"And then, he told me I was being 'A bit much.'!" River cried out, lounging up side down on my bed, "Can you believe that? Can you fucking believe that?!"
I winced at her volume.
"A bit much? Like, what the fuck is that supposed to mean? I'll rip his face off! I'll rip it right off!" She growled out.
My eyes widened at the strange sound coming from my best friend's chest. All these years later and I still hadn't quite gotten used to her growls and snarls.
But, my precious River has always been this way. Loud, bold, vicious, and wild. She was everything daring, and it truly made her shine. River never questioned herself or her abilities. It was one of the many things I admired about her.
We were so incredibly different, yet had been best friends for over 12 years.
For example, in first grade, I can clearly remember screaming when I discovered a snake in the playground sandbox. Immediately, I began crying and made a beeline for the Teachers. River on the other hand, grabbed the snake by its head and began to pretend that it was a phone.
I can still remember her voice, 'Hello? Huh? No, this is River!' She held the creature against her plump little cheek, like it were a telephone.
That's the exact moment I realized she was insane.
And these beautiful differences between us only grew more and more as we grew up. At pool parties, I'd lay down and focus on my tan. River would kick as many of the boys into the pool as she could.
In highschool, I remember just sitting there and crying as Beth Tayels laughed and called me a whore in front of the whole lunch room. River pulled her ponytail and punched her in the face. Twice.
Honestly, I could go on and on about how different we were. But I can't imagine my life without my brazen best friend. She really inspired me to be.... just, more. More everything.
"A bit much, my asshole! I'll show him what 'A bit much' really is! She exclaimed, suddenly sitting up.
"Riv, just give him some time to calm down, he'll come around. You two are literally a match made in heaven. It's almost freaky how perfect you are for each other." I told her.
Her angry expression immediately softened, "I know, right? God, he's so hot. A fucking idiot, but... But like a hot one, ya know?" She sighed.
I smiled at her and laughed. "You and Jonah just need to get married and run away to castle together already. What has it been, four years?"
She hummed and flopped back on my bed. "Four years and many, many, more. And if we run away to a castle, you're coming too!"
I giggled at her comment and went back to playing on my phone. Suddenly, River leapt from the bed and landed on top of me and the beanbag I laid on.
I groaned as she laughed. "Speaking of running away, Montana?" She asked with a hopeful look in her eye.
My eyes widened, "You were serious about the whole Montana thing?"
She slapped my butt, yearning a loud yelp from me. "Of course I was serious! Come on, Tabs. Live a little!" She egged me on. "Please! Please, it'll be so much fun!"
I shrugged, "I don't know, Riv. It's our first year of college. Is now really the time for a... a random trip across the country? I-I mean how much do we know about Jonah's cousins anyways?"
River rolled her eyes and slumped off of me. "First of all, both of us are taking all online classes, dumb dumb. Second, his cousins are cool! Well, he says they are."
I frowned. "I don't know...."
"Okay, okay. Worst case scenario, you hate it and have a bad time, so we leave early. Boom. Easy. Easy Peasy." She said simply.
"But-"
"No buts! Easy peasy!" She yelled.
I sighed again, "It's just, you know how my Mom is, she'd never say-"
I was cut off by multiple punches landing on my back. "Easy! Fucking! Peasy!" She cried in between the playful hits.
I laughed and tried to hit her back. But, as always, River was freakishly strong. The kind of strong that made me question what the hell she put in her coffee everyday. And when we wrestled like this, which was often, I knew my best friend was intentionally going easy on me.
How very kind of her, right?
"Okay!" River stood up to leave after a few hours. "I'm going to get all the details from Jonah about the trip to Montana. You, young lady, need to start buttering up your Mother." She pointed at me with a stern look.
I frowned into her brown curls as she hugged me, "I'm older than you. But fine, I'll talk to her about it. Don't get your hopes up!"
She practically bounced out of my room, "Oh, they're already sky high!"
I rolled my eyes with a laugh.
After River left, I began my mission. The mission of convincing my Mother to let me go to Montana with my best friend and her boyfriend, to her boyfriend's mysterious cousin's property.
Okay, maybe I should call my mission something else. The mission of letting me go to Montana. Much better.
I slowly crept down the stairs, following the sound of her humming from the kitchen. There, my mother was singing softly as she pulled a heavenly smelling dish from the oven. She seemed like she was in a good mood.
Excellent.
"Mommy..." I dragged out with a smile as I approached her.
My Mother's eyes narrowed in slits as she eyed me suspiciously, "Tabitha...." She mimicked.
"Remember when we would wear matching best friend's bracelets?" I asked, "We should start doing that again, don't you think?"
She halted her actions and stared at me with a silent raised brow.
"What? I want the world to know you're my best friend. Ever. For life." I said.
My Mother placed her hands on her hips and turned to fully face me. "Okay. One: You and I both know River holds that title. You had to stop her from getting that 'I love Tabitha' tattoo last year."
I bit my lip to smother my laughter. I forgot she did that. Well, almost did.
"Two: I know you want something from me, so you might as well just spill it." She said, turning back to her cooking.
I pouted at her rejection.
"River wants me to go with her to Montana. Jonah would be with us. We'd go and stay with his cousins who live there. It'd only be two weeks, and we'd stay together the whole time, and-"
"That sounds like a blast, sweetheart." My Mother said with a smile.
My eyebrows hit my hairline, "....Really?"
She nodded, "Yeah! I trust you girls, you're almost twenty now. And I love that Jonah, he's so responsible." She turned to look at me, "But you're taking that laptop, Missy. I don't want you falling behind already in your college courses."
I quickly nodded my head, still shocked at her agreement. "O-Of course..."
My Mother tasted a spoonful of the meal she was cooking, "Honestly Tabbie, you need to get out more. I want you to be going out more, I really do. I don't want you regretting spending your teen years up in that bedroom."
"Thank you!" I smiled, ignored her scolding of my introverted habits, and bounded up the stairs.
I quickly called River, to tell her the good news. After she was done squealing, Jonah took the phone from her. "So you're coming with?" He asked. "I'm guessing by her screaming that you're coming with."
"Yep! I hope your cousins don't mind one more person in their house..." I said into the speaker.
"Nah, you and Riv are a pretty much a package deal. And they have... Uh, they have a lot of rooms there. So no worries." He laughed and I could hear Rivers laugh in the background.
I brushed off the weird comment and chit chatted with them for a bit longer before hanging up. Excitement coursed through me as the plan became more real. I was excited, and nervous. Half and half.
It still seemed a little strange, going to Jonah's cousins land for two weeks. He had mentioned that they live in a very closed off community with a large amount of property and people. And whenever I asked for more details, River would say I was being, and I quote, 'a turd'.
A strange feeling settled in my gut. It was the feeling you get, right before something big happens. I couldn't tell you what big thing was about to happen, but it certainly felt like there was one.
.