Page 2 of Joyride
June 2020
I madeit to mine and Sienna’s apartment in record time. Sienna and Shade have been staying at the house this week so Sienna can be there to help Cali while Buster is working and to help them get the house set up for when the baby comes. They’re going to be great parents. It's too bad I won't be here to see it.
Walking into the apartment, I head straight for Sienna’s closet, tossing my phone on the counter as I go. Sienna keeps a safe hidden in here in case either of us has an emergency like I do now. I quickly open the safe, grab the money, prepaid phone and keys to a beat-up car. Once I have everything I need, I leave, only stopping to lock the door.
I don’t bother telling anyone where I’m going or that I’m even leaving. I can’t tell them. If I go to the Savage Menaces or anyone associated with them, they’ll end up in danger, too. I won’t do that to any of them.
With the windows down and the music up, I drive to the one place I know no one will find me. New Orleans, Louisiana. I have friends there who aren’t linked to the club in any way. It’s the safest place I can come up with at the moment. Since I don’t have much time to stop and think, I go with it.
As I pull onto the highway,There’s No Wayby Lauv comes on. Sketch’s face pops into my mind and it pulls at my heart. I’ve been such an awful friend to him lately, but I had to put the distance between us, though. Someday, I’ll explain everything to him. I can only hope he’ll forgive me. It’s been painful not talking to him after we had become such good friends.
After driving for roughly four hours, I stop for gas and food. I end up eating while I drive, so I don’t waste any time. At the pace I’m going, I should arrive in New Orleans around midnight. I’m not even sure if my friends will be home. The more I think about it, I decide to call them.
“Hello?” Thank the gods she answered.
“Aria, it’s Wren. I’m on my way to New Orleans and need a place to stay,” I tell her.
“Say no more. We’ll be here,” she replies. I tell her when I should be arriving and we hang up. I’m constantly reminded of Sketch with every other song that comes on. It’s like the universe is trying to tell me something.
I pull up to Aria’s house a quarter after midnight. Being in the car for eight hours with the bare minimum stops is exhausting. On top of what happened before I left, I don’t know how I’m still functioning.
Aria meets me at the front door. She’s wearing a sympathetic expression. “Whatever happened, we can talk about it in the morning. The spare bedroom is set up for you with some clothes. Go get some sleep.” Aria was the closest person I had to a best friend in high school. I’m thankful we’ve stayed in touch over the years.
“You are an angel,” I tell her. I follow her through the house.
“You know that’s just an illusion.” She teases.
She brings me to the spare room. “Thank you so much, Aria.”
“Girl, no thanks needed. We got you,” she replies. “Get some rest. We’ll catch up tomorrow.”
I walk into the room as she walks to hers, closing the door behind me. I inhale a deep breath, holding it for five. Four. Three. Two. And letting it out. I do it a couple more times. Inhaling the good, exhaling the bad.
“You’re safe,” I whisper to myself. I glance around the room. There’s a window across the room from the door. I close the blinds then head into the attached bathroom,turning the light on and groaning at my reflection. A new toothbrush and a travel size toothpaste sit on the side of the sink. I brush my teeth, and before leaving the bathroom, I toss my hair into a messy bun. I peel my clothes off and slip into the pajamas Aria left for me.
My body sinks into the mattress as I lay down. Coming down off the adrenaline high, my body starts to ache from the abuse today brought. As tired as I am, my mind is wired. It feels like hours before sleep takes over.
The next morning, I wake up close to ten in the morning. I’m exhausted, as if I didn’t get but a couple hours of sleep. The aroma of coffee fills my nose, dragging me out of bed. I stretch my arms up, stretching my back, then head into the kitchen. Aria is sitting at the kitchen table, eating waffles and drinking coffee. She turns around when she hears me walk in.
“Good morning, Sleeping Beauty. How’d you sleep?”
“Not great, honestly. My mind was going a hundred miles an hour all night,” I admit.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“Ehhh,” I groan. “Food and coffee, first.” I place a couple of frozen waffles in the toaster and make myself a cup of coffee. When my waffles pop up, I butter them and drench them in syrup. Sitting at the table with Aria, I start my story.
We spend the next two hours talking. I pour my heart out, telling her everything that’s happened since the last time we saw each other. We text each other but don’t always have deep conversations about our lives. She listens and only responds when truly needed.
“You know you’re welcome to stay here as long as you need,” Aria tells me. “We can get you set up with whatever you need.”
“I appreciate that more than you know,” I reply. “I haven’t given any thought to how long I’ll stay. I’ll let you know as soon as I decide.”
Elena and Harper come home shortly after our conversation. We get them caught up on why I’m here and it’s the last we discuss it. These girls are some of the best people I know outside of the Savage Menaces MC.
“So what are we going to do this weekend?” Leave it to Harper to change the conversation to plans for the weekend. She must have this weekend off work.
“Let’s go out dancing. Just us girls,” Aria suggests.
