A/N Thanks for the reviews, guys, you rock my socks off! I may have said that several times, but its true! Here is Chapter 7, short but sweet (not really) and shows Jake in an entirely different light. Hee hee.

Chapter 7

I lay awake in the passenger seat, pretending to be asleep. Jake and I hadnt spoken two words since we left New York, and now we were driving through Ohio. We couldnt fly, as I had foolishly forgotton my passport, so Jake and I were taking it in turns to drive, but it was my turn 2 hours ago, so Jake was back on the wheel. Jake's dad lives in Carmel, California, so we're gonna bunk with him and Jake's brothers.

I've never been to California. I mean, I've seen it on TV, Gina makes me watch The OC every week, and I've once or twice accidently tuned into Zoey 101 (by accident, I swear!), and I've seen Goldie Hawn and Chevy Chase movies. I've just never experienced it. I dream about how I think it looks, with palm trees, beaches, and for some strange reason, a Basillica with a red dome, but I've never actually been there. Hey, just thinking about those dreams gave me a really clear vision of it. Creepy.

I dont get why Jake is bummed out, though. He was never interested in college, so it sholdnt bug him that I dragged him out mid-semester. Jeesh. Its probably because I shoved off his advances two days ago. Men, they never forget the things you want them to, but when its your birthday, they're like, "Its your birthday?". Uh.

"Suze?" Jake prodded me. "Suze, you asleep?"

"Was," I grumbled in reply.

"Sorry. Are you ready to tell me why the hell we are on the run?"

"No," I said shortly.

"Fine. But how can I be expected to drive us all the way there if you dont give me an explanation?" Jake didnt mad, but he looked ready to burst.

"Get out of the car then. Walk yourself back to Long Island. I don't care," I replied. I knew I was being short with him, but you know, he was being a guy.

"Jeesh," I heard Jake mutter. "Here comes the hormones."

"Excuse me?" I shrieked. "You know what, just turn around and go home. You obviously dont want to be here."

"Yeah, you're right. Get out of the car, Suze."

"WHAT?"

"You heard me, get out."

I pulled the blanket off me and grabbed my rugsack. I shot Jake my best mad look and stuffed the blanket into a ball and hurled it at his face.

"See you around," said Jake, and he zoomed off.

See you around. Oh my God.

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Whats funny is, when Jake drove off, I swore he would come back. But when an hour crawled by, I finally accepted I was alone, on a road God knows where. My boyfriend had abandoned me in Ohio. Ohio. As in, not New York.

I couldnt call anyone. Not my mom, because she'd want to know why I took off; not my dad, obviously; and not Jake.

I dived into my rugsack and pulled out my jersey. I was cold, and disgusted by the road dirt I'd just inhaled. I was all alone. And it was not good. I wanted my mom, Gina, my dad. But I couldnt have them by my side. And I couldnt help thinking nobody will ever be with my dad again. Because I murdered him.

I burst into tears and hugged my knees. After several more dusty coughs and millions more tears, I noticed that through the musty dirt that was whipping up around me, someone was getting closer to me. Somebody tall, strong-looking. It couldnt be my mom, she didnt know where I was. Ditto Gina. I guess it could be Jake. Only when they came closer, I realised it wasn't. Jake, I mean.