A/N: I got this idea while listening to the small excerpt of this song on Disney Channel! Here goes!
Life Is A Highway! I wanna Ride It! All Night Long!
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Life's like a road that you travel on
When there's one day here and the next day gone
Sometimes you bend and sometimes you stand
Sometimes you turn your back to the wind
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Sam, Tucker, and Danny, a trio of friends that have been through way more than you can imagine over their last years at Casper High, were walking the auditorium, graduation caps in hand and graduation gowns still on them. "This is great!" Danny shouted. "I actually graduated!"
"And in flying colors!" Sam added.
"We all graduated!" Tucker shouted.
The three teens cheered loudly. Yep, it was the end of their senior year at good old Amity Park's Casper High Middle School. They were now standing in the parking lot of the school, Sam's black convertible glistening in the moonlight.
"I'm so glad your parents let us go out tonight," Sam said.
"I didn't think I'd be able to convince them, but they were so happy, they didn't even think twice!" Danny exclaimed.
"And my parents were easy too," Tucker remarked. A sudden wind picked up, blowing the teens graduation caps out of their hands. They screamed and scrambled for the red caps before they got dirty. Fortunately, they landed right in Sam's car. "Weird," Tucker murmured.
"It's destiny," Sam said. "Say, we're all eighteen now. We can go where ever we want. Plus, we're legal!"
"What are you trying to say, Sam?" Danny asked.
"That we should drive across the city to this great place I heard of," Sam said. Tucker and Danny looked at her suspiciously.
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There's a world outside every darkened door
Where blues won't haunt you anymore
Where the brave are free and lovers soar
Come ride with me to the distant shore
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"Oh come on, guys!" Sam said.
"Are you suggesting we go to some bar you know that's clear all the way across the city with you after our graduation night?" Tucker asked.
"It's not a bar!" Sam shouted. They looked at her with 'oh really' expressions. Sam pouted and sighed. "Okay, so maybe it is a bar, but does it matter? I repeat, we're eighteen!"
"Fine," Danny said. "But only if Tucker comes."
"I guess," Tucker muttered, sighing.
"Cool, let's go! We should be there in about two hours," Sam said, walking to the other side of her car and climbing into the driver's seat.
"Two hours?" both boys shouted.
"Hurry or we'll make it by midnight! The best time!" Sam said, turning on the engine. She looked at the two boys. "Come on! You did put on regular clothes beneath your gowns, right?"
"Yes, but do we want to know how you know all this?" Danny asked, climbing into the seat next to her. Tucker climbed into the back passenger seat. Sam smiled.
"I've been planning this all week!" she said. "It's about time we get our piece of freedom, right?"
"As long as it's nothing drastic," Danny said as Sam pulled out of the parking lot and onto the street.
"Where exactly is this place, Sam?" Tucker asked then.
"We just need to drive onto this dirt road named Route 25. We follow it across Amity Park to a small town called Toborville." Sam kept her eyes strictly on the street in front of her. She'd learned and gotten a car to drive before the other two teens because supposedly she was more 'responsible.' Tucker and Danny didn't buy it for a second. She was only trying to get on her parents good side, they think. "The joint closes around 4 in the morning and opens around 12 in the afternoon. The best time to be there, though, is midnight. That's when they get the strongest stuff out. That's also when the best bands play there," Sam continued.
"We can't get too drunk," Danny chastised.
"If you're not up to it, that's okay, Danny," Sam said, smiling and looking at him out of the corner of her eye. Danny looked at her seriously.
"Sam, you can't drink and drive, it's illegal," Danny said. "They can take us to jail for that, you know."
"The cops rarely drive along Route 25. It's said to be bandit territory, but not a single bandit has been spotted since the late 1950's. We won't get caught," Sam assured him.
"It's no wonder you were always so sleepy during this week," Tucker said. "You've been doing a lot of research on this place!"
"Of course!" Sam said, coming to the dirt road she'd spoken to them about before. On all sides, Danny noticed, they were leaving behind the modern world and coming across almost farm country. They'd only been driving for about ten-fifteen minutes. They were already on the outskirts of Amity Park. Amazing. "I want this night to be perfect," Sam whispered. The words caught Danny's attention.
He looked at the girl. She had strained herself far beyond the limits of her being. He decided he would try his best to make the night perfect too. But deep inside, he knew, sub-conscious, that things were bound to go totally wrong.
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We won't hesitate
To break down the garden gate
There's not much time left today
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They kept driving. The night was cool and the wind was crisp and still. It wasn't everyday that the weather was this nice. They had been driving for nearly an hour, passing by only dirt, dirt, and more dirt on this road. The top of the convertible was down, giving the three teens a full view of the clear sky. "Wow," Danny mumbled. Tucker was asleep in the back seat, sprawled over both passenger seats. Danny had managed to stay awake somehow.
Sam looked at him. She didn't look one bit sleepy, and she was driving. Danny figured she'd gotten enough sleep to be able to stay awake. "What?" she asked quietly.
"The sky," Danny said. "It's beautiful tonight."
Sam smiled at him. She looked back ahead at the road. "You're tired. We won't be there for at another three quarters of an hour. You should sleep while you can," Sam told him. Danny nodded.
"It's almost," he whispered, shifting his position on the seat. "almost as beautiful as you."
Sam's eyes widened and she looked at him again. He'd shifted his position so he'd be almost on his side but still in an up-right position. His head was inclined onto his shoulder and he was facing her. She smiled at him. He looked so peaceful when he was asleep. So...cute. A small blush crept onto her face as she thought this. She turned back to the road again, knowing it'd be awhile before they reached their destination.
About an hour later...
"Guys, we're here!" Sam said. She reached over, shook Danny's shoulder. The boy groaned and shook his head.
"Huh?"
"We're here!" Sam declared. Danny sat up.
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Life is a highway
I wanna ride it all night long
If you're going my way
I wanna drive it all night long
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His eyes widened and his breath left his throat with a small gasp. "Wow," he murmured. Tucker, now waking up from a sleep, immediately brightened up at the sight. The place was in a small town. Around them was almost like a party everywhere they looked. The town itself didn't look like a regular neighborhood place, it was bars, hotels, and works, everywhere the eyes could see. The bar Sam had planned on taking them too, however, was the center point.
It was a big, wide building. From the looks of the height, it had two floors. The doors were wide double-doors. Everywhere there was music, but from inside that building, the music sounded the loudest. It looked almost western, but they knew it wasn't. The three teens got out the car and were almost to walk forward when they each noticed something. "Almost forgot!" Sam laughed.
The trio shared a good laugh. They weren't about to go in there with their graduation gowns on! Quickly, they slipped out of the red cloth. Sam wore blue denim shorts and a black sleeveless shirt. Danny wore his signature blue jeans and a regular white T-shirt. Tucker wore similar clothes except his pants were cargo, khaki colored pants and a black T-shirt. All in all, they looked definitely ready to party the night away. They deserved it after all, right?
"Come on!" Sam said, putting away their gowns and putting the roof of the car up, locking the doors, and everything. "It's definitely time to party!"
"You've said it!" Tucker exclaimed. Danny grinned and they all ran inside the bar. They didn't need any ID's which was a good thing. Obviously Sam had looked into that as well. Inside the place looked pretty calm. There was a stage where the current band was playing. In the front nearest the stage were groups of people dancing and everything. There were two counters to get drinks. Waiters, a girl wearing almost nothing and a guy wearing tight dark blue jeans and a white sleeveless undershirt, walked around. Tables were randomly scattered around the sides of the bar about a yard or so away from the counters. The place was great!
"Come on," Sam said, leading the boys to one side. "I read that today, once the clock strikes midnight, there's gonna a new solo singer playing. This is gonna be her debut." They each took a seat at the stool-like chairs at the counter. The dancing people began to settle down slightly. The place was slowly gaining more and more populous, only full enough for someone to be able to get lost. Soon enough, the clock struck midnight. The trio hadn't yet tasted any of the drinks there, they had only been surveying the place. After all, they really had only been there about ten minutes.
At the present moment, they were laughing at old memories. Then, a male voice broke their conversation. "And now, debuting here at the one and only Anonymous Cargo, we present Alas!" said the man. He stepped off the stage as a young woman with curly black hair and cinnamon colored skin stepped onto the stage. People cheered and others only clapped. Then the woman began to sing along with the music. It was nice music, Danny had to admit, and without realizing it, his foot began to tap on the ground.
Tucker was watching some of the girls at the place. Many were only waiting to get asked to dance. He grinned as he caught sight of a girl in a pink mini-skirt and a blue belly-shirt that was only standing their sipping a drink. "I'll be right back, guys," he said and walked off towards her.
"Okay," Danny mumbled. Sam took this as her chance. She turned to the counter and asked the bartender for a simple small drink of the strongest they had The man stopped only for a second, then picked a bottle from the shelves behind him, poured some into a small glass cup, and handed it to her. She drank it quickly.
"Hey, Danny," she said. "Sure you don't want a drink?"
Danny was about to say no when he realized who was asking that. He turned to her. "Sam! You're not supposed to drink!" he told her. "Tucker and I don't exactly know how to drive!"
Sam giggled. "I won't get to drunk, I promise. Besides, it was only a Jorgy," she said.
"The strongest there is!" Danny said. Clearly he was way mad.
"Cool it, Danny," she told him. Her tone told him she was still sober, but he feared she would get drunk even if he told her not to. He sighed and shook his head. "You need to take chances, you know," Sam told him. "Come on, let's have some fun! I like this song."
"Sam, I don't da-" Danny started to say, but Sam put her cup down with a clink and grabbed his arm.
She looked at him as they neared the dance floor. People surrounded them everywhere, he saw, so no one would care for them. They were in the center of the whole place and everywhere he looked were people. "Sam, I don't know how to dance," Danny told her as she stood in front of him now.
She laughed. "Does it matter?" she asked. "Just do whatever! I don't know how to dance either! The point is to have fun!"
She laughed as he tried desperately to free himself of her grasp every time he tried to escape. "Look," she said. "Forget everything and everyone. Listen to the music and let it move you. It doesn't matter if you only go in circles! As long as you're having fun, okay?"
"I don't know..." Danny said uncertainly. Sam rolled her eyes playfully.
"Just try it!" she told him.
Danny bit his lower lip. He felt tense. Taking a deep breath, he let it out. "I can't do this," he whispered. "I've never dance to anything other than slow music!"
"I'll help you," Sam told him. "I've never done this either, so I'm going by everything I've seen so far, okay?"
"As long as this hell is over before-" Danny stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of having Sam turn her back to him, grasping both his arms and putting them on her waist. She pressed her body up to his. "Just do what comes to mind first," she said. "Just let yourself go, okay?" she told him. Danny gulped in response.
Oh boy, this was only getting stranger!
E/N: I made up the name 'Jogy' for the drink Sam took. Trust me, I have never been to a bar, never been near a bar, never been near an alcoholic drink, or anything! I'm totally lost at this whole thing! I'm just going by the book! And I don't know how the heck people dance at these places! Once again, by the book! (and my school dances...) Please review!
--Airamé Phantom