The Journey Taken Together

Chapter Four

**Dedicated to LivingBrightly**

(Officially edited)

~Dennis~

I continue driving until I reach my house. I may regret all of this in the long run, but it is something that I have been longing to get off of my chest for a while now. I step inside my house, heading upstairs to retrieve everything I need for the trip. Inside of a small opening hidden in my dresser, I pull roughly $3,000 out of my savings.

I return downstairs to my computer. I sit on the old, wooden chair and start it up. Laptops are so expensive now; I just can't afford a new computer with school fees and all. When the computer is done starting up, I type into the search bar California Airports. I find the one for my city and get up to grab a piece of paper and a pen

I write down the address and begin on my journey to the airport. I turn on the radio and smile. Thea's favorite song, Moonlight by Eye of the Creator, starts playing. Since Thea listened to this song all of the time, I know all of the words. I begin to sing along happily as I turn onto the highway. I - 5 is the busiest, most dangerous highway in all of California. There have been many accidents here, so I am a little on edge.

I look down at my paper and sigh. In order to make it to the airport, I have to spend three hours just on this highway. I need to make several exits, and the directions look more complicated than I originally thought they were going to be. Well, you know what they say, "Expect the unexpected."

The song ends and one by a heavy metal group follows. Disgusted, I begin to turn the knob on the radio to reach a station I like. Passing the country station, I arrive to hear the voice of The Fray singing "Don't Let Me Go", which just so happens to be my favorite song. Looking back up at the exit sign, I see a McDonald's. Parched, I turn on the exit and decide to get a drink.

I pull into the line and my mouth drops. About seven cars wrap around the side of the building. I bite my lip and put my vehicle on 'park' to save gas. Watching the line, I notice a large guy looking out the window, trying to figure out what to order.

"Hurry up fatty!" I hear from behind me and look in my rearview mirror. A boy - looking no older than eighteen - sticks out his tongue and pounds his fist against his steering wheel.

The line begins to move, and I finally find myself at the ordering screen. "Welcome to McDonald's. Would you like to try our new Triple Cheeseburger today?" says a high-pitched voice.

"No thanks. Just a large Coke, please," I reply and begin to pull forward, but a car from the outer lane cuts me off. I slam on the brakes just in time and honk my horn at the other driver. The driver flips me off and anger boils within me. It took all of my strength to hold me back from getting out of my car. Seeing Thea is my biggest priority right now, and I don't want to ruin that by going to jail.

After waiting about fifteen minutes to get to the pay window, the dip shit in front of me pulls out and gets out of line. About ten to twenty feet of pavement is ahead of me, and only one car sits at the window where you get your food. I pay and pull up in the spot where the car that cut me off was, and wait for about thirty seconds before I have to pull up again.

I grab my food and set it down while pulling out of the parking lot. My heart stops when a mass of blue and grey suddenly fills my vision, replacing the road I was expecting. All I can hear is the shattering of glass as my soda is crushed against my face. The only words that leave my lips are 'Thea . . . I love you . . .' as everything finally turns black.

~Thea~

I wake up with popcorn all over my blanket. Groaning, I stand up and begin placing it in the bowl. All I can think about is Dennis. I feel as though it is a sin that he is still on my mind. Last night, I was thinking about all of the possible ways that Dennis could've contacted me. I didn't think that I gave him any of my contact information.