Surrender

Chapter Nine

CHAPTER NINE

Because I had no idea where we were, I had Louis take us back to a main road so I could direct him to our next stop. He is a horrible driver, and I’m almost positive the car is going to fall apart underneath us.

“I don’t know if this car is gonna make it.” I say, holding onto the edge of my seat as he slams on the breaks. He laughs, his shoulders shaking slightly.

“It’s funny you say that, because the last two cars I had just sort of…broke.” He shrugs and slams his foot on the gas pedal. I furrow my brow in confusion.

“Excuse me, broke? What do you mean, broke?” My voice cracks on the word broke and I tell him to take a right. We were heading to the heart of the city. He glances over at my shocked face and smiles.

“They just broke, I don’t know. I didn’t crash them or anything, they just stopped running. Couldn’t handle me, I guess.” He says, winking at me, sitting up straight in a haughtily fashion. I watch him as he drives and the way he leans his right arm on the arm rest and steers with his left hand, his fingers dangling loosely over the steering wheel. He has to see everything that we pass, quickly glancing at buildings, people, cars, almost as if he’ll miss something important. There’s always this relaxed expression on his smooth features. His lips react to everything he sees, frowning dramatically at something strange, or smirking at something that amuses him. He’s completely present, his mind isn’t elsewhere, it’s right here and now. I wish I could say the same about myself. I sit here, making note after note about the things I want to ask him before the day is over and we head back to reality. I was also trying not to think about Aaron and Darcie, wondering what the two of them were doing today. Probably laughing at how absorbed in my own problems I am to notice how off the rails they were being. But then, I have been absorbed in my own problems…how could I not be? They followed me everywhere, piling up, slowly suffocating me. But, they were on my  my list of problems too, it wasn’t like I was completely ignoring the fact that they’re both ripping apart at the seams. I can see our destination coming up on the left and I tell him to pull into the parking lot across the street. He does as I say and parks the car, takes the keys out of the ignition and waits for further instructions. I unbuckle my seat belt and turn to face him. He’s watching me carefully.

“I thought, since you took me to your favorite spot in Seattle, that I’d take you to mine.” I take the hair tie from my wrist and quickly throw my hair into a messy pony tail. He nods at me and we open our doors, getting out of the car and stepping into the now overcast day, rain was on its way. He walks beside me as I lead us across the street to an old building tucked away between more modern looking businesses. Above us is a huge marquee with a vertical sign reaching into the sky that says, “The Senator”, and in faded black letters is the movie playing today, “Sabrina”. I stop in front of the tiny little ticket stand and watch as he lifts his head to take in the expanse of it all.

“It was built in 1941.” I say, looking around at the faded paint and the yellowing movie posters in their glass cases along the perimeter of the theater. He looks at me, his face practically glowing.

“I used to come here every day in high school,” I say walking up to the ticket booth, taking out the 20.

 “Two for Sabrina.” I tell the man inside the booth. He nods and I slip the money through to the other side. He prints our tickets and hands me the change, nodding to us. I hand Louis his ticket and lead him inside, pushing open the heavy, weathered doors.