She's With Me

Travel Snacks

Five hours into their road trip, the bus makes its very first stop in the windy city itself, Chicago. Evie had never been this far upstate before and was hoping to see a bustling city full of life but was shocked to find that Chicago was anything but busy or bustling. It was empty. Or at least nearly so. As they're driving through the outskirts of the city, a wave of uneasiness seems to settle in through the bus. "Wow," Sam is the first to speak as he's looking out the window, "They weren't kidding when they said they were issuing a stay at home order."

Curious, Evie peers over Sam's shoulder and feels her heart sink a little. "It's like a ghost town," she whispered, her voice barely a murmur. Everything was still running, of course. The flickering street signs, the traffic lights signaling few if any cars, and Evie could swear the scent of fresh pizza was somehow making its way into the bus. But the people were all but gone, except for a few brave souls that had included masks with their winter attire. "No kidding," Jake joined in, taking a seat just across from Sam at the bar, "You'd think a city like Chicago would never sleep..."

Josh, now curious, decides to finally peer out the window. Evie could see the uncertainty in his eyes. "Well," he sighs, "Look at the bright side, at least the highways will be clear. We should have a pretty straight shot to California." This doesn't seem to reassure anyone as the group only exchanged nervous looks. Josh takes a seat at the couch and Evie joins him, gently bumping him with her elbow, "Are you okay? You look pale."

"I'm starting to wonder how good of an idea this was," Josh said, his gaze stuck to the windows his brothers were still looking out of. "What do you mean?" Evie asked. Josh lowers his voice into a hushed whisper, "Bringing you along with your... condition. I'm worried that this wasn't a good idea."

Evie frowns, "What, you think because I'm pregnant doesn't mean I can't handle this?"

"It's not I don't think you can't handle this, it's... it's just so risky," Josh whispered, "I thought it would have been better to keep you close so you can stay safer but I'm worried that I'm just endangering you more." He looked genuinely upset by this, his knee shaking rather intently as he spoke. Evie reaches out to rub his shoulder lovingly, "Hey, I'll be okay. You know I would have come with you anyway even if you insisted I didn't. You can't say no to me. Especially with a trip like this. Do you know how badly I would have loved to go on a trip like this one when I was younger?" Evie's younger self would have loved this. A chance to go to Chicago? Where the parties were endless? She would have loved it. Josh glances over to Evie and smiles, letting himself lean into her a little, "You would have really argued with me?"

"Absolutely."

Josh chuckled quietly under his breath, "I guess I shouldn't be surprised," Josh replied, his smile growing warmer, "You've always been stubborn like that."

Evie nudged him playfully again, "Hey, it's one of my best qualities."

The bus suddenly lurches strangely, and Evie checks the window to see they're pulling into a truck stop. A place that was actually bustling. "Fuel stop!" Danny's voice echoed from the back of the bus as he emerged from his bunk, stretching his long body out with a groan, "Ooogh, I could use a nice stretch. Anyone up for perusing the aisles?"

Sam and Jake exchange looks again and then look to Josh. "Is it safe?" Jake asked, "I mean with Evie–"

"Guys, don't worry about me," Evie said, starting to gather her bag, "I want to stretch my legs too. Look there's a Denny's. We could get some food?" There's silence for a moment before Sam clears his throat, "I could use some greasy breakfast food. Maybe some good coffee. Nothing against this coffee but..." Josh nodded with Sam, reassured by Evie's determination. "Alright, let's make it quick," he said, addressing the group, "We'll stick together and keep our distance from others as much as possible." The rest of the boys nodded, everyone carefully starting to put on their masks. The bus hisses loudly, coming to a stop at one of the pumps. One by one, everyone filed out of the bus and out into the chilly cement.