Paradise

Chapter 8 - Unknown & Content

You wouldn't get in the car with some stranger, now, would you? Ever since we can all remember, our parents have been filling our heads with the same old bit: never get in the car with strangers. And just like that we were supposed to obey them; after all they are our parents, figures we are supposed to trust our lives with yet what happens when these god-like facades break a bond which held the trust between them and their child? Does that allow the child to then be able to turn against their parents since it's only fair? Well, I saw it that way and I took it upon myself to take the measures I needed to take which lead me to cross the line with the whole "never get in the car with strangers" act. With the wind blowing through my hair and the unsettling knot twisted in my stomach, I turned to my left to get a better look at the driver, or the "stranger," since we had been in the car for over twenty minutes and hadn't said a word to one another, trying to run away from the idea of what we had just done. I could see the worried, afraid expression resting on his soft face and big, brown eyes. He couldn't wrap the last hour around his head either. I began to wonder if I showed such sign on my face as well.

As I began to rub my temples and breathe more slowly, he took his eyes off the road and looked at me, "Are you okay?"

How could he possibly classify me as "okay?" Nothing had been "okay" for over three months now and he was barely getting the gesture of that after it was too late, "I don't know. I don't know about anything anymore...I...I just want to go away..."

"And that's what we are doing," he attempted to hide his doubt on his face too, for my sake, "Don't worry."

I hardly knew the guy yet I was with him, in the wee hours of the night going God knows where. But for the first time in what seemed like forever, I actually trusted someone. Deep down, I knew it was going to be okay.

"It'll always be the both of us in this, together, whatever it may be." Logan said, trying to lighten up the drowning tension.

I believed him. I just couldn't find the words to say simply because my protective, prone to worry side of me kicked in. Why is it so hard for me to let go? Why is it hard for me to actually retain happiness? That's all I've ever wanted out of my life: happiness. Now that I have a shot at being happy, I have to learn to let go.

"Listen, Avery I know this probably wasn't easy for you considering you're an obsessive control freak but doing this actually scared the crap out of me too. I think it's for the best though. It's not like we're some bad kids running away from home because our parents got us angry for not letting us go out to a party or something, that's not the case at all. We're not some spoiled, stubborn children who didn't get their way. You gotta know when to walk away." He said with a content sigh of relief.

"You're right about everything. This will take some getting used to but as long as I'm with you... I'll be fine." I said as my face grew hot.

"Is that a blush I see, Lancaster?" Logan said with an entertained, wide smile.

"Shut up. Keep your eyes on the road." I said, covering my face.

"Speaking about the road, what do you say we stop and get some food? You hungry? I saw a sign a couple miles back we should come up to a town in about twenty minutes."

"Awesome, let's do that." I smiled. It's about five minutes after midnight yet I had so much energy, I could be up for hours without feeling a hint of exhaustion.

"All right, anything for you, gorgeous." He winked.

~ ~ ~ ~

We made it to a small diner a half an hour before one in the morning. I had no idea where we were at or where we were heading and I was exceedingly content with that.