"So that's it," Massie choked, the feeling of Derrick Harrington's lips on hers still buzzing around her mouth. "I'm in love with a boy who lives halfway across the country and I can't do anything about it. I'm stuck here."
"Excuse me?"
Massie looked over at Skye. The lithe blonde had an incredulous look on her face.
"Massie, what kind of attitude is that? The Massie Block I met at horseback riding camp six years ago was absolutely fearless. I mean, you jumped that three-foot oxer and you were only nine years old! The teacher was screaming her head off but you weren't even fazed. Trust me, Massie, you're not stuck here. You can do anything you put your mind too."
"So you're telling me to go back?" Massie whispered, a slow grin spreading across her face.
"You took the words right out of my mouth," said Skye. "We're not going to keep that boy waiting any longer."
Massie giggled. "You're sweet, Skye, but there's no way my parents will let us fly back down there."
"Did I say we were going to ask your parents?" A sly grin tugged at the corners of Skye's mouth as she fished something out of her jeans pocket. A single key to the Lexus the Hamiltons had driven over to the Block's new home hung from an Eiffel Tower keychain.
"We'll need clothes for three days, toiletries, and as much money as you can scrounge up," Skye directed. "It's nine o'clock now. I'll pick you up at midnight exactly."
-x-
Momma and Daddy—
Y'all were right. I did have something with him back in the day, and I still do. So I'm going for it.
—Massie
-x-
Massie waited breathlessly at the end of her new driveway for Skye to pull up. The two of them had eaten dinner and parted ways without giving each other so much as a wayward glance; their parents didn't suspect a thing. Only little Abbie knew that something was up.
"Why are you packing?" she'd asked, toddling into Massie's new room for a goodnight snuggle. "Are we moving again? We haven't lived here very long."
Massie had simply laughed and scooped up her baby sister.
"I just want to be ready to go in case something comes up," Massie had said, not wanting to completely lie to Abbie. "No more surprises, you know?"
Abbie had nodded and fallen into Massie's bed. Massie had continued to pack until she'd been sure her little sister was sound asleep. Then she'd carefully set her goodbye note atop her dresser, counted her money (120 dollars cash plus her ATM card), grabbed her Vera Bradley duffel, and slipped out the back door.
A breeze picked up, sending goosebumps prickling up her spine despite her slightly thicker Burberry trench coat. In a few days, though, she'd be back in the midst of Westchester's perpetual Indian summer.
She couldn't wait.
The sound of gravel popping underneath tires immediately shook Massie out of her musings, and although Skye slowed her Lexus down considerably, Massie was still able to slip in without Skye ever stopping the car.
Only when they'd turned out of Englewood Cliffs did Massie and Skye dare to breathe.
"I thought for sure—" Skye began.
"Don't say anything! You'll jinx it!" Massie shrieked. The two burst into frantic giggles.
"You have your license, right?" Skye asked. Massie bit her lip.
"I have my permit," Massie confessed. "The DPSes in Texas have been choked for weeks. I was supposed to go sign up for mine next week."
"Shit," Skye whispered. "Do you know how to drive on the highways? You're going to have to cover for me sometime. I can't drive for three days straight."
"I've done it a couple of times," said Massie. "I'll…I'll try."
"I'll watch you the first couple of times, but then you'll have to give it your best shot, okay?"
Massie nodded. "Okay."
"Get some sleep now," Skye instructed. "I'll wake you up when we reach the first gas station."
-x-
Massie felt as though her eyes had only been closed for seconds when her phone chirped, indicating a new text.
"It's okay," Massie cried as she fumbled to slide open her phone. "It's just my friend Kristen! There's a time difference there."
"Thank Gawd," Skye yelped. "I was banking on no parental messages until 8 AM at least."
"I think phones on silent would be best," Massie suggested.
"Phones on silent," Skye agreed, and Massie turned both of theirs down.
"Question," Massie began after a few moments of sleepy silence. "How do you know where we're going?"
Skye fondly tapped a screen on her car's dashboard that Massie had barely noticed until now. "Ophelia knows the way."
"Ophelia?" Massie snorted.
"Sure. She's my GPS and I'd probably be dead in a ditch if it weren't for her."
"I trust you, Skye," Massie muttered before leaning against the window and falling back into sleep.
-x-
"Time to get up."
Massie rolled over and blinked, startled by the hazy green-and-white glow of the BP station.
"Where are we?" she croaked, and Skye smiled.
"It's five AM," Skye announced.
"Where are we?"
"We're just outside of Blacksburg, Virginia," said Skye. "I'm going to run into the store for Red Bull and Luna Bars, and then it's your turn to drive, okay?"
"Are we really in Virginia?" Massie asked, popping her head up to look out the window.
Skye giggled. "I know, I know. It's that Texan mentality. Down there you could drive for five hours in any direction and still be in Texas, right?"
Massie groaned and pressed her head to her knees. A dream had only just begun to form behind her eyes—she and Derrick going on a date to Pinkberry with Chris's blessing—when Skye abruptly opened the car door and almost sent Massie tumbling out.
"Here, drink this," Skye murmured, and Massie began taking small, even sips of Red Bull.
"I hate caffeine," Massie griped as Skye insisted she gulp it down. "I hate any stimulant, really. One time Kemp Hurley let me try a bit of his Ritalin and—"
"Okay, you're awake," Skye proclaimed. "I'm going to get you back onto I-40 and I'll watch you for about ten miles, but after that, I need to sleep, okay?"
Massie let out a small hysterical giggle. "Okay!"
The two switched seats and Massie successfully started the car and pulled out of the BP lot.
"Was the cashier suspicious at all?" Massie asked as she pressed down on the accelerator. I can do this I can do this!
"When she asked, I told her I was on a road trip to visit my friend from Wake Forest for the day. Wake Forest is a college in North Carolina," Skye explained in response to Massie's blank stare.
"Oh," Massie muttered.
"Have you considered going out of state for college?" Skye asked.
"Um," Massie began, nervously watching the Toyota on her right. "I mean, if I can't even stay put in New York for a full twelve hours, I can't imagine trying to live in a whole other state for four years."
"Understandable," Skye yawned. "Keep going at this exact speed. Wake me up if Ophelia gives a new direction or if the gas tank meter goes below a fourth of the way full. Comprende?"
"Comprende," Massie replied, and Skye crawled into the back seat.
Massie normally hated driving, especially with driving instructors always breathing down her neck, reminding her to "look left, right, and center!" before so much as stepping on the brake pedal. But just driving by herself—no music, no conversation, just the rush of the wind and the cacophony of car horns and squealing breaks—was nice. Perfect.
Driving by herself through Virginia and into Tennessee—two states she'd only ever seen on a map—early that November morning made her feel for the first time that she could get away with this, and that she could make Derrick hers once and for all.
-x-
At 8 AM exactly, both their phones began to light up, blinking and buzzing in silent unison.
Every once in a while, Massie would glance at the name of the contact—most of the time, it was her parents, but sometimes, it'd be Kristen. Or Alicia. Or Layne.
Or Chris.
It'd taken every ounce of willpower she possessed not to take that call, not to speak to him and explain to him the real reason she was coming back—not for the boy who had been her world for three years, but for the boy who had been her world all along.
-x-
They were 36 miles outside of Knoxville when Massie finally woke Skye up.
"I have to pee and I have no idea how to get off this thing," Massie cried, and Skye sleepily stepped her through changing lanes and exiting the highway. Massie made a quick restroom-and-food run while Skye filled up the car.
"I want you to text your mom," said Skye when she came back from her own bathroom break.
"Are you sure?" Massie asked.
"I'm positive. I'd really rather get it out of the way and avoid things like Amber Alerts, you know?"
"Got it," Massie sighed as she picked up her phone.
-x-
MASSIE: We're in TN and we hope to get to TX before nightfall. Love you!
-x-
"Derrick."
"Go away, Aubreigh."
"Derrick!"
"Go away!"
"Listen to me." Aubreigh pushed open Derrick's door with a bang. "Massie's run away."
Derrick dropped his Xbox controller.
"She's on her way back to Westchester."