The Last JoyRide

Part 44

Saturday 9:08 AM

I was so excited about the newer Cruiser! It was fantastic, drove, smelled, and handled great; it was all I had ever wanted in a Cruiser. I dearly loved my old gray heap, but it would serve someone else better than it would serve me to be doing the kind of traveling I was planning on doing. If all went right, I might, just might have company. I hadn't been this excited in ages. It was a warm late-summer morning, the sun shone through the clouds, and the future ahead looked brighter than ever. I was going to call Joy but decided to just wake her up so I could show her, thank her for her generosity, then make her my final offer. I couldn't have been more nervous.

I parked next to her Jeep and tried the door, which locked. I started tapping on the door with my new car keys. The sound on the metal door would echo throughout the building. I knew that would get her up. If that didn't, the cat would for sure. I knocked ten or twelve more times. Finally, I heard the inside latches on the door being unlocked. It opened, and there stood a guy. He was about my height, different looking, more of a surfer look. He had sandy blonde hair combed straight back. His chin was weak, though, and unshaven.

"Who are you?" I asked suddenly.

"I'm Brian; who the fuck are you?"

"Nick," I said, stepping forward, forcing him to step back, "I'm here to see Joy."

He sized me up. I instantly disliked the shirtless son of a bitch and didn't move an inch nor break my cold, indifferent stare. He turned and walked away from the door, and I followed a little further inside. I had a shit feeling in the pit of my stomach, but still, I wanted to see her.

Brian disappeared behind the curtain to the apartment and immediately began shouting her name. Such class. I could hear them speaking, but it was unintelligible. Then Joy came out in light knit shorts and a long tee shirt. She looked at me and forced a smile. I must have looked heart-sunk because she put her arms around me and buried her head in my chest.

"I guess I just met Brian Blase," I said, deflated.

"Yeah, and he just met Nick Adams," she said as she leaned back and looked up at me, "just about the coolest guy I know."

It made me smile anyway. Joy had a way of doing that. A million and one thoughts were racing through my head, so many that I couldn't seem to get any of them out easily.

"I picked up the Cruiser Joy. It's awesome; I love it."

"Well, let's see it!" She said eagerly.

"You've got five minutes, Blase!" She shouted as we approached the door.

We walked outside into the morning sun, and I showed her the truck.

"Oh, it looks even better than the pictures!" She climbed into the driver's seat and took the wheel.

"Damn, this thing is tough. It has an altimeter! I want to drive it!" She exclaimed.

I climbed in the other side and gave her the keys. She started it, backed out carefully, then took us on a tour of the old neighborhood back streets.

"This is a badass!" She said excitedly, turning around in an overgrown vacant lot, not bothering to slow down for the curb, mud-hole, or anything in her path.

"I think I like this better than Kermit."

I just watched the road ahead. I was still too sick to really say anything at all.

"Thank you again," I finally mustered.

"You deserved it, Nick. I couldn't have done it without you. Now that it's over, I wouldn't want to have done it without you."