Analise

Chapter Twenty-four

"Do you want to drive?" Austin asks as he realizes there's only about an hour before they make it to Chloe's parent's house. Taylor shakes her head feeling panic set in her stomach. "Why?"

"I'll crash into another car with kids in it. They won't make it and the parents will be mad at me. Then more people will think I'm a murder, they'll all stare at me and come at me." She speed talks feeling her heart rate pick up.

"How did you drive so much in the beginning?" He asks realizing that if these thoughts were there before why'd she drive.

"I made sure to focus on what you guys were saying, that every time I had the urge to slam the car to the left or right I thought about your parents and how sad they'd be. I made sure to keep tabs on what you all were saying and Leland and Layla are good at keeping me distracted. They've been doing it for years. I don't think they know that I know when they try to help or distract me, I know every time, but it helps them to think they're helping me." She says and tilts her head up to him. "You help though, your voice is calming. It helps block whatever new thought is coming." She continues to look up at him and he feels slightly dizzy.

He glances down at her beautiful face and forces himself to look back at the road. She watches as his eyes go to each mirror before going back on the road. "Why did you pay for this trip?" She asks. He looks down at her pretending not to know what she asked. "I know you paid for all the hotels and are paying for almost everything, but why?"

"Well, I'm not really paying for it. More of my Dad is." He says and she continues to look up at him. "I told him that we all wanted to travel and that it would only happen if we could raise more money. I didn't want him to pay for everything, I was just telling him what was happening, but he said that he wanted to use the money he'd been saving. He can't travel or be on an airplane so instead of it sitting he gave it to me." He says and goes to shrug, but doesn't because she's resting on him.

"Why can't he fly?"

"He has a heart issue and being that high up causes issues with it and my Mom would never go anywhere without him." He says a smile coming to his face thinking about his loving parents. Taylor nods her head and looks back to the road.

"I don't like farms or bugs." She says seeing the big farm come into view. Austin laughs and smiles down at her.

"It's only a day." He says and she nods her head.

"But there are a lot of bugs." She says with a slight whine in her voice.

"You poor little thing," Austin says dramatically. She glares over at him causing him to start laughing. Taylor lifts her head off of his shoulder as he pulls into the bumpy uneven driveway. Once it's parked Austin takes the keys out and opens his door. He looks back and sees Taylor staring ahead. "Taylor." He says. She snaps her head towards him and he holds out his hand. She grabs it and hops out of the car. He closes the door and starts walking when he feels her hand grab his. He holds it and looks over at her confused. He looks straight and sees it's not just Chloe's parents, it's a huge group of people.

***

"Taylor breath in and out," Layla says after pulling her around the house.

"They....they were all....looking right at me.....expecting an answer." She says trying to take in breaths as she speaks.

"I know, it's ok. Just in and out." She says and hears as someone comes around the corner. She tenses until she realizes it's Austin. He comes over and sits down next to shaking Taylor. He looks up to Layla and mouths 'I've got her, you can go.' She looks at him for a good minute before nodding her head and walking about around the farm.