New Kid on the Block *h.s [completed]

Chapter 76

I sit in the back seat of the minivan on our way through Nevada, watching the trees and other vehicles zip past us. Carter is to my right, and Harry is slouched in the driver's seat directly in front of me.

When we stop for a hotel tonight, we'll be in Truckee, California, and I couldn't be more elated. I feel my toes curl with excitement and a jitter arises in the pit of my stomach at the thought of being in a southern state rather than so far north. Everything is different down here; the weather, the towns, the people, the speed limits, the wild animals, the way I can almost feel my fingers digging into San Fransisco beach sand again.

I pull myself out of my daydream and look over at my little brother. He turns away from looking out of his window to meet my eyes, his smile just as wide as mine.

He puts his juice box to his lips and takes a sip, looking forward to the front seat.

"Can I have the teddy grahams please, Harry?" He asks, eyebrows furrowing when he sees the large handful Harry pulls out of the bag.

"Oh crap. Sorry." Harry apologizes, tossing his handful of honey flavoured crackers into his mouth. He takes the yellow plastic bag from between his legs and holds it over his shoulder for Carter to take.

The younger boy leans forward, pulling his seatbelt away from his body as he grasps the bag. He sets it against the middle seat so we can both reach in whenever we want.

Carter takes a large handful for himself, similar to Harry's, and pops them into his mouth one by one. I, however, take a single cracker and bite the bottom half off.

I turn my attention to the passing traffic outside my window again, letting the appetizing flavour of the childish snack please my taste buds, as the radio is turned up from the front seat by one tall, lanky, green eyed individual so the pop music fills the empty silence, much to my chagrin.

—————————————————————————————

We hit the middle of Nevada around 2 o'clock, and not surprisingly, it's flat. Very, very flat. The only interesting thing for hundreds of miles is farmland; crops and cattle. And of course, Harry being Harry, has to make some sort of joke that doesn't even fit in with our current situation.

"Hey, maybe we should stop in Las Vegas for the night." He smirks, shifting his eyes up from the road to look at Carter and I in the rearview mirror.

"Las Vegas is another 4 hours away, down by the Arizona border." I retort, rolling my eyes as Carter stifles a giggle.

"Oh." Harry simply states, his features dropping in disappointment that he won't get to show off his underage, illegal gambling skills.

Carter lets out a few light laughs and I smile lovingly at the head rest on Harry's seat, trying to remind myself why I care so much for the goofy, curly haired boy.

As dusk begins to fall, Harry pulls over onto the shoulder of the highway. We're somewhere along the border of California and Nevada, noticeably closer to The Golden State due to the sudden change in heat and humidity.

The 3 of us all climb out of the minivan, Harry racing around the hood to shuffle awkwardly beside me.

"I'll be right back. I have to, uh, do something." He gestures to the long blades of grass and greenery in front of us, before rushing off to be hidden by the bushes.

"He's weak." I comment as I join Carter at the back of the van. I lift the trunk door and we both slide in, our feet dangling over the back bumpers.