A Trip to Remember

Bad Luck

Chapter 5

Natalie slammed the car door shut, hard. Not only was she cranky from having to wake up at 6am, she was beyond pissed at the thought of the two days on the road to come.

She looked out the window to see her parents and Devon's parents waving at them. Natalie's mother looked a bit too happy for her liking.

All the things for the cottages were packed tightly inside of Devon's old Ford van. Natalie looked behind their seats as Devon started the car and pulled out of the driveway. She noticed his guitar case wedged between their seats and a box of bedsheets.

"Why'd you bring your guitar?" she asked.

"Maybe I'll need it." he answered, looking at her and raising his eyebrows.

"Uh. Right because you're totally need your guitar for the two days we'll be spending driving on a highway."

He shrugged.

"You never know."

Natalie rolled her eyes. She took out the GPS and entered in the addresses.

"Okay after we get out onto the interstate we just basically stay on it and keep heading north"

Devon wrinkled his nose.

"The interstate? Do you know how much traffic there's going to be? Especially since summer just started. There's going to be tons of people heading out of LA."

"But it's the shortest route."

"Yeah but if we stuck to smaller highways and rural roads it'd be faster. No traffic."

"Don't we wan't to get there as fast as possible? The smaller roads will have speed limits."

"And the interstate will have tons of traffic. Do you really want to wait in some car lineup for hours and hours? The longer way will end up being faster."

"How do you even know there's going to be traffic? You don't even know!"

"It's obvious Natalie. Anyone with common sense would know."

"Are we actually going to take the long way there just because you have some kind of hunch there's going to be traffic?"

Why didn't this surprise Natalie? Five minutes into driving and they were already arguing.

Devon gripped the steering wheel hard.

"Fine. We'll go on the interstate first. If there's traffic we'll turn off and take the smaller roads. Alright?"

Natalie nodded tightly.

Devon took the ramp onto the interstate. There wasn't any traffic in sight. Natalie turned her head at him and smiled sweetly.

"Sorry Devon. Who was it that said there was definitely going to be traffic? Oh yeah, you."

Devon gave her a withering look.

"Real mature Natalie."

"Says you!"

They drove over a bridge and what was waiting for them at the bottom but a long lineup of cars that stretched as far as Natalie could see. Devon smirked at her.

"Don't say anything." Natalie grumbled.

Devon laughed. "You've always been overly naive Natalie."

Natalie narrowed her eyes. "What are you, an expert on me?"

"I never said that."

"But your tone implied it."

"So what are you then, an expert who knows what my tone implies?"