Liza awoke to the sound of someone ruffling through a bag. She peeled open her eyes to see it was one of her bandmates, Eli, taking an entire pack of her smokes.
"Eli! Give me my fucking smokes back!" She shouted at him with a hoarse, cracking voice.
"No! I'll buy you a new pack later." Eli spoke as he jumped out of the van to smoke with the rest of the group
"You know damn well you won't. Just give them back you can't just take my shit." Liza said, still in shock
"Watch me" He hissed back
"Watch me leave. I don't need this shit anyways!" She yelled before jumping in the front of the van and driving off.
She drove a few miles away; far enough for her bandmates to lose hope looking for her, if they even did. She pulled over and made a call to Van.
"Where are you?" She asked without giving either of them time to say a simple hello
"Near Brighton. Why?" He slowly spoke
"Me too and I'll explain later. Can you meet me at the pier?" Liza questioned
Van agreed so at 2:30 they met at Brighton Beach Pier. Liza explain what had happened with Eli and admitted to, not only Van, but herself that she had left her band for good. It was hard for her to stomach that The Flames were now a chapter ended in her life. But she had to put those thoughts aside and have fun with Van they didn't get to see each other much in person.
The two played the classic games you'd find on a pier and did some shopping. Van won Liza a big stuffed monkey which she named "Charlie" and she bought him some new guitar picks. They laughed and chatted until the sun began to set.
Liza realized she had no place to go. She'd left home for the band and left the band for ...where? All she had was the piece of shit van that would break down any minute. "Shit!" She said out loud without even thinking. Van laughed and asked what her problem was. She told him her situation and he immediately offered to let her come with them on their tour.
"I only know you, and hardly at that!" She argued
"Well it's a good chance to try new things and go on new adventures. Come one, please?" Van begged her
She thought and thought until the sky above the sea was pitch black but eventually she agreed. She and Van could open a new chapter together.
