Beautiful Curse

Chapter 11

        I loiter around the front of the school grounds for the best part of a half-hour, waiting for the moment my dad's truck finally arrives. My body is almost jumping out of its skin with the growing anticipation. Central City! I smile again. The capital of the United Sates. Home to the president and numerous leaders of national corporations. Oh my god Dad, please hurry! Either his boss is giving him grief about leaving work early, or he is purposefully making me pay for that act last night at dinner...

        A familiar honk of a horn startles me from my thoughts, and I look up from my sitting position on a bench to see an old and dirty pickup truck parked at the sidewalk. With an unintentional animalistic whine of excitement I race to the passenger's side of the vehicle and jump in. After squishing my (favorite color) backpack near my feet, I quickly buckle in and give my father a prize-winning smile.

"Thanks so much, Dad!" I bounce a little in my seat as the man chuckles in amusement. He then shifts the gear into drive-mode and pulls out of the school driveway into a lane where we will eventually take an exit onto the highway, which will then lead to the freeway.

        "I'm only doing this once, (Name)," Dad says with his eyes on the road. "I had to use one of my vacation days to get out of work early, and those are very limited you know." My smile drops just a little at hearing that. Now I feel pretty guilty. Dad's job only gives him about two to three weeks' worth of time off, and he usually uses those days for when he's ill, since apparently there are no sick days available.

        Repeated clicking from the dashboard warns me that the truck is about to make a right turn into the exit lane. With a flick of the wrist we emerge onto the freeway, headed straight in the direction of Central City. In a couple hours we should be there, so now all I have to do is finish my schoolwork before we get there and then Dad can bring my backpack home.

        The two hours pass by quickly, and before I know it the skyscrapers of this nation's capital are rising into view. I press my face against the window, gawking at the sight in amazement. The buildings are so tall, one looks as if it may be over 50 stories high! And even further back I can see other skyscrapers dwarfing that one.

        "Look at that!" I point out a large building in the process of construction, glancing back at the vehicle's driver only to see that he had completely ignored my excited outburst. "Look (Father), look!" That got his attention. Dad spots the half-built structure and hums in false interest, returning his attention back to the road. I sigh in frustration at the fact that he is not as excited as I am. When was the last time we even came to Central City? I definitely don't remember it. Most likely I was just a little kid during our last visit, so of course it would be a bit difficult to recall any memories from that time.

        About another hour passes as we steer through the crowded streets of the city. Soon enough a neighborhood of college apartments is surrounding us. The vehicle slows down to a crawl as we pass by number after number, searching for (Cousin)'s place. We find it and pull up to the driveway.

        "You go on, (Name)," Dad says as he sets the truck into a parking position. "I'll wait here. If (Cousin) isn't home just come back and we can call him." Nodding, I swing the door open and jump out of the truck. It continues to rumble, as my father had not turned off the engine. With a small, excited grin, I race up the stairs to (Cousin)'s apartment and press on a round button, which I suppose is the doorbell. Only a few moments pass before the front door opens by my cousin.

        "(Nickname)? What the heck are you doing here?" he asks, surprised. I roll my eyes and give him a great bear hug. Nice to see you too. "Geez, I didn't expect this! I was just about to get ready to leave to visit you in (Hometown)."