Hearts

one

"I don't think you understand how bad of an idea this is," my best friend Shawna told me as she stared at my thumb, which was currently hovering over the send button. Do you really wanna be signing your life away at seventeen?"

I had to laugh at that. She was being dramatic. If anything, she was the one signing her life away to be able to afford college.

Shawna rolled her eyes. "Can you at least pretend to listen to all the reasons you shouldn't send that text before you send it anyway because you never take my advice?"

I set my phone down on my bed and looked at her, halfway between expectantly and mockingly. "Fine. Go for it."

There was nothing she could say that would surprise me. Along with knowing her since our diaper eras, I had been living with her for almost a year. She was the reason that I wanted to stay in my hometown after my parents' jobs had relocated them across the world, and her parents were the reason that I was able to. I was around Shawna 24/7, which was great, but I also wouldn't wish it upon anyone. The point was, I knew her very well, and she was the most predictable person I had ever met.

"Wow, I didn't think you'd actually let me talk," Shawna muttered. "I should've prepared note cards."

"Not my problem. Just get it over with."

Shawna frowned. "You're forgetting who we're talking about. This person is selfish and manipulative and reckless. I don't care if—"

"That," I interrupted, "was forever ago. We've both grown up, and it's time to try to talk to him again. He's not a bad person, Shawna. I don't know where you got that from."

There was no doubt that Romeo Zaveri, the person in question, was a bit of a character. He and I used to be close friends, but we stopped talking a few years ago. Or, rather, he stopped talking to me. His presence never quite disappeared from my life, though. I heard his name get thrown around a lot because he was always getting in trouble for his dumb ideas, but by now, he had probably forgotten that I existed. However, I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't about to respond to his advertisement as an excuse to reconnect with him and prove myself wrong.

There's nothing secure about this plan," Shawna informed me. "You're literally gonna die."

I shrugged. "I don't mind. I'm here for a great time, not a long time."

"You're almost as stupid as him."

I reread the flyer that was sitting in front of me, even though I had memorized it.

Hey, it's me, Romeo. You might know me as the person who jumped off the school roof with a malfunctioning jetpack. Or the guy who rigged all the sprinklers in Walmart to spray silly string. Or I probably totaled your car at some point. Anyway, I'm looking for people who want to join me on an adventure. The plan is simple. We pool our money together, drive as far as we can, and start a life from scratch at wherever we end up. It'll only go on for as long as we want it to. I can take up to 4 people, or 5 if someone doesn't mind riding in my trunk. I'd put my number on this ad, but for some reason or another, you probably already have it. If you're interested, let me know.

"Look," I said. "There's nothing left for me in this town. We just graduated high school, and I'm not planning to go to college anytime soon. Why would I let myself stay trapped here? I'm pretty sure Romeo feels the same way. This is his chance to get out. I'm don't know if I'm going. I just wanna talk to him about it."

"You're idiots, both of you."

"I know," I said cheerfully.

The weird thing was, I wasn't nervous at all. I wasn't a confrontational person, but in this case, I was looking forward to demanding some answers. I was totally confident that I had never been in the wrong here. He was the one who hadn't bothered to talk to me in years, even though I still sent him a birthday card every year.