Chapter 20

Travis's fingers gripped the end of his sleeves as they drove closer and closer to their destination. The others had caused a huge scene in the parking lot when they woke up and realized he was back. It was embarrassing, but not nearly as bad as it would've been if he and Jonnie had been caught earlier that morning. The kiss ran through his mind over and over again. He could still feel the electricity of his lips on hers, their combined body heat warding off the cold of the morning. And yet the guilt was eating him alive. Sure, he liked Jonnie. He had spent every minute since they had separated mulling over every possible reason he had kissed her. He really did like her. But that wasn't the reason he had kissed her.

The kiss was a lie. A lie to cover up all the lies he had told her. In the moment, it felt like the more he kissed her, the faster the pain went away and the better the situation would get. Now all of it was back, and it was worse than ever. It felt like suddenly all the weights that had been lifted were suddenly dropped back on him, with an additional 1000 lbs or so. He thought back to the past week; at all the times he felt like not going on anymore but did it anyway. He still didn't want to live. Not when all there was for him was pain, hurt, and heartache. He dragged himself through each day. He was tortured by nightmares every night, praying for morning and then finding no relief in waking. But he urged himself forward, not only for Connor, but now for Jonnie too. The hurt he had caused her weighed down on him like a rock, and with all his other problems going on, he was sure he was nearing the breaking point. But for now, he chose to hang on.

Travis could feel Jonnie's eyes on him every now and then as he stared out the window, watching the ever-changing scenery roll by. He couldn't look back, not without raising questions. Another weight was dropped on him. He forced his eyes closed and willed himself to get some much needed sleep.

"I'll drive next," Jonnie said as Brookie steered the car into the rest stop parking lot. No one objected.

"We'll all meet up at the Wendy's in 10 minutes," Brookie stated as she got out of the car. She and Jonnie hurried to the girl's bathroom, leaving a sleeping Connor and Alissa in the backseat.

"Okay, what happened?" Brookie asked eagerly as soon as the door had closed.

"What do you mean, 'what happened'?" Jonnie asked innocently, trying to suppress the smile that was forcing its way back onto her face.

"You know what I mean. Something went down between you and Travis this morning, and I want to know what it is!"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Jonnie said, trying to change the subject.

"Jonnie, don't play stupid with me. I'm your sister! You can tell me anything, you know," She wiggled her eyebrows, causing Jonnie to laugh loudly.

"What would make you think something went down?"

Brookie rolled her eyes. "Well, for one thing Travis actually seems happy; or maybe not exactly happy. I've never seen him happy. Pleased, maybe? And you literally look like you're glowing or something. Like, you're eyes are all sparkly and you keep trying- and failing, by the way- to hide a smile, like you know something we all don't." Brookie leaned closer to her sister. "And let's face it," she whispered. "Swollen lips aren't exactly the easiest thing to hide."

Jonnie blushed, but the smile finally emerged. She had cracked.

"So did he..." Brookie trailed off as Jonnie nodded. "Finally! It certainly took him long enough!"

"Shhh!" Jonnie hushed. "Not so loud!" Brookie just laughed.

"Well, I'm happy for you two, Jonnie." She hesitated. "Although it's a little bit shocking, considering he pretty much hated everyone just yesterday."

Jonnie pursed her lips as she washed her hands. "He didn't hate everyone."

Brookie chuckled. "Well that's debatable." Jonnie turned toward her sister, her face serious now. She quickly spoke again. "But, hey, everyone has their own set of problems. Some more than others…but maybe you'll be able to help him through some of them."

Jonnie nodded, deep in her own thoughts. "That's probably easier said than done. He's not exactly an open book."

Brookie shrugged. "We all have our secrets. Like I said before, some more than others but still. If relationships were easy, they wouldn't exist."

"We're not in a relationship yet," Jonnie interrupted.

"Oh hush, I'm trying to be inspiring here!" They both laughed. "But seriously, Jonnie. Nothing in life is easy, but you just need to live and learn. Who knows? Maybe you'll be the help he needs."

Jonnie smiled and hugged her sister. "Thanks, Brookster."

"Anytime. I'm forever alone anyway, so it's not like I've got anything else to do!" Jonnie snickered as they walked out of the bathrooms together. What would she do without her? She laughed to herself as she looked out in the open grassy field behind the rest stop. Travis was facing Bandit, running back and forth as the dog chased him back and forth, stopping and turning as fast as its little legs would carry him as he tried to keep up with the teenage boy. Travis stopped suddenly and collapsed into the grass, rolling over and grabbing Bandit before holding him over his head and talking to him in a doggie voice. Jonnie snapped several pictures on her phone as he continued to play with Bandit. She and Brookie found it so entertaining that they just sat on a bench looking out on the field, watching the two run back and forth, tumbling all over the ground and letting energy out that had built for days until they finally wore each other out and joined the girls.

Travis laughed. "Were you video taping that?" Jonnie's face was red with laughter as she nodded and showed him the short video clip. He shook his head, chuckling.

"C'mon, we need to get Connor and Alissa so we can eat," Brookie said after the laughter had subsided. It was a relief to hear it, considering all the tension of the past few days. Travis took a step back, placing a hand on the small of Jonnie's back as he let her pass. She smiled, her back tingling just because of his simple touch. Maybe they were meant to be after all.

AN: Anyone wanna attempt to make a cover for this story? I'm working on one, but I'd love to see any ideas or attempts you guys have! If you do, email it to WeAwesome123(at) . (can be a cover, gif, or anything really!) Hope you enjoyed the chapter! One of my favorites so far. Thanks for reading :)