Blossom

[01]

          "Oh, Jasper's here," Stella announced once hearing a car pull up into the driveway, "you ready?"

          With a small nod, Cameron followed her mother out of her bedroom. She didn't bother to glance back, knowing the pain she would feel in her heart. Too many memories of Whitney took place in that very room. Although they were beautiful and warming, they resulted in the feeling of despair.

          Jasper had been already walking towards the front door when Cameron and her mother were outside. He was a white man with chocolate scruff across his jaw and brown eyes that matched his hair. From the way he dressed, she knew where she got her style from. Flannel shirt underneath a black jacket and jeans. They were practically twins.

          Goodbyes were never Cameron's thing. She wasn't a cryer so when she didn't, whoever she was saying goodbye to, they would think she was faking for their benefit. Rather than crying, she expressed her sadness through running. It wasn't just a way to cope with sorrow but also anger, happiness, etc. No matter what she felt, she ran. The air was refreshing, allowing her to take time with her breathing.

          Once her and Jasper were in the car, silence filled the air for a while. Neither of them knew what to say, unsure how to start a conversation. Hopefully, that awkward tension would disappear sooner or later. Although they spent time together during the summer, Stella was usually with them to keep the conversation alive and going.

Jasper tapped his fingers on the steering wheel as he drove, trying to find something to say. He didn't want to immediately start bossing her around or try to be her friend rather than her father. It was difficult because of the circumstances. "There's, uh, a track team at the school you're going to. They're pretty good; have won almost every race. I'm close with the coach so, she's put you on the top of the list for tryouts."

"Oh, thanks," Cameron muttered. She watched outside the window, trees raced by and the sun followed behind the car. She didn't know what she felt in that moment. Was she nervous about starting a new school and living with her father whom she's never met until a month earlier? Was she sad about leaving her mother for an entire year? Or was she happy about having the opportunity to start a new life?

"Are you hungry? We can stop at a diner for lunch," Jasper suggested but noticed that they were in the middle of nowhere, "once we make it out of wherever we are."

Nodding, Cameron smiled at his sudden confusion. She knew the way out of the dirt roads but she wanted to watch Jasper try to find out where they were. "That sounds good, I'm starving."

The diner they arrived at was called Highway 55. It was a 50s themed restaurant where the men cooked and the woman served dressed in pink blouses with black poodles sewn into them and wide black skirts.

"I feel very underdressed," Jasper joked once they sat in a booth.

Cameron laughed, "I should've brought my Sandy Olsson costume."

They both cackled at their jokes before having their orders taken. Nia, the waitress, obviously seemed bothered by the comments but brushed them off. Neither Cameron or Jasper noticed her annoyance because of their laughter.

          Music she's never heard before blared from the speakers hanging in the corners of the walls. It was from the times before she had been born and obviously Jasper. Happy families, young couples on dates, and friends surrounded them. They all looked so happy just being in each other's presence. She admired that. She wanted that.

          As they ate, Jasper continued to talk about the school he enrolled Cameron in. How the teachers were, the students, the sports teams, the classes, and even the after school clubs which she didn't even care about but liked hearing her father talk.