BILLET-DOUX ✦ CLASSIC ROCK

20 - bob dylan

Requested by Turnleft_atgreenland ! This is probably the cheesiest thing I've written in my life, but bear with me.
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Rain pattered a steady beat on the roof of Bob's old Sedan, blurring the windows in a cascade of water droplets. If you looked closely enough, you could make out the towering shapes of trees rustling in the wind and the distant flecks of light from homes tucked away in the country.

You weren't sure what state you were in, but you were almost certain enough time had passed for you to leave New York and enter the rolling territory of Pennsylvania.

You sat alone in the passenger side of the car, waiting impatiently for Bob to return from the ramshackle gas station he'd ducked into in order to grab provisions for the rest of the trip.

It had been Bob's idea to take a scenic drive together. Something he'd explained to you almost self-consciously, hiding mostly behind the dark frames of his sunglasses. You had wholeheartedly agreed, happy to spend the peaceful time together.

With Bob's burgeoning career as a musician, he was beginning to spend more time on the road away from you playing gigs and making records. You supported Bob in all of his endeavors and, honestly, you were pretty proud of the progress that he'd made. He had come from such humble beginnings to this sudden shoot to fame.

The process was just difficult for you.

You imagined that it was difficult for Bob, too. Being a very private person, he didn't care to have the press sniffing around for the small, embarrassing details of his life each and every day. This trip was to reclaim his solitude, but also to be with you, undisturbed.

Bob had loaded up the car that morning, bringing a basket full of snacks and a cooler full of drinks for your expedition. It was the happiest that you'd seen him in months, as he hopped around getting things ready for you two. As a last thought, Bob tossed his acoustic guitar in the backseat in case the mood struck him.

Just as you had woken up, Bob had met you in the bedroom – fully dressed and ready to take on the day – and urged you outside so you could start the trip early.

Nearly a day's worth of traveling later, here you were smack dab in the middle of Nowhere Special, Pennsylvania.

Bob had made several stops along the way for you two to get out, stretch your legs, and take plenty of pictures.

Upstate New York was gorgeous in the fall, and driving through the countryside together was an absolute dream. You had gently pried one of Bob's hands off of the steering wheel to hold in your lap and delicately trace each vein that snaked across his pale skin.

But the beautiful day had melted into the empty night, and a thunderstorm had already taken hold over the small town you'd found yourselves in.

You worried at the fabric of your sleeve, peering across the dash at the lit up doorway of the station. It had been almost ten minutes since Bob had left. Was he alright in there?

To distract yourself, you reached over to turn the dial up on the radio. It was mere fuzzy static from the Sedan's inopportune placing right next to a building. You frowned, wriggling in your seat and making plans to head in there yourself if Bob didn't come out.

He was incredibly vulnerable today, dressing in something loose-fitting and warm. A sweater you had painstakingly knit for him and trousers that had to be cinched around Bob's thin waist with a too-tight belt. Like this, Bob could easily be the victim of a mugging or something equally unpleasant.