Misadventures | Kellic

1.

I woke up early this morning to a tap on my window. My alarm said it was only 5:30 am- I still had three hours before I had to be to work. Bang. I glanced at my window, my eyes widening. I was reminded of a scary movie Vic and I had watched a while back. Though my heart started beating frantically, I climbed out of bed and went to my window, jumping when I saw a rock hit it. Bang.

I opened my window expecting to see an axe murderer and instead looked down on a smiling Vic. "Can I come in?" He called. I nodded, reaching out the window and tugging at a fire escape ladder my mother had installed beside my window. Ever since our old house had burned down and I had barely made it, she'd been paranoid. I couldn't say much though, because that experience had created my fear of fire, as well as my mother's overprotective tendencies.

Vic climbed up the ladder quickly and quietly. When he finally made it inside my room, I giggled. "Vic, you cheeseball. What're you doing? You could've knocked on the door," I glanced back at my alarm clock and sighed. "Or waited a couple hours to come over. I mean, I know you said 'bright and early', but I didn't expect you to come this early."

"Shh! I had to come over now, there's no time to explain." He had drug a backpack out of my closet and tossed it on my bed. "Get dressed, I'll pack for you." I noticed that he was wearing a small backpack as well and narrowed my eyes. "What're you-"
"Don't ask questions, angel face. Just get dressed."

I stripped out of my pajamas and pulled on a pair of jeans, a beanie, and my favorite Nirvana t-shirt, looking expectantly at Vic, who was shoving clothes into my backpack. He smiled at me. "Thanks, cutie. But throw on a jacket, just in case." I blushed, but pulled on a soft maroon hoodie anyway.

"Will you please tell me what you're doing?" I whined. Vic pulled my arms through the straps of my bag before kissing my nose. "We're going on an adventure."
"An adventure? Well, how long is this gonna take, because I have a job to get to today-" Vic laughed and shook his head at me. "The only job you have now is to come with me. No questions asked."

Vic and I climbed out of my window and into his car, where he ignored my desperate questions until we were several miles from my house. "Vic, where the fuck are we going?" I shouted, looking in the rear view mirror at my hometown, already getting smaller in the distance. He blinked at me. "I told you. We're going on an adventure." I groaned, kicking the dashboard of his car.

"You know this is practically kidnapping, right? You can't take me anywhere against my will!" I screeched. I was surprised with myself- hadn't I been dreaming of leaving Grover Beach with Vic for years? Hadn't I always wanted an adventure? He sighed at me. "Kellin Quinn Bostwick. If you really hate surprises so much, I guess I'll tell you, but you have to promise not to get upset with me."
"I'm not making any promises," I huffed.

"Firstly, let's face it: there's nothing left for us here. We've outgrown Grover Beach," he chuckled. "My parents are dead and your mom treats you like you're going to be dead. You only had a month left of school until you graduated, and I'm already finished with school. We might as well skip out, see the world. Live a little bit." He paused, chewing on his lip like he had last night. "We're finally getting out of there, baby. And there's no one who can stop us."

I snorted. "Except the police." Vic rolled his eyes at me. "Kells, you're nearly 18, and I'm 22. What can they do? We're adults. We're free to do as we please." I was silent for a while, thinking that over, before I realized that he was right. I closed my eyes, breathing in through my nose, out through my mouth, just like my therapist had taught me. The therapist I'll never see again.

"Are you done whining?" Vic asked me. I wrinkled my nose before giving him a small "yes". He grinned at me, flashing his heartbreakingly straight teeth. "So... You don't want to know where we're going?" He reached for my hand. "Um, I kind of don't." His face fell, and I amended. "But I can see you're excited about this, so I'll ask. Where are we going?"

His answering smile was breathtaking and full of excitement. "Well we're going to a lot of places, Kellybear, but our first stop? Los Angeles." I cocked my head to the side, gesturing for him to explain his choice in destinations. "I've always found it funny that we only live three and a half hours away from LA, yet we've never visited. So I wanted to stop there first." He said, idly tapping the steering wheel.

I nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense. But Vic? Are we... Are we ever going back home?" I almost wanted him to say no, but he looked thoughtfully at me. "Only if you want to. I don't have anything left there, but I know you do."
"What about Mike?" Vic stopped tapping, squinting out the windshield, though the morning sky was perfectly clear. "He'll be alright. He's got friends and a job, along with half of mom and dad's inheritance."

He squeezed my hand quickly before putting both hands on the wheel. I turned on the radio and leaned against the window, staring at the passing palm trees. I wonder if I'm ever going to miss those? Vic began singing and I focused on the sound of his voice, relaxing against the seat and letting the steady movement of the car lull me to sleep.

*****
Good so far? Comment what you think! I love you guys. Until next time~
-Landon