"Pull over. Let me drive for awhile." --Paily
Paige had been in the middle of a very intense tree pose when a knock on the door made her lose her balance. She groaned, annoyed at having her yoga practice disturbed.
“Coming!” she called, kicking her roommate’s dirty clothes out of her way. She opened the door, and her jaw dropped.
“Emily,” she breathed, taking in the sight of the girl in front of her. She hadn’t seen her ex-girlfriend in nearly a year, and she never would have expected to see her here. Her eyes were rimmed red, and her hair was un-brushed.
“My dad died,” she said dully.
“Oh, Em. I’m so sorry,” Paige said, pulling Emily into a hug. Emily started to cry, her body shaking in Paige’s arms.
“What do you need?” Paige asked. Emily swallowed.
“Can you come to Rosewood with me?” she asked. Paige didn’t answer for a second, and Emily mistook her silence for rejection.
“I’m sorry. I don’t know why I came here. Of course you can’t drop everything and come to Rosewood. I’m being silly. I should just go,” Emily mumbled. Paige grabbed her wrist before she could leave.
“Em. Of course I’ll come with you.”
--
And that was how Paige found herself stuck in a car with her ex-girlfriend for a forty something hour drive. She had assumed that they would fly, but as always, Emily surprised her. The girl had said she needed time to think before she got home. Paige suspected that she was trying to put off the inevitable.
“Are you hungry?” Paige asked softly. She wasn’t actually hungry herself, but they’d been driving for five hours and Emily had hardly said a word. Emily shook her head.
“Do you want to take a bathroom break?” she asked. Emily hit the brakes suddenly and Paige jolted.
“If you want to stop, just say something,” she snapped. Paige sighed. She knew Emily wasn’t actually angry at her, but this was going to be a very long drive if it continued like this.
“No, I’m fine. I was just checking,” Paige said. The light turned green and Emily accelerated. Paige grabbed onto the door, bracing herself. On second thought, the drive was going to be much shorter than expected if Emily kept driving like a maniac. If they didn’t have an accident before they got there, that is.
With a small sigh, Paige checked the messages on her phone. Her coach was furious that she was going to be missing practice, but she’d expected that. She’d emailed her professors, telling them that her uncle died, and they were all understanding. Luckily, she didn’t have any exams for the next week. Her roommate had sent a winky face and an extremely inappropriate message. Paige rolled her eyes. She wasn’t about to seduce her ex while accompanying her to her father’s funeral.
“He had a heart attack,” Emily said suddenly, startling Paige for the second time that day. Paige glanced over at her, but Emily wasn’t looking. She didn’t even seem to quite be talking to Paige.
“I was sitting in my biology lecture when my mom called. I’ve been dreading this call my entire life, you know? You get used to it, being an army daughter. Any unexpected call is an explosion, a bullet, MIA soldiers… I never thought he’d have a heart attack. Even after he was diagnosed with a heart condition, I didn’t expect it. How stupid is that?” she asked tearfully. Paige sighed and rubbed her ex’s thigh.
“It’s not stupid,” she said softly. Emily didn’t say anything, but her breath quickened and she started crying harder.
“Em, pull over,” she said. Emily wiped at her tears.
“I’m fine. It’s fine,” she said. Paige shook her head.
“Emily, pull over. Let me drive for a while,” she insisted. She sighed when Emily didn’t respond, and she thought the girl was going to ignore her. To her surprise, Emily pulled over. They quickly switched seats and Paige eased back onto the road.
For nearly a while neither girl spoke. Paige had turned on the radio, making sure to keep the volume low. About fifteen minutes into their switch, Paige glanced over and noticed that Emily had fallen asleep. She smiled sadly. Emily looked so peaceful asleep, so unlike she had moments earlier. Paige looked back to the road, and for over an hour, the drive was uneventful. It was getting late, and the traffic they’d hit earlier in the day had all but disappeared. Paige glanced at the dashboard. They needed to stop to get gas, and soon. Feeling bad, she reached over and gently shook Emily’s shoulder.
“Em, we need to stop for gas,” she said. Emily’s eyes fluttered open and she nodded.
“Hey, Paige?” she said quietly. Paige glanced over.
“Yeah?” she replied.
“Thank you.”