They've been on the open road for a week, tracing the winding coastlines and hilly stretches of forest in a rickety truck that rattles at every pothole in the road. Rei's in the driver's seat, her hands trembling around the cold leather steering wheel as her eyes track the headlights, navigating every curve that appears like she's been down this route a hundred times. Asuka sits beside her, seatbelt nestled tightly against her chest, legs propped up against the dash.
The National pours in static-laden bursts over the radio, courtesy of the only station they managed to find. "Some hipster bullshit," Asuka had said, but she'd let Rei keep it on, anyway. She prefers empty white noise better than the sound of her own thoughts, and Rei just wants something to keep her mind off their situation.
She remembers a week ago, when Asuka had woken her with a flurry of texts at three in the morning. I'm out, they read. I've had enough. I'm sick of this place. I'm leaving. I'm going north and no one's stopping me, and before Asuka had time to get into the 'I'm going to miss you' portion of her breakdown, Rei had texted her back.
You're taking me with you.
That's how they ended up on the highway, racing ahead of the streaks of the rising dawn, Asuka curled up in the passenger's seat and Rei at the wheel even though it was Asuka's truck they were taking. Asuka's eyes were too puffy, too blurred with tears to see anything past her nose, and Rei would be damned if she let her girlfriend drive in such a state.
"I hate him," Asuka says, snapping Rei back into the moment. She looks over at Asuka, her face illuminated by the faint silver of the full moon above and the light coming from her phone. Asuka's face twitches disdainfully, and Rei immediately knows she and Asuka were thinking of the same thing after all, as they've done so often. "Fuckin' piece of shit stepdad." She slams the torn soles of her sneakers down on the floor and jams her hands into the pockets of her sweatshirt. "Too damn drunk to do anything but scream at me. Fuckin' stepmom doesn't do anything about it, either. She's a fucking doormat."
"You used to call me that too, before we were friends."
Asuka winces, her words tumbling out in a rush to correct herself. "You're- you're different. You care. You... you love me."
Rei doesn't say anything, focusing on the white and yellow lines zipping ahead of her. Asuka continues muttering next to her, not caring if Rei can hear her or not. She tucks her head against her chest, and out of the corner of her eye Rei can see Asuka's breath forming white clouds. "Do you want the heater on?" she asks, and Asuka shakes her head.
"Better not. We agreed, remember?"
Rei nods, furtively eyeing the gas meter on the dash. It's a problem she and Asuka know they'll have to deal with eventually, and neither of them want to bring it up. Asuka goes back to playing with her phone, swapping hands every few minutes when the chill gets too much for her to deal with. She looks over at Rei between loading screens, eyeing her open jacket and cut-off jeans. "I don't understand how you're not cold."
"I'm just not," Rei replies, and it's true. Temperature has never affected her like it's affected her classmates, and the only thing that can make her shiver is the sound of Asuka crying.
"Good for you," mutters Asuka, dropping her phone into the cup holder. A few cigarette stubs rattle bounce around it, and Asuka wrinkles her nose. "Yeah yeah, I know. I'll throw them out when we hit the next rest stop."
"You know I don't mind you smoking. I just wish you wouldn't do it so often."
"I'm stressed," Asuka chuckles, her voice breaking. "And hey, at least it's not drinking."
"You'd never do that."
Asuka waves a hand in the air, the smile fading from her face. "I've had enough of booze for a lifetime," she says, reclining her seat back as far as it can go. "Hey, Rei, you know what we should do? We should just keep driving north. Maybe make it to Alaska or Canada or somewhere up there, and find a glacier we can hibernate in. You can hold me, since you're our resident heater, and we can wait there until the end of the world. What do you say?"
The truck shudders to a halt as Rei jerks it to the side of the road. Asuka's confusion is answered by Rei grabbing her face with both hands and kissing her. Her chapped lips are familiar territory; familiar enough that Rei swears she knows them better than she knows some parts of herself. Asuka kisses her back, shoving her tongue up against Rei's, something she only does when she's struggling to hold something back.
They part with a silent gasp, Rei slowly stroking Asuka's cheek. "You know we can't do that."
"It'd be beautiful," Asuka counters, staring into Rei's eyes. "Watching the sun slowly grow and consume us. The two of us, the last people on earth. No one to bother us. Why can't we?"
Rei kisses Asuka again, quietly repeating herself. "You know we can't do that," she whispers, shifting the truck back into gear and pulling onto the highway. She thinks she hears Asuka murmur 'I know', but the roar of the asphalt under their worn tires drowns her out.
"Rest stop's in ten miles," Rei says, reading off a sign they just passed.
"Let's just sleep in the car tonight. I'm tired of shitty motels. I don't care how cold it'll be. I just want some place that doesn't fucking remind me of home," Asuka snaps. Rei sighs and looks away as Asuka pulls something out of her pocket. Ahead of them, the white lights of the rest stop come into view. Rei focuses hard on them, and she can make out the silhouettes of a gas station and what's probably a diner.
"I'm pulling over."
"I said I don't want to-"
"We're almost out of gas."
Asuka scowls, but doesn't protest further. She tosses her lighter from one hand to the other, flicking it and running her palm above the lit flame. She's still doing this when Rei pulls into the gas station and hops out to work the pump. "Are you going to get anything here?" Rei asks.
"I'm tired of gas station food, too," Asuka growls, but it's half-hearted, and Rei knows she's complaining just for complaining's sake. Better to let Asuka get it all out than to deal with the explosion of her temper. "Just checking this. You want anything?" Rei sees an unfamiliar flash of yellow between Asuka's fingers, but she shakes her head and doesn't ask.
"I'm good. Be quick, okay?"
Asuka grunts and vanishes into the convenience store, leaving Rei to stand by the empty truck. She leans in to scoop Asuka's spent cigarettes into one hand and throw them out, then resumes watching the numbers rise on the pump, trying to keep the worry out of her face. Between her money and Asuka's, they'll only be able to keep going another two days before they won't be able to afford a return trip - if she can convince Asuka to go back.
The pump clicks, and Rei's just finished putting it away when Asuka walks back over and shoves some money at Rei's chest. "Here," she says, hopping into the truck and slamming the door shut. "This'll keep us going for a while."
Rei looks down. "Asuka, this is two hundred dollars. Where did you get this?"
"Lottery ticket." Asuka grins, but there's no happiness to it. Just a weary smile, worn down by the road and her unkempt state. Rei just shakes her head and goes to pay, climbing into the truck by Asuka's side when she's done. She doesn't start the engine right away, and Asuka looks over at her curiously. "Something wrong?"
"Asuka... you know we can't keep going like this," she says. "Despite what we think, we can't keep doing this forever."
"Yeah, well..." Asuka rubs her forehead, her witty replies dying before they even reach her lips. "You're right. I just don't... I didn't think this through, did I?" She buries her face in her forearms, shaking her head. "I'm such an idiot."
"You're not an idiot," Rei says, gently rubbing her back. "You just needed some space."
"Damn right I did."
"Are you ready to go back now? It's not like we'll be back right away."
Asuka continues to shake her head, her shoulders beginning to shudder as a series of empty laughs seep out from the depths of her lungs. Rei keeps her hand on Asuka's back as she pulls the truck into an empty parking spot and shuts the engine off again. "I don't know," Asuka gasps. "I don't know."
"You could stay with me," Rei suggests.
"They wouldn't let me. You'd get in trouble." Asuka's blue eyes peer out at Rei from between her fingers as she amends herself. "Maybe if I sneak out."
"Whatever you decide, you know I'll be with you the whole way."
"I know." Asuka pushes herself upright in a swift motion, fire burning in her eyes, and Rei doesn't have time to react when Asuka grabs her by the open halves of her jacket and pulls her in, pressing their lips together. It's Asuka, and so the kiss is rough and demanding, but also hesitant, as if afraid to drive Rei away. Rei entwines her hands in Asuka's hair, countering Asuka's desperate kisses with her own slower ones, and eventually Asuka sits back, hunching her shoulders.
"Rei?" she mutters. "I... I think I should drive now."
Rei blinks in surprise, but she doesn't object. She jumps down from the truck and walks around to the passenger's side, sliding in as Asuka climbs over the center panel. "The cashier told me the next motel is an hour away," Rei says.
"I know where we're going," Asuka replies, gunning the engine as only she can. The truck responds with a vibrant roar, and as they turn onto the highway again, Rei notices they're heading back the way they came from. She shoots Asuka a questioning glance, and Asuka meets it with a shaky smile. "As long as I have you," Asuka whispers, "I think I'll be okay."