The week went by fast and it was about 4am Friday morning when Max, Warren, Victoria, and Nathan had all met up in the school's parking lot. Nathan managed to get them all out of classes Friday by pulling strings, even though he found it a moot point. Everyone put their suitcases into the trunk of the vehicle and climbed in. Max someone managed to call shotgun so she was up from with Warren, Victoria sat behind Warren and Nathan behind Max.
"Will you turn on the radio?" asked Victoria, who proceeded to yawn. Somehow at 4am her makeup still looked good. When Warren turned on the radio a debate over what station to listen to began and last for ten minutes. Nathan wanted alternative, Max voted oldies, Victoria wanted hits, and Warren just wanted something loud to keep him awake on the drive to Portland. Eventually, Warren put in a mix tape he had made for Nathan, which almost seemed like a mix of the three with his own taste mixed in.
Max wanted to play the licence plate game, where you had to find the letters of the alphabet in order from licence plates. They only got halfway through the game before abandoning it to watch the sunrise. With the windows down, the drive was relaxing. Max managed to fall asleep for about ten minutes and of course her photo was taken. The ride up went by fast, with the assistance of donuts and soda from a gas station.
Once in Portland, Nathan and Victoria picked up the reservation at the front desk of the hotel. With keycards in hand, the group went up to their rooms 215 and 216. After a nap they regrouped in Nathan and Warren's room. Warren's arm was around Nathan's shoulder as they sat on the bed. Max was situated on Victoria's lap, paying attention to the television.
"Warren, what time does this start?" asked Victoria, tightening her arms around Max's waist. "Do we have time to get dinner before driving to the festival?"
"Mhm, it doesn't start until ten, and it's only 6. The drive and getting our seats should take maybe an hour but probably less. If we are on the road by nine, we'll be fine," stated Warren. "What do you want for dinner?"
"I vote pizza," inserted Max. "Wasn't there a pizza place down the street? Check the directory thing." With an array of confused looks, Max got up and opened the drawer on the television stand. Pulling out the black directory, she flipped it open and handed the book to Warren. "We could walk there."
"Do you think they'll have Vic's weird vegetarian pizza?" asked Nathan sarcastically. Victoria thusly took the pillow off of the chair next to her and threw it at Nathan, barely missing Max to nail him in the stomach. "God, it was a joke!"
Victoria got up, dusting off her skirt with a sly smirk. She grabbed Max by the hand and made her way to the door. She said as she walked out, "I'll go grab my purse."
"Damn," mumbled Nathan as he got up, stretching before looking at Warren, who was rather perplexed by the whole situation. While he knew Nathan and Victoria were like family, he didn't always understand it. Nathan pulled Warren into a hug, "Thank you for coming out with me."
"I'm glad you planned all of this," replied Warren before pulling away from the hug. He got up and kissed Nathan's forehead before taking his hand. "I bet the girls are already waiting for us."
"Oh please, they are probably mid-makeout session. I bet you five dollars Max will have Victoria's lipstick on her lips," sneered Nathan.
Warren rolled his eyes, "I thought we were passed the betting. Plus, I don't intend to take bets I won't win."
"You're smart. I knew there was a reason I picked you," replied Nathan, tightening his grip on Warren's hands. This did not stop Warren from elbowing Nathan before they walked out of their room, keycards in pockets.
Of course, when Nathan banged on Victoria and Max's room door, there was about a minute or two of wait on the boys end. Victoria answered the door, hair slightly askew and lipstick smudged. Max was in the back of room, fixing her shirt and grabbing her camera. Victoria invited the boys in, walking to the bathroom to fix her attire. Warren said, "I thought you guys said you'd be ready."
"We are ready. Vic, you want your camera?" asked Max, a subtle softness in her question to Victoria. Victoria peered out of the bathroom to shake her head, and Max set down the second camera. After that Max went to the window, looking through the camera to get a scenic snapshot of the city. And with the photo shaken into reality, the group departed.
After about 5 minutes of walking in the wrong direction the gang got back on track, and made their way to the restaurant in the most efficient way possible-running. Max almost dropped her camera and Warren almost lost his shoe but eventually they showed up the the restaurant, red faced and out of breath. Walking into the restaurant, Victoria pushes herself to the front, demanding a table for four under her name. They quickly got seated and proceeded to fight over what types of pizza to get.
"Literally I could care less what type of pizza we get," stated Warren. "Can you just pick what type you want."
"Well we could all just get one if Nathan wasn't so picky," retorted Victoria.
Nathan rolled his eyes, "Or you could just have pizza without toppings."
"Contrary to popular belief, it's normal to want toppings," riposted Victoria.
"Wait!" cut in Max. "Why don't we just get two pizzas and end this fight? Warren can share with Nathan and I'll share with Victoria." And with that the fight was over. When the waiter took their order, Max asked him to take a photo of them all, explaining the process of the polaroid picture. And with that, a group shot was complete. Max was making bunny ears behind Victoria, who was sticking her tongue out. Warren was making a peace sign and Nathan had his arms wrapped around Warren's neck loosely, a grin on his face. The photo was an entirely happy moment, and Max was glad she had another photo to had to her Memorial wall.
After getting her camera and photo back, Victoria took a selfie with the whole group, and sent it to everyone. A memory to keep and share. And before they knew it the pizza was ready, and they dug in. No one noticed the stares or the flash in the background when a picture of the group was taken. When it was all said and done they still had time to kill before they had to get on the road. Back at the hotel everyone grabbed their cameras and the group went out to explore the nearby parts of the city.
Nathan took a rather ominous black and white picture of a gas station with a broken light and sign, it looked deserted. And of course Max took a selfie, this one with the hotel in the background. Victoria took a posed picture of Max sitting in an utterly lady like position before taking one of the setting sun. Warren was not as skilled with a camera, so mostly he took cell phone photos of his friends.
And with that, they were off. Cameras still in hand, in case a nice photo op were to arrive. Max was sure one would. Victoria was laying her head on Max's shoulder as the car ride began. No one knew what adventures would the rest of the weekend entail, yet everyone was excited for what has yet to come.
