Yup, I'm still alive.
DAY EIGHT – DENVER TO YORK, NE
The rising sun beats down on the SUV as Paige and Emily depart Denver early the next morning. Exhaustion nags at both of them but lazing yet another day away wasn't going to get them home any quicker so they both dragged themselves up and around at daybreak, bid fair well to a half-asleep Liam and hit the road.
After fighting traffic up I-25 the desolate scenery along I-76 is a kind of culture shock. Paige wonders if leaving was such a wise idea – she feels incredibly drowsy and worries when she glances at Emily and sees she is the same. Deciding it's way too early for a pit stop she digs in the glove box for CDs she stashed away. Emily shifts but immediately dozes off again and Paige sighs wishing she could do the same.
Paige slides a CD into the dash and "Lucky" by Marc Broussard pops from the speakers. Emily shifts slightly at the new sound, opening one eye toward Paige and smiling slightly. "Hey, is this the one with the Emily song?"
"Yes it is," Paige replies. Emily emits a satisfied giggle and soon slips back to sleep. "Oh no you don't," says Paige as she reaches and gives Emily a poke. "I need you to keep me awake."
Emily growls but pops her eyes open. "Listen, it was your big idea to leave early. I would have been more than happy to sleep in and spend another day at Liam's." Paige shrugs. She wouldn't have minded staying another day either but the longer they stayed, the more likely they'd just repeat the same pattern of sleeping, eating and partying. Her dad wouldn't mind that for a day or two but if messing around delayed them any longer Nick probably wouldn't be very happy.
Looking across the seat Paige sees Emily has dropped off to sleep again leaving Paige to decide this might be a good time to check in with her parents, it is a two-hour time difference so they should be up and about already. She grabs her phone and dials their number, her mom picks up after two rings.
"Hi sweetheart! It's great to hear from you!"
The early morning perkiness gives Paige a smile. "Hi Mom. How's it going?"
"Not bad. Dad's appointment yesterday went fantastic. He's almost back to normal."
Paige smirks to herself. "That may not be a good thing exactly Mom."
"Oh, you are such a comedian. Are you girls on the road again?"
"Yeah, we left Denver a couple hours ago. We should hit Nebraska in another couple hours, maybe spend the night somewhere along the way."
"Good! You need more bonding time."
"Mom…." Paige sighs in irritation.
"Oh, here's your dad."
Emily lets out a gentle snore and Paige wonders just how the girl's snoring only serves to magnify her cuteness. "Hello daughter of mine. How's the drive with the new vehicle?"
"It's a lot smoother. Good radio, working air conditioner. Can't ask for much more than that."
"Good. A U-Haul is practical but tedious. How's Emily?"
"Fine. Sleepy."
"I adore that young woman."
As if Emily knows she's the focus of the conversation she swings her arm and tries to flip over to her side. The seatbelt slips around her shoulders and neck causing her to thrash around like she'd been attacked by killer bees. Paige knows she's a goner if she can find Emily's wild flaying nothing but cute and perfect. "I know, Dad."
"Of course you do. Have you both come to an understanding yet?"
"Understanding?"
"Yes, understanding. So?"
Paige sighs out of irritation with the familiar turn in the conversation. "Honestly, Dad, I'm not sure one way or the other."
"The decision should be incredibly easy, Paige. Or are you still being block-headed?"
"This isn't easy, you know."
"It's easier than you're making it. Here's your mother again. Love you, sport."
Clunks and bangs come over the phone as her parents pass the phone back and forth. Paige's brows narrow in confusion when she hears a growling sound as Paige's mom comes back on the line.
"You know he just wants what's best for you," her mom says.
"Yeah but does he need to be so…sure about it? That grates on my nerves."
"That stubbornness he just mentioned came from somewhere and it wasn't me, dear. Talk to her. Please."
"I will, Mom."
Paige's eyes widen upon hearing a few 'yips' in the background of the call. "Oh, gotta go, sweetie. Need to walk the dog."
"Dog? Is that what you call him now?"
"Funny! Again! No, we got a dog."
Once again her parents have surprised her. She wanted a dog in the worst way most of the time growing up but her mom's allergies coupled with the family's busy schedule never allowed for it. Having long given up hope of getting a pet she is a bit giddy and incredulous. "You did not."
"Yep. His name is Adam Smith and he's adorable."
"Adam Smith? You named a dog Adam Smith?"
"I didn't. Your father did. After the economist…"
Her short burst of laughter causes Emily to stir once again in the passenger seat. Paige lowers her voice but still smiles. "Yeah, I figured. God, he's a dork."
"Takes one to know one. Drive carefully, okay?"
"Love you, Mom. I promise we'll be careful."
"Give Emily my love."
Paige feigns horror. "I will do no such thing!"
"Party pooper…Oh no, Adam Smith, those are my favorite slippers!"
After driving for a few more hours the pair pulls into a hotel lot in York, Nebraska – a smaller-sized town along I-70 just a few hours west of Omaha. Emily is a bit peeved because she wanted to go further, at least to Lincoln and then stop for the night but Paige staunchly refused in saying, "Lincoln? Hell no. Lincoln sucks." Keeping the reasons for her inexplicable hatred of the Nebraska capital city to herself she veered off the road and killed the engine in the lot of the nicest hotel in town.
Still agitated over their disagreement the girls check into the hotel, order a pizza and watch "The Music Man" on TCM before falling asleep.
The next morning Paige seems rejuvenated, hopping around the room and gathering her things quickly so they can get back on the road again. This is a stark contrast to Emily who eventually drags herself from bed only after Paige steals all her pillows and threatens to unsheet the bed with Emily still in it.
Finally dressed and ready to go Emily leaves Paige in her dust as stomps out of the room dragging her suitcase behind her. She enters the elevator and when the bell signals the ground floor she exits and starts walking toward the car. Her grouchy gait stops though as the smell of coffee reaches her. Her mood lightens considerably and she decides to wait outside the hotel's breakfast bar for Paige. She's still irritated with her but…this is coffee. She has her priorities.
Paige still hasn't come down from the room and Emily weighs leaving her to her own devices for breakfast when a conversation in the lobby catches her attention.
Dude, did you get a look at the dykes down the hall last night?
The what?
The dykes. Lesbos. They checked in after us and had a room a few doors down from us.
Oh. Yeah. Come on, they weren't gay.
Um, yeah, they were.
No they weren't. What are you, the Lesbo Whisperer? Besides, they were too hot to be gay.
Come on, I just know these things. I wonder who is the guy?
If we're playing this game I'm guessing the white one. She looks moody and angry…
Emily turns to look at the boys and is shocked to see they are staring at her. Their eyes reflect a mix of revulsion and lust and it turns Emily's stomach. Her jaw clenches in anger and the boys just laugh as exit the hotel. She hears the bell of the elevator doors and sees Paige struggling with her suitcase.
It's pretty obvious to Paige that something is wrong because Emily is wound tighter than a spring. She approaches her cautiously, reaching out to touch her arm. "Hey, what's going on?"
Emily looks toward the hotel front desk and her gaze follows a family as they exit the building. "You know, they say that people are more accepting these days but every time I feel comfortable someone says something stupid and all the anger rushes back."
Paige turns in time to see the teenage boys pushing and shoving in a fight for the best seats in the family's SUV. She sighs and reaches for Emily's suitcase handle.
"Can you check out and I'll run these to the truck, here's the cash."
Emily squints knowing Paige's tone of voice indicates they are in for trouble. Paige gives her a gentle smile causing Emily to wonder if she's just paranoid. She turns to the front desk and hears the whoosh of the front doors as Paige makes her way to their vehicle.
Having paid the bill and filled three cups of coffee at the hotel breakfast bar Emily exits the hotel. Paige is nowhere to be found until Emily scans the lot and sees her joking around with the same two boys she saw earlier. The three of them are looking at their iPhones and laughing at something on the screen. Paige glances up and seeing Emily standing by their truck she glances and smiles at the boys as she jogs toward their rented SUV.
Emily is on full bore fury now, in disbelief that Paige could be so blind to her feelings and obvious anger at the teenagers. As Paige approaches she reaches for one of the coffees Emily holds only to have Emily turn away and try to reach for the vehicle door handle, three cups of coffee and all. She juggles the load and finally gets the door open but Paige comes behind her and pushes it back closed.
"Dammit, Paige, let's just go!"
Paige lays a hand on Emily's shoulder which she promptly shrugs off. "Em, calm down."
"I will not calm down! Those two little…pigs…said some pretty awful things, you knew they probably pissed me off and then you go over and buddy up with them." Emily shoves a coffee at Paige who calmly takes the cup and breathes the scent in before taking a drink.
The boys and their parents drive by and honk as they leave the hotel parking lot. Paige gives them a friendly nod but then her face changes to her patented stony, tight resolve. "I've got it, don't worry," she says.
Emily's perfectly manicured brows knit in confusion. "What are you talking about?" Paige takes a sip of the coffee and glances at passing traffic. "In school I had an assignment to develop a completely unique app in a programming class. Some people did apps for shopping, vacations, sports…mine was a little different." She glances at Emily and is relieved to see she has the girl's full attention.
"I developed an app that would brick a phone just by coming into their wifi reach. Brick as in paperweight. As in door stop. As in 'lookie-no-workie'." Realization dawns on Emily's face causing Paige to smirk.
"But they don't seem too worked up about it," Emily states. "Little bastards seemed pretty happy when they drove off." Page shrugs. "It takes about 10 minutes to kick in."
All of Emily's anger and frustration melts away and she's quickly back to the old Emily, smiling and worried. Paige senses this and shrugs. "Don't worry, they will have no idea it was me." Paige takes another sip of coffee and opens Emily's door. "I just hope they're still under warranty."
Once she's situated the door slams behind Emily who watches Paige round the truck and toss her coffee cup into a nearby garbage can. "Evil genius," she says with a wide grin.