This Story's Going Somewhere

Chapter 11 - Nora

           

We arrived in Seattle by around five the following afternoon. Joe and Andy had both had a chance to drive by this time, and once Patrick quit at around two in the morning, I moved to the back seat with him. He had tried to tell me to stay where I was, but I felt bad hogging the front seat, and I was comfortable enough next to Patrick anyways. After I soon fell asleep on his shoulder, he didn't seem to have any problems with it. Andy was driving when we got into the city, and after some arguing with his navigator, Pete, we eventually pulled up in front of a hotel. It wasn't anything fancy; Just a Holiday Inn Express, but the boys and I were more than eager to get into our rooms and rest before the show tomorrow night.

                Again, Patrick refused to let me carry my own bag in, so I took my purse and headed for the front desk to check us in. By the time I was done, the boys were walking through the revolving front doors of the lobby, with their suitcases rolling behind them. They had locked all of the instruments in the trailer. I turned to them, brandishing four room keys, and led the way to the elevator. We rode it up to the third floor, and our rooms were down a long hallway to our left. We'd been given adjoining rooms, right beside each other, with a door to move in between.

                "This is you guys," I said, handing two keycards to Pete, Andy, and Joe, "And this is us," I told Patrick, giving him one of the remaining keycards. I unlocked our door with mine, and Patrick followed me into the room. It was nothing special, just a standard hotel room with two queen beds, a small television, and a cramped bathroom. Still, the beds looked more than welcoming after almost thirty hours in a van. I headed to the one closest to the window and flopped down on my back, sighing with content. Patrick chuckled at me as he wheeled my suitcase to the foot of my bed, and threw his bag onto his.

                "How are you feeling?" He asked suddenly, as he sat down on the edge of his bed. I rolled onto my side to face him, one hand coming to rest on my belly, and Patrick watched me curiously.

                "Just tired," I told him, "And a little hungry."

                "Do you want a snack? I can run down to the vending machine, or...." He shrugged as he trailed off, and I knew that he'd go out and buy me a three course meal if I'd asked him to.

                Instead, I opted for the vending machine. "Can you see if they have any salt and vinegar chips in the machine?" I was craving something absolutely awful for me, and while I didn't normally eat salt and vinegar chips, I attributed my random need for them to the baby. Patrick nodded, standing up quickly and reaching into his pocket to pull out his wallet. "Wait," I said, pulling two dollars from my own pocket and holding it out to him.

                "I got it," he said, refusing to let me pay for my own food once again and smiling at me like he knew how much he was annoying me. I only frowned and put my money back in my jeans. "I'll be back in a minute," Patrick said, and headed for the door.

                Once it closed behind him, I rolled onto my back again, and then sat up and reached for the television remote. I turned it on and flipped through some channels until I found a movie that looked decent enough. I had no idea what it was, but it seemed to be a cheesy rom-com. I laid back into the big, fluffy pillows on my bed and got myself comfortable. Patrick returned about five minutes later, two bags of salt and vinegar chips in his hands as well as a package of Twizzlers. As soon as I saw the chips, I grinned and held out my hands excitedly.

                "I got two," Patrick said, smirking as he tossed them to me. I caught one and immediately tore the package open, while Patrick glanced at the TV. "What are you watching?"