Safer Shores(Human Lapidot)

1. The Long Drive

     Jasper's skin was a mixed dark-skinned color, and such, looked like a dark caramel, yet it turned to a cream at her knuckles. Her hands gripped the steering wheel with such strength, it seemed like she was trying to pull it off whatever binded it to the car's interior. Ironically, she looked extremely calm in the moment. Her and Peridot cruised down the highway, passing other cars and vans that were packed full of belongings.

     The two were just a tiny bit more than acquaintances. Peridot and Jasper had met in a city in California at a science convention. Peridot was on a street corner, her little spherical drones looking like nothing compared to the other grand inventions that covered the block in which the convention took place. Jasper was just passing by, and Peridot shrunk when she noticed her presence. Jasper had smiled and poked at the drones, which upsetted Peridot, and after a minute Jasper left. She kept visiting Peridot, making casual fun of her drones, until the girl finally asked how to make the drones better. Peridot then began to visit Jasper to add blasters and cameras to her drones, and they soon began doing small favors for each other anytime they met again.

     Due to their favors for each other, Peridot began to get used to Jasper, even though whether or not the two were actually friends was a mystery. What was perfectly clear, however, was that they were moving their home in California and going across country. Their home city and surrounding areas began to be unsafe due to an insane amount of public and school shootings within the past six months. With the government struggling to figure out what to do about gun laws and shooting drills, Peridot and Jasper, as long as many others, decided not to wait like sitting ducks for a decision. Not everywhere is completely safe from things like shootings, but there is such thing as a 'safer' place. One of those safer places was in Delmarva. The boardwalk town of Beach City.

     Peridot slid down in her seat, becoming uneasy as she stared at the horizon, which threatened her with yet another sunset. Her and Jasper have been in their car for the longest of times, unable to have purchased plane tickets to just fly to their new town. Her heart has been stopping or aching since they left home. She's never known anything but busy streets with busy people, and now that it's become too dangerous to stay, she's going to a town. A town, with less people and fewer events. She never really liked being surrounded by so many people back home, and thought she was excited about going to a place less... surrounding. But now that she was even closer to Beach City made her feel homesick and scared. What if they have a tsunami? There were never any of those back home? And what if they don't have any science clubs or conventions-I'll be a nerdy freak in everyone's presence! Peridot felt very uncomfortable thinking about what she'd do in this new area, so she turned to Jasper.

     "Hey, Jasper?" She began.

     "Yeah?" The larger girl replied, trying to keep her eyes on the road.

     Peridot looked to her hands, which folded in her lap. "Is-is driving hard?" She said, abandoning the question she was going to ask-'Do you think we're doing the right thing by leaving home?'

     "No."

     Peridot didn't even have a car, so she didn't know what it felt to be behind the wheel, and didn't dare try to drive Jaspers car. One reason for that is the lack of a license, the other, how terrible the girl's rath would be if Peridot crashed. She swallowed at the thought. "Oh."

     Jasper stole a glance at her friend. "That's not all, is it?"

     "W-what?"

      "Yeah, I bet you wanted to say something else?"

     The smaller girl couldn't figure out what words to use, what excuse to use, and instead found herself stuttering like an idiot. She blushed a little, and resorted to looking out the window. She heard a small chuckle from the driver, and closed her eyes tight. Just fall asleep. Maybe if you do, you'll just get the ride over with.