Letters to Nowhere #1 (Completed!)

Letters to Nowhere: Part 67

 I watched dozens and dozens of cars zoom by while I sat in a car dealership parking lot off a frontage road that ran beside the highway. The curve of the road must have been what got them. It was pretty sharp, but so many cars zipped by it without so much as a small waver. After I wrote down notes and stats, I watched for all the black cars and tried to picture them tumbling and shredding to pieces, leaving their victims mangled like Humpty Dumpty. Staring at the road, it was even harder to put a real image to this accident. It became even more of a fantasy in my mind than before.

            By the time I got back to Bentley's, it was after ten and both of them were sitting in the living room. Jordon shut his laptop right away and let out a breath. Bentley wasn't able to hide his look of relief either.

            He shut his eyes for a second and opened them again, staring straight at me. "I realize now that maybe I need to be more specific about curfews and other living procedures. From now on, if you're going somewhere after evening practice, I would like for you to let me know and I would like you to be back by ten on a weeknight. Does that seem reasonable?"

            I bit down on my thumbnail, and diverted my eyes to the steps. "Yes."

            "Thank you," Bentley said, and that was it. The drama was over before it even got started, and I had nothing to do but head upstairs and jump in the shower.

            The first floor was completely dark when I got done in the bathroom and headed down to grab something to eat. I tiptoed back up the steps with my PB&J in one hand and a glass of milk in the other hand. Jordan was still awake doing homework. I stepped inside his room and sat at the end of the bed, placing my cup on his nightstand.

            "What are you working on?" I asked.

            He spun around in his desk chair. "I thought you were giving me the silent treatment, too."

            I remembered the buzzing of my phone earlier and how I'd shut it off. "I'm sorry. I'm not mad at you, just your dad. But I don't want to talk about the gym or think about it anymore tonight."

            He deliberated for a moment before finally giving me a tiny smile. "I'm working on an essay for Modern Lit class."

            "I think you do more homework than I do, and you actually go to school all day. How is that?"

            "I'm clearly not as smart as you, although only idiots turn off their cell phones when they go out alone." His eyes narrowed at me.

            "I'm sorry." Guilt totally hit me hard this time. I shouldn't drag Jordan into my battles with his dad. Although, I kind of turned my phone off for that very reason. I didn't want him to have to help me through that drama or pick a side between me and Bentley. "How did your classes go?"

            "Good. I think I surprised my dad. But he doesn't realize that I always got the younger kids who were siblings of the really good gymnasts at camp. I had to work hard to keep them entertained for six hours of gym time every day when their most difficult skill was a cartwheel."

            "Well, at least you don't have smart-mouthed teenagers to coach."

            He gave me a long look, like maybe he was about to break one of our rules and kiss me inside the walls of this house. We'd already decided not to do that, mostly because on TV, everyone always gets caught, even when no one is supposed to be home for hours or days or whatever. Someone always walks in.

            "I have something to show you," he said, looking a little nervous. He got up from his chair and reached up in the top of the closet, retrieving a guitar. "I haven't touched this since before winter break. It was in my dorm room."

            I watched as he sat down and tuned it, strumming a few chords. I was honestly a little nervous that he'd be really bad and I'd have to say something nice because...well, because it was Jordan.

            "What do you want me to play?"

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