The Long Haul

Chapter 4

Jay felt himself start to panic at the one-word reply. Was she against this decision? Had he already fucked it all up? Had he read the entire situation wrong? His mind filled with self-doubt. He may not have been there for her much in recent years, but that was going to change and would take some adjusting on all fronts. "It's all going to work out, Alex," he said with full confidence, even though it was faux.

"Ok," the youngest replied simply with a nod, not sure what she believed herself. She took a sip of water and nervously felt the need to crack a dumb joke to break the awkward silence, which she instantly regretted, "As long as you don't arrest me, I'd say we'll get along just fine."

"As long as you don't do anything stupid to make me arrest you, then we'll be fine," he quipped playfully with raised eyebrows as if to convey a fake threat before cracking a smile.

Alex felt her eyes instinctively float over to her messenger bag resting on the floor beside the couch where she'd laid it. "Well, I should get some stuff ready for tomorrow," she announced distractedly. "Can I take a shower?"

"Yeah, of course. You don't need to ask," he replied as he went to grab a fresh towel from the closet.

"Cool," Alex replied as she grabbed her toiletries bag out of the suitcase. "Be ready at 7 tomorrow. I don't need you making me late to school," she instructed with a no-nonsense tone that took Jay by surprise.

"You got it," he replied as she disappeared into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. The second that the water turned on, she stepped beneath the showerhead and let the water fall onto her face. The weight of the evening was now overwhelming and she wasn't able to contain it anymore. It felt like her legs were about to give out, so she slowly sank down and sat on the shower floor. Thankfully the water camouflaged the tears that streamed down her face as her hand covered her mouth to keep her cries from escaping.

As soon as Jay heard the shower turn on, he made an immediate beeline to the kitchen and opened the cabinet above the fridge to retrieve a bottle of whiskey. He poured himself a small glass and downed it like water in the Sahara to calm his thoughts before pouring himself another large serving to savor as his thoughts took him elsewhere.

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Alex watched the building come and go out the window of the train on her way to school. She had always preferred a quiet ride where she could listen to whatever music matched her mood that morning and not talk to anybody. She was not a morning person to say the least. While she had tried to listen to some rap to drown out her thoughts from yesterday, Jay had other plans once they settled into their seats. He had gone on and on about his plans for the day, a few things they needed to do, and asked some questions about her routine, which she tried to answer in as few words as possible.

They'd finally made it to their stop and had to walk about three blocks to get to the main school entrance. "Okay, so you'll text me when you're on your way back, right?" Jay wanted to confirm for the third time that morning.

Alex groaned loudly to make sure her annoyance was known—and it was, but he didn't care. She was under his responsibility now and with all the crap he'd seen in Chicago, nobody could blame him for being cautious. "Yes." She sighed. "Why don't you just put an app on my phone to track my every move and save me the trouble?" she retorted in full teenage sarcasm.

Her father had been pretty far from hands-on in the last few years, so she wasn't used to being suffocated and supervised like this. She had come and gone as she'd pleased, and it was never an issue with her dad where she went as long as she made it back before the next morning and didn't wake him when she came home. He didn't care to ask for any details, much to her benefit, and she obviously passed on sharing any with him. She'd had quite a bit of independence, which was what most likely led to her making a few poor choices along the way.