august; ethan edwards

chapter i. road trip

The loud blasting of Taylor Swift encapsulated the otherwise silent car. Mark grumbled something under his breath, trying to resist the urge to drive both him and his little sister, Spencer Estapa off the road. But if they didn't have the music on, and if she wasn't screaming along to the lyrics, then she would be chatting his ear off about how nervous she was for college and then she would demand to be dropped home because she couldn't go through with it.

Mark decided the music and screaming was a better alternative.

Currently, the sibling duo was driving to Ohio, to pick up one of Marks friends from the airport, before driving back to Michigan in time for the move in day of college. Hence why the back of Spencer's car, which she made Mark drive so she could hold her own concert, was filled with their belongings.

Well, mostly hers. Mark had began college the year prior, so half his stuff was already moved into the sophomore house, which he got to share with all his friends.

Spencer was nervous, but she was attempting to distract herself through the means of loud music and laughter. She had never been one to make friends quickly, or at all for that matter. She was 99% certain that if her best friend from home wasn't the girl she grew up being neighbours with, she never would have had a single friend during high school. Her best friend, Kayla, had gone overseas for the holiday, and Spencer could already feel the drift between them. Add going to colleges on the other side of the world into the equation, their friendship was doomed.

Spencer hadn't even realised that they had reached Ohio, let alone the airport. She quickly became aware of this when Mark turned the music down, his eyes searching the crowds of people for his best friend.

Upon realising who she would have to come face to face with in a matter of minutes, Spencer immediately began playing with the bracelets that adorned her wrist.

And then there he was, walking towards the car with his bags. A large smile on his face, and his hair shoved under a cap. Spencer could have sworn he looked even more beautiful than he did last year, and the sight alone heated her face.

The boy disappeared behind the car, and the opening and shutting of the boot told Spencer that he was just putting his luggage away. She had approximately three seconds to plan a conversation in her head so she didn't end up embarrassing herself.

Obviously, nothing in her life was fair, as she didn't get to plan passed a simple 'hello' before the boy opened the back seat and climbed in.

"What's up, man?" Mark smiled, the two doing that weird bro hand shake that all the boys do. Ethan's eyes flickered towards the younger Estapa, a small smile playing at his lips as he leaned over and tugged at a piece of her hair. "Hi, Spence."

Spencer hated the nickname, but he was the only person who had ever used it that didn't get an earful. She liked the way it sounded coming from his mouth, and the fact that it was the nickname only he could use for her made her feel special.

"Hi, Ethan." Spencer responded, her cheeks flushed and her fingers tugging at the necklace on her neck. He must think she was so weird, playing with her jewellery every time they spoke, she didn't do this very often. But Ethan Edwards made her nervous.

"Are you excited for college?" Ethan asked as Mark began to drive again, his head in between the two front seats. Spencer hummed in response, nodding her head as she continued to fidget with her necklace, she could feel him watching her and that alone send her mind into overdrive. God, the boy had such an effect on her, it was embarrassing at this point.

"Don't lie, you are not excited." Mark snorted from the drivers seat, "you've been talking this whole drive how you're gonna drop dead as soon as we step foot on campus. If I have to hear the logistics of your anxiety one more time, I'll speed up the process and drive off the side of the road."