That Blue Gibson

CH 12

They hopped back on I5, this time headed south and almost instantly hit the Monday morning traffic. Dave looked over as Liz sped up next to him, the traffic slow enough that they could ride side by side without any issues. She only shrugged and smiled at him, there wasn't anywhere she needed to be until much later and she was having a great time. After a few minutes of moving just fast enough to keep their bikes upright, the traffic came to a complete halt. Dave's bike was too loud to talk over, so they leaned forward on their handlebars and exchanged a smile. Suddenly, a scream just ahead caught their attention and Liz watched in shock as a woman jogged between two lanes of traffic directly up to Dave. Looking around for an escape route, Liz gripped the brake lever and revved her bike, hoping to warn the woman to back off, but she flung herself onto Dave, holding her phone out to take a selfie. Liz watched in surprise as he politely smiled for her photo and shrugged her off. The woman was still shrieking as she ran back to her abandoned car and traffic resumed its slow crawl. Liz walked with her bike, still not moving fast enough to use the pegs while staring at Dave. He offered a weak shrug, but his face remained impassive as he spotted the 210 junction ahead. He pointed to it and Liz shifted forward on her bike, indicating she was ready to follow. They weaved through commuter cars and semis, eventually landing on the much clearer 210. Dave opened up his bike, lifting the front tire a few inches off the pavement and took off. Liz followed suit, jamming the throttle as far as she could without losing traction on the back wheel. Racing along in the middle lane, Liz admired the green hills that flanked either side of the highway. She hadn't yet been in LA when everything was lush and green, only in the dead of summer when the dust and heat were unbearable to someone from the northwest. Dave occasionally looked back to make sure Liz was okay, receiving a reassuring nod from her every time. He didn't know anyone that was up for this far a ride that early in the morning, much less anyone he actually enjoyed riding with. Liz bit back a smile when she saw him adjust his mirror so he could watch her and noticed an amber light illuminate on the bike's gauges. Accelerating so she was at Dave's side, she pointed to her gas tank and he nodded.

*

"That's what you get for getting a café racer," Dave yelled over his bike's engine before shutting it off.

"She's a little quicker than that sled you're on," Liz shot back with a teasing grin, shoving the pump nozzle into the gas tank. "Do people usually put themselves in mortal danger just to get a picture with you?"

Dave stood and shook his legs out a bit before leaning against his bike and crossing his arms, "Yeah it's, unfortunately, a common occurrence. That doesn't happen to you?"

She shook her head sharply, remembering all the times she had been felt up in public from men who felt she owed them something just because she was an actress. "Where are we?" Liz asked, looking down at a text from Travis.

"Just about to Pasadena," he replied, not taking his eyes off of her. "Anything, in particular, you'd like to do or are you eager to get back to your fancy ass hotel?" He found himself holding his breath as she considered his question.

"What is there to do halfway between San Fernando and Pasadena?" she asked, not taking her eyes off the return text she was sending.

He thought for a second. "Well... there's a shit ton of hiking trails, but...," he pointed to her moto boots and shook his head.

"Disc golf, horses, NASA, a tiny strip mall museum dedicated to the toaster-"

"Hold up. NASA?" her head snapped up as she interrupted him. "Can you just goto NASA?"

"Yeah, sure," Dave shrugged remembering a field trip he chaperoned for his daughter. "They have tours and shit."

"Well, we're obviously doing that," Liz said decidedly. She replaced the pump nozzle and threw her leg over her bike. She went to start her bike but noticed Dave hadn't moved.