driver's license // r.h.

Chapter 13

The next morning, me and Sarah woke up to go to school. We grabbed some coffee from our favorite place and headed to first period. Throughout the day, I would catch Max looking at me, and it hurt me to see I made him this upset. I knew how much he hated it when people kept things from him because of his dad. I knew how much he hated it and yet, I kept a secret from him. He had every right to be mad at me, so I would just look down at my fingers every time he looked at me.

Once school was over, Sarah and I left to go to the mall to hang out. Then, after our successful shopping trip, Sarah  went back to her house to shower and eat dinner with her family while I went back home to eat one last dinner with my mom. She was tired from work all day, so after we ate dinner together, she went to bed. I finished packing everything that needed to be transported to LA by truck last night, and it was picked up this morning. I still had a few bags to take with me on the plane, but most of my stuff was  already packed.

Tomorrow was my last day of public high school, and then I would be doing online classes until I graduated. My thoughts were interrupted by my front door opening and someone coming up the stairs. Sarah knew my mom was sleeping, so she quietly came in and situated herself on my bed like usual. "Hey nerd, did you finish packing?" she asked.
"Yep, I just have to pack a few last minute things before I leave for school tomorrow," I said.
"What time is your flight?' she asked.
"4:15, so I  have to leave right after school to make sure I don't miss it," I said.
"Can I come to the airport with you? You know, to say goodbye," she asked looking down. I could tell how hard this goodbye was going to be.
"Of course Sarebear! I'll have my mom just meet us there instead of picking me up," I said. She nodded, and gave me a smile.
"Hey, why don't we go on a ride? Just like old times," she said. I smiled, she knows me so well. The sky was dark with just a little orange and pink. It wasn't too late to go on a night ride.
"Anywhere in particular?" I asked with a smirk.
"Lu's Dinner?" she asked, wiggling her eyebrows. I gasped, that is our favorite place to eat! We go all the time with Max! Max... It still pained me to know Max was mad at me, but I brushed it off before Sarah could even notice. Besides, Auntie Lu Lu would love to see us (the owner of the dinner. We call her 'Auntie' because we go so often and she treats us like family).
"You read my mind, let's go!" I said, grabbing my wallet and walking out of the room.

We grabbed our skateboards and started riding in the street towards what we could see left of the sun. The cool wind ran through my hair, and I shivered a little with just my light jacket on. All the snow had melted yesterday, and there was not a cloud in the night sky. We pulled onto the sidewalk of the busy street Lu's was on. The sun was gone, and left a little trace of color still in the sky.

We walked through the same double doors like we have for years and were instantly welcomed by the signature smell. Behind the counter, Lu Lu looked up at the door. She made eye contact with both of us and gave a huge smile. "Sarah! Alexis!" she says excitedly, rushing over to us. "My girls!" she says as she hugs us tight.
"Hi Auntie Lu Lu!" Sarah says.
"We missed you so much," I said.
"Aww, well I missed my two favorite girls! It's been a few weeks," she said letting go of our hug. "Max is over in your usual booth," she says, winking at me. She knows about my feelings for Max because me and Sarah tell her absolutely everything. She gives the best advice and is a great listener.
"Max?" Sarah asked, shocked.
"Yeah, I assumed you guys were all meeting up," she said confused. Who could blame her? This is our favorite hang out spot, and we normally always come with or meet Max.
"Um, not today," I said, looking at the floor.
"Did something happen?" Lu Lu asked me, worried. I went on to explain how my singing career took off, and I would be moving to LA tomorrow. I told her how I didn't tell Max and now he was upset with me. "Sweetheart, I would go talk to him. At least try to talk to him before you leave tomorrow. Once you leave, you both will regret not talking to each other. You three are best friends, and nothing will change that."
"You're right," I said, sighing in defeat.
"Now, why don't you girls go sit with him. I'll get your usual ready?" she asked.
"Thanks Lu Lu, you are the best!" Sarah exclaimed, dragging me to our normal booth. I saw Max sitting there alone and on his phone. When he noticed us, he looked surprised for a second. Then, he just looked down at his fingers. We stopped in front of our booth and Sarah looked between us.
"I'll be right back, I'm going to ask Lu Lu for a basket of fries," Sarah said. She gave me a look before walking off. I sighed and looked at Max. We stared into each other's eyes for a few seconds before looking away.
"Hey," I said, not sure how to start the conversation.
"Hey," he replied back. It was quiet for a minute, and I picked up the courage to apologize.
"I'm sorry..." we both said at the same time. We made eye contact and he gave me a smile.
"It's okay, it's my fault, I overreacted," Max said.
"No no, it's okay, I'm the one who kept a secret from you. You had every right to be upset with me," I said.
"Are we, um, cool again?" he asked.
"Of course Max," I said. He smiled and got up to hug me. He buried his face in my neck and I felt him smile.
"Thank you," he said, his warm breath tickling my neck.
"Of course," I whispered back. We stayed there, just hugging until Sarah came back. We pulled away and looked at her. She raised her eyebrows at both of us, and we blushed.
"I knew ordering fries was a great idea!" she exclaimed happily. We laughed as Sarah sat down on the right side of our booth. Max stepped to the side and gestured to me to slide into the booth first.
"After you princess," he said smiling. I laughed and gave him a curtsy before sliding into the booth. He sat next to me and put his arm around my shoulders. I leaned my head on his shoulders and relaxed into him. We all talked about school and some random things while we waited for our food just like we always do. I am seriously going to miss this.

Lu Lu came over to our booth and set down our three large chocolate milkshakes. She placed them in the middle of the table and put three straws down for us. She looks between me and Maxs and raises her eyebrows and smirks. I blush and I look over to see Max is also blushing. "I'm so happy to see my three favorite teenagers back here," she said, putting down our big basket of fries in the middle so we could all reach.
"I call dibs on paying today!" Sarah exclaims. Me and Max start to protest before getting cut off by Lu Lu.
"No no no, this is on the house tonight!" she says stubbornly. I feel tears threaten to fill my eyes as I remember this is my last time eating here for a while, but I fight it. I am really going to miss them all.
"Thank you Lu Lu," I said.
"Of course honey, now enjoy your milkshakes!" she said before walking off. What an angel!

Before we knew it, we had finished all the fries and our milkshakes and it was 9:30. We had stayed talking for a few hours and now it was time to go home. We hugged Max goodnight before he walked out to head home. I walked over to Lu Lu to say my hard goodbye. I thanked her for everything she has done for me over these years. Some tears were involved, and a long hug. She wished me luck with my career and I promised to come back and visit as often as I can. Me and Sarah grabbed our skateboards and skated back to my house. The moon and stars were out, dancing across the sky. It had gotten a little colder but I didn't mind. The cool wind froze my cheeks as we continued down the street, guided by the dim street lamps.

We made sure we were quiet before walking back into my house. The rest of the night, me and Sarah put on a movie and talked through the whole thing. After the movie was over, I went to my bathroom to wash my face, and came back to find Sarah already asleep. I laid down next to her, but had a harder time sleeping. I had too many emotions rushing through me to try and sleep. 30 minutes had passed of tossing and turning and my phone started vibrating. I picked it up to see Ryan was trying to facetime me. A smile spread across my face as I picked up. His warm smile filled my screen, "Hey Lexi!" he said. His face dropped a little once he saw me lying in the dark in my bed. "Oh no angel, did I wake you up?" he asked. I smiled at the nickname.
"No no, you're fine. I can't sleep," I admitted, rubbing my eyes from my phone brightness. "What's up?"
"Not much, I just miss you," he said sweetly.
"Aww Ry, I miss you too," I said, my voice slightly raspy.
"I love your tired voice, it's cute," he pointed out laughing. I blushed, thankful he couldn't really see because of how dark it is. We talked for a few more minutes before I felt my eyes grow too heavy, and sleep overcame me.

Ryan's pov:

"So Lexi, I've been meaning to tell you," I started. I stopped talking once I heard the tiniest snores. I look at my phone to see Lexi asleep. Gosh, she is so beautiful. I wish she was mine. "I know you can't hear me because you are asleep, but I actually facetimed you to tell you I broke up with Cassidy this morning. I realized I didn't have feelings for her, I actually have them for someone else. It wasn't fair of me to lead her on. I really like you Lexi, and I want to be with you. Gosh, I wish you could hear me right now," I said. My plan was to ask her out, but I guess over facetime would be pretty lame. I had to think of another way to ask her out once she came down to LA. "Goodnight Lexi, I'll see you tomorrow angel," I said before hanging up.