Wish I May, Wish I Might

Chapter 15

The next morning, we packed up the truck for what I hoped was the last time for a long time. I felt energized by the thought, bouncing on the balls of my feet and smiling at everything.

Annabelle, however, didn't seem nearly so excited.

"What's wrong?" I asked as I gave our dog a piece of beef jerky.

She blinked and looked up at me. "Nothing," she said quickly.

I crossed my arms across my chest. "Whenever someone says there's nothing wrong there's always something wrong. What's up?"

Annabelle sighed. "I just feel weird. I've never been this far away from home before. I just realized that every single mile that we go, I'm getting further and further away, and I don't know if I'm ever going to be able to go back."

"Do you want to go back?" I asked, chewing on a nail to avoid pressing my fingers into the bruise.

"No!" she said a little too quickly. "I don't want to go back now. I want to find someplace out west. But maybe someday I could go back."

We got into the truck, with me taking the opportunity to drive. Annabelle hadn't been willing to let me drive at night since the fiasco with the yelling. But I felt useless just sitting in the car while she was driving, so I drove during the mornings.

"What are we going to do when we get to where we're going?" I asked.

"Build a house?" she suggested.

"Obviously," I said. "I mean, after that."

Annie pawed at the window in the backseat, and I rolled down the window so she could stick her head out.

"I dunno," Annabelle said. "I think the first thing I'll do is take a really long nap. It'll be nice to have a bed that's mine."

"You say that like it was a really long time ago," I said as a car went by with another dog sticking its head out the window, making Annie bark like a rabid animal for thirty seconds, not allowing for any conversation.

But when she calmed down, Annabelle still hadn't said anything.

"When did you leave home?" I asked.

My friend just shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

"Belle," I sighed. "I know you've got shit in your life that you want to keep to yourself. I get that, I promise." I took in a shuttering breath and tightened my grip on the wheel and pressed the gas pedal a little harder. "But I'm with you through this."

"And what is this?" Annabelle asked with a pained smile.

"Everything. Our wishes, our stupid mistakes, our new lives, everything. I'm with you. But we gotta trust each other. You gotta trust me. I'm not going to hurt you."

"I never said you were going to hurt me!"

I realized there was a speed limit notice ahead, and slowed down the acceleration of the truck. "I know. But you need to tell me things. I've told you about everything, about every skeleton in my closet. I'm not saying you have to say everything now. Just..."

"Just don't leave you hanging?"

I nodded. "Yeah."

Annabelle tapped her fingers on the car door. "Six months."

I nearly slammed the brakes like I had a few nights ago. "You've been hiding for six months?!"

"Are you surprised?" But the sarcastic tone caught slightly on the last word. Before I could even have time to think of something comforting to say, two large tears fell from Annabelle's eyes, she leaned forward in her seat and started sobbing.