Be With Me

Chapter Eighteen

As Rey's arms were wrapped around Ben's waist, she had trouble keeping her helmet from smacking his. She backed up a bit and held on to his sides with just her gloved hands. His Triumph rumbled underneath her and she felt the heat radiating from the muffler near her boots. The wind was cold and crept under the sleeves of her leather jacket. It was an old black faux leather jacket she had found at a thrift store a week before for five bucks. She knew she'd be riding with Ben more now and thought it was a good idea to have a jacket just for their rides. But, she quickly realized it wasn't doing its duty. It was thin and only reached to right above her belt, letting the cold find its way up her arms and up her back. Now that it was late November, the cold was inevitable and she tried blocking out the fact that she was freezing. She turned her head back and saw Poe's orange Jeep was still behind them. Poe noticed and must've told the others as she saw four hands wave back at her. Rey smiled and was overjoyed to go on this road trip with her best friends and her boyfriend. She must've expressed that excitement somehow because Ben noticed and took her hand from his waist, interlocked their gloved fingers for a moment and brought the back of her hand to his helmet where his mouth would be. Rey giggled to herself and squeezed his hand before letting go and held onto his sides again.  

It was about another half an hour to Ben's and Tali's friend's house where they would drop off Ben's bike and switch it out for the Mercedes he was letting them borrow for their trip. Rey looked out over Ben's shoulder and enjoyed the beautiful scenery that Hanna City had to offer. They were now on the highway which ran directly along the coast. The waves were oozing onto the beach and Rey noticed a handful of surfers trying their luck with the cold, unpredictable waves. Dedicated, she thought. Rey was never taught to swim and therefore wasn't eager to get into large bodies of water, let alone be involved in any water sports. Other than standing in the shallow part of a pool or sitting in a jacuzzi, she had no desire to spend any of her time in water. The roads began to meander and Ben smoothly laid into the curves which Rey mimicked and found to be exhilerating. She understood why Ben liked riding so much. When a group of ten Harley Davidson riders drove by, Ben extended his hand in greeting and Rey noticed he repeated that whenever someone else on a motorcycle rode past them.

When they got to his friend's house, Ben parked in the driveway next to the black Mercedes with tinted windows that was already waiting for them. They hopped off and Rey waited on the others to walk over from across the street where Poe had parked the Jeep. Ben rang the doorbell and a man in dark jeans, a gray shirt and a black denim jacket opened the door. He was at least twenty years older than Ben, and Rey wondered about the nature of their relationship. She noticed Tali's demeanor stiffen as she walked up the driveway to approach their friend. Rey was surprised at how professional Tali spoke to the man. He didn't leave his door step and didn't seem to want to engage with her and her friends. Ben shook his hand, exchanged the keys and turned around raising his hand in appreciation as the man closed the door. Rose looked at her and the others confused but shrugged and waited for Ben and Tali.

"Alright," Ben said opening the trunk of the Mercedes. "Let's get the bags from the Jeep and we can hit the road."

"He's not gunna come out and see who's using his car?" Poe asked, pointing at the closed door.

"Ugh, no," Ben said, his eyes following the direction of Poe's finger. "Guess not."

"If I would lend my car to complete strangers, I'd wanna know who they are at least," Poe raised an eyebrow. "Especially an expensive car like this."

"I'm not a stranger. He trusts me," Ben said turning his attention back to the trunk and putting his and Rey's helmets in it. Rose and Tali came back with their suitcases and let Ben load them. Ben closed the trunk when it was full, then opened the garage door and pushed his bike inside. When he locked up, Poe and Finn hopped in the Jeep and Rose, Tali and Rey got into the Mercedes.