The Rebound Agreement ✔

twelve

[unedited;
please vote and comment!!]

All at once, my heart starts thumping faster and my head pounds. We can't be out of gas. We just can't be. It's past midnight, and we're in the middle of nowhere. Of course, this would happen.

I slowly sink back into the passenger seat, worry overcoming me. "Katie, it's okay," Liam rushes to assure me as he drags his fingers through his hair.

"No," I shoot him a sour look, "it's not okay."

"Yes, it is. We'll figure a way out of this." He faces me as he seems to begin to rack his brain.

"How?" I ask skeptically. "It's past midnight on a weekend and we don't even know where we are." I fold my arms over my chest and look out the window.

"We can call someone to come pick us up," he suggests hopefully. "And we can figure out where we are with my phone," he reminds me as he holds it up. He unlocks it and goes to the maps app, pulling up our location.

"Here," he says, facing his phone towards me. "Take a picture or throw it into your notes or something because I'm afraid my phone might die soon."

I copy the address it says down into my notes.

"We need to start calling people who we think will be able to bring us some gas or pick us up," he says, and I sigh.

"Fine." I open my phone and begin to call my roommate Monica when I remember that she and Hannah went home for the weekend and are therefore much too far away to help us.

I think of my brother, and while he is less than an hour away, I can't think of anyone who I would want to find me in this situation less. I can already feel the puzzled look he'll give me for this uncharacteristic recklessness. Yet, even worse, I know that he'll worry about me because of the thing I have with Liam, and I don't want him to worry about us anymore. That's my job, not his.

Liam pulls his phone from his ear, a frown slipping into his lips. "No luck," he says. He shoves his hands in his pockets and stares out through the dirty windshield before pulling his fingers through his already ruffled hair. "Kyle is the only person whose number I have that is in town besides my roommate Bracken, and Bracken is at his sister's wedding right now."

Looking defeated, Liam turns to look at my phone in my hand. "Please, don't tell me that you're out of people, too," he says.

I roll possibilities around in my head, a name finally popping up. "There is one other person," I admit before dialing a number I memorized a long time ago.

The phone rings for so long that I almost don't think he'll pick up, but he does anyway. "Hello?" he answers groggily, leading me to assume that my call woke him. I feel a twinge a guilt at this, but push it away. I need help, and I know that he will be willing to give it if I ask.

"Owen, I need your help." I tell him.

I hear rustling, almost as if he is shifting positions, before he speaks again. "What is it, Katie? Is something wrong at The Frost?"

I smile at the memory of the last time I called him for help, some of the tension in me draining. "No, the ice cream is fine. I'm sure our boss will be happy to know that you're so concerned about it. It's something else this time."

I pause, glancing at Liam, and he encourages me to go on. "So," I begin, "remember my boyfriend? I think I introduced him to you a few weeks ago while we were working."