Our Last Ride

Chapter 1: The Renunion

Summer of 1996.
It all started with me, laying on a hill under a tree with the sun beaming through the small holes between the leaves onto my face. I have been staring at them for a few minutes as I hear a faint voice screaming my name. ‘Alana, Alana! ’The voice getting louder and louder very second. ‘Alana, Alana!’ I slowly get up from the chill grass and see a brunet girl with long hair running, up the hill, I recognize her, ‘Penny!’ I shout back ‘Hi Penny!’ She runs up to me second later with a basket full of delicious treats, placing it right beside me as she jumps onto my legs and kisses me.

Summer break has finally started, Penny and I are trying to spend every time we have before going into college. Penny gets of my legs and sits beside me. In her soft voice saying. ‘I have brought your favourite's.’ I instantly look at her with an expression on my face that is so familiar to her, my eyes wide with love and excitement as I stare deep into Penny's smile spreading across her face and after into the big green eyes. While she says, ‘Yes, cinnamon rolls.’ I kiss her with delight on her nose.

‘How are u beautiful?’ Are the first words I could spit out to her without wanting to hug and kiss Penny all the time while munching on a cinnamon roll. ‘Not that bad just missed having you and the last exams stressed me out a lot to but I am happy I am back to California again, but Las Vegas, it was beautiful the lights at night and the busy streets. Have I missed anything when I was away?’

I answered with ‘no nothing but my grandmother died a week ago I am fine but my mother is not dealing with it and became an alcoholic so I have been staying at a new friend of mine  for a few days while studying for the exams that I had today and trying to get my mother to stop drinking’
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I looked down with my knees against my forehead with the thought of having no family left to help my mother or me just strikes me down, looking at the grass depressed but soon after Penny came closer to me holding me tight as I feel the first tear drop falling and hitting the grass.

'Alana just remember I love you and whatever you do would never change the way I feel about you’ Penny said with a confident voice. I lift my head and look at her with my watery eyes and red face, when I looked at her everything changed, I forgot about what was happening around me and just cared about Penny, the love of my life the girl that got me through all my bad times the girl who loves me for who I am. I embrace her tightly and pin her down to the grass, presenting her with my warmth along with my affection to her. ‘I appreciate and love you with all my heart’ I answer back.

We sit under the large sapling talking for hours as the sun goes down hitting our faces. Suddenly Penny suggested ‘Alanna I have an idea come follow me’ as she stood up and stretching her hand to help me up. ‘Okay then, where are we going?’ I question Penny while reaching for his soft, miniature hand to help me up. I picked up the picnic basket and reached for Penny's hand while walking down the hill, curious where we are going. We reached000 the parking lot at the end of the hill and I see a baby blue Volkswagen van. We get into it and Penny drives. We drive the familiar road I will soon miss moving to New York go persway  my dancing dream.
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We drive for 7 minutes until we arrive at Hayden's house. He also was away for the last year in Ohio. I do not have a memory without Hayden in it but sadly his parents got a divorce 3 years ago and Hayden had to move out with his mother to her home town. He comes back every summer to visit his dad in California. Today was the day he came back. ‘I'm so excited getting the group back’ said Penny breaking the silent ‘I heard Holly, Liam and Cassidy will be there too’ as I said that we park the van. Me and Penny run up to the rest of the group and we all enter a group hug, after the long cuddle has ended, we all spitted into smaller groups just to have someone on one time with each other. Cassady offered to get some pizza at a local Diner.

We all get back into the van with me and Penny at the front and the rest of our friends at the back. There is noise and laughter filling in the vehicle and suddenly silent feel upon us, I thought it was silent but I was wrong I heard a small giggle at the back of the van I turned around slowly to not get noticed by the others I see Holly and Cassidy whispering something to each other ears, In the very back of the van I see Liam and Hayden talking to each other, flirting or just friend with friend talking. I lost interest quickly and turned back and looked at Penny studying her concentred face and turn my head back to its original place

We arrive at the dinner, the style of it is like I remember 80s, the year of chequered black and white floors, red booths, and milkshakes. Me and Penny hold hands while entering and we sit down in the closest free table. Everyone ordered something different when we waited for our food another group conversation broke out.
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‘How was the last year of school for everyone’ Holly asked, she always was outgoing and wanted to keep the group together for all those years. ‘It was stressing the exams were the worst but I'm happy all of it is over college is next’ Liam answered ‘Has anyone else have any plans about college’ he added. ‘I want to go to a gardening school I enjoyed learning about flowers and insects’ said Cassidy. She would be a person to like that, she was always closer to nature then any of us in our childhood. We kept the conversations going, I kept an eye on Liam and Hayden I am simply curious on what is happening between them is it more than just friendship, my train of thought was interrupted by

‘Guys’ Hayden said slowly, everyone went quiet and all eyes dropped onto Hayden. ‘I want this Summer to be the best Summer of our lives, we are going our separate ways after this, lets travel America’ reading our confused faces his face moving down thinking that his idea was idiotic. ‘That's a great idea’ I added a few seconds later and Hayden's face lit up with happiness, ‘But when?’ added Liam. ‘Tomorow early morning’ answered’ Hayden. ‘We don’t have a car and if we do have a car, we don’t have a driver’ questioned Cassidy. ‘We do have a driver and a van’ added Penny, everyone looked excited at her. ‘It would be great I could add that to my college portfolio too because I want to be a photographer and take beautiful pictures of us’ added Penny. The food arrived later then usually but all of us were so excited about of big adventure we asked can we get it for takeaway, payed and ran out of the dinner.
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