She's Just That Kind of Girl

Thirty-Two | Violet

I purchased a bouquet at some fancy florist place on the way to the stadium for him. I honestly didn't know if guys liked receiving I'm so sorry I messed up flowers, or flowers in general. Tanner loved giving me a rose, maybe he'd like receiving one too, along with a healthy mix of lilies, sunflowers, carnations, and stargazer lilies—my personal favorite. I drummed my fingers on my stomach with the flowers resting on my chest like a burial as I laid sprawled out on the backseats of an Uber. Stone sat in the front seat with the kid driver named Derek, as the Uber app told me.

His wide, darting eyes in the rearview mirror as a tattle-tail on his curiosity. He licked his lips here and there, as if his tongue parched dry just thinking of all the questions it could—and wanted—to ask. But Stone shot him major side-eye, which wasn't very nice to do.

I stared at the ceiling of this boy's car, which smelled of strong, chemically-made lavender. It was clean though, gracias a dios. I made sure to keep my feet off the seats and crammed them uncomfortably off the edge. Nice and toasty with the heat on, I could almost take a nap. The drumming on my stomach slightly eased my anxieties that sent my heart to the races and caused a riot within my stomach. Also, since these windows weren't blacked out, lying down seemed to be the best way to stay hidden. Will he be happy to see me? Will his face light up in surprise? Will he forgive me? Will he take me back? Will he like these flowers? Does he even personally like flowers? Puf, I shouldn't be doing this today of all days. A good person would at least wait until after the game. But my sisters have a point. A phone call wouldn't do, even if it is understandable given my tour. And I can't wait any longer if I really want to do this.

I realized the music softly playing in the background being drowned out by my thoughts sounded like me. Is that my new album? Did my sisters actually get my label to surprise drop it today? As I shot up, I figured I should ease the driver's nerves while we idled in traffic.

"You can speak to me, by the way. I don't bite, and neither does Stone, despite his glare."

"Speak for yourself," Stone said.

"Thank you so much, Violet! I'm a huge fan. I mean, huge. My sisters and I all have matching tattoos of 'broken egos make for softer hearts' on our right rib," he said, before taking a sip of soda.

"Really? That is so awesome! You'll have to show me when—"

Immediately, he raised his shirt on his right side and I leaned over the console. In script, the line broken egos make for softer hearts from our album Black + Blued was tattooed right where he said. "Oh, wow. You weren't kidding. That is so beautiful! I'm very honored to have our words etched into your skin. What are the names of your sisters?"

"Dayna and Sabrina."

"Such gorgeous names. How about we take a video while we wait in traffic to send to them? Hopefully they'll send one back and I can see them," I said.

Meeting fans was the highlight of my life. They made the experience unforgettable and supported my dream. How could I not want to know every single one of my fans?

"Oh my god. Really? That would be the best thing of my life! I'm so honored to be your Uber driver!" he said.

He snatched his phone off his phone mount and began the video. "Guess who I'm driving to the national championship game! I can't believe it, Day and Brina! We're even jamming to her new album that dropped today!"

I waved into the camera mirroring my perfectly made-up face. I wore my signature hairdo—a braided bun, but this one graced low and tight—and Tanner's jacket over warm clothes with the temperatures being close to the negatives. And I thought home was cold. "Hi, Dayna and Sabrina! I love your names. Your nicknames sound like they could be one, creative name. I like it! Also, I've been meaning to ask you Derek, when did this album drop?"