Searching for Light

Chapter Five: Soft and Fragile

Who?

"Jason Dunhamm. He's basically a celebrity pop singer. You should hear his voice."

He sounds great. Hey, you still up for dinner?

I blinked. "Oh, yeah. I completely forgot. Where are we going?"

I don't know. I was thinking we could do something small for fun and then go some place to eat that's better quality. I'm in the mood for some good food and music. You know, somewhere better than some old bar or fast food drive-thru.

I hesitated. "I don't know . . . Those places are pretty expensive."

Hey, it'll be fun. I'll pick you up in fifteen, okay?

I smiled at my thighs. "Okay. See you then."

I had to quickly drive home, since my house was about 18 minutes away. I pulled out of the parking lot and head down the road, the voice of my GPS leading me home.

I pulled open the door of my house and saw Harmony and J.J. sitting on the couch . . . just talking.

My first thought was: Uh-oh.

"Hey," J.J. was the first to speak when he turned to face me.

My heart pounded and my cheeks burned, knowing that J.J. probably told Harmony about us. I sat my purse down on the leather chair, slowly approaching them.

"You ready to go?" he asked, completely comfortable.

"Uh, yeah." I swallowed when he walked up to me and offered me his hand. When his back was to Harmony and he was standing between us I shot him a "dangerous" look.

He just shrugged it off and we said goodbye to Harmony before stepping outside and heading out to his truck. The sun was still out, despite what time it is. When it was snowing the sky would be dark by five o'clock at night. Now it was almost six thirty and the sky was plenty bright, with tints of orange in it.

Once the door shut I slapped J.J.'s arm, making him grimace and hold out his hands to prevent another bruise from forming on his muscular arms.

"What were you talking about?" I demanded, still nervous.

"Just life," he replied defensively, acting like I punched him in the face. "Nothing serious."

"You were telling her about us, weren't you?"

"I wouldn't lie to you."

"Were you?" I asked again.

"No." He opened the passenger door of the truck for me and I climb in. "Cam, I would never do anything that you asked me not to do. I promise, we were just talking. Okay?"

I sighed and nodded as he squeezed my hand and his slipped away from mine to shut the door. He walked around the front and climbed into the driver's seat.

"So, what's this small event that you were planning?"

"You'll have to wait and see," he winked as I cross my arms. "It's a surprise."

We drove for not that long before J.J. pulled into a gravel parking lot, sending rocks flying up behind the truck along with dusty smoke. We parked, and I looked around confusedly. There was only grass and road surrounding us. Cars drove by, and J.J. checked his phone before climbing out and walking around the car again. He opened my door and offered me his hand and I took it happily. I didn't let go even after I climbed out and shut the door, and I saw his eyes sparkle as he glanced at me, probably thinking the same thing I was.

I'm so glad we can finally hold hands without hesitation.

I walked where he led us, which was along a long, grassy area. It looked like a pasture where shepherds would tend to their sheep in the old (really, really old) days. Finally we walked over a hill and I saw a small, black object. I looked questioningly up at J.J., who smiled and nodded. I ran down the hill to reach the strange object, and came to find it was a go-cart. I frowned, unsure of why J.J. had brought me to this random place with a golf cart.