A Girl Like Her

Chapter 24.

Song: Screaming Underwater by Alex Warren

Trust yourself, you will start to trust others ~ Santosh Kalwar

NOT EDITED

"So, where are we going?" I asked, unable to take the anticipation anymore. Half of me was regretting not only skipping school today, but allowing Zander to choose where we went first. I clung onto this idea of having a day that was filled with fun and laughter. Two things I haven't experienced at the same time in a long time. Excitement washed through me, my heart racing and my nerves standing at attention at the mere prospect of fun. When was the last time I went out with the intention to have a good time without alcohol or drugs? I couldn't remember, and now that I really think about it, I wasn't sure there was ever a time I did such a thing. I guess the little get together at Kate's could be considered one of those, but I was still on edge and uneasy. I didn't want to really go to begin with. But this time around, I did want to go. I wanted to take some control back in my life. I wanted to forget about everything, even if only for a day. Melanie. The party. That night. The men who thought they could come back to torment me again. I wanted to forget all about it for just today. I knew Zander could give that to me. In the time that I've known him, he spends a lot of it smiling and laughing with other people. He's so quick to get somebody to like him. He laughs as if there isn't a darkness from his past brewing inside of him. He talks of the future like it's something attainable and even though he doesn't talk about a clear goal in his mind, he's always positive about what the day will bring him. He's become a beacon of hope for me.

Next to me, Zander grinned devilishly, that adorable glimmer coming back to his eyes even though they were solely focused on the road in front of him. "Has anyone ever told you how impatient you are?" He chuckled, seeming to find my anxious waiting amusing.

I scoffed in my seat, folding my arms together in my own act of defiance. I felt like a toddler on the verge of throwing a temper tantrum. But he wasn't wrong. Patience was never a virtue of mine. "I just want to know where we're going, is all," I answered at last, sighing in defeat after getting a look at the stubbornness in his eyes. He wasn't going to tell me.

"How about I give you a hint?" Zander offered, and I grinned slyly. Victory. "Only because it's like ten more minutes away and I don't wanna hear anything else from you," he warned, while I nodded and smiled smugly.

"Deal," I accepted, waiting to hear what the hint would be.

"Okay, are you ready?" He asked and I nodded instantly. I was really tired of the waiting game. "Alright, here's your hint: it's some place where you'll have fun." He finished, chuckling loudly when my initial reaction was to smack his arm so hard I hoped it left a bruise for a few days. "Hey, ow! Don't hit the driver now," he laughed, rubbing his wounded arm. Sometimes he wasn't the beacon of hope I made him out to be, but an infuriating man with no concept of seriousness.

"Zander," I rolled my eyes, accepting defeat. I slouched further in my seat, finding a particular interest in the leather seats all of a sudden. I really would just have to wait.

*       *       *

True to his word, ten minutes later we were pulling into a parking lot with cars filling nearly every space. My eyebrows rose in surprise, my eyes catching sight of the large sign of the place out front: Billy's Big Alley. I couldn't help the chuckle that escaped so suddenly and carelessly. "A bowling alley?" I laughed, still not believing it. Of all the places, a bowling alley was probably last on the list of where I expected he would take us. I can't remember the last time I went bowling, but I can definitely say that it was a time when I still thought blue eyeshadow with bright red lipstick was considered the norm for makeup, which was an extremely long time ago.