Drive -- Brallie AU [COMPLETED]

six

STEF -- THREE O'CLOCK IN SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA

"What does that mean?" She was shouting. It had been a handful of days since her son had left, to run away with Callie. Every time Stef thought of those two together, her blood boiled.

"It's not hard to decrypt the message, Stef." Lena, in frustration, waved her arms around. "They are fine. Stef, at least they contacted us-"

"It wasn't even us, Lena!" Stef retaliated, "It was Mariana."

"I wonder why they didn't want to talk to you. All you would do is yell, Stef. I know that you would yell at them, ten minutes after they hung up, because you were too busy yelling."

"Stop fighting."

Stef's head whipped around to see Jude, her baby boy Jude, standing in the doorway of her and Lena's bedroom. "That's all you've been doing for the past three days. I thought that by getting adopted meant that I would feel safe again." He had been crying. Red surrounded his eyes and you could see the tear stains on his cheeks. "I do not feel safe here."

Jude left the room, and soon, they heard the door slam shut.

"Should we go after him?" Stef asked.

"Wow, haven't heard you in this volume in a long time." Lena snapped, walking across to the room to snatch her car keys.

Brandon and Callie were gone. Jude and Lena have turned hateful. The only two other people who mattered in Stef's life wouldn't even talk to her--

What had Stef's life become?

BRANDON -- HOUR 16 ON THE ROAD

"Is the air getting fresher, Cal?"

"Fresher on dreams, B."

HOUR 18 ON THE ROAD

"I wonder if karma is going to catch up to us and destroy us."

"You know what they say, karma's a bitch. Then again, so are we."

CALLIE -- HUGOTON, KANSAS

It was dreadful in Kansas. If Callie hadn't had her phone, time would be lost on her. Dark, grey, storm clouds covered the sky, with rain pounding on their car in a way that reminded her of a symphony. Brandon's songs, to be specific. No matter what situation they were in-- her adoption, her coming home after Girls United-- the classical music that came from his fingertips enchanted her. With every key he pressed, she was reminded of the love that they held between each other.

They had stationed themselves in a small hotel off of the major highway system to get out of the storm. Their room was much nicer than the other ones they stayed in. Covers that felt more cloudy than rock, golden-yellow walls instead of grey ones that had pieces carved out. It smelt like Stef and Lena's. It smelt like home.

Callie changed into her pajama shorts and white tank top while she waited for Brandon to change in the bathroom. They had been on the road for almost five days now, and they sunk into the schedule easily. Brandon drives first. Pit stop. Callie drives. Pit stop. Brandon refuses to take the wheel, but Callie refuses to drive, so Brandon gives in. It continues with that pattern until night hits, where they pull into a motel and sleep the day off, where the cycle repeats.

1,619 miles to go until they have everything they've ever wanted in the palms of their hands. For Brandon, it was his music. For Callie, it was freedom.

Her phone buzzed. It was AJ.

Mariana told me. Where are you two going?

Why are you with him? I would've gone

I'm your boyfriend! Tell me where you are!

Callie's fingers hovered over her keyboard. She debated whether or not to reply.

AJ, I'm sorry. Brandon and I had to go.

I should've done this when I left, but, I have to break up with you.

I'm sorry

Callie then blocked his number.

BRANDON -- HUGOTON, KANSAS

"I'm so sick of fast fucking food, Callie. Right now, my blood cells are multiplying into hamburger cells."

"The food is not that bad, B." Brandon walked out of the bathroom, his street clothes draped over his shoulder.

"Sometimes, you need to eat healthy to, I don't know, live."

CALLIE

To live.

This trip was her way of finally feeling alive, and she has been holding that part of it back. Mostly because of AJ, then some because her and Brandon, every time they were together, it was undeniably clear that they were never ending up with each other. For Callie, things became clearer in that small hotel right off the Kansas border. There was nothing to stop them anymore.

She wasn't going to let the idea of Stef and Lena's disapproval haunt her, she wasn't going to let them get in the way anymore.

"Brandon-"

"Before you say anything else, I have an idea. Let's get dressed in our fancy clothing and go out to a fancy restaurant, where we will be served the highest quality of food-"

"Brandon, listen."

He stopped rambling.

She had a whole speech planned. She was going to tell him that this trip was starting to be more than running away from moms, that it was about running away for them. But, she never was really good with planning.

So, she kissed him.

BRANDON

He missed her. He missed them.

But, for some reason, he was hesitant. This had been everything he had ever wanted since he first saw her at the kitchen table, beat up and broken. Since Mariana's quinceanera, since they first kissed at moms' wedding. When Callie got adopted after Idyllwild, it broke something in Brandon. Now, there they are, with Callie tugging at his lips and tugging at his hair and he is paralyzed.

"C-Callie, wait." He pulled her off of her. 

"What is there to wait for Brandon? Right now, in this moment, there is you and there is me. No Stef and Lena. No siblings. No fathers. It is us. We deserve to be an us, Brandon."

He wanted this. It would be so easy, it would feel so good, to kiss her again. To be open with her and to feel vulnerable with her again. Brandon had been trained that this was a bad thing that it started to feel like a bad thing.

"Brandon. We are all we have now. And we will never be able to be friends again like we were before. Don't you want to fall head over heels in love again?"

Her hands traveled down his chest to the hem of his shirt. "We could have everything we have ever wanted since we were sixteen."

Her hands, with a piece of cloth between her index fingers, started to slowly go up.

At first, Brandon was hesitant.

But, then he remembered how loving Callie really was.

...
wow, sorry this took so long