Richpez - A Tale of Two StarKids

Chapter 3: The Road Trip

Lauren loved road trips. She had taken a lot when she was younger with her family, but now that she was away at school and didn't have a car with her, she was always up for a road trip with her friends. This trip was no exception. She was going to Mackinac Island with her best friends who she hadn't seen in three weeks. It was going to be eight of them in her grandparents' house for a whole week. Nothing but games, movies, and fun.

Lauren, Meredith, Jaime, and Julia all came back to school a day early to hang out before they went up to Mackinac Island. The boys came back late that night and the next morning they were packing up the cars to start the drive. Both Darren and Joey were driving because they had to split up into two cars.  They loaded up the luggage and food before double checking to make sure they had everything.

"Who's coming in my car?" asked Joey, realizing they hadn't determined who was riding in which car.

"I only trust your driving, Joey, so I'm coming with you," Lauren replied. "I call shotgun!" Lauren loved road trips, but she had a history of getting car sick if she sat in the back seat. Nobody wanted to take any chances with that, so they didn't argue. 

"We'll go with you too, Joey," Meredith replied, speaking for herself and Brian Holden, whom she was dating at the time.

"Anyone else?" Joey asked. No one responded. "Suit yourselves. I'm the best driver in LA."

Lauren rolled her eyes and got into the passenger seat of Joey's car. Brian and Meredith got into the back seat, and Jaime, Julia, Walker, and Darren got into the other car. As soon as they had left Lauren's driveway, Joey said, "I can't believe you don't already have music playing, Lo. What are we going to be listening to?"

"I was thinking some pop music if everyone is okay with that?" she responded, plugging in her iPod. Everyone nodded in agreement and she put her favorite playlist on shuffle and started singing along.

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An hour into the drive, Brian and Meredith had both fallen asleep, but Lauren was still humming along to the music. She was holding Joey's hand over the middle console, her thumb rubbing his. She had missed him these past few weeks, and was glad that they were together again. She had been looking forward to this week all break and it was finally here. A full week of all her friends. What could be better?

"How are you doing?" Lauren asked. She had noticed him yawning out of the corner of her eye. 

"I'm great. Just didn't get much sleep last night since Darren and I stayed up late playing Mario Kart," he replied. "I'm really excited for this week. Thanks for suggesting this. We're gonna have a lot of fun."

"Yeah. I'm glad everyone was able to make it. I know we see each other all the time, but this will be a lot more relaxing than running all over campus for rehearsals and class."

They say in silence for a little while, Joey focusing on driving, and Lauren listening to the music.

"Hey," she interrupted the silence. "I should tell you before you find out from anyone else. It's not a big deal or anything since we weren't ever official, but I'm not seeing Walker anymore." Joey looked over at her for a second before looking back at the road, his eyebrows raised. "I just didn't see it going any farther than where it did, and I didn't want to string him along. Plus, we both realized that we work better as friends, and I'm okay with that."

"Thanks for telling me. And hey, I'm sorry about bringing it up last month when we got coffee. I didn't realize that you two weren't official. I shouldn't have made any assumptions. I know I struck a nerve on that one," Joey replied, his forehead creased. Joey glanced back in the rear-view mirror. Great, he thought, Meredith and Brian are still asleep. "I'm just protective of you, and people were always asking about our relationship, so I panicked and said the first thing I could think of and it wasn't true."

"You don't need to apologize, Joey," Lauren said sheepishly. "I don't like to talk about other boys in front of you, so you didn't know. I'm completely over it. Besides, we're not a thing anymore, so it's fine."

Lauren could feel herself blushing, so she stopped talking and just listened to the music. she must have fallen asleep, because she was gently nudged awake by Joey, and they were only about a half hour away.

"Lo, I need you to help me with directions. I'm sorry for waking you, but I don't want to get lost," Joey whispered. Brian and Meredith were somehow still asleep.

"I'm sorry I fell asleep. I should have been awake to keep you company."

"You don't need to apologize, just tell me where to go from here."

Lauren navigated until they got to the port for the ferry to take them over to the island. There, they waited for their friends in Darren's car. 

"Lo?"

"Yeah?"

Joey got quiet. "The reason that I got so defensive about our relationship is because I was jealous of Walker. He had the courage to ask you out. I never did. The thing is, I could see our relationship going farther than where it is now. We're practically a couple anyway. Everyone thinks we are." He was looking at Lauren, but she wasn't looking back.

"Joey..." Lauren said, looking out the window. "You're my best friend. And you have been for over a year now. I love hanging out with you, and you're one of the best people I've ever met, but I don't want to jeopardize that with anything more."

Meredith started to stir.

"Joey, can we not talk about this now? I'm sorry, I just like our relationship where it is."

Joey nodded, but he couldn't help but feel his heart break just a little. He had finally worked up the courage to almost tell her how he felt. He wanted to be her boyfriend. He wanted more than just holding hands in the car and watching her go on dates with other guys. Over the year that Joey had known Lauren, she had gone on dates with four different guys, all of whom dumped her. Well, except Walker, but he was different. Joey wanted to be the one there for Lauren in that way. He wanted to be the one she slept next to at night and the one who was there when she was sick. That's why this conversation was so hard. He knew she didn't want the same.

The other car with their friends had pulled up next to them in the parking lot and they boarded the ferry over to the island. Lauren was happy that everyone was there and awake so she wouldn't have to talk to Joey about their relationship anymore. It was a difficult topic for her. She loved Joey, but she wasn't sure if she wanted more. She didn't want to ruin what they had. Maybe someday, but not now, she thought. Even though she felt this way, she couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to kiss Joey, a thought she had had on numerous occasions.

What was going to happen when they had to be at the house together for a whole week? Lauren started to second guess her idea to come up here for the week, but she pushed that thought away because she would get to spend the time with her best friends. She couldn't help but wonder, however, what her life would be like with more of Joey in it.

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Next chapter they'll be at the house and there will be even more richpez drama, believe it or not. Thanks for reading, and if you have any comments or suggestions please let me know! This is my first time writing, so I'm still learning!