"We've been driving for hours, Harvey," Lennon complained, her head leaning against the base of the open window. "Where the hell are we going?"
"You'll see," he repeated the same statement he's been saying since they left Long Beach.
"Can I at least have a hint?" She pleaded, her eyes going wide and pushing her bottom lips out in a pout.
Needless to say, it worked. Harvey cleared his throat, and moved his gaze back to the road. "It's a place my mother used to take me to see where life really awakens."
"Like that description wasn't cryptic at all," she muttered to herself, making Harvey chuckle under his breath.
"Hey, I love this song," she said as she turned up the radio. "I didn't know you listen to these kind of stations."
"It's amazing how many judgements you make about me before actually watching my actions," he told her, with an eye roll.
"I'm in misery where you can seem as old as your omens," she sang along, her eyes closed and her arms up as she felt the cool wind rush through strand of her hairs.
Harvey couldn't take his eyes of the brunette beauty sitting in the passenger seat next to him. She looked so carefree and aloof as she enjoyed herself.
He forced himself to pay attention to the road, and not at the girl who singlehandedly managed to steal his heart again, just like she did a month ago.
"We're almost there," he reassured her, his eyes connecting with hers momentarily before switching back to the road.
Lennon didn't know why she was so comfortable with Harvey driving her hours away from home on a school day. It was the first time she's ever skipped out of school, but she wasn't nervous or scared like she thought she would be.
As she looked out the window, she saw a sign that read "Welcome to Calexico".
"Oh my god," she murmured, her eyes wide. "We're at the border of Mexico."
Harvey shrugged and sent her a carefree smirk. "We aren't going to Mexico if that's what you're thinking. But we are going to experience the nightlife that's just before it."
He drove up to a dim establishment, and Lennon couldn't tell what it was.
"I don't know Spanish, Harvey. How the hell are we supposed to-"
"¿Qué hacer le necesita para conseguir un poco de servicio de mi chica y yo por aquí?" Harvey hollered across the parking lot in fluent Spanish.
(translation: what do I need to get some service for me and my girl over here?)
She was so surprised that she stopped in her tracks and dropped her jaw.
"Aye, Señor Harvey!" A large man with bronzed skin and a odd mustache came out of the restaurant to greet him. "It's been a while!"
Harvey clapped him on the back, with a huge smile on his face. "I've been busy, man."
The man's eyes trailed over to Lennon, and she nervously shifted her weight.
"¿Es esta la gringa que estabas tan enamorado con de un mes?" He asked Harvey, his gaze still trained on her.
(translation: is this the white girl you were so in love with a month ago?)
Lennon didn't know much Spanish but she did know that "gringa" meant white girl.
"Martí," Harvey groaned, his head resting in his hands as a faint blush covered his cheeks. "Me estás avergonzando."
(translation: you're embarrassing me.)
He let out a bellowing laugh.
"Lennon, this is Martínez," Harvey introduced. "And Martínez, Lennon."
"Nice to meet you, Sir," she said politely, outstretching her hand.
He grasped it and gave it a firm shake. "Likewise."
"I never knew you could speak Spanish," she said to Harvey, her eyebrows raised.
"I'm half Cuban, and my mom taught me so we could always talk shit about my father without him even being aware," he explained with a chuckle.
"Now come," Harvey said to Lennon, grasping her hand in his own. "Let me show you what life actually looks like when it's lived to the fullest."
——
Lennon watched the salsa dancers in awe as they spun swiftly and clapped their hands along with the mariachi band in the background, their bodies moving together in sync.
"They look like they have a spiritual connection," she said dreamily as she continued to watch the couple. "The passion is literally seeping into my pores."
"They've been married for ten years," Harvey informed her, watching her as she watched the dancers. "So I guess you could say their chemistry is easy to pick up on."
She smiled softly and the dim lights casted a shadow across her delicate features.
"Come with me," he whispered, before tugging her hand in another direction.
They walked out the back door of the restaurant, and out into the open field behind, where they could still hear the upbeat tunes sounding from where they stood.
"Dance with me," he insisted, holding out his hand for her to take.
"I don't dance," she started while taking his outstretched hand, "but I find myself making unusual exceptions for you."
Harvey only grinned in response and slowly rocked them from side to side while she rested her head on his chest, ignoring the sounds of the instruments and listening to the beat of their own hearts.
"I was wrong about you," she murmured into his chest while they continued to dance slowly. "I thought you lacked passion and artistry, but it seems you're more of an artist than me."
"How so?" He asked, moving backwards so he could gaze into her eyes. Her eyes, God, her eyes were like endless pools of dark brown.
"You paint people," she stated, a slight smile on her face. "You don't even realize you do it, but you memorize every detail of something that occurs in front of you. You cast your emotions onto the people around you, so that they can feel exactly what you feel depending on how you project your feelings. Your passions-seen by other people but at the same time, it's all over the place. It's messy, just like an abstract painting. You paint people."
Lennon nodded her head when she finished, blushing like an idiot while Harvey stared at her, both startled and shocked by her revelation.
"Wow, I must've sounded crazy," she tried to laugh off her words. "Forget I even said-"
Her words were cut off by Harvey taking one giant step towards her, grabbing the back of her neck and bringing his lips down onto hers.
She let out a shaky sigh before pulling him closer to her own body. This kiss was much more gentle than the first kiss they shared, but she could still detect the same level of passion radiating off of him in muted waves.
"C'mere," he murmured, throwing his arm around her shoulders after he drew away from her. She nestled into his side and situated herself on his chest.
Harvey kissed the top of her head before bringing Lennon down with him to sit on the grassy field. "The sun is setting, and the sunset here is beautiful, trust me."
"If only you told me earlier I would've brought my canvas and painted it!" She complained while smacking him in the side.
"Ow!" He glared at her in annoyance before taking his phone out of his pocket. "We live in a world where there's technology for a reason. Utilize it."
"Do you think Monet had an iPad when he painted Water Lilies? I don't think Vincent Van Gogh was snapping pictures on his Galaxy S5 while doing Starry Night, either," she huffed as she took the pictures. She hated laziness, and using things like this to achieve artistic goals was impossible.
"But if he did, I'm pretty sure it would've looked more like a night sky than a bunch of yellow and navy blue blobs everywhere."
Lennon dropped her jaw in surprise and her eyes widened. She couldn't believe those words left his mouth. "Take that back."
He chuckled. "I stand by what I say."
"Take it...BACK!" She yelled before pouncing.
She jumped on top of him, which caught him by off guard so she was able to pin him to the ground easy.
"I never actually been involved with someone who is almost as strong as me," he said in shock as he tried to wriggle out of her grip.
"Basketball really pays off," she bragged, a smile on her face.
Taking her distraction as a weakness, he grabbed her wrists and flipped her over so quickly she didn't realize what happened until she saw she was under him.
"Cheater!" She cried, trying to shimmy away from him. "I wasn't ready!"
"There's only one way you're allowed to leave my hold," he bargained, a smirk finding its way onto his lips. "Kiss me. I want you to initiate it."
"What?" She asked in confusion. "Why do you want me to do that?"
"I just do," he said, giving nothing away. "C'mon, just do it."
She looked hesitant, before pushing her neck off the ground to meet his lips. But before their lips could even brush, Lennon's phone rang.
"What the fuck!" Harvey yelled out, before rolling over to lay next to her on the ground. "You're right, technology ruins everything!"
She laughed but the sound quickly died in her throat when she saw the caller ID.
Her hands began to shake when she noticed the time. "Oh god, I totally lost track of time."
Lennon answered the phone after taking a few deep breaths. "Hello?"
By the time she realized her mistake, it was too late. She probably should've made sure she hit the answer button instead of speaker phone.
"BITCH WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU? YOU BETTER GET YOUR ASS HOME TO THIS HOUSE RIGHT NOW BEFORE I BEAT YOU SENSELESS JUST LIKE YOUR DEADBEAT MOTHER-" she hung up the phone and closed her eyes, while trying not to cry.
Harvey knew. He knows now. Everything is going to change.
"Lennon," he started but she simply put a hand up.
"Please," she murmured into her hands, "please just take me somewhere. Anywhere."
He nodded before standing up. "Whatever you want, baby. Whatever you want."
————
a/n: okay wuuut up
btw I am so so sorry for those sorry ass spanish translations like i actually went to spanishdict.com and tried to translate it but it looks weird idk
I listened to the song in the media bar while I wrote this and I really like it so give it a listen and see if it suits your music taste :)
all the love,
rachel.