Breathing Room (Waiting Room #2)

Chapter 15: All-Nighter Part II (Part 2)

Jacky

"You," Jacky stated, staring at Braedyn in his blue t-shirt and matching plaid pajama pants, "want to help me?"

Braedyn took a deep breath that sounded slightly strangled. "I know it's been really awkward—"

"You think?" Jacky said.

"Yeah, I guess this is my way of apologizing?" Braedyn rubbed the back of his head. "I don't hate you and I don't want you to hate me. So wherever you're going, I can drive."

Jacky glanced over at Billy and Lilliana, who could have used a bucket of popcorn between them for how they were eating all of this up, then returned to Braedyn and those puppy dog eyes. He steeled himself. "Even if it's a five-hour drive to Boston so I can get back together with my ex-boyfriend?"

Braedyn swallowed. "Yeah. I think that would be good for you."

"Lilliana?" Jacky needed her permission, too. "You cool with him driving your car?"

"Yes!" she cried, as if she'd just been proposed to. "Road trip!"

"Road trip!" Billy repeated, and that was when Jacky realized these two were planning to come along. Jacky made eye contact with Braedyn. At least there wouldn't be any awkward silences on the ride.

***

Sooner than he might have thought possible, especially given that Billiana had insisted upon choosing new outfits for everyone, all four of them were packed into Lilliana's Jeep Wrangler. "This is so exciting!" Lilliana squealed as Jacky typed the address Monica had given him into the GPS system. "Oh, I have the perfect playlist!"

Cyndi Lauper's "I Drove All Night" suddenly blasted into the car.

"Off we go," Braedyn said, shifting into gear, and off they went.

Within a couple of minutes they were on the Mass Pike, flying through the dark. Even though the GPS put their arrival as 5 a.m., Jacky's stomach was already doing flipflops. He was going to see Ryan. To talk to him.

He couldn't imagine seeing Ryan and not feeling that connection they'd had before he made the stupidest mistake in his life. So much had happened since they had broken up, and even just those few days of texting with Ryan had felt like putting on his favorite sweatshirt. The thought of hugging Ryan almost made him forget the whole reason why he felt the need to drive out to Ryan's apartment in the middle of the night.

Billiana, in the backseat, were having their own little party, singing along to Liliana's playlist. "Closer to Fine" was followed by "Fast Car," then a few Jacky had to join in with: "Don't Stop Believin'" and "Bohemian Rhapsody." Eventually the playlist gave out to more Taylor Swift and a mellower vibe, and after an hour or so, Jacky glanced in the backseat and saw that both of them were asleep.

The highway was mostly dark and empty, aside from occasional cars and trucks they passed. Signs began to appear for a rest stop, and after the second one, Braedyn cleared his throat.

Jacky jolted and realized he'd completely zoned out, thinking about Ryan and not about how it would look showing up at Ryan's doorstep with Braedyn at his side.

"Wanna stop and get some caffeine?" Braedyn asked. "The rest stop is in a couple miles."

"Sure." He knew he would need it if he wanted to stay awake all night. It would be shitty of him to sleep while Braedyn drove, especially since Braedyn was helping him for no apparent reason. "My treat."

"I have money—" Braedyn started, but Jacky cut him off.

"I'm buying. I still owe you for that coffee on the first day of classes."

"Huh. I forgot about that."

Jacky had only remembered it just now. Even if it was only a coffee or an energy drink, it would even the scales a bit. Jacky hadn't done anything for Braedyn out of the goodness of his heart. That coffee on the first day, being nice to him when he didn't have anyone to hang with on those first lonely days of school, walking him home after the awful date with Cameron – he wasn't going to count that blow job as a favor, since he hadn't asked for it, but there had been a lot of times when Braedyn was a good friend. What had Jacky done? He hadn't been a total dick to Braedyn that time in the elevator, but he also hadn't helped Braedyn with any kind of true altruism. He just hadn't wanted Braedyn to have a panic attack.

Billiana roused in the backseat as they parked. "Are we there?" Lilianna asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Just getting caffeine and snacks," Jacky told her. "You guys can stay in here."

"No way," said Billy, popping open the door. "You said snacks."

Inside, they split up, Braedyn headed for the energy drinks while a yawning Liliana grabbed gummy bears and Doritos. Jacky found the Starbucks Frappuccinos and while trying to decide between caramel, mocha, and vanilla, Billy appeared in the glass behind him. "Jesus," Jacky said, jumping.

"Do I really look that awful?" Billy asked. He leaned in and blinked at his reflection.

"You're fine." Jacky yanked open the door and Billy jerked back. "You want one of these?"

"I sure do." Reaching into Jacky's personal space, he took a Doubleshot Espresso. "I need to be awake to see your ex. Would you say he's photogenic?"

Jacky changed his mind and took what Billy had taken, hoping it had more caffeine than the Frappuccinos. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"I mean, he looks like a model. So if you said he isn't photogenic, then he's a lot hotter than his photos." Billy grinned.

"He's my boyfriend," Jacky snapped.

"Is he?"

Jacky could tell that Billy was baiting him, so he just glowered and stomped off to find something to eat.

He ended up standing beside Liliana and debating over which was more gross: rest stop hotdogs or rest stop sushi.

"It's definitely sushi," Jacky said. "Anything fish is a bad idea outside of a real restaurant."

Lilianna tilted her head. "At least the sushi has a sell by date. The hotdogs? Who knows how long they've been rotating on that thing."

"I never thought about that."

"My roommate's a vegan. She made me watch a whole documentary about processed foods. You know what they put in hotdogs?"

"I don't think I wanna know."

Picking up a pre-packaged container of hummus and pita chips, Lilianna said darkly, "Once you know, you can never un-know."

"You guys ready?" Braedyn asked, walking up with two Monster energy drinks and a package of Oreos.

Jacky stared at the Oreos for a moment long enough to make him realize how tired he was. If they didn't get going, he wasn't going to make it until morning. He grabbed a handful of Slim Jims. "Let's go. Where's Billy?" He turned and nearly ran into him. Billy shoved a handful of food items at Jacky. Braedyn jumped forward to catch everything that wasn't going to fit into the crook of Jacky's one elbow, which was basically everything.

"Buy these for me, I need to—" Billy didn't finish. He clapped a hand over his mouth and ran for the door, his red sneakers squeaking on the tile.

___

I once got a hotdog at a rest stop and it was possibly the best hotdog I've ever eaten... Do you have a favorite road trip snack?