Simon jumped out of bed. He picked up his phone and started to blast a song by Elliot Smith. Today, he would leave for college orientation. He would hop on that plane and never look back. The rest of his life starts today.

Simon threw on his favorite red hoodie. On the left breast pocket, there was a pin with the pride flag on it. On the other side, there was a pin from New York Film Academy. He put on a pair of black jeans and a pair of white tennis shoes.

His phone vibrated. He had a new text from Bram through their friend's group chat. Bram was already in Los Angeles since he lived in a nearby town. He had spent the previous night in a hotel so he could arrive even earlier.

The text was a photo. It was of the front door of their dorm. Simon and Bram were going to be roommates for the year. He had written 'Fort Spierfeld' on the whiteboard. He had sent another text.

Bram: I can't wait to see you.

Simon: I can't wait to see you too.

Simon grabbed his duffle bag. He walked downstairs briskly. He spotted his family loaded up the car. "Why are you guys packing so much?" Simon questioned. "The airport isn't that far away."

"Well," Jack chuckled. "I know last night ended badly, but I want to fix it. I canceled your airplane tickets to LA. We'll drive you there in the old family SUV."

Simon felt as though he was about to explode. They lived in a suburb of Atlanta, Georgia. It would take at least a week to get there. He would miss the entirety of orientation week. "What?" Simon asked.

"I called the school," Jack said. "You can miss orientation week, and it won't hurt you."

"I can't miss orientation week," Simon freaked out. "I have so many cool friends to meet. Like this really cool guy named Bram. We have a lot in common, and he's super funny. Mom, back me up."

"Well, your father went awol with this," Emily confessed. "But at least he's making an effort."

"Nora?" Simon asked.

"It would be nice to spend more time with you," Nora said shyly.

"Alice can fly from Los Angeles to Midtown," Jack said.

Simon turned to Alice. He hoped that at least she would have his back. She had her own life in Midtown, Connecticut. Simon knew she wouldn't be happy about this detour.

Instead, Alice just shrugged. "We should at least try to be into this," she sighed. "At least for mom's sake."

Simon decided he would make the most of it. He used this opportunity to start work on a new film. He had charged his camera the previous night. The film was entitled 'The Spier's Disasterous Roadtrip.' He figured he'd have a good laugh about it with his college friends.

The family arrived at a diner in Alabama. It was the first place they could find for lunch. The family ordered hamburgers that were barely cooked. The American cheese was also moldy green.

"This has negative three stars on yelp," Simon said. "One reviewer says don't eat here even if there's a gun to your head. We should get back into the car. I'm sure there's a McDonald's down the interstate."

"Nonsense," Jack declared. "We Spiers eat what we're given. Now, eat your mold burger, son."

The family was throwing up on the streets shortly after. Simon was originally just recording, but then a wave of nausea hit him. He dropped his camera, joining his family in herling on the streets. Simon thought it couldn't get worse, but he was very wrong.