Ice League at least once a month. But that old truck gave us our first sense of freedom and brought us together. I’d never forget it.
Nevertheless, Nick sped forward, opened all the car windows, and blasted some new summer tunes.
My hair went everywhere, but I didn’t care. It felt like freedom; it felt like leaving all my problems behind, and I couldn’t wait to start the next chapter of life with him.
I was a little confused by our final destination though. Nick pulled over and parked in downtown Northfield, which was completely shut down. The downtown stores usually didn’t stay open past 4pm.
But he promptly got out and waited for me to run around his car to catch up to him. He grabbed my hand and pulled me toward the one and only shop with lights on inside.
“Mike’s tattoos?” I asked him incredulously, pulling back from him. “Are you out of your ever-loving-mind, Nick?”
He just laughed and pulled open the door. “You’ll like it, I swear, babe. Besides, I’ve been waiting a long time for this and life’s too short to wait any longer.”
I watched him saunter in ahead of me and bro-hug the artist– probably Mike, who looked like a biker dude– like he’d known him for years. Nick had that quality about him. He could make you feel like you were best friends after only talking to him for fifteen minutes. I think it was his gift. He could relate to almost anyone on the planet.
“Still on for the design you emailed me last week?” Mike asked, sitting down on a stool next to a reclinable chair which looked like it belonged in a dentist’s office.
He looked at me and answered, “Never been more sure.”
Nick proceeded to rip off his shirt for the second time tonight.
I stepped closer to him, completely unsure about what he was doing, and felt words clog in my throat. We didn’t even talk about this and now he was going to make this huge decision to mark up his beautiful body? I mean, tattoos could be hot I guess, I never really thought about it… but he didn’t even consult with me…. I guess it was his body, but still… I had somefeelings…
He plopped in the seat and then looked up at me with his warm eyes, noticing my hesitation. “Don’t worry so much,” he said with a boy-ish grin. “Take a chance with me, babe.”
