"Wake up Beautiful," I heard Nate say.
My eyes were closed as I had been in and out of sleep. The truck gets so cozy when the tinted windows are up and the air conditioning is on. I groaned, barely responding to him.
"Wake yo thick ass up," he chuckled, grabbing my thigh.
I slapped his hand. "Stop it," I whined. "Stop calling me fat."
"I said thick not fat. And if you call those thighs fat then oh well, I love it."
"Shut it."
"What?" He laughed. "I do...especially when they're wrapped around my-"
"Okay! Okay, I'm up, I'm up." I opened my eyes and sat upright, stretching in what little space I had. "Are we here?"
"Just about."
We left Aunt Greta's around 6 in the morning before she woke up. I made sure not to seduce Nate at all last night just so he could stay alert on the road. I see I had to slow him down again. The last time he got this worked up, we ended up fucking in a field behind a huge bush. Romantic? I guess. But it wasn't so romantic when I felt something sting near my ankle. It wasn't a bee nor red ants, possibly a yellowjacket. Didn't matter. It hurt. And because I love him so much, I let the sex continue. But not again. We were almost at our destination and I'm definitely done with sex in fields with stagnant air.
"He knows we're coming right?" I asked.
"...He knows I am."
"Babe..."
"If I told him I was bringin' my girl then he wouldn't hook it up with the spare room," he explained.
"If it's a spare room then I don't see the big deal."
"With his girl, three's company, four's a crowd. We're already pushin' with five."
"Five?"
"...Did I mention John has a baby?"
"No," I shouted condescendingly. "You forgot to mention that one small detail, sweetheart! Now I'm gonna feel like a bother. Do you know how much stress a baby is? Now they have to be hospitable to someone and their tag-along girlfriend. Great. Perf."
"Babe..."
"No."
"Liv! ...I was playin', relax. There's no baby & there's no girl."
There was a slight pause. Nate was trying not to laugh and I was ready to slap him if he did.
"...Are you mad at me?" He glanced over at me after we turned onto another street. He was a jerk for this because he knows I can't stay mad at that face. And then he licked his lips.
"You're...totally abusing your power right now," I laughed. I didn't want to but I couldn't help it. There's no denying we've been having fun on the road despite everything else.
. . .
John aka Swazz's apartment could've used a serious clean-up. At least it smelled good. Nate took pride in saying all the scented candles were his idea. It made sense. Back at Nate's house there were tons of burnt out scented candle jars just so he could mask the weed smell. Plus, he just preferred a good-smelling home. Speaking of which, I didn't bring that subject up: home. With Alex still hospitalized and Foosh being a complete psycho, he couldn't go back there. And even if he did, he couldn't afford the rent on his own. But he had said not too long ago that he'll cross that bridge when he got to it.
Swazz was in the kitchen wearing a ribbed tank top & boxers, mixing up drinks. Meanwhile, his roommate Jacob (wearing almost matching attire) was lazily seated on the dark grey couch with a bong between his legs and a game controller in his hands. I sat super close to Nate mainly because I felt like I was surrounded by germs. You can be a stoner all you want but at least clean up once in a blue moon.
Suddenly a girl with dyed blonde hair emerged from one of the back rooms. She had just woken up, wearing a Powerpuff Girls t-shirt and, shocker, a pair of boxers.
"Oh hello," she said in a raspy voice to us. We both waved.
"That's my girlfriend, Bea," Jacob said. "Bea, that's Nate and Olive."
"Olivia," I corrected him.
"Oh shit, sorry," Jacob chuckled. His eyes were super puffy.
Bea walked over and took the bong from him, handing it over to Swazz.
"Dude, clean this shit," she requested of him.
"Later," Swazz replied. He soon presented us with the drinks and it was actually really delicious. "So how long are you guys gonna be in Colorado?"
"We were thinking a couple of days," I answered.
"Yeah we gotta hurry and get the job done so we can live in peace," Nate added.
"Foosh used to be so cool yo. I would've never thought he'd blow up like that."
"Who the hell is Foosh?" Jacob interrupted. "What kinda name is Foosh?"
"His real name is Jake, babe," Bea answered from the kitchen. "His last name is Foushee."
"Wait," Jacob paused the game. "How do you know?"
I quickly glanced over at Swazz who put his head a little lower as if it were in the way of a line of fire.
"...We've met before," she said. "And John's right. Foosh used to be cool. He was a bad boy. So whatever you guys are running from or running for right now, it must be pretty extreme."
"He threatened us," I spoke up.
Nate squeezed my knee, wanting me to shut up. But I felt like Bea needed to know and possibly would introduce us to a weakness of his...since she knew him.
"Go on." She sat down on the armrest of the couch.
"Evan's trackin' us," Nate interjected. "Our phones."
"Yeah now they gotta get to L.A. and pick up something," Swazz added. "No cops, no nothing or else..."
"They not only threatened our lives...they mentioned my family," I started to tremble.
Just then, Nate's cell phone rings and we both look to see that it's Foosh. He purposely puts it on speaker.
"Hello?" Nate answered.
"Having fun in Colorado?" Foosh asked.
"I guess."
"Is Liv still with you?"
"Yes."
"Give her the phone."
I waited a moment, acting as if Nate was taking a while to get to me.
"Hello," I gulped.
"Liv...sweetie...how are ya?"
"I've been better."
"Cheer up. You've got the open air, you've got Nate...i'm sure Nate isn't complainin' after these pictures I see."
"What pictures?"
"Aww, you don't remember takin' these?" Evan shouted in the background. "Your boobs are phenomenal when wet."
"Oh, we hacked into your computer, by the way. Don't worry, Andrea wasn't home."
"You broke into my apartment and my computer?!"
"No," Foosh laughed. "Jack opened the door. Apparently he and Andrea are fucking. Anyway, he opened the door, wouldn't let us in, badabing-"
"Badaboom," Evan added.
"We lightly hit him over the head," Foosh continued. "Tied him up a bit, but don't worry he's still alive. We won't take anything, we promise. Just needed to find out a little more information about you."
"I don't know Jake," Evan spoke. "I might keep these nudes for myself. Personal reasons...and maybe a form of blackmail if she rats us out."
I was so upset and shaking that I just handed the phone back to Nate. Nate had a few choice words for them, I could tell. He was red in the face. I was embarrassed as Swazz, Bea, & Jacob looked at me with sympathy. When Nate ended the call he rubbed my back.
"You okay?" He asked.
"It's funny because I took those pictures for me," I sniffled. "I didn't intend on anyone seeing them. But I just knew that I had achieved a goal and for once I wanted to feel sexy in my own skin. Now I just...feel violated. I mean, if I wanted anyone to see them, it would be you. You know that."
"I know, lil mama." He kissed my forehead & took a deep breath.
. . .
We went to a bar that was a cheap knockoff of Coyote Ugly. It was Open Stage Night and attendants, both male & female, could go on stage, pick a song, and dance 'sexy' to it. A few more drinks and I would be up for that. Jacob and Bea were all lovey dovey next to us while Swazz kept his eyes on all the drunken female talent in the vicinity. Nate hadn't touched me all night and it was probably because I was still shaken up by everything. I was practically the 5th wheel once Nate and Swazz started having their own conversation; talking about sports and three of Swazz's past sexual encounters.
"She didn't even know how to play with my balls, bro," Swazz obnoxiously stated as he knocked back a gulp of his beer.
"No wait," Bea giggled on the other side of me in Jacob's laughed. "You've got something on your nose."
"Get it off," Jacob playfully moaned.
I rolled my eyes at them all and downed the rest of my 3rd Long Island Iced Tea. I snuck away from the table and made my way to the DJ and he gave me a book with a limited song selection. But I chose a song that Nate had been humming: Take Me To Church by Hozier, in hopes it would catch his attention to see I had actually left the table. I felt like letting loose and stepping outside of my comfort zone again. I told the DJ my song and red-lighting request, then took my place near the pole.
My eyes never left Nate even though the red stage lights were right in my eyes. All I could see was him. He took a quick glance up at the stage and then made a double-take. I moved slow and smoothly with the rhythm, taking my time around the pole and rolling my hips. The alcohol was setting in more and I unbuttoned the top 3 buttons of my shirt, revealing some of my bra.
I ended up crawling on the floor; the raw wood against my knees. Still I kept my gaze on him. I noticed him moving around in his chair a bit and taking a few gulps of air. He took off his hat and ran his fingers through his hair, then ran his hands over the stubble on his face.
Damn, he mouthed.
When the song ended, I received cheers and applause. I had forgotten other people were in the room. Apparently Nate did too because he looked around just like me. As I got off stage, he met me & hugged me.
"We have to talk," he said to me.
Now I was worried. I followed him outside and we walked all the way to the truck.
"Get in, we have a problem," he stated.
We hopped in the car and he started it up.
"Did Foosh call you again?" I asked.
"Nah," he replied. He rushed forward and kissed me. "I just wanted to get you alone," he breathed. "That was fuckin' sexy."
"Yeah?" I smiled into the kiss. "You really think so?"
He bit my bottom lip softly. "Mhmm."
I moved back a bit and giggled as I proceeded to crawl into the back seats of the truck even though it's more cramped.
"Get back here," I smiled.
He grabbed his shirt and pulled it over his head before joining me in the back. Our lips crashed together and he tugged at my shirt until the rest of the buttons were undone. His mouth traveled down the valley of my breasts and down my stomach, then making its way back up to my neck. I ran my hands up and down his abs and I heard his belt unbuckle. It was only a matter of time before he reached underneath my skirt to see if I was ready for him and I had been ready. From the time he looked at me on stage like I was dessert to him whispering obscenities in my ear right now, my body knew what time it was. He pressed so hard against his boxers that eventually he didn't even have to take them fully off. We couldn't wait. I tugged on his hair while he put his back into it. My leg was up on the seats just so he could get more access. I felt him in my stomach and I felt nearly every detail of his length. Even with the tinted windows, anyone who should happen to walk next to the car would know something was going on inside. They would be getting a free show because we weren't stopping for anyone.
. . .
The morning sun was bright and we didn't have breakfast yet. Just had to run one little errand before returning to Swazz's place. Everyone was still knocked out as we left anyway.
I got back in the car with the bag & my bottle of water.
"Did you find it okay," Nate asked.
"Yeah, already took it," I said.
"I thought you were already on the pill," he went on. "I don't see why you need Plan B too."
"Just in case," I responded. "The last thing we need is a kid. Especially right now."
"I know it's just..." He shook his head and shrugged.
"What?"
"Nothin'. I'm hungry. I know they ain't up, wanna just hit up a diner or something?"
"Sure."
The drive continued on as a quiet one. An awkward quiet. I would sense him looking at me everytime we got to a red light. He wanted to speak but I didn't want to push him. I didn't even want to wonder what he was truly thinking because my thoughts tend to run wild. But something told me one of my wild thoughts might be the correct answer.
Once the light turned green, he reached for my hand. I always found it sexy how he drove with one hand on top of the steering wheel; looking like he ran shit everywhere we went. His thumb gently drawing circles over my thumb. I smiled to myself, reminded of how perfect his hand fits mine.