Chapter 4:
Whoo double-post–hope you all enjoy! Thanks for reading!
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I roll the window down and then begin to breathe in
"Are you sure you're okay, Summer?" Seth asks as he brings the Range Rover to a halt next to her and waits for Summer to get into the car.
The darkest country road and the strong scent of evergreen
From the passenger seat as you are drivin' me home
"Just drive, Cohen."
Then looking upwards, I strained my eyes
and try to tell the difference between
shooting stars and satellites
From the passenger seat as you are driving me home
Do they-collide? I ask and you smile
So that's what he did.
He wove his way down and through the streets he knew so well. Streets in a town he hated; where the people we fake, where only money and reputation mattered.
And a year ago, that's all this place was. An empty, awful place. It had no meaning, it was only a prison, the cage to his canary. He remained trapped in this town like a bird, just waiting for freedom.
But once the canary escaped to freedom, the smog of the foreign air constricted his lungs. Bore down on his chest like bricks. The bricks of guilt that pressed hard against him, squeezed his heart and lungs until he felt like he would die.
So, the bird flew home, wounded pride and deflated sense of self-importance. He realized that as much as he had wished to see the big bad world, he wasn't ready to escape the home he had always known.
He returned to a place he never expected to miss, never expected to miss it so badly that when he thought about it, it hurt.
Truthfully, it didn't hurt to think about Newport, it hurt to think about the things in Newport that made it home. The people and places that he remembered that he couldn't find anywhere else in the world.
The cliff overlooking the ocean where he and Summer used to go and watch the stars. The bakery where they sold Summer's favorite cookies, the plain ones with the chocolate blob and an M&M on top, and every other place in Newport where he could remember her. Every place where he saw her scrunch up her nose and say "eww," every place where she wined and said "please, Cohen" when she wanted him to do something for her.
It hurt to think about Newport because then he thought about her and how much it hurt to be away from her, and how his leaving probably hurt her. But, the worst part was thinking that she might not have been hurt, that she might not miss him at all. It hurt to think that she might be fine without him.
With my feet on the dash, the world doesn't matter
Eventually the less familiar homes faded and they found themselves in the driveway of Summer's big, white house.
The discouraging fact about said house was that, as protective of his daughter as Neil Roberts was, he had not even left a light on in the house for Summer when she chose to return. In actuality it appeared that at 2:00 in the morning no one was even home, let alone waiting for the seventeen year old to return from what was undoubtedly a drunken party.
Without a glance towards Seth, Summer exits the car with a quick "Thanks for the ride, Cohen."
Sad that she couldn't even look at him, Seth simply replied, "don't mention it, Summer"
But then he remembered that she had called him at 1:30 in the morning asking for a ride when, under normal circumstances, she would have avoided speaking to him at all, never mind asking him for favors.
Hopping out of the car he called out to her, "Summer, wait! Are you sure?...I mean, are you sure that you're okay? I could...umm... call Marissa? Or..."
"I told you, Cohen, I'm fine. I don't want anyone to even know this happened. I'll be fine, I'd rather be alone then embarrassed in the morning."
When you feel embarrassed, I'll be your pride
"Thanks for the concern"
So he nods his head and turns back towards the Rover to sit on the bumper.
"What are you doing?" she asks from the steps where she is digging for her keys.
"I just thought, maybe I'll just wait here until someone comes home."
"Wha.??." she began but she was cut off by his explanation
"I don't like the idea of you here by yourself, so I'll wait" He moved towards her and sat himself down on her front steps, ready to spend the night.
"Fine. Do whatever you want." She replied and walked into her home not giving the figure on her steps a second thought.
When you need directions
Then I'll be the guide
For all time
for all time...