The Road Trip

CHAPTER 3

Namjoon woke the next morning early enough to shower and grab breakfast at the local diner that was walking distance from the hotel Jin drove Namjoon to the night before. The hotel was comfortable, amazingly enough, owned by a man local in town. It turned out his wife owned the diner along with his granddaughter. Namjoon had a late dinner there and was surprised to find the food as delicious as any four star restaurant.

There was a door chime when he opened the door. The diner was actually quite quaint and slightly busy despite the size of the town. By the way the waitresses were greeting the customers, they had to be locals. Namjoon sat at an empty seat in front of the counter and a young woman with blonde hair walked up to him.

"Hi, my name's Sophia," she said. "Can I take your order?"

"Steak omelet special and coffee please," he said.

"Coming right up," she said, writing it down and headed toward the kitchen. She returned a minute later with a cup and a pot of coffee. "Sugar? Cream?"

"No, thank you," said Namjoon.

Sophia nodded and left for Namjoon to drink in peace. A few minutes later, she placed a plate of omelet and hash browns in front of him. As soon as he started eating, the door chimed and Sophia smiled.

"Hey, Jin," she said. "Your usual?"

"You know me so well, Sophia," said Jin, sitting a couple seats away from Namjoon.

"Are you heading for New York today?" she asked, filling a cup in front of Jin with coffee and a set of sugar and cream next to it. 

"Yep," said Jin, adding an ungodly amount of sugar and cream. "I'm going to hike to the truck stop and try to get a ride from one of the truckers."

Sophia's eyes widened in shock.

"Jin, that's ten miles away! And in this weather, you'll freeze to death!" she said.

He smiled at her reassuringly.

"I'll be alright," he said. "All I need is a thermos of your grandma's coffee and chicken and vegetable soup and I'll be all set."

"At least let one of us take you," said Sophie. "Grandma and Grandpa won't mind."

"You don't have to do that. I'll be fine. You'll see me again in the spring, promise."

Sophia looked skeptical, but went to the back to get Jin's meal. Jin turned and saw Namjoon eating not far from him.

"Hey, man, how did you sleep?" he asked.

"Surprisingly well," said Namjoon.

"That's great," said Jin with a smile. "Are you going to get your car after breakfast?"

"Yes," said Namjoon, sipping his coffee. "Are you sure it's wise to walk to a truck stop miles away in this weather?"

"Well, if I had a car, it would certainly be easier, but I think I can make it."

Namjoon studied the man as Sophia came and set a plate of strawberry pancakes in front of him. This man was willing to brave the cold to continue his journey. He was an idiot.

Namjoon finished his breakfast and left to walk to the auto garage. It was cold, but thankfully Namjoon only had to walk a couple of blocks to the garage. Sam already had the garage open and was working on Namjoon's car.

"I'm here for the car," said Namjoon.

"Sure," said Sam. He went to a key rack and took down a set of keys. "Here you go. One Impala, as ordered."