Galaxy Shoes

3. Bookworm

"I can't believe we're doing this."

"Liam."

"I mean, I get it, they're important to you, but..."

"Liam."

"Dallas? What if we get lost? What if we get killed? What if-"

"Liam!"

He jerked to a stop at the foot of my bed. "What? You know I don't like traveling. I have every right to freak out right now."

"Then why are you going?" I laughed, folding another shirt and placing it neatly in my carry-on.

He sighed and clambered onto my bed, resting his head on the pillow. "I'm going, because you're my best friend. If something is important to you, then it's important to me. I'd be a terrible friend if I didn't support you."

I stopped folding my jeans and stared at him with a smile. I dropped the pants into my suitcase and climbed onto the bed next to him.

"First of all," I started, "you're not a terrible friend. Second of all, you could always support me through video chat."

"No," he smiled, "my best way of showing support is being there every step of the way."

I chuckled. "Okay, if that's what you want. Are you ready?"

"Yeah, I guess I am."

********

"Again, tell me why we're not taking a plane or a bus?" Ellery asked from the backseat of my car. She lifted her eyes from the book she was reading in order to stare into mine through the rearview mirror.

"We're not taking the bus, because I'm a college student working towards my Master's degree. I don't really have enough money to whip out for a spontaneous trip," I said.

"Yeah," Liam continued, "and all my money goes into my various...um...responsibilities."

"He means food," I laughed.

"Yeah, I blow it all on food," he confessed with a sheepish grin.

Ellery chuckled. "Okay. So, how exactly are we going to get there?"

"Driving," I said. I looked up to see her eyes bulge out behind her glasses. I smiled.

"Driving?"

"Yes?"

"Wait, in this?"

"Sorry, El, but the limo is out for the week," Liam answered. I chuckled.

"Ha, very funny," she said with a snicker, "and don't call me 'El'. I just thought we would drive in an actual car."

"Hey!" I protested, "She may not be a well-shined convertible, but that doesn't mean she doesn't get the job done."

I patted the top of dashboard as a sign of affection. Ellery may not have known, but this twelve year old, grey Nissan was a hand-me-down gift from my mother for graduating with honors. I signaled my left turn and pulled up to the nearby gas station. An attendant came to the driver's window and I rolled down the glass.

"A twenty dollar fill-up, please," I said.

"Okay, no problem."

I pulled out a twenty dollar bill from my wallet and waited as the guy filled up the tank. Dallas. We were going to Dallas. The sudden realization hit me like a truck, sending my heartbeat into overdrive. The idea itself was insane. There was no way I was in the right mind when I came to the decision of driving halfway across the country for shoes.

But, then again, these shoes held deep memories of my past. Memories I wasn't ready to forget. Every time I looked at the dirty, white laces or the blue, galaxy imprinted all over the footwear a wave of nostalgia came over me and my heart would flutter in my chest. I needed these shoes more than I would like to admit.

"Joanne?"

"Huh?" I turned to face Liam, who was shaking my shoulder lightly.

"Are you okay? You need to pay," he said, eyes filled with concern.

"Oh," I turned to the guy peeking through my window and handed him the bill in my hand, "Sorry about that."

He smiled in response and walked off to his station. I started the car, pulled out of the lot and onto the street.

"Jo, are you okay?" Liam said, "You blacked out didn't you."

"Well, yeah, but I'm fine," I replied, sending him a smile as a way of reassuring him. He narrowed his eyes slightly, sensing the lie behind my smile, but changed the subject nonetheless.

"Okay, do you want a chocolate bar?" He pulled a Kit Kat out of the plastic bag that was resting on the ground between his legs. I stared at it for a second before placing my eyes back on the road before me.

"Where did you get all those snacks?" Ellery pushed her head between the front seats, taking the words right out of my mouth.

"While you had your nose stuck between pages, bookworm," he teased. "It helps with my small traveling issue."

I glanced up at the rearview mirror in time to see Ellery's eyes narrow into slits and an annoyed frown decorated her face.

"Don't call me bookworm," she hissed. My eyes widened in surprise. This definitely wasn't the Ellery we met last week at the donation center. I immediately assumed that sweet, innocent frontier was for the customers that came to donate something.

"Whoa," Liam said, holding his hands up as a sign of surrender, "I think I might've hit a nerve."

"Tell me about it," I muttered.

"Okay, forget it," Ellery said, leaning back into her seat, "I'll just finish my book." She lifted the book to her face, returning to the page that was marked by a thin pink ribbon.

I frowned. Why would Ellery get so defensive? Maybe Liam was being a little insensitive, but didn't people who like reading thought 'bookworm' was a compliment? Or was I just well acquainted with his sense of humor?

I stared into the rearview mirror again, and saw Ellery indulged within every printed word. She seemed to have a sulking look on her face, and her lips twitched slightly. Her red hair was held back in a neat ponytail, but the long strands were free to flow slightly in the wind. Her glasses slipped off her nose every now and then due to the angle of her neck that would surely give her a creak in the morning.

I blew air out of my mouth. It was still difficult tobelieve she agreed to accompany us on the trip, and just for a slight piece ofinformation; why were the shoes important to me? I thought she would've been agreat girl companion, but seeing the small, rough exchange between her andLiam, I've now come to the conclusion that I might be in a little over my head.

New chapter! Just wanted to give you guys an additional chapter before they officially leave town. :)