Psychotic Kids

Chapter 7: Melbourne

Chapter 7: Melbourne

Peter

About five hours later, we reach Melbourne. I've never been here before, but it's big.

"On the streets," I say to Isla, "we're gonna look like a couple of lost kids."

"I'm not scared," She claims, not even looking up from the car magazine she found in the glovebox.

I like her fearlessness. I like how wild she is, just like me. I like her grey eyes. And her dark hair. I like the way she sits in the car, with her body in a ball. I like the way she acts, the way she dresses. I like the way she looks at me. I hope I look at her like that, too.

"Where are we meant to stay?" She asks, looking out the window at the setting sun. I shrug, "Dunno. It's a big city, there'll be someplace cheap to stay at for the night."

"Can we stay somewhere with a pool?" She asks. Every time she opens her mouth and says something hopeful, almost excitedly, I feel my stomach fill with butterflies.

"Probably not," I chuckle, "How much cash have you got?" I watch her in the corner of my eye as she goes through her bag, eventually pulling out a small roll of money.

She counts it and after a few seconds, says, "A hundred and fourteen. I found some coins in here too."

I give her a disappointed look, "Doesn't look like we'll be able to get a hotel with a pool..." She pouts, crossing her arms across her chest and leaning back into the car seat.

I lean over, placing my hand on her knee, "I'm sorry. We just... we need to keep this." She nods understandingly.

After another half an hour, we've still had no luck. I go to say something to Isla, but I realise that she wouldn't hear me. She's asleep.

"Isla?" I whisper. No reply. I smile, rubbing her shoulder and tucking some hair behind her ear. My foster parents always bragged about their romantic story that went a little like this.

They met as teenagers and instantly felt something was there. They began dating pretty quick, but a few months into the relationship, they had a big argument and my foster mother ran off in the night. My foster father drove around the whole town until he found her at a bus stop, fast asleep on the bench.

He picked her up and put her in his car. He was afraid that if he stopped the car, she'd wake up and be angry with him again, so he drove around the whole town while she slept in the seat next him.

I hope one day, I'll have a love story to tell like that.