It All Started With A Lamp

Chapter 14

Audrey's POV:

             I reach for the radio, and Michelle groans. "Ugh, not this again. Keep it at a reasonable volume, and please, no shouting?" she asks, and I nod, then turn it on. Flipping through the stations, I find my favorite one, K-Love, and leave it there. One of my favorite songs, Overwhelmed, by Big Daddy Weave:

      "I see the work of Your Hands

Galaxies spin in a Heavenly dance oh God

All that You are is so overwhelming

      I hear the sound of Your Voice

All at once it's a gentle and thundering noise oh God

All that You are is so overwhelming

       I delight myself in You

Captivated by Your beauty

I'm overwhelmed, I'm overwhelmed by You

     God, I run into Your arms

Unashamed because of mercy

I'm overwhelmed, I'm overwhelmed by You

     I know the power of Your Cross

Forgiven and free forever You'll be my God

All that You've done is so overwhelming

I delight myself in You

In the Glory of Your Presence

I'm overwhelmed, I'm overwhelmed by You

God, I run into Your arms

Unashamed because of mercy

I'm overwhelmed, I'm overwhelmed by You

You are Beautiful, You are Beautiful

Oh God, there is no one more Beautiful

You are Beautiful, God you are the most Beautiful

You are Wonderful, You are Wonderful

Oh God, there is no one more Wonderful

You are Wonderful, God You are the most Wonderful

You are Glorious, You are Glorious

Oh God, there is no one more Glorious

You are Glorious, God you are the most Glorious"

              The song ends, and I calm down, exhausted from all the dancing and singing. The anouncers start talking about some pledge drive, and I tune them out. "Well Michelle, let's just head to Oroville from here. That was the plan all along, right?" She gives me a pouty face. "Aww, but I was having so much fun. Fuck Oroville, let's go to Vegas baby!" She shouts, and I sigh, "Michelle..." I whine, but she won't have any of it. "NO. We are going to Vegas to gamble and see male strippers! You need a fling to forget about what's-his-face and have some fun!" I look at her, " Then why do you want to go?" She gives me a look, "Gambling, male strippers, and getting so drunk off your ass you forget everything, DUH!" She throws her hands in the air, as if it's the most obvious thing. I panic, "Michelle THE WHEEL! GRAB THE WHEEL YOU MORON!" I scream, and she latches on to the steering wheel, taking control of the slightly swerving vehicle.

                     "Geez, calm the hell down, woman. I am a fabulous, thank you very much," she says, looking away from the road, and the car starts swerving. "Michelle, the road you fucking idiot! You know what? Fuck this, pull over, I'm driving!" I spit, frustrated at her lack of an attention span. She pulls over to the side of the road, "God, okay, but you don't need to be rude about, I was only trying to have fun," She looks at the ground, and I sigh again. "Yeah, and I'm sorry for snapping, but you need to pay attention. I've already spent the past four days in the hospital, I don't want to go there ever again," I tell her, and she nods. " I guess, and hey, I don't have to drive anymore!" She exclaims happily, then hops in the passanger seat. I get behind the wheel, and pull out onto the road again. It feels good to drive again, I have something to focus on besides Jack, and there is no possibility of Michelle killing us both with her lack of an attention span. As we drive, the environment slowly becomes more and more rural, with less houses and more trees. After a few hours, we are completely engulfed in forest.

                    As I drive, I look around me. Michelle had nodded off about 50 miles back, so I've been on my own for about an hour. I tried to listen to K-Love, but we had lost signal, so I just focused on my surroundings. The road itself is a faded black, the yellow lines in the middle faint, and worn with time. Where there are cracks, plants grow through, some flowering, some not. The trees are in the evergreen family but I can't tell which species. Based on what I can make out, though, it looks like spruce, but I can't be sure, everything is so blurry.
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          Four hours later, at five pm, I pull over to a restaraunt for dinner and coffee. Shaking Michelle's shoulder, I wake her up. "Michelle. Wake up. Dinner. Foo-" but I don't get to finish, she wakes up the minute I start saying food. "Food? Where? Dammit woman, I want food!" She shouts, flailing around and wacking me with her noodle arms. I grab her and try to calm her down. "Yes, Michelle, food. But you're not going to get any if you act like a three-year-old."  She immeadieatly calmes down and shuts up. We get out of the car and walk in. I inwardly cringe. The place has the hygene of a gas station bathroom and seems like it has the food of McDonalds, Taco Bell, and Burger King combined into one disgusting, fat filled, pastey burger or burrito. We go up to the order counter.

                "Hello. Can We one grilled cheese a BLT, and two cups of coffee please?" The girls smiles forcedly, "Sure," she ands us two cups, "Here's two cups, coffee's right over there. We'll have your order out as soon as possible. And, who should I put this down for?" Michelle goes to speak, but I cut her off, "Audrey Eller, please. Thank you."  The girl smiles again, only this time more genuinly. "Any time. I'll call you when your order's ready." I nod as we walk to a table, "Thanks!"  I call out, then sit down. Michelle turns to me, "God, this plae sucks. How does that girl like working here? She's younger than us, she should be out partying, not working." Michelle was right. She had to be 16 or 17, she should be having fun. "Maybe she is building up her resume. The more you do, the better college you could get into, right? Or maybe she's helping her family earn a little extra money, I did that when I was 15."  She nods, and we chat about nothing in particular until the girl at the counter calls my name.

              "Audrey Eller? Audrey Eller, your order's ready." Michelle perks up, and I go up to the counter. The girl hands me our food, and smiles, "I heard what you were saying, and you were right. I am trying to make my mother some more money. Everyone just assumes that I'm trying to get a car or a new iPhone. You were the first person to think that, so thank you." I smile back, "I just try to see the best in everyone and give everyone the benefit-of-the-doubt. It's just my policy. Thank you for the food!" She lights up, "Anytime!" and I walk back to our table.