erik menendez // if you love me..don't let go

chapter eight

As soon as the clock hit 12:00 AM, I rushed out of the house. Well, I had to get my suitcase and bags and shoes and stuff, but I tried to be quick. We decided to rent a car that would fit both families to drive us to the airport. I don't know why we couldn't have just went our separate ways, but I guess it made sense for us to stick together.

The big white van was waiting for me and my dad when we got out. Then stepped out Jose, wearing a very uncomfortable looking suit. We're going to the airport, not a business meeting...

He shook Dad's hand and gave me a nod to say hello. As much as I felt weird about the fact that I would be staying with him for a while, I smiled up at him, not wanting my face to show any unwanted emotions.

"Let's put your bags in the car, yes?" He finally said.

"Yes, please." I rolled my suitcase over to him with my bag on top of it. He then walked over to open the trunk of the car where he carelessly threw my stuff in. Oh? Okay.

"Scarlett, you can get it in now." Dad faced me. "Me and Jose need to talk."

"Okay." I agreed.

I walked over to the car and opened the door. The car had three rows, the first one was the driver and passenger seat, the second one there were two seats with a gap in the middle, and then there was the very back row with about two and a half seats.

"Hey, Kitty!" I waved to Kitty, who was sitting in the middle row.

"Hello, Scarlett." She had a smile on her face, but it didn't reach her eyes.

I turned to look at the back row. Erik was sitting there.

"Hey." He said.

"Hi." I replied. I felt like it was a tradition to greet each other like that. Or maybe we just didn't really have anything else to say. "Should I be saying good morning?" I joked, trying to ease the tension that suddenly crept up into the quiet car. At that, Erik let out a real laugh that blessed my ears, and I noticed Kitty grinning and shaking her head. I smiled to myself.

"Come, sit here." Erik patted the other seat in the back row, and I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding in. I was terrified it would be an awkward situation where I had to ask where I should sit and then nobody would know what to say. But I'm glad he asked me to sit next to him, I don't think I would want to sit with Kitty for the whole two hour drive.

I quickly brought myself over to sit next to Erik, a very little gap between us. I turned my head and saw him smiling at me, my cheeks reddened and I returned the smile. I then immediately turned back and looked out the small window.

"What're they talking about?" I murmured, more to myself, but Erik heard because all of a sudden I felt his body pressed against mine as he leaned over. He was looking out the window too where Jose and Dad were standing.

It looked like each of them were trying to assert dominance over each other or something, and I could tell Dad was slowly backing down. I wasn't able to hear the words they were saying and I knew they weren't yelling but it sounded pretty seriously. Dad was clenching his fists, a habit he did when he was trying to swallow his anger down. His face seemed tense, but it also looked like he was trying to calm himself, as if he didn't want to step over the line. But Jose on the other hand, he wasn't afraid of showing his rage. His hands were flailing up and down all over the place, spit was flying out of his mouth, landing on Dad's cheek, and his face seemed to turn redder and redder. If that was even possible.

"Don't worry." Erik's soft voice in my ear sent a shiver down my spine. His soft lips brushed the slightest bit again my ear lobe, causing me to jolt a bit. He leaned a bit back. "It's okay." He gave me a sweet smile and his deep eyes twinkled. I could stare into those eyes forever.

Two car doors then opened, bringing me back to reality as Jose and Dad climbed into the car. Jose in the drivers seat, and Dad in the passenger seat. Once Dad got settled in, he turned around, said hello to Kitty and Erik, and then gave me a bright smile. It was a smile as if to reassure me that everything was okay. But I didn't know if I could believe him, considering the air in the confined space suddenly turned tight and filled with unease.

It felt a bit better being in the back and next to Erik, but I still felt way too close to Jose's energy and vibes. It's like as soon as he walked into a place, he just needed to take over and start ordering people around. It wasn't a very settling feeling for the long car ride I had to spend with him. I was trying my best to go to sleep, considering the fact that it was currently midnight and I haven't slept in what felt like two weeks, but I wasn't able to relax enough to get even the slightest doze in. But every now and then, when we could hear Jose arguing either to himself or with Dad or Kitty, Erik would talk to me. He would say random stuff to try and start a conversation, he even would quietly sing a song. He just wanted me to be distracted and not listen to the horrible things his dad was most likely saying.