Impulse (NaNoWriMo)

~6~

I drove out of the parking lot and into the sun as I headed west. I didn't want to think about anything, especially not my family. This trip was supposed to be me getting away from it all and finding who I am. The mall started it, but I knew I was just pretending that whole time. Even with Vince this morning, I smiled, I laughed, but every smile made me want to cry just a little bit more because it was all a fake front.

I had been pretending ever since that night in the hospital when my dad found me and told me the worst news I had ever heard. I wiped my tears and I went to be with my family. My relatives who had all left earlier that day from the graduation party to go home, turned right around and stayed with us for a week. It was unbearable. All the people. All the sympathy. All the pain.

I spent a lot of time out in the backyard, in my own little world. I didn't want to see anyone, I didn't want to do anything. I hardly even wanted to go to the funeral. Everyone was there, and when I say everyone, I do mean everyone. I read in the paper afterwards that over 5,000 people came to the visitation beforehand. I stood there next to the casket and shook hands or got hugged by over 5,000 strangers.

How could they all have cared? How could my sister have meant so much to those people? Would there have been that many people there if it had been me? Surely not. There's no way.

I glanced at the clock to see it was a little after 3 and I thought I would make it to where I wanted to stop around five. My legs were starting to cramp up so I saw a rest area sign ahead and decided to stop there and stretch. I hated driving for long periods of time. Who would have thought.

When I pulled into a parking spot my breaks seemed weird and the engine was a lot louder than I thought it should be. I turned the car off and got out only to see smoke beginning to seep out of the hood.

No. No. No.

This could not be happening. Stupid Accord!

I hit the button for the hood to pop up and I about burnt my finger on hot metal as I flung it open. I coughed as I inhaled the damn smoke and tried to wave it all away .

"Looks like you're havin some trouble there miss," a deep voice said to my right.

I propped the hood up and flicked my hair out of my eyes to see who was talking to me. The stranger had on ripped jeans and black boots, as well as a black cut off t-shirt which he might as well not even be wearing since it was ripped all the way down to his hips. His dark hair was wild and crazy looking like he had just woke up and his green eyes surrounded by dark lashes were looking right at me. His look fit perfectly with the shiny black motorcycle he was leaning against.

"I guess so," I finally answered his question.

I bit my lip, trying to figure out what to do. He couldn't be that much older than me, but the fact that he was walking closer kind of made me uneasy. I wasn't used to the laid back biker types.

The stranger, who hadn't yet introduced himself, put one arm next to mine to brace himself as he looked over the engine and used the other to wave the remaining smoke away.

"Looks like it overheated. It's over 90 degrees today. Have you been on the road for long?" he aske me. His head turned towards me and I detected a taunt in his voice as if it was my fault that the car overheated.

"Since this morning..." I answered, not sure what else to add.

"Well. That sucks."

"Gee really? Can you help me out? How do I fix it?" I asked, sounding like an uneducated child. I hated it. It would me my luck that my car, the unreliable one I chose to drive by the way, would break down before my first day was even over.