As an exchange student from Scotland, a whole new world opens up to Darren Green when he moves to the United States. He'll live with a host family, start at a new school, and he'll have to make new friends. However, what won't be a part of this new...
Ops! Esta imagem não segue as nossas directrizes de conteúdo. Para continuares a publicar, por favor, remova-a ou carrega uma imagem diferente.
HE'D OFFERED TO DRIVE AND she hadn't objected, so they found themselves in Dominic's car in the middle of the night, navigating themselves to a better place than the mansion that had seemed so perfect a few hours ago.
"Wait, can we stop here?" Dakota asked. Her voice broke the silence that had been the only sound in the car since they'd left the party site.
"Here?" Darren looked out the side windows, but as far as he could see, there was nothing worth stopping for. They were driving among endless empty fields and lonely roads, them being the only living beings in sight. There were no buildings, restaurants, or animals anywhere around, and the reason for this sudden stop puzzled Darren for that reason.
Dakota said again she wanted to make a pit-stop, so Darren obeyed, and at the first opportunity that came his way, he parked the car and the two of them got out. Dakota welcomed the fresh air with a big gasp and closed her eyes in pleasure. For a few seconds, she just stood there and gave the wind the chance to play with her long, loose hair.
Darren joined her on her side of the car while watching her every move, feeling a sense of wariness for her out-of-place behavior. "Are you all right?" he asked. The question also referred to what had happened earlier that night – even if Darren didn't know exactly what that was. All he knew was that Julian had invited them to this party and that Dakota later tried to get rid of him, which took more effort than it should have.
A sigh escaped her lips. "I am," she said, and now that he was standing next to her, he could see how her lips curled into a satisfied smile and her head tilted upwards. She focused her gaze on the sky and followed the patterns of the stars with her bright blue eyes. It was here, surrounded by nothing and in the absence of sounds, that she felt at peace.
Darren sat down in the grass on the side of the road when Dakota remained unmoved for a while. He had to admit that this place, although deserted, was a nice place to be. After being in an overwhelming, cramped room for most of the night with numerous stimuli begging for his attention, the calm of nothingness was a welcome change. He could breathe again, and this liberating feeling already slowed down his heart that had forgotten what it felt like to not be in a rush.
Time felt like it had stopped, so when Dakota moved and turned to him, it startled him. "I really needed that," she said, not noticing the change in emotion she caused in Darren. Instead, she seemed to have found a peace that translated into her voice, which was calm and quiet.
"Is it time to go, then?"
"Not yet," she said, "let's explore a little more first."
"Explore" was the word she'd used earlier that evening too, to convince him to come with her to a party without him knowing it was a party. This time, however, it seemed to be more his type of exploring: in the quiet nature, just the two of them. So, he decided to go along and followed her as she took resolute steps into the endless field laying before them. The dark night sky limited their vision and neither of them knew where they were or where they were going, but that didn't stop them.
