Johnny Harper slowly opened his large brown eyes, the long lashes blinking away the sleep. He sat up in the seat and yawned, wincing as he tried in vain to massage the crook out of his neck. Taking a quick glance out the window, he watched as the world, the countryside literally passed him by. It had been four days since he had been on the road, four whole days since he had packed up and left his whole life behind. His mother, Gwen, had excitedly spoke of their new adventure, their brand new start in California. For Johnny there was uncertainty. A lot awaited him in his new home but he couldn't help but feel bad for what he had left behind.

He was the shy, quiet type who sat in the back of the class or stood along the sidelines just watching everyone else. But when people got to know him, Johnny was the life of the party. Loyal and sensitive, funny and sweet were just some of the adjectives used to describe him. He was an all around good guy, well liked and most of it had to do with his upbringing and the woman who had raised him nearly by herself. Gwendolyn Banks was an East Coast girl, born and bred right outside of Baltimore, Maryland. The product of a broken home, which included an abusive father and alcoholic mother, at age 16, the pretty teenager had fallen hard for rough, gruff, five years older, Jack Harper. A year into their dating, she had discovered she was pregnant. Eager to escape her home life, she had quickly accepted Jack's half hearted, ringless proposal and the two married just months before Johnny Lee Harper came into the world. The relationship lasted a rocky eight years after, the marriage rocked by the heavy drinking and domestic abuse Gwen had fought so hard to escape.

From an early age, Johnny had been his mother's protector. Just 17 years older than him, the two had grown up together with an "us against the world" attitude. Stuck in a dead end lifestyle, miserable and battered, Gwen filed for divorce, settling for welfare handouts while she studied for her GED and something better for her and her son. Through a lot of nights surviving on Ramen noodles and cheese sandwiches, the young mother had finally made it. She studied for her nursing assistant's license and became certified, determined to move her boy away from the dangers of the inner city projects to the safer, quieter tourist community of Ocean City.

The beach became Johnny's home away from home. He loved to swim in the water, traveling down by the pier every day when weather permitted. The older boys surfed and he watched in awe for hours at a time. Taking pity on him, some of the guys had befriended him, loaning him a used board and teaching him the tricks of the waves. In no time Johnny had mastered the technique, his angled, lean frame and long hair ever looking the part of the cool surfer dude. It was more than a hobby and for Gwen, who worked long hours, it was a relief. It kept her son off the streets away from dealing and using drugs. Proud and supportive, she hadn't known just how good he was, that is until he won his first competition.

Surfing was his life, the water his best friend. And Johnny Harper was good. In fact, he was damned good. He began competing regularly in any competition that he could, even traveling to Florida a few times. But the real money was in Hawaii and in order to get there, California and the many opportunities for sponsorships were a major stepping stone. As her child showed more promise, Gwen made the ultimate sacrifice, saving what funds she could in order to move them out west. Johnny had harbored mixed emotions about the move. He knew it was for him but he felt bad. He adored the hard working mother who had sacrificed her whole life for him. But it wasn't fair to her. Besides, he didn't want to leave his friends in Maryland behind. Hardly anybody transferred schools in the middle of junior year. He had a life there and a pretty girlfriend named Casey. He'd always thought about moving out west but it would be when he was an adult and on his own terms. But his mother had insisted and all of sudden they were driving on I-40 headed for a whole other world.

"Where are we now?" he yawned, stretching his long, tanned arms.

"Welcome back, sleepy head," Gwen smiled as she ruffled her son's already messy brown mop of hair. "We just hit the state line. What do you think so far? New Mexico looks pretty cool, huh?"

It was all starting to look the same. Through Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas, he had seen the scenery change. Now it was all starting to look the same, with nothing but desert for miles.

"You need me to drive?" he asked.

Gwen shook her head.

"I'm good. I'm gonna give it a couple more hours and I think we'll call it a night."

Johnny nodded. The last thing he was looking forward to was another cheap motel right off the interstate but he supposed it was the nature of the beast.

"Mom?"

"Yeah babe?"

"You know we didn't have to do this. I've said it before but I just wanted you to know. I feel like you did all this for me. You gave up everything. You're always giving up everything. I appreciate it but you didn't have to do it."

Gwen smiled. Her son was her best friend and the best child a mother could ever hope for.

"I did this for us, baby. You're a great surfer, who knows, there might be a real future there. This is your opportunity. As for me, I needed a change. We needed a change. I've already got a great job at a nursing home in Irvine and the benefits there are amazing, much better than anything I ever had in Maryland. After six months, they're willing to put me through RN school. You can't beat that with a stick, John. The money will be better the hours will be better and we'll have a better life altogether."

She seemed so excited.

"Are you sure this isn't about…"

Gwen sighed and bit her lip. Johnny didn't have to say another word. She already knew what he was getting at.

"Your father?" she completed his question.

Johnny frowned. He hadn't seen Jack Harper in almost seven years and the memories were anything but happy. After the divorce Jack had enrolled in truck driving school and had eventually ended up out west. In the last year, a so called changed man, he had contacted his former wife and child. A reluctant correspondence had started between he and Gwen. He now resided in Riverside, California and had seemed happy when he learned of his estranged family's impending move. Gwen had kept her distance, limiting contact to only the occasional letter and phone call. She had agreed to see him once they were settled in Newport Beach but Johnny would have no part of it. To believe a change had happened, he would have to see it with his own eyes and at that point he was in no mood to deal with his father. The last thing he wanted was to see him and he hoped their sudden move hadn't had anything to do with a possible reconciliation between his parents.

"Well, yeah."

"Sweetheart…"

"Have you forgot what life used to be like? All the horrible things he did to us?"

She swallowed hard.

"Of course I haven't forgotten but that was a long time ago."

"I'm not trying to tell you what to do, Mom. If you forgive him, if you want to talk to him or be his friend, I can't change that. I just want you to be careful. I don't want you getting your hopes up again. Dad did a lot of bad things and I can't forget that. It's gonna take a lot more than words before I let him back in my life."

"I respect that. You have a good head on your shoulders and a good heart, John. I'd like to think I had a little something to do with that. I understand how you feel and take all the time you need. I'm not naïve going into this. Things are complicated with your father and me and always have been. But I promise you he is not the reason we moved here. This is for you, for us. Whatever else happens, we'll just cross those bridges when we get to them. Right now I am excited about work and school and I want you to look forward to those same things."

"I guess."

"It's gonna be fine. It'll be great, baby, you'll see."

"What about all my friends?"

"You'll see them again. And the cool thing is, you'll make lots of new friends."

"What about Casey?"

Gwen took a deep breath. She knew a thing or two about teenage love. Johnny had been dating Casey Michaels on and off since they were 12 years old.

"Casey is a great girl. Hon, I can't predict the future and I won't lie to you. I have no idea what's gonna happen. All I can say is stay in touch and we'll see. At the very least, you two will always be friends."

"Yeah…friends," Johnny repeated quietly.

"Hey, no moping and brooding. We have a lot of cool stuff to look forward to. Think of all the neat things we can do to our new house."

Gwen had found a small fixer upper in a decent section of Orange County, part of the new low income housing project being developed by a company called The Newport Group.

"Yeah. Um, it's pretty cool," he tried to stay positive for his mother's sake.

Maybe it wouldn't be all bad.

"I know this is different and it's weird and it's hard and it's a big change. I'm right on the same page with you, Johnny. But we have each other and we can do anything. I can't explain it but I have a really good feeling about all this. I just know we're gonna do good here."

"Whatever you say, Mom."

"Give it a chance. Please? Can you just promise me you'll do that one thing for me?"

Johnny stared absently out the window as the cactuses passed him by. With each mile he was that much further away from home and the only life he had ever known.

"Yeah, Mom," he answered quietly. "I guess I can do that."