CHAPTER SIX
After first hearing Keith's proposition…no, demands would be a better word for it, Danny was gung ho, as Keith knew he would be. The idea of the three of them just hitting the road, taking in all the sights and bumming for the next few days was very appealing to the middle Partridge boy. They would travel Highway 1 back up to San Pueblo and camp under the stars along the beaches and in the lower mountains (Keith had also splurged on a huge tent and down-filled sleeping bags), eat at truck stops and diners and just generally have a good time.
Chris was the lone holdout, as, too, Keith knew he would be. A worrier by (and afraid OF) nature, Chris was tossing every wrench in the works he could find. Most of it centered around Keith's ability to 'rough' it in his weakened condition, but every time it was brought up, Keith and Danny managed to shoot it down.
"It's only for three lousy days, you worry wart," Keith told him one last time. "I have my medication and there's always a hospital somewhere around. It's not like we're in the Australian outback. We'll be on a public highway most of the time."
"I still loathe the idea," Chris shook his head.
Danny and Keith looked at one another. Only Chris Partridge would "loathe" anything, let alone an idea.
"It'll be fun," Danny urged. "Wait until you get out there with us. We'll have a ball."
"Uh huh. I seem to remember Mom and Laurie telling me about the time you two and Mr. Kincaid followed them on a camping trip. I hear it wasn't so fun on your end."
Keith rolled his eyes. "That's because we had Reuben with us, in a suit, yet, traipsing all over God knew where. He was the one who put a damper on things. Danny and I would have been okay without him."
"And WITH a can opener and sleeping bags and a compass…" Chris added.
Keith grinned. "I've got all that and more in the back of that van. Come on, where's your sense of adventure?"
Chris paled. "I lost it ten years ago on that boy scout hike."
Danny sighed. "Well, Keith, if he doesn't want to come, he doesn't want to come. He'll just have to go back to San Pueblo and face Mom and Laurie and Tracy. ALONE."
Chris twitched and Keith and Danny exchanged knowing glances. They had him and he knew it.
"Okay, okay, but only for three days. And I want to see the compass, the can opener AND the sleeping bags."
Keith laughed. "You're on!"
****
Darkness loomed over Barstow, California. About forty miles from the city, Keith was driving with Danny riding shotgun; Chris dozed in the back. They would spend the night at an RV camp, then get up early and hit old Highway 58 and head West again.
Keith glanced in the mirror at his sleeping younger brother. "I can't believe he wants to give up being a doctor because of me."
Danny slugged back a Coke. "That's the rumor." Shifting in the seat, he leaned against the door. "He doesn't think he can cut it. Dopey, huh?"
Keith shrugged. "Well, he's always been pretty sensitive. Remember when Laurie cut her hand on that bottle? He was what, all of three and he was near hysterics, which, of course, made her even more panicky. I thought Mom was gonna have two patients on her hands."
Danny laughed. "She almost had three. Wasn't it you who broke the bottle in the first place?"
Keith nodded. "Yeah."
"I remember you hightailing it to the tree house while Mom searched high and low for you."
"I wasn't stupid. Who gave me away, anyway?"
Danny's face scrunched in thought. "Tracy. She kept going to the tree and trying to climb up there, and when finally Mom grabbed her away, she started bawling, "Keith, Keith!" I never saw Dad so mad that day. He was ready to tan your hide."
Keith pulled a face. "I couldn't sit down for a week," he recalled.
"Yeah. It was great!"
They laughed briefly, until Keith's expression saddened. "Dad died six months later."
Danny nodded. "Yeah," he whispered. All through their childhood, it seemed as if Dad was hardly mentioned, and now, in their adulthood, it was almost a painful subject.
From the beginning of his fight with the Hodgkin's, however, Keith had thought about their father a lot. He'd wanted to get to know him better. Though he was twelve at the time, he'd felt he never knew the real Dan Partridge. He remembered him as a very loving man, who would do anything for his family. He'd gotten Keith started on the guitar, encouraging him to play, even when he would rather be out playing baseball or something. Keith quickly grew to love those sessions with his father, as Dan was a very proficient musician, too, and the two of them would duel with their instruments. Dan would start a song and Keith would only have to listen once before he had it. Then he would begin it and Dan would stop playing, watching, Keith saw, very proudly as his firstborn outplayed him in almost every respect. "Good job, Keithie," he would tell him, ruffling his hair. "Someday, you'll be famous, mark my words."
Noticing Keith's melancholy, Danny slapped his arm. "Want me to drive for a while? There's a rest stop up ahead. We can switch places there."
"Yeah, I guess so. I'm pretty wiped out here." Keith nodded. He knew he would have no trouble sleeping tonight, that was for sure.
The rest stop was just a mile away and Keith took the exit, easing into the huge parking lot that was loaded with tractor-trailers and a few other cars. He parked the van, tiredly unbuckling his seatbelt as Danny did the same, stretching loudly as he got out.
He made it to the driver side while Keith was still getting out of the van, looking very tired. They made their switch, and while Danny buckled his seatbelt, he eyed Keith as his brother pushed back into the seat behind him.
"Okay?"
"Oh, yeah…sure."
His answer wasn't very convincing, and Danny glanced at Chris, who still slept very soundly behind them. Grinning, Danny put the key into the ignition. "Hey, wanna have a little fun?"
Keith's expression brightened. "Like what?"
"Just wait and see…" Danny said ominously, starting the motor and moving the van up to one of the huge semi's in the parking lot. He stopped so that the two vehicles were almost nose to nose and turned off the motor. "Follow my lead."
Keith nodded as Danny gripped the wheel and let out a screech to be heard clear back in Las Vegas. "Oh my god, look out!" He yelled loudly.
Chris jumped awake, sitting up. Confused and stunned, Chris's eyes caught sight of the giant truck, which he thought was coming straight at them. He screamed, his hands grabbing both his brothers' shoulders, and then, in the pandemonium, he heard peals of laughter.
"Wha'….?" He gasped.
"Gotcha!" Danny said gleefully as Keith laughed hysterically, checking Chris's face in the mirror.
"That's NOT funny!" Chris yelped, slugging Danny's shoulder as hard as he could.
Keith and Danny were still roaring as Chris stood up, squeezing between the seats, clutching their shirts hard in his fists.
"You could've given me a heart attack!" Chris snarled over their hysteria.
"It was funny, dude, admit it!" Danny chortled.
"You're an idiot," Chris slapped his head. Looking over at Keith, he poked him hard. "And you…you're just as bad!"
Keith tried the innocent ploy. "I didn't know he was gonna do it," he protested, cowering away from his brother's angry finger. "But you've got to admit, it was ingenious!"
"That's it, I'm driving," Chris muttered, pushing his way up front.
"No way, it's my turn!" Danny cried.
Keith sighed. "You two fight it out. I'm gonna go back there." He got out, trading Chris places. The back seat looked comfortable, and he climbed in, stretching out all the way, lying back on the pillow that Chris had been using.
Danny started the motor, a grin still on his face. "You should have seen your face, man."
"Shut up and drive!" Chris barked, not at all amused.
Keith chuckled from behind them. "It was classic. All the color drained out…I thought you were gonna puke."
"I should have, right over the both of you." Chris rolled down the window.
"Party pooper," Danny said, still grinning.
"Yeah, well, you'll get yours. I don't know how or when, but you will get yours," Chris told him ominously.
Danny laughed. "I'm shaking in my boots. How about you, Keith?"
"Terrified," Keith answered, and Chris could hear the mirth in his voice.
Grumpily, Chris slumped against the van door as his brothers did lousy jobs of concealing their merriment.
After first hearing Keith's proposition…no, demands would be a better word for it, Danny was gung ho, as Keith knew he would be. The idea of the three of them just hitting the road, taking in all the sights and bumming for the next few days was very appealing to the middle Partridge boy. They would travel Highway 1 back up to San Pueblo and camp under the stars along the beaches and in the lower mountains (Keith had also splurged on a huge tent and down-filled sleeping bags), eat at truck stops and diners and just generally have a good time.
Chris was the lone holdout, as, too, Keith knew he would be. A worrier by (and afraid OF) nature, Chris was tossing every wrench in the works he could find. Most of it centered around Keith's ability to 'rough' it in his weakened condition, but every time it was brought up, Keith and Danny managed to shoot it down.
"It's only for three lousy days, you worry wart," Keith told him one last time. "I have my medication and there's always a hospital somewhere around. It's not like we're in the Australian outback. We'll be on a public highway most of the time."
"I still loathe the idea," Chris shook his head.
Danny and Keith looked at one another. Only Chris Partridge would "loathe" anything, let alone an idea.
"It'll be fun," Danny urged. "Wait until you get out there with us. We'll have a ball."
"Uh huh. I seem to remember Mom and Laurie telling me about the time you two and Mr. Kincaid followed them on a camping trip. I hear it wasn't so fun on your end."
Keith rolled his eyes. "That's because we had Reuben with us, in a suit, yet, traipsing all over God knew where. He was the one who put a damper on things. Danny and I would have been okay without him."
"And WITH a can opener and sleeping bags and a compass…" Chris added.
Keith grinned. "I've got all that and more in the back of that van. Come on, where's your sense of adventure?"
Chris paled. "I lost it ten years ago on that boy scout hike."
Danny sighed. "Well, Keith, if he doesn't want to come, he doesn't want to come. He'll just have to go back to San Pueblo and face Mom and Laurie and Tracy. ALONE."
Chris twitched and Keith and Danny exchanged knowing glances. They had him and he knew it.
"Okay, okay, but only for three days. And I want to see the compass, the can opener AND the sleeping bags."
Keith laughed. "You're on!"
****
Darkness loomed over Barstow, California. About forty miles from the city, Keith was driving with Danny riding shotgun; Chris dozed in the back. They would spend the night at an RV camp, then get up early and hit old Highway 58 and head West again.
Keith glanced in the mirror at his sleeping younger brother. "I can't believe he wants to give up being a doctor because of me."
Danny slugged back a Coke. "That's the rumor." Shifting in the seat, he leaned against the door. "He doesn't think he can cut it. Dopey, huh?"
Keith shrugged. "Well, he's always been pretty sensitive. Remember when Laurie cut her hand on that bottle? He was what, all of three and he was near hysterics, which, of course, made her even more panicky. I thought Mom was gonna have two patients on her hands."
Danny laughed. "She almost had three. Wasn't it you who broke the bottle in the first place?"
Keith nodded. "Yeah."
"I remember you hightailing it to the tree house while Mom searched high and low for you."
"I wasn't stupid. Who gave me away, anyway?"
Danny's face scrunched in thought. "Tracy. She kept going to the tree and trying to climb up there, and when finally Mom grabbed her away, she started bawling, "Keith, Keith!" I never saw Dad so mad that day. He was ready to tan your hide."
Keith pulled a face. "I couldn't sit down for a week," he recalled.
"Yeah. It was great!"
They laughed briefly, until Keith's expression saddened. "Dad died six months later."
Danny nodded. "Yeah," he whispered. All through their childhood, it seemed as if Dad was hardly mentioned, and now, in their adulthood, it was almost a painful subject.
From the beginning of his fight with the Hodgkin's, however, Keith had thought about their father a lot. He'd wanted to get to know him better. Though he was twelve at the time, he'd felt he never knew the real Dan Partridge. He remembered him as a very loving man, who would do anything for his family. He'd gotten Keith started on the guitar, encouraging him to play, even when he would rather be out playing baseball or something. Keith quickly grew to love those sessions with his father, as Dan was a very proficient musician, too, and the two of them would duel with their instruments. Dan would start a song and Keith would only have to listen once before he had it. Then he would begin it and Dan would stop playing, watching, Keith saw, very proudly as his firstborn outplayed him in almost every respect. "Good job, Keithie," he would tell him, ruffling his hair. "Someday, you'll be famous, mark my words."
Noticing Keith's melancholy, Danny slapped his arm. "Want me to drive for a while? There's a rest stop up ahead. We can switch places there."
"Yeah, I guess so. I'm pretty wiped out here." Keith nodded. He knew he would have no trouble sleeping tonight, that was for sure.
The rest stop was just a mile away and Keith took the exit, easing into the huge parking lot that was loaded with tractor-trailers and a few other cars. He parked the van, tiredly unbuckling his seatbelt as Danny did the same, stretching loudly as he got out.
He made it to the driver side while Keith was still getting out of the van, looking very tired. They made their switch, and while Danny buckled his seatbelt, he eyed Keith as his brother pushed back into the seat behind him.
"Okay?"
"Oh, yeah…sure."
His answer wasn't very convincing, and Danny glanced at Chris, who still slept very soundly behind them. Grinning, Danny put the key into the ignition. "Hey, wanna have a little fun?"
Keith's expression brightened. "Like what?"
"Just wait and see…" Danny said ominously, starting the motor and moving the van up to one of the huge semi's in the parking lot. He stopped so that the two vehicles were almost nose to nose and turned off the motor. "Follow my lead."
Keith nodded as Danny gripped the wheel and let out a screech to be heard clear back in Las Vegas. "Oh my god, look out!" He yelled loudly.
Chris jumped awake, sitting up. Confused and stunned, Chris's eyes caught sight of the giant truck, which he thought was coming straight at them. He screamed, his hands grabbing both his brothers' shoulders, and then, in the pandemonium, he heard peals of laughter.
"Wha'….?" He gasped.
"Gotcha!" Danny said gleefully as Keith laughed hysterically, checking Chris's face in the mirror.
"That's NOT funny!" Chris yelped, slugging Danny's shoulder as hard as he could.
Keith and Danny were still roaring as Chris stood up, squeezing between the seats, clutching their shirts hard in his fists.
"You could've given me a heart attack!" Chris snarled over their hysteria.
"It was funny, dude, admit it!" Danny chortled.
"You're an idiot," Chris slapped his head. Looking over at Keith, he poked him hard. "And you…you're just as bad!"
Keith tried the innocent ploy. "I didn't know he was gonna do it," he protested, cowering away from his brother's angry finger. "But you've got to admit, it was ingenious!"
"That's it, I'm driving," Chris muttered, pushing his way up front.
"No way, it's my turn!" Danny cried.
Keith sighed. "You two fight it out. I'm gonna go back there." He got out, trading Chris places. The back seat looked comfortable, and he climbed in, stretching out all the way, lying back on the pillow that Chris had been using.
Danny started the motor, a grin still on his face. "You should have seen your face, man."
"Shut up and drive!" Chris barked, not at all amused.
Keith chuckled from behind them. "It was classic. All the color drained out…I thought you were gonna puke."
"I should have, right over the both of you." Chris rolled down the window.
"Party pooper," Danny said, still grinning.
"Yeah, well, you'll get yours. I don't know how or when, but you will get yours," Chris told him ominously.
Danny laughed. "I'm shaking in my boots. How about you, Keith?"
"Terrified," Keith answered, and Chris could hear the mirth in his voice.
Grumpily, Chris slumped against the van door as his brothers did lousy jobs of concealing their merriment.