My Oxygen Is Exhaust Fumes

Chapter 2

Still August 23, 2015

Danielle P.O.V.

I shove my phone back into my bra, then kick the starter. He roars back to life, then I head home. My neighbor drives by in his dually, and gives me a small wave. Even though I'm not quite in the mood to be polite, I am anyway, and wave back.

When I pull into the driveway, I see my pack of dogs running through the woods back to the house, trying not to get caught. Ooh some boys are gonna be in trouble! I think to myself, as a slight smile forms at the corners of my lips.

Pulling into the barn is a challenging task, because of all the stuff on the floor. Once I weave my bike to the back, I pick it up and put it on the stand.

"Oww," I mumble, as a piece of the frame slices my jeans open, and my leg. It's small, it should be fine.

I head towards the house. When I see my mom and dad through the window, I shimmy behind a bush so I can peek in and watch for a minute. They seem to be fighting. Mom has tears rolling, but she's still yelling, and dad is throwing his arms around. About what? I have no idea. She obviously hasn't been here very long, and they are already fighting? Oh boy, this is gonna be bad.

Tears begin to form at the corners of my eyes, but I refuse to let them fall this soon. I need to be strong for my family, no doubt in my mind about that. My phone buzzes in my bra, I reach up and grab it. It's my best friend Ashlynn is calling me. I sigh and hit connect.

"Hey Ash, where are you right now and are you busy?" I ask, catching her off guard.

"Uh-ah? No? I'm at my dad's. I was just calling to see if you wanted to come hang out, I'm bored. We can go somewhere if ya want," she says.

"Actually, I've got a better idea, I'll be over in 10. Be ready to go when I get there, and tell your dad that you won't be home till late."

Even through the phone I can see the confused look on her face, "Dani, what's going on?" she asks me, worried.

"I'll explain when I get there, love you," I answer quickly, I don't have time for this.

"Okay, well hurry but be safe, don't drive crazy, love you too."

I laugh a little at her words, "You say it like I always drive crazy, that ain't me. I don't do that."

She snorts into the phone and says, "Ha! Yea right! You almost give me a heart attack every time. See ya in a few." then I hear the phone click, the line is dead.

I turn on my heal, and jog to my truck, jump up in it, unlatch my moto boots, reach into the back seat, then pull my muddy boots onto my feet. They are kinda muddy from cleaning the stalls at the stable, but whatever it's my truck. I don't care.

The keys are still laying on the dashboard, where I left them last night when I got home. Where I live, ya don't have to worry about anyone stealing your stuff.

I try to start the truck, but he doesn't start on the first try. I whisper, "Come on please, don't fail me right now," then try the ignition again. He roars to life, so I say, "Ah, thank you," and kiss the steering wheel. I throw him in reverse, and turn around, then back into drive, down my long, bumpy drive way,out to the road.

A few minutes later, I pull into Ashlynn's driveway, and in less than a second, she's out the door and in my truck.

"Okay, now that you are here tell me everything. Those 10 minutes it took you to get here, well just about killed me." she says, breathless.

"Okay, well here it goes..." I spill out the contents of my day to her, as she has a dazed look on her face. Just like she doesn't believe it either. Every few minutes she'll stop and ask me a few questions, which I'd try to answer to the best of my abilities.