A Long Way From Home

Chapter 2: Silly Games

When I woke up two hours later, I saw Olivia and Jamar walk off together, their hands intertwined. I smiled, stretched, and rubbed my eyes to try and further wake myself up. I stood up, stretched again, and wrapped my blanket around me. My long sleeved shirt didn't really keep me warm.

"Hey, rise and shine gorgeous." Drew looked up at me and smiled as I walked over and sat by him.

"Sleep well?" He asked me. I nodded my head and leaned into his shoulder.

He kissed the top of my head and continued on with his story.

"And then, I walked up to the professor and asked her what hair dye she used and she just stood there for a while."

I laughed a little to myself, remembering Drew the first year of college. He didn't really leave a good impression on his professors but he had matured with time. I was grateful for that.

"No, that's not how it even happened." Grace was in his classes that year, and she probably had a better version, a more true version of this story. I wanted to hear it.

"Grace, you don't know what you're talking about." Drew laughed as he said it, knowing he would provoke Grace to continue on.

"Yes I do and that's not how it happened. You were late to class again and the professor was about to chew you out for it but you complimented her hair. You said it looked good for using cheap dye to cover grey hairs. She about decked you there."

"Oh, yeah. Maybe that's how it happened. I didn't mean for it to sound so mean, and she didn't even have grey hairs."

"Yeah, well she hated you for the rest of the semester. That is until you got her a card for her birthday and wrote an apology letter." Grace punched his shoulder, mockingly.

"Oh, what a softie..." I heard Olivia say as she walked over towards us, hair perfect despite sleeping on it. Oh how I envied that.

"You know it," I chimed in. "He's the biggest softie I know."

Drew faked being hurt over what I just said and then we both laughed, we knew it was true. Once, a little girl punched him in the arm so hard she broke her finger. He felt so bad he sent balloons to her house and went over to sign her cast. I couldn't help but smile at the thought. She hit him and he was apologizing.

"So guys, I think we should eat some breakfast...maybe the granola bars we packed....and hit the road again, we still have a long way to go." Drew wasn't just a softie, he was sensible too.

"Okay, dad..." Olivia smiled and reached for the box of bars. She tore one open and began to chew.

"Did I hear we had granola bars? Are they the ones with yogurt on the bottom?" I laughed once again when I saw Madison peek her head out from one of the van's doors.

I tossed her one, watched her unwrap it, and shove it on her mouth.

"These are good...." She mumbled, with a mouth full of food.

"I'll drive this time," Connor says, looking over at Jamar for his keys. "I think it would be safer than if Jamar drove. I saw him chug another beer and it's not even eight in the morning."

We all laughed this time, but I knew it was true, we would probably be a little safer if someone else drove.

"Need me to drive for a bit?" I asked Drew, since he had just driven.

"I think I'll be okay for now, thanks baby." I smiled at the nickname. He normally called me by my name, not baby. I think I liked it.

"Are you sure?" I offered again, but he declined. He claimed he was okay to drive some more but when he saw I wasn't giving up, he told me I could drive when when we stopped next.
I gave up trying to ask him, and we packed up and left.