The music stayed low as we got on the highway, Tyler's hand resting on my bare thigh. It was dark, but I could still make out the smile on his face. He was relaxed, probably more relaxed than I'd ever seen him before.
"Have you heard from him?" He asked after several minutes of comfortable silence.
"No," I gave him the same answer I did every day he asked the question. "Can we forget that he exists? Just tonight."
Tyler glanced from the road to me apologetically. "Sorry," he said and squeezed my thigh where his hand rested just above my knee. I flinched at that started to pull away but Tyler immediately turned to me, concerned. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," I quickly reassured him, realizing that he was used to me flinching away because something hurt. "That just tickled."
The concern in his eyes quickly changed to mischief. "You're ticklish?"
"A little," I said skeptically.
"How did I not know that?" He asked, but I didn't give an answer because that would mean up bringing up ugly truths and people that I wanted to just forget for tonight. Tyler must not have expected an answer anyway because he didn't wait for one before his fingers tightened around my leg again, quickly squeezing and releasing over and over. I squirmed in the seat, squealing with laughter that burned my still bruised ribs but I didn't care.
"That's not fair," I said trying to catch my breath through my laughter.
Stopping, Tyler laughed. "What's not fair."
"I'm stuck here," I said grinning and half anticipating his hand that was still resting on my leg to start it's tickling assault again. "I can't even run."
"You would run from me?" He challenged, one eyebrow lifting.
I opened my mouth to say yes at the same time his hand began to slide up high on my thigh and my mouth closed, seemingly forgetting how to speak. He held my eyes for a second before briefly glancing back to the road and then to me again as his fingers inched a little higher still.
"Evie?" He prompted, amused.
"No," I said. "I wouldn't run from you."
He grinned, wide and toothy. "Good," he said and then dragged his hand back to my knee and tickled me again.
He laughed at me laughing so hard that no sound was coming out and tears were filling my eyes which only made me laugh even harder.
"That's just mean," I said when I could finally catch my breath.
"I love hearing you laugh."
"Even when I'm snorting?"
"Especially then," he said sincerely.
I rolled my eyes. "You're weird." I faced the window, not really sure where we were headed but looking for clues. We were leaving town and I wasn't sure what there really was to do getting further from the city. "Are you going to tell me where we're going?"
"Not yet." When I heaved a sigh, he added, "We're nearly there."
He hadn't been lying it was only a few more miles before he exited the highway and if I thought that would have given me an idea of where we were going, I was wrong. My legs bounced up an down impatiently as we took several turns down small roads.
"You know," I said. "If you're just taking me somewhere to park and get some, we could have stayed a lot closer to home."
He let out a loud, amused laugh. "I'm not taking you somewhere to park. I don't think that's a thing anymore, Evie."
"Of course it is," I said. "Are you saying you've never hooked up in a car before?"
His expression morphed into something that was half amused and half very confused. "Are you implying that you have?" he turned the question around on me.
"Maybe I was hoping you'd be my first."
His lips turned down in thought and I knew for a second there he considered pulling over the car and forgetting whatever he had actually planned. And a part of me was really down for that. But then we turned down another road and were suddenly in a line of cars.
"We're here?" I asked peering out through the windshield to figure out where here was. "Where are we?"
He didn't answer, but after a few minutes of waiting, we moved forward enough in the line that I could see a large white screen. The moment I noticed it, I turned to Tyler unable to contain my excitement.
"This is a drive-in theater?" I asked but didn't wait for an answer. "I didn't know any of these were still around."
"There aren't many, but I found this one a few years back. They show most classics."
We drove up to the window where a vendor, an older man, peeked through our window smiling. "Been here before?"
"Yes sir," Tyler said.
"It's fifteen for the car," he said and Tyler pulled some cash out of his wallet and handed it to the man as he explained what station to tune into to hear the movie and where we needed to park. "Enjoy."
We drove forward and pulled into the spot we were directed into. There were already a couple dozen other cars around us, but we had a good spot.
"This is so cool."
"It is?" He asked and I looked at him for the first time noticing that he was nervous. I knew this place meant something to him and so did sharing it with me. Maybe it was escapism maybe it was just a love for cinema, but I knew Tyler loved movies. It was movies that we'd initially bonded over, what had us talking about something other than Garret. So it was fitting that he planned this as our date.
"I love it," I said. "What are we watching?"
"Night of the Living Dead," he said.
"That's zombies, right?"
He shook his head in exasperation. "It's the zombie movie, Evie. Romero put zombies on the map."
"You're cute when you're geeking out over movies."
"You can't call me cute, Evie."
I grinned. "Adorable."
His hand found my leg again and he squeezed, starting to tickle me.
"Fine, fine, fine," I said quickly not thinking my as could handle laughing that hard again. "Sexy," I amended. "It's sexy when you geek out over movies."
Tyler leaned across the car and the hand that had been on my leg found its way up into my hair. "Better," he said as he guided me toward him and caught my lips with his. I heard the click of his seat belt unfastening and then he shifted closer to me, deepening the kiss as his free hand settled back on my leg, sliding up higher and higher until it slipped until the hem of my dress. A horn honking and laughter outside the car pulled us apart, seemingly reminding each of us that we weren't in private.
"There's a snack bar over that way, and some picnic tables and such with speakers. We can go grab some popcorn and watch outside if you want, or come back to the car."
"Okay," I agreed.
Unbuckling my own seatbelt, I pushed open the door and slid out of the car, careful to adjust my skirt and avoid giving anyone a free show as I stood up straight. Tyler met me around the side of the car as I shut the door. His hand rested on my waist as we walked toward the snack bar line. We weaved between other parked cars and the people either inside them or standing around them. Some seemed to come here in larger groups, there was a truck full that backed into the spot and everyone was climbing into the bed to watch. There were other couples like us and I saw a couple of families too.
The owners kept an old school vibe to the theater. The set up and styling of everything was reminiscent of the 1950s or 60s when these sorts of theaters were in their golden age.
"You want something to drink?"
"If you don't mind sharing, whatever you get is fine," I said partially because I knew I'd never finish a full sized drink anyway, but partially because I wasn't sure what his money situation was for the evening and I didn't want to put any unnecessary strain. It was on the tip of my tongue to offer to get the snacks, but he'd made it clear that he planned the date, it was his treat.
When we got to the front of the line, he ordered a large soda, popcorn, and some chocolate crunch candies. After paying the lady, he grabbed the bag of popcorn and pocketed the small candy box. I grabbed the drink and we quickly moved out of the way.
"Are those swings?" I asked spotting a swing set off to one side. Something in my voice must have given away how much I liked the idea of the swings because Tyler started walking toward them, pulling me with him. "This place is amazing." I set the drink down a safe distance away and took a seat in one of the swings. I kicked off the ground and started swing gently back and forth. It sounded silly to even think it, but there was something about swinging that felt free. I closed my eyes and felt the air gliding over my skin and through my hair. When I opened them, Tyler was standing in front of me to the left. He was just watching me, smiling. I quickly returned his smile and tightened my grip on the chains to keep myself from jumping off the swing and onto him. "We can watch the movie out here?"
"Mhmm," Tyler said and pointed to where a couple of speakers were mounted to the frame of the swing set. He set the popcorn down next to the soda and then walked about behind me and wrapped his fingers around mine that were wrapped around the chains of the swing. "You're cute when you're geeking out over children's playground equipment." I turned to look at him, expecting him to meet me for a kiss. Tyler leaned in but before our lips met he pushed me forward, chuckling at the surprised yelp that left my lips.
"Funny," I said.
"I know," he agreed as he pushed me back and forth. The lights dimmed and the screen flashed with a message that the movie was going to begin shortly. Headlights that had been left on turned off and the whole place quieted. Tyler grabbed the popcorn and drink and took a seat on the swing next to mine. He passed me the drink and I took a sip before placing it on the ground in the safe spot between our swings. The screen went black for a moment and then a countdown appeared from 10. When the countdown ended, the scene opened at a cemetery where two siblings are visiting their father's grave. It isn't but a couple of moments before one of them is bit and the zombie action starts.
The movie was enough to give me chills but because it was black and white and older it doesn't have the same scare factor to me that some newer movies have. So we watched it swinging back and forth, passing the popcorn and candy between each other until both were empty. When we finished the snacks, Tyler moved to stand behind me again and resumed pushing me as we watched the movie play out but when the zombies started invading the house, I was too invested and stood to watch the movie more intently. When the main character is able to blockade himself safely I begin to relax.
I gasped loudly at the end and turned to Tyler who I think had been watching me more than the movie for the last few minutes.
"I can't believe that happened," I said, still shocked.
"You didn't see it coming?" he asked and I shook my head.
"One person usually makes it through!" I argued and Tyler chuckled.
"You were more into it than I expected." I returned his smile. I was more into it than I expected too. Usually horror movies weren't my first choice, but I did like it. And I knew it made him happy that I liked it, I could see it all over his face. "We have a few minutes before we need to head back. You wanna take a walk?"
I nodded. "Only if you promise we aren't going to be attacked by zombies."
"I can make no promises," he said sounding very serious. "But I've played a lot of video games, I know how to take one of those fuckers out."
A laugh burst out of me and he squeezed my hand as we walked down a trail around the theater. Talon had always described Tyler as kind of goofy and funny, but that wasn't a side of him I had, before tonight, really had the opportunity to see. In the beginning he'd been so defensive and moody. Then he became a protector and that was the main role he took one. He'd occasionally send me texts or make jokes, but nothing like tonight. Even the last couple weeks when we'd spend time at my house, it was like he never fully relaxed. Serious, that's what it was. He just always seemed serious to me. And Tyler was always careful how he touched me, like he was worried that he was misstepping or taking something from me.
Being with him tonight, it was like he felt the same freedom I did. There wasn't this awful weight hanging over us. We were two people, totally normal people, on a date.
"I think you might be the best thing that's ever happened to me."
In the dark, I couldn't see him too well but I could tell from his profile that a smile lit his face.
"I don't know about that."
"I do and I am like, scary in love with you."
Tyler must have been paying attention because he stopped and abruptly turned to face me. A trail light bast weird shadows on both or faces but I couldn't have missed the intensity in his eyes if it were pitch black.
"Fatal attraction scary?" he joked, but his eyes held their intensity.
"I don't think I have it in me to boil any bunnies." I said, proud that I actually got a movie reference he made before explaining. "Scary like I didn't know it was possible to fall for someone so hard and I didn't expect it and I don't really know how to handle loving someone who isn't horrible. Scary like...like skydiving."
"You haven't said it sober," he said quietly.
I hadn't thought of it like that. The first time I spoke the words, they were the clearest thing I'd ever known and no amount of pain killers could have clouded that feeling. I'd meant it then every bit as much as I meant it now. But he was right, I hadn't said it again since the first time. I didn't want to overuse it or make him feel bad for not saying it in return, so I'd refrained. The last thing I wanted from him was a obligatory I love you.
"I didn't want to scare you with it. Or pressure you or anything."
"You couldn't." His hands cupped either side of my face. "Hearing you say that is one of the best sounds in the world."
"Good," I whispered. "Because I love you."
He kissed me, which was perfect and loving and toe-tingling and left me aching for more. His kiss said everything that he couldn't. A teeny tiny part of me wanted the validation, wanted to hear him say the words I knew were true. But he didn't. He would though, it was just going to take him time.
"We should head back," he said when my lips were good and swollen. "Wouldn't want to be late getting you back," he teased.
I rolled my eyes because I hadn't cared too much about my dad's curfew requirement. Mostly, I found it ridiculous of him to try to put a curfew on me when I'd basically lived alone and did whatever I wanted since I could drive.
We strolled back to the car slowly, not ready to return to the real world. We made several more excuses to stop along the way back and Tyler let his hands wander which offered distraction more than once.
"Princess," he said teasingly when he opened the car door for me and smiling I climbed him. As he shut the door and walked around to the driver's side, I reached for my phone where I'd left it hidden under a sweater in the floor of passenger seat. When the screen lit up, I frowned and worry settled in a newly formed pit in my stomach.
"What's wrong?" Tyler asked, closing his door.
"I have a bunch of missed calls," I said dragging my eyes away from the screen to look at him. "Where's your phone? Did Talon call you?"
His lips pursed and he shook his head. "I left mine in the car too." He reached down into the door pocket where he'd hidden his phone and the same look of concern etched his face and the pit in my stomach grew. I turned my attention back to my phone.
Five missed calls from Talon. Three from Julia. Six from my father.
My father tried to call me six times.
I had a couple voicemails but I ignored those, opting to look at the most recent text message first.
The pretty isolated bubbled we'd spent our evening in popped as I read the words, don't come home on the screen.