Arizona ✦ Johnson

✧ Four

I walked outside with my duffel bag that was dragging behind me. The early morning sun greeted me by immediately shining in my eyes. I was prepared to load everything up in her car but it wasn't there. I looked around confused and when I started to walk across the yard to her house I heard a horn honk. I turned my head and saw a faded blue Volkswagen bus pull up. The driver was none other than a grinning Arizona. My eyes grew wide and she turned the bus off and ran up to me excitedly. "What is this?" I asked laughing.

"A bus," she smiled proudly.

"A bus..." I nodded still unsure if it was some sort of joke.

"But not just any bus," she grabbed my hand and guided me up to it. "This is a 1964 Volkswagen Bus that belonged to none other than my grandmother," she smiled again. "I sold my car to get it," she put her hands on her hips and we both stared at the old, faded blue contraption that was in front of us. It was official - she was in fact insane.

"You sold your car to buy a bus..." I was trying to wrap my head around what she had just told me.

"Yep," she nodded. "Is that your bag?" I nodded and she opened the door to the bus and gestured for me to sit it inside. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the interior - there was a tapestry hanging up over one of the windows, and a makeshift bed covered with blankets and pillows. There was a feathered dream catcher hanging freely from the ceiling, and the whole inside smelled like fresh strawberries. It was a hippie haven. "Surprise by the way," she added in. I had to laugh because she was by far the craziest person I had ever met. A whiff of cinnamon flattered my nostrils and I sniffed around until I found the sweet, gooey culprit. I picked up a brown paper bag that had small grease spots on the bottom.

"Oh my God, you didn't!" I asked while staring at the bag.

"I stopped by the diner and got some of Leeann's famous cinnamon rolls. I remembered that you love them as much as I do," she shrugged. I smiled at her and we stepped out of the bus and we stood in the yard. It was fairly warm outside and the sun was still fresh in the sky. Her pink hair matched the vibrant shades that painted the sky, and she was wearing a headband with her hair hanging loosely. She looked like she was totally fine for a petite girl who drank half of her body weight. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, in a minute. Everyone wants to see you," I said to her. We walked into my house and said our goodbyes to my parents. "Alright, can I please know where we're going now?" I asked as I planted myself in the cushiony drivers seat chair.

"Denver," she said climbing into the passengers seat.

"Denver?" I asked confused. "We're spending two weeks in Denver?"

"And Seattle," she nodded. "Then Portland, and of course San Francisco. Then to top it off...Vegas!" I looked at her completely confused. "What?"

"Did you just randomly select these cities?" I asked starting up the bus. She didn't say anything; instead she pulled out a paper map and told me what roads I would have to take. "Wouldn't it just be easier to use a GPS?"

"What's the fun in that?" She smiled. She pulled out one of the sweet smelling cinnamon rolls and gave me a bite. I licked the warm vanilla frosting off of my lower lip and made a left turn.

"So why did you buy a bus?" I asked as we accelerated down the street. For being so old the vehicle ran smoothly.

"It's my grandma's," she said swallowing a bite. "I've loved this thing for forever, and my aunt had it. She fell on hard times and needed the extra cash so she was selling it. I didn't want it going to some random stranger...so I sold my car, gave her the money and here we are," she took another bite. She inserted an old tape into the radio and started humming along as soon as the music filled the bus. I took glances over at her and she looked so free. Her feet were kicked up on the dashboard, and she was in a loose sundress, with floral patterns. She was looking out of the window with a cinnamon roll in her hands and she was swaying her head along to the best of the music. "I found this tape in her; grandma always sung this song."