i'm only given clues

Chapter 1

They arrive on the highway a little while after and Normani finally feels like they're getting somewhere. She sighs in relief and turns her head to look at Dinah but finds her fast asleep, curled into a ball against the door.

Normani smiles despite the disappointment she feels. Car journeys with Dinah are one of her favorite things, but not when she's sleeping.

Ryan catches her eye in the rear view and gives her a knowing look.

/

After a crackle over the radio, they stop at a mostly empty roadside diner just outside Louisville, Kentucky for some lunch. The little old lady running it looks terrified at the sudden amount of teenagers entering the restaurant and seats them all as far away from the counter as possible.

Normani remains behind after everyone has gone and gently coaxes Dinah awake. She stirs and opens one eye to view Normani.

"Hey," Normani says softly and she can't stop herself from brushing Dinah's hair from her face. "You hungry? We've stopped for some lunch."

Dinah's eyes flutter closed again and she shakes her head softly. Normani smiles and quietly exits the car, leaving her best friend behind to slumber.

/

"She only just made it," Keith tells her quietly once their food has arrived, but not before his entire face is covered in barbecue sauce. "Her parents nearly didn't let her come. She kept asking them for days and then yesterday morning they said she could take her mom's car. She didn't sleep so she could get back in time."

Normani watches her carefully out of the window, knowing that she'd do exactly the same thing.

/

They've been back on the road just over an hour when Dinah wakes up and stretches out her long limbs with a groan. Normani watches her with a sideways glance as she blinks then smiles once she realizes where she is, like she's waking up from a dream that actually came true.

"How long was I asleep?" she mumbles, turning to face Normani and curling back into a sleepy ball. She darts her heavy brown eyes to the back of the car and finds the others are asleep.

With full bellies, the rest of their companions had easily drifted off as soon as they got back in the car. Plus, the sun was beating down on them hard and the air was warm and stuffy. The only logical thing to do was to sleep in order to stave off enduring the tingles of the burning sun rays on their skin.

Normani checks the clock on the dash. "About seven hours," she says. "Tired?"

Dinah giggles low, sleep still thick in her throat. Normani almost shivers at the sound of it. "Not anymore," Dinah shakes her head.

Normani smiles rolls her eyes in response and changes lanes, watching Jacob and Ty follow her in her rear view. She turns back to the road, just in time to watch Dinah sit up and rub her stomach.

"Did you bring any snacks?" she says as her tummy grumbles in agreement.

Normani just hands her the take out box that's been waiting for her on the dash. Dinah gasps in excitement as she takes it. Normani waits nervously for Dinah to open the box, chuckling when she becomes so excited her fingers fumble at the opening.

The kiss to her cheek she gets when Dinah realizes that she picked her up her favorite sandwich is worth the swerve she almost takes into the center barrier.

/

An hour away from Nashville, Normani yawns in exhaustion.

Dinah nudges her, before giving her a bright smile, and coaxes her into a game of I Spy that has her laughing so hard she wakes the other three up.