Potholes

Chapter 52 As told by Rowan

Emmet, the newest member of our entourage, packed the minivan to the brim, with barely any room left for our belongings.

I was banished to the back seat, nestled between backpacks and an assortment of other possessions. Parker was in the driver's seat, with Eva beside her. Hayden and Emmet were in front of me.

I'm not entirely sure what was passing through my head when I agreed to let Emmet tag along, but I had yet to regret the decision. He was pleasant enough, although his only topic of interest appeared to be astronomy.

Emmet's fashion sense was questionable, and the dark colour scheme he seemed to favour was rather il-suited to the current summer weather. His dark hair was parted in the middle and fell just below his ears, curling near the ends. He wore a dark green long sleeve under a t-shirt for a band I had never heard of, Robocobra Quartet it read in aggressive lettering.

Eva and Parker were happily chatting up at the front, and when I got tired of listening to Emmet drone on and on about some ancient greet astronomer, I let my eyes close.

When I woke up, the landscape outside the window was much the same as all the previous states we'd been through: Dusty gravel lining the sides of the road, brown dirt, and the occasional patch of shrubbery.

I craned my neck over the seats in front to see that Hayden was asleep, so I looked over to Emmet.

"So, uh, what kinds of things do you like to do? You know, like any hobbies? Sports?" I directed at him, trying to start a conversation.

"Um, I'm not really that into sports, but I do like philosophy, and astronomy I guess," he said, "I also have the fourth largest stamp collection in Ohio," he added.

I did my best impersonation of someone who would be interested in greco roman philosophical ideas and stamps, and quietly nodded my head in agreement.

"Did you know that the Romans and Greeks were some of the major contributors to early religion, philosophy, and science, as early as the sixth century?" Emmet asked, "In fact the word philosophy is of Greek origin, combining the words philia or "to love" with sophia or "wisdom," he noted.

"Hmm, quite poetic, really," I contributed, hoping to sound composed and thoughtful.

I had always taken pride in my intellectual capacity, but clearly my academic passions weren't nearly as tenacious as Emmet's.

Saving me from Emmet's tangents, Eva proposed the question we were probably all pining over, "where are we going to eat and sleep?" she asked.

"I don't know, but I'm in desperate need of some vegetables. I fear it's only a matter of time before I contract scurvy," I said.

Hayden chuckled, although I was being completely serious; power-aid and granola bars could only sustain oneself for a time.

"Well, how much money do we have?" Parker questioned.

"About seventy bucks," Hayden replied.

"Um, I've got some cash, I could get dinner?" Emmet said.

"Oh, no, don't bother, it's fine," Eva said, "I've got my card, I can just take some money out of my savings. If I put it back in soon my parents shouldn't notice," She added.

"Are you sure they won't realize?" I asked.

"It'll be fine," she replied.

Parker pulled into a bank, and Eve hopped out of the van to use the ATM. When she returned she was shoving several bills into her wallet.

"Did you really need to withdraw that much?" Parker put the screws to.

"Well, I felt like I should finally put some of that bar mitzvah money to use," she retorted.

Parker had switched places with Hayden, and was now looking through her phone with Emmet to find somewhere to eat. I noted their closeness, and how Parker neglected to elbow him off her shoulder, like how I know she would have done if he were Eva or myself.

"What about this pub here," She asked, flashing her phone in my direction.

I briefly glanced at the screen, and it appeared to be a pretty average pub.

"But it's past eight, wouldn't they have closed it to minors?" I asked.

"Phsss, nobody will check us," Hayden said.

"Mm, I don't know, Rowan does kind of look like a little kid," Eva joked, although we all knew she was telling the truth. Despite my childish appearance, we pulled into the parking lot and exited the van.

Contrary to popular belief, the pub checked our IDs and we were sent on our way.

"Ok, now wha-"

"Tacos!" Eva exclaimed, pointing to a neon blue and orange taco truck.

There was a unanimous decision that tacos were a good idea, and we pilled out of the van once again.

The boy running the truck couldn't have been much older than us. He had short, dark hair and a stereotypical jock physique.

"Hi, I'm Max," He said, "How can I help you?"

Before we could answer another boy, around the same age appeared from the back.

"Hey, I'm Jordan, and this is Max. He's a jock, and a popular kid, who spends most of his time working out and hanging with fellow "dude bros." He's Mexican from his mom's side, and he hasn't seen his father much since the divorce. And I'm a scrawny, insecure poet, and I spend most of my time doing makeovers and gossiping with my two "wives." I'm white, and I've been taking care of my mother ever since my dad died four years ago, especially through her gambling problem," he said.

"Oh, wow, that's rough. I'm sorry," I said.

"But we haven't come here to listen to your soap opera life, so could I please just have a burrito with extra guac?" Hayden ordered.

Jordan stuttered before replying, "sure, do you want beans or rice?"

"Beans," Hayden said.

We all ordered our food and then took it to eat in the car. I couldn't speak for everyone else, but I got a weird impression from Max and Jordan.

"Eva, how much money did you actually take out of the bank" Parker put through the wringer

"Five hundred dollars," she replied.

"I suppose we could get a motel again?" Parker suggested.

So, once again, I found myself unloading our bags out of the van in the parking lot of another dodgy motel.