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When George Shaw tries to find a plan for the last fifteen days to spend with his best friend, who he's had a crush on for as long as he can remember, all he needs is a map to plot out a road trip and his daily h...
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AFTER WAKING UP SO EARLY EVERY SINGLE DAY FOR TWO WEEKS, IT WAS SO STRANGE TO WAKE UP AT NOON.
Abby was sleeping beside me with my arm rested under her head. I could vividly remember the details of last night, though the hangover was as massive as I thought it would be. Rubbing my temple, I shut my eyes once again. I needed to take painkillers.
Abby's sudden movement swung my eyes open again, turning at her side to check on her. She gave me a lazy smile with her eyes partly open. "Are you okay?" I whispered, putting a kiss on her forehead. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm good." She gave me a peck on the neck before she pulled herself up from the bed and put on my t-shirt. It literally looked ten times better on her—yes, this was my favorite t-shirt from now on as long as she was in it. "We slept in," she said as she turned at me. "What about ditching the rest of the plan? I want to take you somewhere."
I tilted my eyebrow. "Where?"
"Somewhere special," she replied. "On the way home." I nodded but the sudden growl of my stomach cut the conversation off. That made her chuckle as she settled back beside me. "But first, let's have brunch."
When we gathered our stuff and checked out, the owner told us to visit him again if we ever came back to Vegas. Though Abby was annoyed, he seemed lonely and I sort of felt sad for him. Instead of seeking around for a place, we decided to head back to the south, where the city was livelier and had much more diners. I wasn't in the mood for breakfast, so I went for a burger when Abby got herself a salmon salad.
"My father texted me," she suddenly said, looking at the screen. "He asks when we will be back."
"We would be there before midnight, right?"
"I'll text him so." Her face remained expressionless, though I bet she didn't want to return. The pregnancy thing put her off and she didn't want to face Susan after it. I leaned over the table to hold her hand so that she would know I was here for her no matter what. In the wake of our touch, she beamed at me, setting her phone. She looked as though she was about to say something but that never came.
We got back on the road after filling our stomachs. I was dying to know where she was taking us to, but I was keen on not pestering her about it anyway. She said it was a surprise and I was going to let it be. I was feeling so carefree, so relaxed. It was like the secret was out now and the bright days were onward.
When I turned the radio on to fill the void, she started humming along with a familiar song. I watched her tap her fingers against the steering wheel and steal a glance in my direction occasionally. She looked happy, and that looked so good on her.
"So, which place was your favorite on this trip?"
She considered for a minute and replied with a soft smile on her face: "Texas." It stunned me that out of all places, she picked Texas as her favorite, so I asked her the reason. It made all the difference to hear it coming out of her mouth. "It's where we reunited, and you know, at that moment when we resolved our problems and hugged, I knew things were going to be okay either way. I didn't know you liked me then, but I didn't care—I had you and it was all that mattered."
