𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞, 𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘀

𝟎𝟏𝟖

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐌𝐞
ᴀᴜᴛʜᴏʀ
𝘢 𝘧𝘦𝘸 𝘥𝘢𝘺𝘴 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳

     "𝐃𝐨𝐧'𝐭 you think one of your first times driving after your license shouldn't be an hour-long road trip?" Jess asks her girlfriend with a sarcastic grin.

"Hey, I got it," Noah replies with mock offense. "And this is not my first time driving after getting my license."

"You love to make me nervous," Jess giggles as she buckles her seatbelt.

"I wouldn't have invited you if I thought I wasn't gonna make it," Noah jokes as she puts her hand on Jess' thigh.

The blonde smiles and puts her hand over Noah's. "We're gonna stop for snacks, though, right?"

"First you're nervous about my driving and now you want to stop for a snack?" Noah chuckles, shaking her head as she starts the engine of Josephine's car.

Jess plugs her phone into the aux cord and plays the playlist she made for her and Noah. She fiddles with the volume, making Noah smile to herself. They drive just outside the city and Noah finds a gas station to stop at. She fills the car with gas and they head inside to get snacks.

"What're you getting?" Noah asks as she puts her hand on the small of Jess' back.

"I don't know," the blonde says as she walks through the aisles. "Something sweet and something salty."

Noah grabs a Twix, gummy worms, and an energy drink while Jess gets sweet tarts, pretzels, and a sweet tea. They check out and Noah pays for everything. She grabs the bag and heads back to the car, ready to start their little road trip.

After a few minutes, once they get on the highway, Jess turns the music down. Noah peers over at her as she watches the blonde get comfortable.

"Can you run through this with me again?" Jess asks as she holds her camera up and takes a picture of Noah.

The brunette hears the shutter of the camera and smiles. "What're you doing?"

"What?" Jess asks. "It's a good picture. I have to put the camera you got me to good use, don't I?"

"You brought it to capture our murder mystery adventure?"

"No, and that's your mother you're talking about," Jess reminds her as she puts the camera down. "You do understand that this is serious, don't you? If this lady gets freaked and decides to tell the police, we're gonna get in so much trouble—"

"Hey, relax," Noah says, regretting her joke. "Listen, I'm taking care of everything. You have nothing to worry about."

"I'm complicit—"

"You're just here," Noah corrects her as she reaches for her hand. "If that were to happen, I would tell them that you didn't know where we were going. I lied to you and dragged you along because I was scared. I would never let anything happen to you. You know that, right?" she asks as she squeezes Jess' hand.

"Of course," Jess replies with a soft nod. "But I don't want anything to happen to you either."

"We're good," Noah says, but she knows she can't promise it.

"Alright," the blonde nods more confidently and lifts her legs to rest them in Noah's lap. She leans her back against the car door and looks through her camera's memory. "Run me through it."

"My mom worked for Interpol, infiltrated Doyle's business, and somehow fell in love, although that's still questionable. She was pulled out and Doyle was arrested. She was compromised and therefore too dangerous to be undercover, so Easter placed her in the FBI."